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Candle & Soap Making: Most Popular Articles

These articles are the most popular over the last month.
Soap Making Basics
Learn all about soap making and how to make your own homemade natural soaps, melt and pour soaps and more. Fun soap making projects and how-to soap making recipes as well as explanations of all the materials tools and ingredients involved.
How to Make Cold Process Soap
How to make soap -soap making instructions using the cold process soap making process - mixing oils and lye, stirring to trace, adding fragrance and color. Easy to follow soap making instructions.
Basic Bath Salts
Basic instructions and recipe to make bath and spa salts
Lye Sources
Without lye, there is no soap. But the most common supplier for home-based soap makers, Red Devil, has been discontinued. Here are some places you can get it.
Liquid Soap
How to make natural liquid soap - how to instructions and recipe
Olive Oil Soaps
Easy Recipes for making Castile Olive Oil Soap
How to Make Candles
Make your own candles and bring some warmth and light into your home - fun creative and easy to learn
Create a Soap Recipe
Want to learn how to make soap? Create your own soap recipe from scratch - balance your oils and get exactly the results you want.
Melt and Pour Soapmaking
Easy illustrated instructions for making melt and pour soap! Melt and pour soap making gets you started right away making your own natural handmade soap.
Best Lye Calculators
Lye Calculators for Cold Process Soap
Make a Lye Solution
How to make a lye solution for cold process soap making - mixing, weighing and safety.
Goat's Milk Soap
How to make goat's milk soap - easy soap making recipe and instructions.
Qualities of Soap Making Oils
Which oil will give what qualities to your soap recipe? Here's a catalog of the many different oils used for making soap - and the qualities they give to your soap making recipes.
Basic Soap Recipes
Want to start making soap? Here are a collection of tried and true basic recipes from the top soap makers in the country.
Making Lye from Wood Ashes
Links to sources of how to make lye the old fashioned way - from wood ashes and water
Liquid Laundry SBS
Make your own liquid laundry soap. Easy to make and very inexpensive!
Bath Salts Recipes
How to make bath salts & bath salts recipes
Rebatching Soap
How to rebatch soap = grating and remelting soap to save a batch or make hand milled soap
Basic 4-Oil Soap Recipe
Basic 4-Oil Soap Making Recipe - A great recipe to get started making soap
CP Shaving Soap
How to make your own cold process shaving soap - with a custom recipe just for shaving.
Mailbag - Bath Salts
Many different types of salt can be used to make bath salts!
Laundry Soap Recipe 1
Easy recipe to make homemade laundry soap.
Basic Soap Equipment
A list of the basic soap making tools and equipment you need to get started making soap
Scent Blending
Create custom fragrance blends of fragrance or essential oils for your soaps and candles with this simple blending guide
Hot Process Crock Pot Soap
How to make hot process soap in a crock pot - easy hot process soap recipe.
Soap Making Recipes
Directory of soap making recipes from basic soap making recipes to soaps with botanical additives to specialty soaps
Convert Baking Soda to Washing Soda
How to convert baking soda into washing soda for use in homemade laundry detergent.
Alternative Lye Solutions
You're not limited to just using distilled water in your soap making. Many soapers make soap with goat's milk, coconut milk, coffee, tea or even beer. Making the lye solution for your soap is a bit more tricky though.
100/20 Coconut
Recipe for making a bar of soap that defies all of the rules - a 100% coconut oil soap, with a 20% superfat.
Natural Colorants
Natural colorants in soap making don't have to be boring and muted. Many plant materials, spices and herbs give lovely colors to your soap.
Maine's 3-Oil Soap Recipe
Sandy Maine's Basic 3-oil Soap Recipe - A good basic 3-Oil soap making recipe to get started
Soap with Milk
You're not limited to just using distilled water in your soap making. Many soapers make soap with goat's milk, coconut milk, or even buttermilk. Making the lye solution for your soap is a bit more tricky though. Follow these steps to get the best results.
Citronella Candles
Directions for making mosquito repelling outdoor citronella bucket candles
Honey in Soap
Information about using honey in hand made soaps - soap making recipes too
Fragrance & Essential Oils
A discussion of the difference between fragrance oils and essential oils in candle making and soap making.
Grocery Store Soap
You don't have to have a lot of fancy ingredients to make great soap. This recipe uses only oils that I found at my local market.
Types of Candle Making Wax
Information about the many different types of candle making waxes - and guidance for choosing the right one.
Types of Olive Oil
Which type of olive oil is right for your soap making recipes? What's the difference in the different grades of olive oil?
Add a Little Extra
Superfatting cold process soap recipes is common - it adds extra moisturizing qualities and gives you a fudge factor.
Glycerin Soap
The term glycerin (glycerine) soap is really a misnomer. All real soap is glycerin soap.
Soap Exfoliants
List of exfoliants you can use in your soaps
Linauer Marbling DVD
Vendor's Site I’ve had the opportunity to see Irene Linauer teach soap making several times. The first
Fizzy Bath Bombs
Instructions to make fizzy bath bombs - bring some fizz and some wonderfulness to your bath.
