Melt and Mold Soap Crafting, is written by C. Kaila Westerman and it is a great book for beginners, but also has things to offer for non-beginners. The recipes are rated by difficulty to guide you along.

Melt and pour soap crafting is basically the shorthand version of making soap from scratch because you “make” your soap by simply melting in your microwave (or stovetop) pre-made soap. It comes in a package at craft supply stores or you can purchase it on the Internet. So basically all you do to make your own customized soap bar is melt the pre-made soap, add scent and maybe some additives (like oatmeal for exfoliation), pour it into a mold, wait for the soap to harden and you’re done. Yep, it really is THAT simple!

There are some obvious advantages in getting your soap pre-made; the most obvious is it is easy and fast. So if you’ve always wanted to make your own soap, but didn’t want to deal with lye and the other challenges of making your own soap from scratch, this is perfect.
This was the first book I bought about melt and pour soap and it was a perfect book for beginners like me.

She goes into all the basics, not only of the basic process of making this kind of soap, but she also goes into the basics of color, additives and even has a troubleshooting guide that I found really helpful. The guide helped me understand even more what NOT to do, which was really helpful to know before trying my first project…which was an absolute success, by the way.J She even gives you ideas for how to make some money with your own soap creations!

There are so many wonderful recipes in the book that both instructed me and then inspired my own ideas for future projects. Because there are so many different techniques demonstrated in the book (like canes, jellyrolls, loaf soaps, layering, embedding) it gave me the basic knowledge so that I could start developing my own soap ideas and recipes.

Melt and pour soap making is so great because in addition to all the different techniques, scents, additives and colors available to customize your soap to your heart’s content, there are tons of FABULOUS soap molds out there to buy that are so fun to use, too. As you can see, the possibilities are really endless. That is why melt and pour soap is perfect for creating a customized gift. You really can make a bar of soap for anyone, any occasion…and just for fun.

So, to recap, I love melt and pour soap crafting because…
(1) it is super easy, fast and an affordable craft
(2) it makes great gifts and is easy to customize for your specific gift recipient or occasion
(3) even when you screw it up, it still works…it’s still soap!

If you have created a fabulous soap creation of your own…email me or post a comment, I’d love to hear about!

Happy crafting,

Artfully AJ

PS – To any of you QUILTERS out there, or friends of QUILTERS…there is a really cute soap recipe called “Quilter’s Bar” on page 38. The soap has a quilt design on it, which sounds like it might be difficult, but it isn’t. It would make a great craft gift!

PPS – This is also a great CRAFTS FOR KIDS…as long as there is parent supervision! Kids can put toys, pictures they have drawn, pictures of themselves, etc. into their own bars of soap. It’s a fun kids craft!