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Melt and Pour Soap

You won’t believe how easy it is to make and personalize melt and pour soaps. Make sure you follow any instructions you find on the brand that you choose, use heat resistant materials, and be careful to avoid burns from splashes.
Active Time10 minutes
Resting Time5 hours
Total Time5 hours 5 minutes
Yield: 8 soaps
Cost: $10

Equipment

  • Heat resistant spatula
  • Microwave safe bowl* I use my pyrex glass measuring cup because it has handles which makes it much easier to remove from the microwave without burning myself
  • Soap mold
  • Spray bottle with 91% isopropyl alcohol Used for getting out air bubbles

Materials

  • 1 pound Melt and pour soap base
  • 25 drops Essential oil** any scent you like

Instructions

  • Prep your soap mold by spraying each section with the 91% isopropyl alcohol.
  • Using a knife, carefully cut the block of melt and pour soap into 1/2 inch cubes.
  • Put the soap cubes into the microwave safe bowl and microwave at 45 second intervals, stirring after each 45 seconds. This requires some patience because there can be some stubborn pieces. Once you get closer to the end, you may want to reduce the interval of time down to 10 seconds to prevent the soap from burning.
  • Once all of the cubes are fully melted let the bowl sit for a minute, then add the drops of essential oil and stir gently but thoroughly. Stirring too vigorously will add air bubbles to the soap, which is not desired.
  • Add the used coffee grounds and mix gently again.
  • Pour the mixture into the soap mold, filling each container to the top.
  • To get rid of bubbles at the top, spray with isopropyl alcohol.
  • Let the soap set for several hours. I typically make my soap at night and let it rest until morning to ensure it has hardened.

Notes

* Note that you can also use a double boiler to melt the soap base. As in the microwave instructions, above, you will want to be stirring the soap base periodically until it all melts.
** You can adjust the amount of fragrance based on your preference. Some essential oils have a stronger scent than others, for example I find that I need to add more sandalwood than peppermint.