Soothing Floral Bath Salts
Nothing quite hits the spot like a hot bath during winter. Bath salts create an extra luxurious bath experience, but are something most people don’t treat themselves to. That’s why I love giving them as gifts. Bath salts are also extremely easy to make…but you don’t have to tell your recipients that! The Soothing Floral Bath Salts recipe involves mixing Dead Sea salts with various flower petals for a feminine touch. Mix them with a fragrance oil or essential oil and voilà!

Honey Bee Melt & Pour Soap
Melt and pour soap is perfect for a quick gift, because it’s ready to use once it’s fully cooled and firm. The adorable little Honey Bee Melt & Pour Soaps involve a bit of detail work to fill in the bee shape, but are still suitable for beginners. They smell amazing – just like warm, sticky honey. Honey is one of those scents that’s loved by both men and women, so these bars are suitable for the whole family. Once they’re made, wrap them in plastic wrap (as shown in the video) and place a Pure Honey Soap Label on the back for a finished look.

Mini Key Lime Bath Bombs
The only thing cuter than a bath bomb is lots of mini bath bombs. These Mini Key Lime Bath Bombs are made in the Small Cubes Mold and Package to create a small shape. They also smell just like key lime pie – yum! This project is easy to customize with the recipients favorite color and scent. The mold doubles as a package, or place them in a bail jar to package and gift.

Beeswax & Honey Lotion Bars DIY
Easy and quick to make, these cute lotion bars are full of skin-loving ingredients. Made with olive oil, shea butter and yellow beeswax, these bars are firm at room temperature but melt slightly on contact with skin. The combination of yellow beeswax and the Pure Honey Fragrance Oil smells absolutely amazing! These bars also include a free downloadable label to help package and give.

Heavenly Lilac Bath Truffle
What is exactly a bath truffle you ask? Essentially, it’s a bath bomb with lots of extra oil and butters. Once placed in the tub, it fizzes and also releases the skin-loving ingredients into your tub. In the case of the Heavenly Lilac Bath Truffle, that means cocoa butter and shea butter. They are scented with Lilac Fragrance Oil for a relaxing and feminine scent, but it can be swapped for any fragrance you prefer. This tutorial also includes a free label template to download, print and place on a bail jar. Originally designed for Mother’s Day, this would make a great gift year round.

DIY Sparkling Bath Crystals
For the person who can’t get enough crystals, geodes, gems and agates, these Sparkling Bath Crystals are the perfect gift. Even better, they only take about 30 minutes to whip up and can be used right away. They can be made with just about any color mica and fragrance oil (or essential oil) you’d like. Customize them for your recipient by creating their birthstone, or their very favorite fragrance.

Cocoa Butter Cashmere Body Mousse
Want to give something incredibly luxurious and decadent? It doesn’t get much better than this Cocoa Butter Cashmere Body Mousse. The texture is totally unique; it’s fluffy yet dense, spreadable but solid at room temperature. It’s made with a combination of jojoba oil, cocoa butter cubes and avocado butter. It’s fragranced with the new Cocoa Butter Cashmere, which is a sophisticated, warm and intoxicating scent. Seriously…it smells so good. When combined with the natural chocolatey scent of the cocoa butter cubes, you won’t be able to stop smelling it!

Snowdrop Hot Process Soap
It’s a little too late to give fully cured cold process soap for Christmas, since that takes 4-6 weeks. That’s when hot process soap comes to the rescue! The additional heat speeds up the saponification process. Once the soap is placed into the mold to harden and cool, it’s ready to use after about one day. Personally, I like to let my soap cure for a few weeks to be on the safe side, but many soapers use hot process soap once cut into bars. This Snowdrop Hot Process Soap is holiday inspired, while still being appropriate for the rest of the year.

Pumice & Poppy Seed Melt & Pour Soap
Looking for something a little more masculine? Guys need soap too after all! These Pumice & Poppy Seed Melt and Pour Soaps were made with dudes in mind. They feature plenty of scrub from poppy seeds, pumice and jojoba beads. The bars are scented with Bramble Berry’s Made to Measure Type Fragrance Oil, which is inspired by the popular men’s cologne. And while it does smell “manly,” I know plenty of women who use the fragrance too!

Neon Pink Lip Tint
Need some stocking stuffers for the cosmetic junkie in your life? These Neon Pink Lip Tints give lips a wash of hot pink color while hydrating with cocoa butter and avocado oil. They are quick and easy to make, and could also be placed in tube packaging if you prefer. If you’re looking for a more subtle color, check out the Creamy Marsala Lip Tint recipe. It creates a beautiful burgundy hue that’s incredibly wearable all year.

I hope these tutorials give you some ideas if you haven’t started making your holidays gifts yet. It’s not too late to create thoughtful, handmade gifts this year…but don’t wait! =)

The post 10 Quick Handmade Gift Ideas appeared first on Soap Queen.