Add Some Sugar
Adding sugar to your soap helps increase lather and bubbles
Shampoo Bars
Recipes and instructions to make your own fabulous homemade shampoo bars.
Trace in Soap Making
: When making soap from scratch, you must blend the lye-water and your heated oils until the soap reaches
RenderingTallow
Instructions for taking fat from the butcher - usually beef fat - and rendering it into tallow useable in your soap recipes.
Making Soap with Clays
Recipe for making soap with clays
Saponification
definition of saponification in soap making process
Labeling Soap
Instructions & guidelines on labeling your soaps for sale at craft shows, markets and retail locations.
Salt Bars
Benefits of salt soap bars - how to make a salt bar - recipe and soap making instructions.
Simple Milk Bath
Simple recipe for milk bath.
Measurements vs Percentages
Scale your recipe to any size as well as understand the proportions of each oil in the recipe.
Container Candles
How to make container candles - basic candle making.
Floating Candles
Letting the freshly poured floating candles cool.
Cyclomethicone
Definition of Cyclomethicone
Powdered Laundry SBS
Recipe for great homemade powdered laundry soap. Easy to make and very inexpensive!
Beeswax & Honey Soap
Making soap with both beeswax and honey - using a honeycomb effect in the mold!
Soap Mold Size Calcuators
How to calculate the volume of soap needed to fill a particular soap mold.
Coconut Milk Soap
Step by step instructions for making soap with coconut milk
Lavender Dream
Recipe for Lavender Dream Soap & Essential Oil Blend
Hard White Soap
recipes for old fashioned hard white soap
Toxic Essential Oils
List of Toxic and Phototoxic Essential Oils
Cure
Cold process soap needs to cure or age before it is ready to use
Safe Container Candles
Guidelines for choosing safe containers to make container candles in.
Laundry Soap Hub
Information and recipes to make your own homemade laundry detergent/soap.
Dog Soap Recipes
Recipes for flea repelling dog soap
Double Butter
Luxury soap recipe with shea butter and cocoa butter.
Mosquito Essential Oil Blends
Mosquito repelling essential oil blends for making citronella candles with more than just citronella oil - natural blends for natural mosquito repellents.
Lye Excess in Liquid Soap
An explanation of Catherine Failor's Liquid Soap recipe formulations - and the excess of lye
NaOH vs. KOH
Explanation of the difference between sodium hydroxide and potassium hydroxide in soap making
Paraffin Wax
Profile of paraffin candle wax - all about paraffin wax and its uses
MP Shaving Soap
Make a custom shaving soap with a melt and pour soap base - by adding a few key ingredients.
Coffee Soap
Coffee soap is a great soap to make for cooks and coffee lovers alike - it removes garlic and fish odors from hands - exfoliates nicely - and is an exotic change to your normal everyday soap recipe
Soap Felting
Instructions to get started making felted soap.
MM-Extract Essential Oils?
How are essential oils extracted from the plants?
CP Soap Making Videos
A collection of step by step videos demonstrating cold process soap making
Add a Bit of Salt
Adding a bit of salt to your soap can help increase hardness - an inexpensive and easy soap making tip
Soap Making Safety
Tips and information to help you make soap safely.
Types of Candles
Description and examples of the many different types of candles you can make.
Citrus Honey Bock
Recipe for Citrus Honey Bock Soap
Sugar Scrub Cubes
How to make individual sugar scrub cubes.
100% Coconut Oil Liquid Soap
Liquid soap recipe using 100% coconut oil - super foaming and cleansing
Propylene Glycol
Discussion of Propylene Glycol in Soap, Cosmetics and Household Items
Invigorating Foot Soak
Simple recipe for bath salts formulated as a foot soak.
Laundry Soap Recipe 2
Easy recipe to make homemade laundry soap.
Whipped Soap
Step by step instructions to make whipped soap - room temperature cold process soap
Using Flower Petals in Soap
Using flower petals in your soap making recipes can yield wonderful results but beware - using flower petals in cold process soap turns the flowers black or brown - proper usage of flowers in cold process soap making
Oatmeal Bath Salts
Simple recipe for bath salts formulated with skin soothing oatmeal.
Distillation of Essential Oils
Description of water distillation and steam distillation of essential oils.
Herbal Oil Infusion
Directions on How To Make an Herbal Oil Infusion for Soap Making
Green Tea & Lemongrass Soap
Recipe for green tea & lemongrass soap
Neutralize Liquid Soap
How to neutralize natural liquid soap
Cucumber Soap
Recipe for cucumber soap
Types of Candle Wicks
Information about the history and function of candle wicks - how candle wicks work, how they were developed and the different types of candle wicks.
Tea Herbs in Soap
How to best use teas and herbs used for tea in your soap making.
Carrot Juice Soap
Recipe for making cold process soap with carrot juice
Basic 3-Oil Soap Recipe
Basic 3-Oil Soap Making Recipe - A good super simple recipe to get started making soap
Cocoa Butter Massage Bars
Recipe and ingredients that you'll need for cocoa butter massage bars.
