The Shimmering Snowflake Melt and Pour Soaps are another sparkly gift option. The details in the Snowflake 2 Mold are filled in with blue soap. Shimmery white soap is then poured on top. The bars are scented with, of course, Fresh Snow Fragrance Oil. Add them to your holiday gift sets or use them as a cute stocking stuffer. They would also make a fun project to make with family this season!

The Impression Mat Soap makes a great gift anytime of year. It’s made by pouring blue soap into the Butterflies and Feathers Impression Mat. The extra soap is then scraped out and white soap scented with White Magnolia Fragrance Oil is carefully poured into the mold. The resulting bars have a beautiful and interesting design.

The holidays are also an important and busy time of year for small business owners. If you’re just getting started selling handmade goods, you may be wondering if you need a business license or a trademark. It depends a lot on what’s right for you and your business. Click through the Do I Need a Business License and a Trademark post to learn more.

Another thing that can help increase sales are unique and eye-catching soap designs. This week’s Facebook Photo of the Week by Jessica with Soul 6 Soaps definitely stands out. It’s scented with Black Raspberry Vanilla Fragrance Oil.

How perfect is Jessica’s butterfly swirl? The wings are perfectly defined, and it even has cute antennas! The colors are vibrant and beautiful as well. To learn how to get the look, check out the Monarch Butterfly Cold Process Tutorial. The Sparkling Snowdrop Cold Process Tutorial uses a drop swirl and a butterfly swirl technique.

Above (clockwise, top left) are Jessica’s blue swirl soap, layered soap, unicorn soap and soapy cupcakes. Her embeds add a lovely finishing touch to her bars. For more soap with fun toppers, check out the Sparkling Champagne Soap Cupcakes. The Funnel Pour Cold Process Soap is topped with cute bee embeds.

Find Soul 6 Soaps
On Facebook

This week’s Instagram Photo of the Week by Olga features a stunning geometric design. It reminds me of sun rays. The stamp is perfect and crisp as well. To see more of her work, check out her Instagram page.

Post pictures of your crafty creations on the Facebook page each week for a chance to be featured on the Soap Queen blog and receive a sweet soapy package from Bramble Berry. Photos are chosen based on consensus from the Bramble Berry staff, so the best way to increase your chances of winning is to show us lots of photos!

To participate in the Instagram contest, hashtag your pictures with #soapshare. Each Friday, I will pick a photo on Instagram to be featured on the Bramble Berry Instagram account.

For those of you who have been featured on the blog, we now have an official “Featured on the Soap Queen” badge! You can include that badge on your website, blog, pictures, etc. To save the badge, click here. =)

The post Facebook and Instagram Photo of the Week (Oct. 22nd ~ 28th) appeared first on Soap Queen.

Here on the western side of Washington state, we don’t get a lot of snow. Luckily, the mountains are nearby when we want to enjoy skiing, snowboarding, sledding, or just building a snowman. Personally, I have my fingers crossed for a little snow below the mountains this year; our yard has a little hill that would be perfect for sledding!

The thought of fresh snow led me to create these super sparkly snowflake melt and pour soaps. They would make a great holiday gift. It’s also a fun project to do with family and friends who are staying during the holidays. If it doesn’t snow, I’ll probably whip up another batch with my mom to make our own white Christmas! =)

These soaps are scented with Fresh Snow Fragrance Oil, which is a clean, ozone-y fragrance. It reminds me a bit of clean laundry. A small amount of soap is colored with Slushy Blue Mica and placed in the snowflake details with an Injector Tool. This does take require a steady hand and a little patience. Having a spray bottle full of rubbing alcohol helps the soap “spread” into the details more easily, and a Clean Up Tool is great for fixing any mistakes.

What You’ll Need:
Two Snowflake 2 Molds
27 oz. Clear Melt and Pour Base
0.4 oz. Fresh Snow Fragrance Oil
Slushy Blue Mica
Super Pearly White Mica
Snowflake Sparkle Mica
Fine Iridescent Glitter
Injector Tool
99% Isopropyl Alcohol in Spray Bottle
Optional: Clean Up Tool & Infrared Thermometer

Click here to add everything you need for this project to your Bramble Berry shopping cart!

PREP COLORANTS: Dispersing powdered colorants in 99% isopropyl alcohol makes them easier to incorporate into melt and pour. It also helps prevent clumps. In a small container, mix together 1/2 teaspoon Slushy Blue Mica into 1/2 tablespoon alcohol. In a separate container, mix together 1 teaspoon Snowflake Sparkle Mica and 1/4 teaspoon Super Pearly White Mica into 1 tablespoon alcohol. Set colorants aside.

