Welcome to Discount Scrapbooking

Soap is a necessity for all as it is what we use to clean ourselves whenever we shower. It may come in several forms but whatever you choose to use, its basic function is to remove dirt and oil on our bodies. In recent times, liquid soap and body wash has become more and more popular compared to the regular bar soap. But with the many creative designs that can be made with bar soaps, they are becoming relevant again and even used as displays on bathrooms.

Now if you think that making those kinds of soaps are hard, think again. Soap making is a very easy process that almost anyone can do it. Even children can make this into a hobby as long as they wear protective equipment and work supervised by adults.

Soap making can be done through two methods but you will require the same ingredients for both. The first method is the hot method, which involves heating of your ingredients. The second is the cold method, and you will not need any heat to make your soap. The first method is generally used if you have unpurified lye as you will not need exact measurements in this method.

The main ingredients that you will need to make soap are oils and lye. By mixing these two ingredients, you will already be able to make the most basic type of soap. The first thing that you need to do is dissolve the lye completely in water while heating in the hot process (heating is omitted in the cold process as stated earlier). Next, the oil will then be poured with continuous heating and mixing. The exact measurements are needed for the cold method or the soap may come out too oily or too caustic if these measurements were not followed.

Once the above mixture has become homogenous, you can now place the mixture into molds and wait for them to harden. You can choose different kinds of molds to suit the design that you want to make. Addition of dyes may also be done before or during pouring of the mixture into the molds to give your soap the color of your preference.

The hardened soap can then be taken out of their molds and further designs can still be added using knives. Fragrant oils and lotions can be added to give your soap the properties that you like. Others may even use herbal leaves to help give their soap a more therapeutic effect.

Different types of oil will also result to your soap having different properties. If you want soap that you will only use for display, you might want to use oil that will give your soap a hard quality. For soap that you are going to use for showering, you might want to use coconut oil mixed with olive oil so that it will have good lathering properties while being mild on the skin.

Regular soap may be losing its popularity but it is certainly not a thing of the past. With the many designs and creative ways that you can change and alter the properties of bar soap, you will definitely have fun creating and designing your own soaps.