Every woman loves bath and body products. Soaps and body butters are very easy to make at home and make great holiday gifts. Surprise your family and friends with these thoughtful homemade spa gifts.
Homemade Body Butter Bars
Homemade body butter bars give your skin a soft, silky feeling, perfect for anyone on your holiday gift giving list. To make these body butter bars you will need:
Molds
Shea butter
Coconut oil
Beeswax
All of these items can be purchased online or at craft stores where soap making supplies are sold.
Using a microwave or double boiler, melt equal parts shea butter, coconut oil, and beeswax together. Pour into molds (silicone cupcake pans work well) and place in freezer until solid.
Soap Petals
These pretty soap petals are really fun and easy to make. To make these soap petals you will need:
Silk rose petals
Glycerin soap
Rose fragrance oil
Remove the silk rose petals from the silk flowers. Melt the glycerin soap in the microwave in a microwaveable bowl. Add several drops of rose fragrance oil.
Place the rose petals into the melted glycerin and stir to coat. Remove the petals and place on a wire cooling rack with a piece of waxed paper underneath to catch the drips.
Continue melting glycerin and dipping petals until you have made the desired amount of soap petals. Let dry.
Arrange soap petals in an attractive glass container for gift giving. These make a pretty addition to any bathroom counter. Two to three soap petals can be used to wash one’s hands, discarding the petals after use.
Soap Cubes
These fun cubes you can make by melting down bars of clear glycerin soap. Place the glycerin in a microwaveable bowl and add a drop or two of the food coloring of your choice. Heat until glycerin is completely melted.
Pour into ice cube trays that have been coated with a thin layer of petroluem jelly. Let cool until hardened and then carefully remove from ice cube trays. Place in a pretty glass container for gift giving.
Lavender Soap Balls
For those who love the scent of lavender, lavender soap balls make great holiday gifts. For these soap balls you will need:
2 bars unscented soap
1/4 c. rosewater
Approximately 10 drops of lavender oil
Grate the soap into a bowl. Heat rosewater in the microwave in a microwaveable bowl and pour over soap shavings.
Let set for a few minutes and then knead together with your hands. Add lavender oil. Let the mixture set for a couple of days and then use your hands to form the soap mixture into the shape of golf balls.
Let dry. Placing in the sun will speed up drying time. It will take several weeks for them to harden completely. After they are dry you can use your hands to gently smooth away any rough edges.
Lollipop Soap
This is a great gift idea for kids. Melt glycerin soap and add food coloring as for the soap cubes, but instead of pouring into ice cube trays, pour into lollipop molds and add a lollipop stick.
Soap Crayons
Another great gift idea for kids is homemade soap crayons. Grate your favorite inexpensive bar soap into a bowl, and add approximately 2 tbsp. of water per bowl. Add a couple drops of food coloring and mix everything together with hands, adding a bit more water if necessary. The mixture will be similar to the consistency of playdough.
Press the soap mixture into molds. Ice cube trays also work well. It helps to spray the molds with cooking spray first for easy removal. Let soap set until the soap has hardened and is easy to remove.
Homemade soaps and other bath and body products are very easy to make at home. Not only are they inexpensive, they make great holiday gifts for family and friends.
Amy Johnson is a professional blogger that writes for ChemistryStore.com,
an online retailer selling Melt and Pour soap base.
