Most of my crafting has a practical aspect to it. Such is the case with soap making. I make the soap because I use it. However, the soap I make has a certain artistic aspect to it and I also give it as gifts to friends and family I know will appreciate it. So there is more to soap making for me than simply an exercise in creating something to wash with. I mainly use these in the shower, so I wash with them, but they’re more for the fragrance. If I was to think about how I go about making sure I’m actually hygienically clean for the day, I’ll use anti-bacterial scrubs for my body, as well as Hand Sanitizer throughout the day to keep my hand as clean as possible. This then means I also have more of my crafted soaps to give as gifts!
I make glycerin soap and get many of my supplies from SoapCrafters. Rebecca grows all of the herbs I use in my soap, including the German chamomile, which can be quite expensive when purchased in the store. Given the season of the year, my soap making efforts this past weekend focused on spring and Easter. Here are some lovely springtime soaps with a lilac (top) and baby powder (bottom) scent:
Both soaps use the same mold, an assortment of daffodils. I’ve used a special soap glitter to give them a bit of glitz. I found that this particular mold produces easily held soap, but children sometimes find it a bit large. Making the soap easy to use has been a quest of time (along with all of the other accessibility topics I tend to work through). Because of this, I also make egg-shaped and completely spherical soaps like these that are easier for smaller hands to use:
The soap on the left is a lovely coconut smell, while the one on the right is another baby power scent. Of course, kids love shapes too, so I was extremely pleased when my wife found a jello mold that had pleasing kid-friendly shapes. These soaps are in a wonderful Creamsicle scent that kids really love (think orange/vanilla).
A few of our friends raise sheep. What would be better than a sheep shaped soap (try saying that three times fast)? SoapCrafters had this wonderful sheep and I couldn’t resist buying it:
This one also uses the coconut scent that seems to be a favorite with guys and gals alike. It smells quite clean and it’s refreshing–not heavy at all. A few people will receive a three soap medley of lemon, orange, and coconut soaps as shown here:
So, what are your favorite shapes and scents? Let me know at [email protected]. In the meantime, I’ll continue crafting and letting you see the results 
!
