In this comprehensive guide, Susan Miller Cavitch covers everything you need to know to make your own soaps. Learn the basic techniques for crafting oil-, cream-, and vegetable-based soaps, and then start experimenting with your own personalized scents and effects. Cavitch provides tips for making more than 40 different specialty soaps, showing you how to design colorful marbled bars and expertly blend ingredients to create custom fragrances. You’ll soon be making luxurious soaps at a fraction of the cost of boutique products.Important Notice Early printings of this book contain a recipe variation in a sidebar note on page 36. As a result of further testing, author Susan Miller Cavitch and Storey Publishing strongly recommend that you do not try this variation. Adding honey when you are combining the sodium hydroxide and water may result in a stronger reaction with more intense heat. The mixture may bubble up quickly and come out of the pot, posing a potential hazard.

Soapmaking expert Susan Miller Cavitch takes the mystery out of soapmaking, sharing her advice and formulas for making high-quality soaps that are free of synthetic ingredients and naturally good for the skin.

Readers will find concise directions and clear illustrations that will guide them through the entire soapmaking process -- from buying quality supplies to cutting the finished bars.

With tips, techniques, and detailed recipes, this guide is an inspiring exploration of chemical-and additive-free soap. A Selection of the Crafter's Choice Book Club.