The Joy of Melt and Pour Soap Crafting
Written and Photographed by
Lisa Maliga
Copyright 2011 by Lisa Maliga at Smashwords
All rights reserved
Disclaimer:
The information in this book was gathered from various sources. It is in no way meant to prevent, cure, or diagnose any medical condition. All recipes and products suggested should not be used for purposes other than that for which they were intended. All products are for EXTERNAL USE ONLY. If you are allergic to latex then shea butter is not recommended as it contains a small amount of natural latex. The author accepts no liability for the misuse of these products. Please do not rely on products or information as a substitute for medical advice. If you have a medical problem, contact a health care practitioner. Product statements have not been evaluated by the FDA.
If you wish to reproduce any part of a book you must request permission in advance, as the material is protected under copyright law.
All requests must be made via email to: lisa_maliga@msn.com
Dedication:
From the time I began soap crafting in 1998, my Mom was the best soap tester around. She helped me name soaps, told me what scents she liked and always let me know if the soap was too big, too small, didn't lather enough and what color it should be. When I moved back in with her in February 2009, I brought a basketful of soaps that I'd made just before my last Christmas rush. Moringa soap, Spring Lilacs [her favorite], another floral one I was testing, and many others. Before I moved back to her house, several states east of California, Mom sent me an email telling me not to quit making soap.
"And at the risk of repeating myself, whatever you do DON'T give up your business. I know you relegate everything but your writing into the background, but what you've done is amazing. Just try to look at your web site dispassionately. It has the look and feel of a successful and long-time business. It's professional and artistic and modern. And, best of all, it's been working. Surely you realize that." Mom, January 2009
In October she went into the hospital and never returned. In this book I'm honoring her memory by sharing what I've learned over the years, along with recipes for some of her preferred soaps.
Chapter 1 ~ Why Make Your Own Soap?
Chapter 2 ~ Melt It, Pour It, Use It!
Chapter 4 ~ Melt and Pour Soap Base
Chapter 6 ~ Fragrance and Essential Oils
Chapter 7 ~ Herbs and Other Additives
Chapter 10 ~ Basic Instructions
Chapter 12 ~ Don't Make These Mistakes!
Chapter 13 ~ Selling Your Soapy Creations?
Chapter 14 ~ Creative Labeling and Packaging
There are so many beautiful, edible looking soaps online and in stores created by talented soap crafters. A soap crafter can change a plain slab into a creation that resembles a slice of chocolate layer cake, a floral extravaganza, a multi-colored Popsicle, or a wedge of citrus colored and scented soap. We can gaze in wonder at the array of soap varieties that has blossomed ever since I began my quest to make soap a dozen years ago.
But even when experimenting with making my SoapCake and Mini SoapCake prototypes and those Soap Pops that I ended up giving away to a young neighbor, I was always more concerned about the ingredients that went into the soap than the resulting look of the finished product.
I did lots of testing, once adding an ounce of cocoa butter to about ten ounces of white soap base. Soap oozed cocoa butter and separated. Later, I remelted it by adding a lot more soap base.
Purists will chide me for working with glycerin melt and pour soap base. Sure, it contained some long scientific sounding names. But I also used the stuff every single day with no dire consequences. So was it really as bad as they claimed? Nope. I still use it.
Even though I began EverythingShea.com in 2004, my business was kept small for a reason: I saw myself as a writer first and bath & body products designer second. But I enjoyed it and I cared about what when into my soap and want to share how I did it with you!
Chapter 1 ~ Why Make Your Own Soap?
By handcrafting your own bath & body products you will be in charge of quality control! You can make your soap as natural as you like, if that’s your concern. Maybe you’ve always just loved being around soap and trying new kinds. Or you’re a do-it-yourself sort of person. Perhaps you’ve seen someone demonstrate soap crafting and wanted to try it. Other reasons include being able to make gifts for Christmas, birthdays, Chanukah, Easter, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Grandparent’s Day, Valentine’s Day, graduation, wedding and baby showers, and any other occasion. You might even be able to sell your bubbly creations.