The Green Meadow Melt and Pour Bars contain Grass Stain Fragrance Oil for a crisp and slightly sweet scent. 

When I think of spring, flowers immediately come to mind. In the Green Meadow Melt and Pour (shown above), small soapy flowers are added to the top of each bar. It’s fragranced with Grass Stain Fragrance Oil for a fresh smell. If you’re a fan of classic floral scents, the Yellow Chamomile Cold Process Soap and the Layered Lavender Cold Process Soap feature sophisticated floral fragrances.

Left to right: Yellow Chamomile Cold Process Soap, Layered Lavender Cold Process Soap

In the Soothing Floral Bath Salts Tutorial, dried rose petals, calendula petals and lavender buds are mixed with various salts to create a relaxing bath additive. It’s made with Orange Blossom Candle and Soap Fragrance Oil. Love bathing in flowers? The Lavender and Chamomile Goat Milk Bath Tea uses Lavender 40/40 and Chamomile Essential Oil to lightly scent the bath water.

The Soothing Floral Bath Salts feature dried botanicals and a light floral scent. 

I can’t wait for the roses in my garden to start blooming. In the meantime, roses are a great inspiration for spring projects. In the Rosy Red Lip Gloss Tutorial, Rose Pearl Mica and Merlot Sparkle Mica create a sheer rosy hue. It’s scented with Passionfruit Rose Fragrance and Flavor Oil. In the Pikake Flower Bath Bombs, dried rose petals give the fizzies decoration.

Left to right: Pikake Flower Bath Bombs, Rosy Red Lip Gloss Tutorial

If you’re starting to spruce up your garden, scrubby products keep skin smooth. Watch the Soap Queen TV video below to learn how to make melt and pour gardeners soap. The bars contain two exfoliating ingredients: walnut shells and shredded loofah. Together, they create a bar that easily removes dirt and dead skin.

If you prefer a scrub, check out the Soaks and Scrubs category for a wide range of recipe ideas. Some of my favorites include the Cranberry Sugar Scrub, Pumpkin Spice Latte Sugar Scrub and the Rose Clay Sugar Scrub. If you’re looking for a recipe using ingredients you may already have in your kitchen, the Olive Oil and Dead Sea Salt Scrub is simple to make.

Top left, clockwise: Cranberry Sugar Scrub, Rose Clay Sugar Scrub, Olive Oil and Dead Sea Salt Scrub, Pumpkin Spice Latte Sugar Scrub

With blooming gardens comes bees and butterflies. The Save the Honey Bee Melt and Pour Soap was created for a good cause. Bramble Berry donates $3.50 for every Save the Honey Bee Mold sold to the UC Davis Honey Bee Research Fund. Scented with Wildflower Honey Fragrance Oil, it’s a fun way to get crafty while making a difference. If you’re a cold process soaper, the Honey Bee Funnel Pour Cold Process features cold process frosting and melt and pour embeds.

Left to right: Honey Bee Funnel Pour Cold Process, Save the Honey Bee Melt and Pour Soap

If you prefer butterflies, the Monarch Butterfly Swirl Cold Process Soap uses classic butterfly colors of orange, yellow and black. The same colors are used in the Monarch Butterfly Melt and Pour Tutorial to create guest sized bars. Small butterfly erasers are placed in the center of the Butterfly Sparkle Surprise Bath Bombs for a fun surprise when they fizz in the tub.

Top, clockwise:Monarch Butterfly Swirl Cold Process Soap, Monarch Butterfly Melt and Pour Tutorial, Butterfly Sparkle Surprise Bath Bomb

What are you crafting for spring? Keep your eyes on the blog and Bramble Berry Newsletter to learn about new spring products and projects!

The post Spring Inspired Bath & Beauty Projects appeared first on Soap Queen.

The Soothing Floral Bath Salts are also scented with Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil, along with Orange Blossom Candle and Soap Fragrance Oil. The recipe features three different types of salt – medium and fine grained Dead Sea salt and Epsom salt. It also has several types of flowers for a relaxing spa experience at home.

The last project in the series helps moisturize your lips and protect them from the elements. The Shimmery Ski Lip Balm is made with skin-loving oils like coconut oil and avocado oil. It also contains beeswax and cera bellina wax to form a protective barrier on the lips. For a hint of shimmer, the balm is colored with Peach Shimmer Mica.

If you’re in the mood for more shimmery projects, click through the End of Summer Project Inspiration post. It features tutorials perfect for summer. The tutorials include the Lime in the Coconut Milk Cold Process Soap, which features a fresh scent combination of Lime Essential Oil and Coconut Lemongrass Fragrance Oil. It also features a Bronzing Lotion Tutorial, which has Gold Sparkle Mica and Bronze Mica to give your skin a summer glow.