Recycling Wax Scraps
Any candle maker - or even candle user - will have lots of odds and ends and scraps of candles left over. Here are some ways to reuse them.
Seize
Everything is going along fine. You've carefully poured your lye solution into your oils and have begun
Loofah Soap
Putting loofah into a bar of melt and pour soap gives you easy-to-make soapy exfoliation.
Cleaning the Soap Pot
After you've finished making your soap, you have to deal with the cleanup. Here's now to safely clean up after soapmaking.
Layered Lavender Soap
Lavender soap with two twists! Getting Started - ingredients and setup.
Pine Tar Soap
Recipe and instructions to make cold process soap with pine tar
Easy Soap Science
How does soap make things clean? This experiment, suitable for kids, shows how soap cleans using oil, water and soap - which acts as an emulsifier.
Lemon Poppyseed Soap
Recipe to make naturally exfoliating lemon poppy seed soap.
Using Liquid Lye
How to use a liquid lye solution in soap making
Pregnancy Essential Oils
Essential oils that may not be safe during pregnancy.
Soap Packaging Examples
A collection of examples of simple ways to wrap, label and package your handmade soap.
Great Kids Project
Easy way to decorate your votive candles with a bit of tissue paper, glue and a plain glass votive candle holder.
Liquid Soap Dilution
Dilution help for making liquid soap
Water Dispersible Bath Oil
Instructions to make Water Dispersible Bath Oil
Cold Process Soap Making Books
A collection of the best books on how to make soap from scratch.
Fun Candle Making Project
Step by step instructions for making sand candles - great kids holiday candle making project.
MM-Make Melt and Pour Soap Base
A preview of how you can make melt and pour soap base?
Lard Soap for Laundry Base
100% Lard Soap to use as laundry soap base
Springtime Fragrances
My top list of springtime candle and soap making fragrances.
Mailbag - Phototoxic Essential Oils
: What is a Phototoxic Essential Oil? Marie from Kansas City writes, “What does phototoxic mean? I had
Essential Oil Safety
How to use essential oils safely in your soaps and candles.
Heavy Cream Soap
Soap's made with milk are rich, creamy and extra moisturizing. Part of this comes from the extra fat
Pillar Candles
Basic candle making instructions for a molded pillar candles.
Ice Candle
How to make an ice candle - beautiful and easy
Organize Your Craft Room
Great articles and resources to help you organize your craft room
Candle and Soap Videos
Video instructions to get you started making soap and candles
Mild Liquid Soap Recipe
Mild liquid soap recipe with coconut and sunflower oil
A little extra oil
definition of superfatting in cold process soap making
Pumpkin Soap
Pumpkin is a wonderful additive to soap - and perfect for fall soap making.
Candle Projects Directory
Directory of Candle Projects at Candle and Soap Making at About.com
Morning Mint
Step-by-step instructions for Morning Mint melt and pour soap - easy soap making project
Mailbag - Camping Soap
Going camping? You can make your own soap that will be biodegradable and environmentally kind.
MM-Melting Body Butter
How can you keep natural whipped body butter from melting in warm temperatures?
Candle and Soap Labels
Top Picks for Resources for Labelling Candles and Soaps - Candle and Soap Label Resources
Candle Wax Volumne
How to calculate the volume of wax needed to fill a candle mold.
Stuffy Nose Bath Salts Recipe
Simple recipe for bath salts for stuffy noses and colds.
Mica
Information about mica colorants in soap making.
Household Soap Combo
A great combination of soap for any household -Gardener's Soap great for cleaning dirty hands - Mechanic's Soap for the grimiest jobs - and Kitchen Coffee Soap to battle cooking odors
MM-How to Affect Trace
: Is it Possible to Affect Trace Time? Angela writes, I have been experimenting again with varying recipes
Magic 180
Most waxes melt at between 120 and 140 degrees. But adding the fragrance oil at a lower temperature will not give you the best results. What temperature is best to add the fragrance oil to your candles?
Bramson's Castile Soap Recipe
Ann Bramson's 3-oil Soap Recipe - A castile soap variation using olive oil and beef tallow
DOS - Dreaded Orange Spots
Have a batch of soap that has suddenly turned orange in spots? You're a victim of DOS - or Dreaded Orange Spots
Layered Containers
How to make layered container candles - a variation on the standard container candle making project.
Dry Perfume Roll-on
Dry Perfume Roll-on or Body Oil Spray with Cyclomethicone
Top Soap Making Information
The How to Make Soap Cheat Sheet - Top Tips and Information to Get Started Making Soap
Beer Candle
How to make Beer Candles! Step-by-step instructions on how to make a beer candle for beer and candle lovers.
European Lye Sources
Resources to find and buy lye for soap making in Europe, Canada and Australia.
Eucalyptus Essential Oil
Profile of eucalyptus essential oil - especially as used in soap and candles
Tomato (Basil) Soap
recipe for tomato basil soap
MM-Candles Made with Crayons
Can I use crayons to color my candles? Or make candles out of melted crayons?
Mitre Box Soap Mold
Assembling the tools and materials for the mitre box soap mold.

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