Teaching children how to craft melt and pour soap is a great way to keep them entertained and educate them in the value of making something they use. Perhaps you’re comfortable in the world of crafts and can already knit, sew, quilt, weave baskets, craft polymer clay, etc.
Making your own soap will prove to be satisfying for your creative side and also for that resident scientist just waiting to mix things up. You'll discover that the vegetable oils in your kitchen cupboard can be used to create a moisturizing soap. Dried herbs make your soap smell wonderful and are beneficial for your skin. Natural colorants can be found in your spice rack or at your local health food store. Scenting your soap is a joy to do – and the combinations are limited only by your imagination. And did you know that adding milk to soap won’t spoil – but you will become spoiled after using it and will always want some on hand.
The benefits of making your own soap will pay off financially as well. You'll save money by making soap and won’t have to pay retail prices anymore. If you choose to go into soap crafting for you and your family, you can always buy your soap and other ingredients wholesale. It’s easy to find a quality melt and pour base for around two to three dollars per pound. Most shops sell a 3 ounce bar of soap for more than that!
Also, there happens to be a large variety of soap bases available to the soap crafter. The standard types, transparent, ultra transparent, and opaque are the most common, but you can also find goat milk, honey, coconut, olive oil, palm oil, aloe vera, rose hip extract, pansy extract, orange oil, colored transparent base [in several different colors], marbleized, hemp seed oil, avocado and cucumber, shea butter, cocoa butter, and organic melt and pour soap bases.
How much in the way of additives can be included depends upon the base. If in doubt, ask the manufacturer. Most will advise you add no more than one Tablespoon per pound. That’s the general consensus, or about one percent. The bases are well-formulated as is; in fact, one reseller proudly declared that her oatmeal base was perfect the way it was. To package it, all one needed to do was slice it, use a soap stamp to put a nice logo on it, and wrap it. My personal experience has led me to try many bases.
Soap Making Versus Soap Crafting: What's the Difference?
Soap making is done from scratch using oils, liquids and lye. Melt and pour soap is already made and therefore it's crafted into another shape, color, scent, etc. Someone else made the melt and pour soap base from scratch and you can alter it. Many people enjoy working with this type of soap because they don't have to deal with lye. Crafting melt and pour soap is very creative and can be exacting. But it's not made from scratch like I was once told by a soaper at a crafts fair. That's just my opinion on the matter as others will continue to promote it as soap making, even though it's already made...
Chapter 2 ~ Melt It, Pour It, Use It!
You can craft your own soap in about an hour. The amount of money you invest in the soap base ranges in price depending upon the quality of the end product you desire. This book will help you be able to determine just what it is that will please you soap-wise.
Back in the early 1990s you couldn't find much soap on the Internet. Private soap makers were selling at craft fairs and in small shops and most hadn't made any forays on the World Wide Web. You weren’t able to go to your local discount or craft store to pick up a pound or two of melt and pour base, and translucent soap was, and still is, not the simplest of soaps to make from scratch.
Soap making has evolved greatly over the years and the process has gone from the tedious task of rendering tallow by hand and stirring the ingredients with a stick to fully automated factories filled with all the latest high tech equipment. The companies have discovered that featuring glasslike bars of soap shot through with neon bright colors and shapes such as geometric designs, animals, colorful scenes like 3-D cartoons, and highly scented with imitation food and fruit/plant fragrances attracts buyers. People are drawn to the sight of the soap – the color, the shape, and how it’s packaged. Unlike a tin of talc, the bar of see through glycerin soap filled with vibrant colors is attractive enough for most consumers. But once the potential customer is examining the soap, what does he or she notice? The aroma. Soap manufacturers aren’t shy about adding the scent. A bountiful array of artificial scents can strike chords of memories as a would-be buyer sniffs such fragrances as chocolate, bubble gum, musk, prohibitively expensive flowers like magnolia and rose, and a host of other odors both common and uncommon.
When I was designing the soap I was going to craft, [and later sell], I discovered that there were five levels to coming up with a salable product. This designer theory works even if you're giving away your soap as a gift.
