In another thread I read (brief) instructions for making soap with a picture inside of it. I understand the basic idea, but have never done this before and after looking around online, soap seems like it'd be a cheap, easy, nice gift to give... not to mention a fun hobby!

Soo, I have nothing. What do I need to get, and what price ranges are we talking about? Do you have a preferred place to get it? (is online cheaper than in store?!). I guess I need molds, scents, clear soap cubes??, coloring?, I have no idea - I looked at a store online but figured I better ask people who know before buying a bunch of stuff I don't need (or the wrong stuff).

And then post-creation, there's packaging, are there special boxes, or special cling wrap to wrap 'em in??! lol I have no idea!

Any and all tips / ideas / suggestions / stores, etc. are very appreciated!

okay, are you wanting to make soap from scratch? or just the melt and pour kind? if you want to make soap from scratch its a 4 week process. you have to make it and then let it cure for 4 weeks. i can give you the directions for the cold soap process and its very easy to make, just pm me. if you are doing the melt and pour soap then you basically go and buy the melt and pour base, michaels craft store carries, and get the colors and scents you want, and you can buy some molds to if you want, but you can jsut as easily use molds from around your house anythjing makes a good mold. as long as you like the shape. but before you do the cold process soap make sure you research it and follow the directions. lye is used in it and it is a very very dangerous and corrosive thing, you need to wear the protective gear and be very careful and make sure there are no children around when you do it. and you also need a digital scale. so if you are interested in cold process soap pm me, if your just gonna do melt and pour soap, its very easy and just look it up online. google it and you will get plenty of directions and tips for soap making.

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Kimberley

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I want to make the easy melt and pour type.... I'm not very crafty, I need to start sloooow

Glycerin soaps are super easy to make and there are tons of recipes online. A friend of mine makes them every year - like for kitchen soaps she includes bits of citrus rind or rosemary leaves. They're so cute. She wraps them up in tulle with ribbon and often uses those chinese take out boxes to gift them in - they're always a hit. I woudl make them myself except I have a good supplier. LOL

http://www.eaudrey.com/

http://www.fromnaturewithlove.com/soap/MandP.asp

http://www.teachsoap.com/soapmakingmethods.html

Oh cool! Thanks for asking. I think this will be a fun gift for Christmas presents.

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Mommy to Jade (5/01), Brynn (2/03) & Kylee (12/06)

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OK, so this weekend I made soap. I'm semi-proud of myself, except it isn't as impressive as I thought it'd be.... the melt & poar soap is rather 'soft' and almost slimy (even before I melted it!) I guess I had harder more "sturdy" soap in mind, eh - they'll make good gifts (not as cheap as I had wished though - I spent $70 at michaels!!!!

Anyways, I think I will be pming you about the cold process recipe... I'm feeling inspired!