ONE: Chop and melt 3 ounces of Clear Melt and Pour Soap in the microwave using 5-7 second bursts. Because you’re melting such a small amount of soap it can be easy to burn, so use short bursts. Once melted, stir in the Slushy Blue Mica mixture.

TWO: Spray the mold cavities lightly with alcohol. This helps the soap spread into the details. Use scissors to cut a small section off the end of the Injector Tool to make the hole slightly larger. Use the Injector Tool to fill in the snowflake details with blue soap. Work carefully but quickly as the soap will begin to cool and harden in the Injector Tool. Throughout the process, spray the soap with alcohol to get rid of any bubbles. If necessary, reheat the blue soap in the microwave using 3-5 second bursts. If you make any mistakes, allow the soap to harden and use the Clean Up Tool to fix any mistakes.
TIP: Have a cup of hot water nearby to clear out the Injector Tool while filling in the details. This helps prevent the soap from hardening in the tool, which is hard to remove.

THREE: Chop and melt 24 ounces of Clear Melt and Pour Soap base in the microwave using 30-45 second bursts. Add the Snowflake Sparkle Mica and Super Pearly White Mica mixture to the soap and stir in with a spoon. Add 1/2 teaspoon of Fine Iridescent Glitter to the soap and stir in.

FOUR: Add the Fresh Snow Fragrance Oil and use a spoon to fully mix in.

FIVE: Check the temperature of the white soap. If it’s above 130 ° F, allow it to cool until it’s about 120-125 ° F. If it’s too hot, it will melt the blue details below. Once it’s the appropriate temperature, spritz each cavity with alcohol to help the layers stick and pour the white soap into each cavity. Spritz the soap with alcohol to help get rid of any bubbles. Allow the soap to fully cool and harden overnight. Release the soap from the mold, and wrap in plastic wrap to help avoid glycerin dew.

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Shimmering Snowflake Melt & Pour Tutorial

These sparkly snowflake soaps are perfect for the holidays!

Course Melt and Pour Soap

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 6 soaps

Author Soap Queen

Ingredients

• Two Snowflake 2 Mold
• 27 oz. Clear Melt and Pour Base
• 0.4 oz. Fresh Snow Fragrance Oil
• Slushy Blue Mica
• Super Pearly White Mica
• Snowflake Sparkle Mica
• Injector Tool
• 99 % Isopropyl Alcohol in Spray Bottle
• Optional: Clean Up Tool

Instructions

PREP COLORANTS: Dispersing powdered colorants in 99% isopropyl alcohol makes them easier to incorporate into melt and pour. It also helps prevent clumps. In a small container, mix together 1/2 teaspoon Slushy Blue Mica into 1/2 tablespoon alcohol. In a separate container, mix together 1 teaspoon Snowflake Sparkle Mica and 1/4 teaspoon Super Pearly White Mica into 1 tablespoon alcohol. Set colorants aside.

• Chop and melt 3 ounces of Clear Melt and Pour Soap in the microwave using 5-7 second bursts. Because you’re melting such a small amount of soap it can be easy to burn, so use short bursts. Once melted, stir in the Slushy Blue Mica mixture.
• Spray the mold cavities lightly with alcohol. This helps the soap spread into the details. Use scissors to cut a small section off the end of the Injector Tool to make the hole slightly larger. Use the Injector Tool to fill in the snowflake details with blue soap. Work carefully but quickly as the soap will begin to cool and harden in the Injector Tool. Throughout the process, spray the soap with alcohol to get rid of any bubbles. If necessary, reheat the blue soap in the microwave using 3-5 second bursts. If you make any mistakes, allow the soap to harden and use the Clean Up Tool to fix any mistakes. TIP: Have a cup of hot water nearby to clear out the Injector Tool while filling in the details. This helps prevent the soap from hardening in the tool, which is hard to remove.
• Chop and melt 24 ounces of Clear Melt and Pour Soap base in the microwave using 30-45 second bursts. Add the Snowflake Sparkle Mica and Super Pearly White Mica mixture to the soap and stir in with a spoon.
• Add the Fresh Snow Fragrance Oil and use a spoon to fully mix in.
• Check the temperature of the white soap. If it’s above 130 ° F, allow it to cool until it’s about 120-125 ° F. If it’s too hot, it will melt the blue details below. Once it’s the appropriate temperature, spritz each cavity with alcohol to help the layers stick and pour the white soap into each cavity. Spritz the soap with alcohol to help get rid of any bubbles. Allow the soap to fully cool and harden overnight. Release the soap from the mold, and wrap in plastic wrap to help avoid glycerin dew.

The post Shimmering Snowflake Melt & Pour Tutorial appeared first on Soap Queen.