Level 1 – Soap Base
The first level is the actual soap base. You decide what type of soap base to use. The most basic types available are clear and white, but you'll discover there are dozens of other variations available on the market. If you want to get creative, this is where you add your own nutrients like butters, oils, botanicals, etc. to enhance your soap.
Level 2 – Soap Mold
Here is where you decide if you're going to make a small amount in a bar shape or do embeds or loaves, etc. When starting out, it's best to make a simple test bar. See the chapter on Soap Molds to help you decide what type you want to use.
Level 3 – Soap Color
What color will your soap be? Maybe you don't want to add a colorant, so you'll skip this level. Or you want a bright soap and want to use neon liquid colorants. Perhaps you'll opt for mica or cosmetic grade glitter to create a dazzling soap. Or you'll paint your soap like an artist with some soap paint. You can also use natural botanicals to create many different colors.
Level 4 – Soap Fragrance
Last to be added, first to be smelled is your fragrance. You decide if you want your soap to smell like a bakery or like a field of flowers. You can opt for a fragrance or an essential oil – or both. Or you can go unscented and skip this step. When I had my business, I often got orders for unscented soap.
Level 5 – Soap Packaging & Labels
Unless you're working with low-sweat melt and pour base, wrapping your soap in clear plastic wrap is necessary. Due to the high moisture containing ingredient of glycerin, this soap attracts humidity like a sponge. Sealing it up in plastic wrap allows the soap to last for several months. Once you wrap your soap so that it can be clearly seen, you can further embellish it with a label or add it to a pretty organza or a decorated cellophane bag.
What equipment is needed to craft your own bars of melt and pour glycerin soap? The answer is usually this: you may have a lot of the equipment already. If you have a microwave oven, crock pot or double boiler you have the main piece of equipment that is needed to melt the blocks of glycerin melt and pour soap. Some soap crafters use rice cookers and roasting ovens.
Here is a list of the items needed:
Kitchen scale
Cutting board
Wooden spoon or chopsticks
Molds/flexible plastic containers
Glass measuring cup
Measuring spoons
Big knife
Paring knife
Wax paper
Plastic wrap
Paper towels
Candy thermometer [optional]
Plastic storage containers
Rubbing Alcohol [70% Isopropyl] OR witch hazel in a spritzer bottle
It’s a good idea to keep your soap supplies in a separate section of your kitchen. Or you may want to label your items, such as the wooden spoon. Even if you make soap occasionally, you should purchase separate measuring cups, spoons, knives, etc. The reason for this is that soap scents can linger. If you’ll be crafting a lot of soap, or plan to, it’s a good idea to purchase the above-listed items and store them in a "soap drawer" or "soap cabinet/cupboard." Many of these items can be found at discount stores for just a few dollars.
WARNING: Never melt your soap base in a plastic cup if using the double boiler method.
Chapter 4 ~ Melt and Pour Soap Base
Melt and pour soap base is premade. This means that you can buy a small amount, cut off a piece, and use it to wash your hands. However, most of us see this as just the first step into creating wonderful looking bars, slabs, domes, rounds, squares or rectangles of colorful and/or beautifully scented soap.
This can only be done if your soap base is well made. How can you find out? First of all, stay away from soap base with a very long list of ingredients. Don’t purchase soap base that doesn’t have any ingredients listed. The manufacturer is required to list what’s in that soap base. If you’re shopping online, make certain that the ingredient list is posted on the web site. If not, go to another site.
As with food, the ingredients listed on soap bases begin with the most prominent component first. For melt and pour glycerin soap base you’ll want to see the word GLYCERIN within the first few ingredients. If not, you might just not have a great product, or you may have a coconut soap base. There’s nothing wrong with coconut soap, it’s just a bit heavier than glycerin soap, and it’s white, not translucent.
Here's an example of a very good clear soap base made by Stephenson:
Purified Water, Glycerin, Sodium Stearate, Propylene Glycol, Sorbitol, Sodium Laurate, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Sodium Chlorine, Stearic Acid, Lauric Acid, Pentasodium Pentetate, Tetrasodium Etidronate.
Notice that glycerin is the second ingredient listed.