The Spicy Thai Peanut Dressing is a great option for end of summer get togethers. Each week, Bramble Berry provides lunch for employees. There are taco bars, sandwich bars and salad bars. Ryan in production made the Thai dressing for a recent salad bar and it was a big hit. It’s made with peanut butter and coconut milk, along with chili paste for a spicy kick.

If you’re in the mood for more warm inspiration, you’ll love this week’s Facebook Photo of the Week by Sarah with Seven Cactus Soapworks. Her gorgeous wedding favor soaps are stamped with glimmering gold.

The golden stamp goes so perfectly with the midnight blue in Sarah’s soap. The swirl inside adds more gorgeous detail to the bars. For more blue hues, click through the Blue Rain Drop Swirl Cold Process Tutorial. The Mermaid Shell Melt and Pour Bars feature several shades of blue as well.

Above (clockwise, top left) are Sarah’s Karma Soap, orange soap, red and white soap and green soap. If you love the textured look in Sarah’s green soap, you’ll love the Cherry Blossom Glitter Cold Process Tutorial. Use you also use soap scraps to create “coconut flakes,” as seen in this Coconut Cream Pie Cold Process Tutorial.

Find Seven Cactus Soapworks
On Facebook
On the web

This week’s Instagram Photo of the Week is an adorable felted soap by Jolene with Scent & Sensibility Fine Artisan Bath & Body. She said a lot of work went into felting the owl, and it totally shows! I love all the detail work and beautiful fall colors. See more of Jolene’s beautiful soaps on 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 (Aug. 15th ~ 21st) appeared first on Soap Queen.

This recipe has three different types of salt – medium and fine grained Dead Sea salt and Epsom salt – for an extra luxurious experience. It is scented with a light and floral combination of Orange Blossom Candle and Soap Fragrance Oil and Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil. As an extra special touch, there are several types of flower petals in the bath salts that will make you feel like you’re bathing in a mountain stream.

What You’ll Need:
8 oz. Medium Grain Dead Sea Salt
6 oz. Fine Grained Dead Sea Salt
6 oz. Epsom Salt, Extra Fine
6 mL Orange Blossom Candle and Soap Fragrance Oil
3 mL Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil
3 heaping Tbsp. Rose Petals
3 heaping Tbsp. Lavender – Grade 1
3 heaping Tbsp. Dried Calendula
3 Tall 8 oz. Plastic Bail Jars
Optional: Droppers

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

ONE: In a large bowl, add the medium grained Dead Sea salt, fine grained Dead Sea salt and Epsom salt. Stir together with your hands. Wear gloves if you’re making these to sell, or, want to protect your manicure.

TWO: Add 6 mL of Orange Blossom Candle and Soap Fragrance Oil and Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil. Using your hands, stir to fully incorporate the salts and fragrances. Do note that Lavender Essential Oil + salt will effectively scour your nail polish right off your fingernails.

THREE: Add 3 heaping Tbsp. of the lavender buds, rose petals and calendula.

FOUR: Using your hands, stir in the flowers until they’re completely incorporated.

FIVE: Spoon in the mixture evenly into bail jars. Enjoy! If you’re not a fan of herbs in your tub because you’re worried about drain clogs, these amazing muslin tea bags work wonders for releasing all the goodness of the herbs and salt while keeping your drain herb-clog-free.

What’s your favorite way to relax at the end of the day? Mine is curling up with a good book – either in the tub or on the couch with a nighttime tea. Ahhhhh …

Print

Soothing Floral Bath Salts

Sprinkle these Soothing Floral Bath Salts in your tub for a relaxing experience!

Course Bath Salts

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Author Soap Queen

Ingredients

• 8 oz. Medium Grain Dead Sea Salt
• 6 oz. Fine Grained Dead Sea Salt
• 6 oz. Epsom Salt Extra Fine
• 6 mL Orange Blossom Candle and Soap Fragrance Oil
• 3 mL Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil
• 3 heaping Tbsp. Rose Petals
• 3 heaping Tbsp. Lavender – Grade 1
• 3 heaping Tbsp. Dried Calendula
• 3 Tall 8 oz. Plastic Bail Jars
• Optional: Droppers

Instructions

• In a large bowl, add the medium grained Dead Sea salt, fine grained Dead Sea salt and Epsom salt. Stir together with your hands.
• Add 6 mL of Orange Blossom Candle and Soap Fragrance Oil and Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil. Using your hands, stir to fully incorporate the salts and fragrances.
• Add 3 heaping Tbsp. of the lavender buds, rose petals and calendula.
• Using your hands, stir in the flowers until they’re completely incorporated.
• Spoon in the mixture evenly into bail jars. Enjoy!

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