Teach Soap

Are you all sick and tired of me yet?? I know I've been asking a lot of questions. I'll try to make this my last one for a couple of days. Ha! I'm just trying to get all my ducks in a row before I place my first order.

For fragrances, what scents do you all consider a must have? Like are there several FO's or EO's that you find you use more than others, and that work well with other scents?

And what about colorants? What type is the easiest to work with for a beginner like myself?

Also, is there a good site where I can find an assortment of m&p recipes? I've tried looking around, but the majority of what I've been finding is for cp.

Thanks again!

Fragrances tend to be regional. I sell more citrus based soaps; especially around the holidays. Foody scents just don't sell well here. For MP soap, I would go with micas from BrambleBerry. http://www.brambleberry.com/Micas-C46.aspx
You can also find recipes there.

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

As for FO's, have you seen Bramble Berry's Bestsellers kit? That's how I started out and it was really easy find the ones I liked the most. And my testers helped refine it even more. By the time I got through all of those, then I had been on the forums enough to know about others that people really liked.

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The Soapinatrix! *whip-crack*
- Posting the trials and tribulations of my Soaping Journey!

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Irena
Closed minds are like faulty parachutes; they refuse to open.

_________________
The Soapinatrix! *whip-crack*
- Posting the trials and tribulations of my Soaping Journey!

There are a lot of places online where you can find M&P recipes or tutorials. Brambleberry Soapmaking Supplies is the sponsor for this forum & they have a newsletter you can sign up for and they also sell books and videos on soapmaking. Anne Marie Faiola, or the Soap Queen as she's called, is the owner of Brambleberry & also has a blog where she posts all types of bath & body tutorials - just click the link to the left hand side for what type of toiletry you're interested in, be it M&P or lotion-making. She also has a YouTube channel dedicated to soapmaking if you're more visually inclined. Another resource is the Teach Soap website. .

Two frequent contributors to the Soap Queen blog are SoapyLove's Debbie Chialtas who has her own blog, books & ezines available for purchase and Naiad Soap Arts' Erin Pikor who also has a blog with tutorials. Debbie or SoapyLove as she's known here on the forum makes some of the most unique soaps out there and they're all M&P. Erin has won awards from the HSMG (Handcrafted Soap Makers Guild) for her soap.




Hope this helps!

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Armi

I have been working my way through this long list of recipies. Some of them I wouldn't try because I do not think they will preserve well. But there are some here that are GREAT!!! There really is a lot you can to with m&p.
http://www.halderman.net/cgi-bin/showrecipe.pl?mp

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ewww! I plead the... umm... right to poke it with a stick!

Thanks for your help ladies! I recently ordered Debbie's "SoapyLove" book, but haven't received it yet. And I've slowly been working my way through the Soap Queen videos, which are also very helpful.

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The Soapinatrix! *whip-crack*
- Posting the trials and tribulations of my Soaping Journey!

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Armi

Hi, M94. For colorants, I really like BB's liquid pigments: http://www.brambleberry.com/Liquid-Colors-C44.aspx. They're oxides mixed with glycerin so you can just add them to your soap drop-by-drop until you get the effect you want. (Just make sure you shake them up well before using because the pigment and glycerin can separate.)

If you're looking for non-bleeding colorants, here's a list of them: http://www.brambleberry.com/Non-Bleedin ... -C303.aspx

I like to play with micas, too. They're especially nice in clear melt-and-pour so the light can catch the shimmery color.

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- Jenny -
My soapy blog:
Follow me on my

I found some more interesting articles/links regarding coloring options this time:
soap coloring options
different colorants
tips & tricks for oxides in M&P

I like to use BB's liquid pigments for ease of use & micas for versatility and whatever FO I'm in the mood for, but I just make soap for personal use and for the fun of it. But at last count, I had 60+ FOs and 40+ molds. My other hobby, jewelry making, is even more expensive though. *sigh*

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Armi