DIY: Soap : I made my own soap! Easy tutorial in 8 steps.

I recently blogged about how to make your own soap and showed you some soapmaking kits I had come accross. well, I finally got around to actually using my kits. I made enough to fill all 3 soap moulds once. I took a few photos to show how I did it. For most of it, I used only the ingredients that came with each kit to give an idea of what results you can expect if you use the same kits. Here, I used the House of Crafts Handmade Soap Kit.

Step 1. Cut the soap into small cubes. It doesn't have to be exact, it just helps the soap to melt a bit faster. Estimate how much you will need to fill each mould and then add a tiny bit more (I ended up using roughly a quarter of the soap that came with the kit.)

Step 2. If you are going to heat it in a microwave, put it in a microwavable container. I used an Asda Smart Price jug, which only cost 35p! If you are using a saucepan, follow the instruction sheet for that method.

Step 3. Melt it! I put my soap in the microwave for 30 secs, gave it a gentle stir, then again for bursts of 15 seconds stirring inbetween each burst. You shouldn't heat it for more than 15 seconds at a time as you risk overheating your soap. Carry on until it is completely liquid.

Step 4. Use the pipette to get put some fragrance oil in your soap. I used about 14 small drops. If you use a different oil, please check that it is suitable for use on the body. Fragrance oils that you use in oil burners and candles are NOT suitable for use in soap.

Step 5. If you are adding any petals, seeds, colour or glitter (cosmetic grade) this is the time to do it. Mix it in gently. If you want each soap to look different, you can add petals or seeds to the mould and mix it after filling the mould.

If the soap sets before you have time to pour it, pop it back in the microwave for 15 seconds at a time until it is melted again. This is the beauty of working with melt and pour soap.

Step 6: Pour the soap into the mould. Cover it and leave on a flat surface until completely set. I left mine overnight before unmoulding. Notice how my soap has air bubbles? One way to get rid of this is to spray with rubbing alcohol. Unfortunately, this is not easy to get hold of in the UK. I think it adds character to the soap anyway but that is down to personal preference.

Step 7. When your soap is set, gently push it out of the mould. If it doesn't want to come out, pop it in the fridge for half an hour and try again. You should wrap the soap in cellophane or clingfilm as soon as possible.

Step 8. Run yourself a bath and enjoy your handmade soap!

Easy huh? Here are the all the soaps I made from the 3 kits I had:

I am really pleased with my results, especially for my first try. It was a lots of fun to do and I love how you can control everything that goes into them. Will you be trying this?