Cold Process Method (soapmaking)

Before you make cold process soap, be sure to prepare everything you need.

STEP 1 - GET READY

- Choose your location: soap making zone should be free of mess and disorder, be in proximity to your stove, have access to water and have a large, flat work surface.

- Protect your area: cover your work surface with protective layer. Vinyl table cloth is good for this. It's cheap, easy to wipe clean and may be re-used.

- Put down a rubber carpet to protect your floor if you need to.

- Assemble all equipment and components.

- Prepare soap molds.

- Line your soap molds with butchers paper or plastic film.

- Prepare seclusion area.

- Prepare an extra piece of butchers paper ready to place over the top of the soap.

STEP 2 - PREPARE THE ADDITIVES

To begin with it's good to limit yourself to just a couple or three of additives. As you become more experienced with making cold process soap, you will be more confident about adding in other additives.

- Pre-heat your oven.

- Set the oven`s temperature to the lowest setting. 

- Measure required additives and essential oils.

- Measure out any botanicals or pigments you will be using and place them in measuring jar.

STEP 3 - ASSEMBLING DECORATIVE PIECES

- Stir all ingridients in prepared soap mould and decorative fractions (you may experiment here) into the oven. You may use coffee beans, dry petals or even banana gruel or little toys for this.

- Do not add cold ingredients to a hot base. It will cool down too quickly and result in a chalk-like soap.

- Place the mould into oven and turn it off. Let the soap cool down naturally.

After it is not too hot to touch it, cover the mould with plastic film or buthers paper and wrap into blanket. It should lay wrapped for 24 hours. Tip: If you can not get the soap out of form, heat it a little.