If there’s one thing we love around here, it’s a quick, no-fail beauty DIY that leaves you feeling gorgeous without all the chemicals and toxins. But I’ll be the first to admit, while I go crazy for homemade soaps, lotions and scrubs, sometimes the recipe makes more than any one person can actually use (not that there’s anything wrong with 12 tubes of lip balm).
So what better time to embrace DIY beauty products than during the holidays when all those extra goodies will make perfect gifts for friends and family. These quick melt and pour soaps are the ultimate homemade-beauty-product-turned-Christmas-gift. Tuck a couple away for yourself and give the rest to the natural beauty lovers in your life. Not only are they moisturizing and luxurious, but they’re so inexpensive and easy to whip up you’ll wonder why you waited so long to make them.
How to Make Essential Oil Soap
I often think of homemade soap as being expensive and complicated to make. The list of ingredients typically includes things like glycerin and lye and requires a special trip to a soap-making store. But the beauty of melt and pour soap is that all the ingredients are pre-mixed for you.
Not only can you skip the protective eyewear and rubber gloves (hallelujah), but “making your own soap” is as easy as chopping up your soap base and tossing it in the microwave for a few seconds. Then add in a few optional ingredients like your favorite essentials oils and some herbs or flower petals. Once poured, it hardens in minutes and can be used almost immediately.
Because winter can be so tough on skin, I usually choose a rich, moisturizing shea butter soap base and add in therapeutic essential oils like rosemary and eucalyptus. Not only is it great for your skin but the essential oils may help clear your sinuses and keep your immune system humming during cold and flu season. After the soap has cooled, I sprinkle it with some soft, exfoliating herbs to remove dead skin cells and rejuvenate skin.
And in case you’re still not convinced, here is a fun little video I made showing you just how easy it is to make these soaps:
Rosemary & Eucalyptus Melt and Pour Soap
Equipment
- Small bowl
- Molds
Materials
- 1 pound melt and pour soap base
- Essential oils I used rosemary and eucalyptus
- Ceramic bowl
- Wire whisk
- Metal or silicone molds
- Loose herbs
- Kitchen twine
Instructions
- Chop the block of soap into small chunks. Place in a ceramic bowl and microwave in 15 second intervals until completely melted (about 45 seconds).
- Add 15-20 drops of essential oil and use a wire whisk to mix it all together.
- If you’re using metal molds, lightly coat them in non-stick cooking spray and wipe out the excess. Pour the soap into the molds and let cool to room temperature (approximately 2 hours).
- Remove the soap from the molds and sprinkle with herbs (if you need help releasing the soap from the molds, pop them in the freezer for 10 minutes).
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So fun and so helpful! I definitely want to try these.
What exactly is a melt and pour soap base?
These are wonderful! I love them, and they were sooo very easy to make! I used eucalyptus oil, and added freshly minced rosemary inside the soap.
Could you use pure shea butter? They look great.
I’m definitely trying this, but what if there is no microwave to melt it what can I use? and what type of herbs should i use for exfoliating?