Natural Oils clear base:
Glycerin, Sodium Cocoate, Sodium Stearate, Propylene Glycol, Tea Laurel Sulfate, Sorbitol, Deionized Water, Cocamidopropyl Hydroxysultaine, Sodium Laureth Sulfate, Acetamide MEA
While some of these names may strike you as chemicals, remember that all soap is comprised of chemicals. Not as natural as cold processed soap, each ingredient is there for a reason: to add clarity, to act as a preservative, for cleansing properties, and to get suds. Sodium stearate is salt, propylene glycol is a foam enhancer, and lauric acid is derived from coconuts.
Also, melt and pout soap may contain up to 25% glycerin – far more than commercial soap which has less than one percent!
The mineral titanium dioxide is used in clear soap to make it white.
Melt and pour soap lathers faster in hot water. If you have hard water, it'll have a less sudsy lather and you may consider adding a touch of coconut oil to your base.
If you have a Michaels crafts store in your area, they sell the Life of the Party brand of soap and it's a very good base for your soap crafting adventure. I was impressed with how easy it was to slice up and the amount of time it took to melt. You can also order various soap bases on Amazon as well as hundreds of online stores both listed and not listed in the Resources section of this book.
There are a myriad of shapes and sizes that you can mold your soap into from balls to Christmas shapes to loaves to stars, flowers and the traditional rectangular bar. The best news is that plastic molds are so easy to locate. Wal-Mart, Target, Dollar stores, and many discount stores all carry soap molds just waiting to be used. If it’s plastic, if it’s microwavable and dishwasher safe, [even better!] it can be used to shape that soap. You can order molds online or find them at crafts and candle supply stores and shows/fairs. Microwavable containers, food containers, candle molds or even drawer organizers can be used. It’s important that the molds have a smooth interior surface as melt and pour soap is notorious for picking up shapes.
Traditional molds can be found at the listed suppliers in the Resources section, all designed to hold the hot, melted soap and turn it into a fun or fancy shape. However, one of the joys of melt and pour soap making often lies in the unexpected, creative items that you can use. I once made a soap from a small box of chocolates! This on sale item was only a couple of bucks and it worked just fine! Plus I got my dose of chocolate!
Another advantage to crafting melt and pour soap is that finding the best molds will often be in the least expensive places. A visit to the 99¢ Only store turned up a mold that has three compartments – a one-cup and two ½ cups. All of these are rectangular and the resulting soap bars look like standard soap.
Although you can easily obtain very inexpensive molds, if you want to continue to use the same mold[s] or will be doing a lot of soap crafting, flimsy plastic containers won’t last that long. Keep that in mind when you purchase molds.
By using molds that are made exclusively for soap crafting, such as the Milky Way mold, you’ll like how easy they are to use and the impressive end results. These molds are sturdy, have numerous designs and shapes, and are reasonably priced.
Silicone Molds:
The most resilient and flexible of all molds are made from silicone. I didn't use them until they become easy to find on and offline. I quickly discovered that these molds are the melt and pour soap crafter’s dream as the insides are smooth, the weight is almost nonexistent, and the ease of releasing the soap is always simple. These molds are extremely durable, can withstand high temperatures and are dishwasher-safe. Unlike plastic molds, silicone molds won’t break if you drop them just after removing from the freezer! They are also a great investment as they last for a long time.
Upon cruising the internet for more molds, I happened upon a site where the silicone molds featured such gorgeous works of art that I was amazed. The art of soap painting comes into play here, as they will make artistic soaps even more beautiful than just a single color.
Target has the Silicone Solutions line of molds. You can get muffin, mini muffin, loaf pans, and even square muffin sizes.
Wilton makes another large array of molds. You'll find baking cups, mini muffin pans, loaf pans, baking cups and more. Online they're available at their website or at Amazon.com. You can also find them at Michaels craft stores.
Other Types of Molds:
Metal or tin molds aren’t recommended for two reasons. 1. The metal can taint your soap. 2. Soap is more difficult to get out. However, you can spray your metal or tin mold with a cooking spray or coat with olive oil. Then rub off any excess oil as you need only a tiny bit.
