How to Make Melt and Pour Soap Bars

Do you want to make your own soap bars in less than 10 minutes and with no dangerous chemicals to handle? Melt and pour soap bars are the way to go. It’s so fun to personalize these soaps with your favorite scents and colors. I use them as hand soaps in my bathroom and kitchen, and I have found them to be easy stocking stuffers and gifts. Using soap bars is a great way to cut down on your plastic waste by reducing plastic packaging. It also takes less energy to transport soap bars since liquid soap is heavier and bulkier.

Melt and pour soap base 101

If you make soap from scratch, you will need to use lye (sodium hydroxide), which is a chemical that is caustic and requires care and protective gear when handling. I don’t know about you, but I didn’t do well enough in chemistry lab to want to deal with lye. So I was very excited to learn about melt and pour soap bases. These ready-made bases are produced through the mixing of fatty acids and an alkali (like lye). In addition to the ease of using the melt and pour method, another great perk is how quickly they are ready. You don’t need to wait for the soap to cure for weeks like you would if you make them using a cold process method. The ingredients in the melt and pour soap bases vary based on brand and type (more on that below), so you can look for the one that best matches your skin type.

Can you make soap without lye?

If you are worried about having a caustic chemical in your soap (either by the melt and pour method or the traditional method), that’s a natural reaction. However, once the soap base cures, no lye remains. You can’t make soap without lye unless you use potassium hydroxide. Potassium hydroxide is an alternative chemical for creating soft and liquidy soaps.

Kinds of melt and pour soap bases

There are several kinds of melt and pour bases that you can commonly find at home craft stores or online:

• Goat’s milk – Goat’s milk produces a nice lather and contains Vitamin A, which is good for your skin
• Shea butter – Shea butter is very nourishing to the skin because it is high in vitamins
• Castile –  Castile soap is environmentally friendly because it made from vegetable oils rather than animal fat
• Clear glycerin – This soap is great for embedding fun colors or shapes
• Honey – Honey contains antioxidants and can help skin glow

Choose your color and scent

You can easily personalize the soaps with different colors, shapes, scents, and textures. Here are a few of my favorites:

• Goat’s milk base, ground oatmeal, and lavender 
• Cocoa butter base, used coffee grounds, and sandalwood
• Shea butter base, turmeric (for a natural yellow color), and orange scent

I liked using turmeric as a natural colorant. If you want a rainbow of colors there are special soap dyes you can get at home craft stores or online. You can also personalize the shape of the soaps by buying different molds. Think circles, flowers, and even these cute paw prints.

Caring for your melt and pour soap bars

Now that you have your soap bars, it’s time to put them to use! To extend the life of your soap bar, you may want to consider getting a soap holder. The holders have slits to prevent the soap from sitting in water when it is not being used. These are plastic free. 

One of the things that I like about this recipe is that I can usually get a few months worth of soap bars from a single batch. You should keep any extra soap wrapped up to prevent the soap from pulling moisture from the air and forming dew drops. Store them at room temperature in a cool, dry place. I keep mine in a basement bathroom drawer.

How to wrap them as gifts

Soap bars can be cute party favors for baby showers, weddings, and the holidays. I’ve put some directly in stockings before as stocking stuffers. I’ve also seen some tied simply in a bow with twine. 

Cost

The cost of making the soaps will vary based on the products you use, but I’ve calculated mine to cost less than $1 per bar (not counting the cost of the mold). Even if you buy cheap soap at the store, you are still likely paying a dollar for a bottle, so you will come out ahead by making your own. To lower the cost even more, you can often buy larger quantities of the base at a lower cost per pound. The essential oils can also be used in other DIY products, such as homemade shampoo bars, and the silicone mold can be used to make brownies or other baked goods.

Have you made melt and pour soaps before? I’d be interested to hear what scent and texture variations you have tried!