The easiest type of mold to work with is either a sturdy mold from the makers of Tupperware, Rubbermaid or other brands. Fancy soaps are nice for special occasions. However, most people prefer using soap that easily fits in their hand. They want a practical size, something that doesn’t slip and slide all over the shower or bath. A bar of soap the size of a paperback book is a bit cumbersome to handle.
You can use glass molds or bowls. In order to get the soap out, you’ll have to carefully run very hot water over the bottom of the glass surface. Again, plastic and silicone are the ideal molds to use for melt and pour soap.
Chapter 6 ~ Fragrance and Essential Oils
A few fragrance & essential oils I had in stock
Fragrance Oils:
My first experience with fragrance oils was an unhappy introduction. Upon ordering my first melt and pour soap crafting kit, I was also given five different fragrance oils in clear plastic containers. Deciding to try the orange blossom fragrance, the stench from the small bottle was a forewarning. Turned out, the resulting aroma from my first batch reeked of some kind of chemical concoction that didn’t resemble the cheapest of cheap imitation of the white flowers. I promptly threw away the masquerading fragrance oils and was so turned off by them that for years I used nothing but essential oils.
Since I adored the aroma of vanilla and was unable to locate a nearby source for the absolute, I decided to try a vanilla fragrance. To my delight, it came in a small amber glass bottle and it smelled almost as good as the vanilla absolute from Madagascar that I had come to remember. Even though it was a synthetic, it contained real vanilla as it discolored as well as the real McCoy did, and the aroma was acceptable to my fussy sense of smell.
If cost is a factor, then the jasmine sambac from India at $120 per ounce might be too pricey, especially since you can find reasonable jasmine imitations for about $4 per ounce!
At first judging a fragrance oil can be a bit tricky. The smell that escapes from the bottle is oftentimes a lot different than when added to soap. It’s important to first sniff the underside of the lid, rather than the contents. Like wine, fragrance needs a bit of time to breathe. You don’t know how long that fragrance has been trapped inside the bottle – it could be for a period of a few months, or maybe just a couple of days. Sometimes a fragrance will smell weak, just like the green tea did which I ordered from a couple of different companies. Both of them had a wan, pallid aroma, and only when I added it to my soap did it come out and actually smell just like some green tea I’d bought in Chinatown.
Many fragrance oils require the use of actual essential oils, but not all fragrance oils use natural ingredients. For example, citronella essential oil [a natural bug repellant] is often employed in fragrance blends. Most people can use fragrance oils safely, and the cost and enormous selection is what makes them extremely popular. Also, keep in mind that some fragrance oils can alter the color of your soap and other products. This can be advantageous in some cases, detrimental in others. Find out from the manufacturer which ones will change the color before you purchase any fragrance oils.
Like essential oils, fragrance oils should also be stored in amber colored glass bottles. This is done to properly preserve the contents and to prevent a nasty accident in case the strong chemicals inside the bottle happen to eat through the bottle! Yes, that has happened! When in doubt, ask the supplier if they ship the fragrance oils in glass or plastic. If they ship in plastic, which saves on shipping costs, you can always pour them into glass bottles yourself.
As with any cosmetic grade fragrance or essential oil, it should be noted that these oils are ONLY FOR EXTERNAL USE! You must treat these oils carefully and avoid putting them directly onto your skin. All fragrance oils must be diluted, whether added to soap, or mixed with a lotion, before they’re skin safe. While some aromas may smell just like a real strawberry soda or lemon meringue pie, you must never try to sample the contents! Remember, we only have five types of taste, but our nose has the ability to smell 10,000 varied odors! So sniff all the wonderful aromas you like, that are exactly what they’re designed for!
In order to save money, always purchase small amounts such as ½ ounce or 1 ounce when first ordering. Some companies will only sell 2 ounce bottles or more, but you must determine whether you like the fragrance or not. For the price of first class postage, you can send a self-addressed stamped envelope to a manufacturer or reseller and request a 'sniffie' of a particular fragrance. While this is somewhat helpful, it doesn’t compare to actually using the fragrance oil in a product. If you can purchase a fragrance in a store, always make sure you can smell it first. Again, a sniff from a bottle is only a cursory determination, but it’s more effective than reading a brief description or only seeing what the name of the fragrance is!
It’s also recommended that you try fragrance oils from different companies, whether online or offline. You will notice a variation in price and quality, and I advise you to select from a more expensive place as well as from the lowest in price just so that you can determine which works best for your soap. This will also ensure that if you’re looking for that perfect rose fragrance, you will find it. Or perhaps you’ll find a couple of favored rose oils, which you can in turn mix together, having a more distinctive aroma. I read online of someone who made soap and went into a local shop to look at the other soaps. She was immediately able to recognize the scents as coming from a local supplier! Most people don’t have such an expert sense of smell – but this does go to show you that there are connoisseurs out there!
Keep in mind that what your fragrance oil is stored in, glass or plastic, will alter the smell. Also, a bottle with a smaller neck will allow the scent to smell a bit weaker than a bottle with a wider neck. You shouldn’t smell directly from the bottle, but the lid as the fragrance will be a bit milder.
Your fragrance oils must be stored with a lid that contains a liner and is also able to be screwed tightly in order to prevent leakage/evaporation. Once you start collecting fragrances, make sure you store them in a cupboard. It’s also a good idea to see that they’re correctly labeled and dated. I write down the date on the label, always using pencil. This is done in case any fragrance oil drips after you’ve poured it and that way you can still read the date. If you start increasing your fragrance inventory and you’ve stored them in a lower shelf, label the tops of the lids so you don’t have to go through several rows before you find what you’re looking for. You can even start keeping an inventory of them and list the date they were shipped to you, the company’s name, what size you purchased, and how much you paid per pound/ounce. Even if you’re a hobbyist, it pays to be organized about keeping track of your supplies.
PERFUME/COLOGNE DUPES
These are not perfumes but very close duplicates, so they're referred to as dupes. No, you're not being duped at all! I've discovered some very close impersonations and have spent only a few dollars on a bottle of what is considered a $100 or more bottle of perfume. You can't use perfume or cologne in your soaps: they're formulated for direct use on your skin.
Fragrance oils are stronger than perfumes, so that's why you don't add much to your soap or apply directly on your skin. As far as the actual scent, unless you're a perfumer, you probably won't detect any difference between the original and a fragrance dupe.
Essential Oils:
Pure, unadulterated essential oils derived from the leaves, roots, seeds, flowers or bark of a plant are the source extracted directly from nature via a form of steam distillation or cold pressing. When you first begin working with essential oils, take care in handling them. Lavender and tea tree essential oils are safe for the skin, but some people can have allergic reactions to them. When handling essential oils, it’s wise to do a skin test. Simply apply a tiny amount on your wrist, and if there’s no reaction within 24 hours you are safe.
As these oils can be costly, you must take care that they’re always kept in a cobalt or amber colored glass bottle and stored in a cupboard [out of direct sunlight] and kept in a reasonably moderate temperature. Extreme heat doesn’t benefit essential oils. Also, essential oils, like memories, fade over time.
Determining the quality of the essential oil is not always easy to do. Fragrance oils can contain essential oils, but essential oils can't contain fragrance oils. Purchasing any essential oil from a reputable dealer/shop is the first step. Make certain it’s labeled as such: On the label should be the botanical name, country of origin, how it was extracted, and what part of the plant is contained within the bottle.
Some essential oils will cause your soap to change color. Lavender oil is clear and won’t alter it, but orange oil will. Some of the thicker oils such as Balsam of Peru or vanilla absolute will add a pale brown shade to your soaps. This effect can make your soap look even more natural. Check with the manufacturer or supplier about the coloring effects of essential oils before you purchase any.
Steam Distilled, Cold-Pressed & Absolute—What’s the Difference?
The method of removing the essential oil from the plant is confusing to those new to aromatherapy. Basically, the best methods involve pressing the plant in order to obtain its vital ingredients in making that pure essential oil. Distilling is another form, and if you’re thinking of a still where the ingredients are heated up, then you’re correct. Absolutes and concretes are other categories, which involve the usage of alcohol-based solvents. Many expensive floral essential oils must be done with the solvent method, as they’re extremely sensitive to the heat that a steam distillation produces.
From personal experience, I’ve learned that sniffing an essential oil right from the bottle and diluting it with a carrier oil [such as sesame, jojoba, sweet almond, etc.] makes a difference. I smelled my favorite, vanilla absolute [from Madagascar] a thick balsamic oil derived from the pod of the vanilla plant. I determined that the first whiff brought out the usual vanilla scent I was accustomed to, but a millisecond later there was a stronger, harsher scent. I then added a few drops to a bottle of sesame oil and the change was magnificent! There was the aroma I equated with the spicy-sweet scent of a dried vanilla bean pod. The carrier oil had combined perfectly and enhanced the essential oil!
If you are interested in learning more about essential oils, read The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential Oils by Julia Lawless. Also, visit your local library and see what they have on the shelves and shop around online.
BLENDING TIPS:
Even if you only have two fragrance or essential oils to start out your collection, you’ll learn that blending them is the gateway to more fragrant soap. You may combine essential and fragrance oils together, or stick with one type only. Combining scents is fun and very creative. You can even create your own signature blends. And if you want to get really inventive, give your new blends a name.
All scents are put into three different groups when blending. Perfumes are comprised of several aromas—sometimes more than 100! But to simplify it, this trio of groups is:
Base Notes: The longest lasting scents. Patchouli and oakmoss are two examples of base notes.
Middle Notes: Not as long lasting but they are important for keeping the body of the scent. Examples are: lemongrass, jasmine
Top notes are what you'll initially smell when all three are combined. Any citrus is a top note as is lavender.
If you don't want to blend you can buy so many blends on the market. Many of them available for just a few dollars.
One way to test them is to buy perfume test strips. Or you can use Q-tips, break them in half, and add 1 or more drops of the oil to a small Ziploc bag.
When I was classifying my scents for sale, I categorized them a little differently. This is a helpful guide for determining what you'd like to work with.
Dessert/Food:
Chocolate Mousse, Vanilla Pudding, Banana Cream Pie, Brown Sugar, Pink Sugar, Cotton Candy, Key Lime Pie, Pecan Pie, Tomato Leaf
Drinks/Tea:
Mocha, Green Tea, Sassafras, Linden Green Tea, Red Clover Tea, Mango Lassi, Cranberry
Fruit:
Apple, Kiwi, Pear, Black Cherry, Strawberry, Raspberry, Orange
Masculine/Spicy:
Sandalwood, Green Irish Tweed, Masculine Musk, Nag Champa, Oakmoss, Apple Cinnamon
Floral:
Lilac, Tuberose, Magnolia, Peony, Sweet Pea, Frangipani, Violet
Herbal/Green
Rosemary-Mint, Peppermint, Bayberry, Balsam Fir, Cucumber, Sage
Essential Oils:
These are categorized in the same way as the fragrances but with slightly different categories.
The five most basic categories are: Floral, woodsy, oriental, spicy and citrus.
Designer Dupes:
There are many designer dupes online that range from well known names like Chanel, Armani and Ralph Lauren to bath & body shops like: Victoria's Secret, Bath & Body Works, The Body Shop, L'Occitane, and Lush. It is a wonderful world scent-wise and the prices for these close impersonations can be as low as $3 per ounce! Best of all, you only need approximately one teaspoon per pound of soap so the savings are excellent!
Online it's easy to find a dupe of Bath & Body Works many varieties of scents. As you probably know, this chain of bath & body shops isn't known for their soap but for their fragrant lotions, shower gels shampoos, and bubble baths. Don't live near one of their shops? Buy their products online.
The only difference between the fragrance and the original was the fact that I could add that lovely aroma into any bar or loaf of soap I chose! I could color it or keep it natural. I could also imitate the color of the blue fragrance of Angel perfume as seen here:
In addition, Sweetcakes.com has some fantastic fragrance blend suggestions right on their website!