Melt & Pour Soap Making

Everyone always talks about Cold Process soap making, and quite a lot of people tend to bash Melt and Pour, claiming that it isn't "actual soap making". So, what's the deal?

Technically, yes, it's not 100% made from scratch. But you are still putting in the effort to make a completed bar of soap! When you decide to make a cake, you go to the grocery store and buy the ingredients. You have a choice between making it from scratch or buying a boxed cake mix. If you choose the box caked mix, which many people do, you still have to add the oil, eggs, and water; but your end result is still a cake that you can decorate and eat. There are just less steps in making it. You still get a wonderful, delicious cake in the end! So, what's the issue with using a Melt and Pour base to make a beautiful, wonderful smelling bar of soap?

Why must we criticize someone so much for using a premade base? It's still a handmade product that a lot of people love! Is it because Cold Process soap making has so many more steps to it? That there's a lot more trial and error and more hard work than Melt and Pour? Melt and Pour can still be really difficult to work with, especially with more intricate designs. You're not able to get drop swirls, or in the pot swirls with Melt and Pour, but you can use it for clear pieces, embeds, brighter colored soap that you just can't get with cold process. Melt and Pour is also wonderful for beginners as well that don't feel comfortable working with lye! Some people worry that you are not able to control what goes into your Melt and Pour soaps, but you absolutely can! You can also make up some last-minute soaps to bring with you to craft fairs if you run out of Cold Process bars! And the best thing about Melt and Pour? It doesn't have to cure for a month, you can just pop it in its packaging and it's ready to go!

A lot of my best products are Melt and Pour soaps! I haven't ventured into Cold Process as I do not have the space to work with lye. I use clays, salts, essential oils, skin safe colors, and much more in the Melt and Pour soaps! I have made some of the most beautiful soaps that fly off the shelf at craft fair events! My Peony & Amberwood soap is one of my best sellers along with some other spring type fragrances! The unique layers in this bar take a while and wouldn't be possible with Cold Process. Plus, the surface shine is gorgeous!

The only cons about Melt and Pour soap making is that colors tend to blend together in the mold if you don't allow them to set up, and that the finished bar tends to sweat if left out. But these two can be fixed easily! I've found that using a thicker base such as goat milk or cocoa butter allows for colors to suspend together without blending. And shrink wrapping your soap will keep the bars from sweating. These issues are super easy to work around!

So don't let some of these soap makers scare you off from making Melt and Pour soaps! It's still just as efficient, fun, and profitable as Cold Process soap making! There are both pros and cons to both types of soap making, choosing what's best for you and your business is what matters the most. You don't even have to have a business to make soap, you can make it at home for fun too! So, get out there and make some fun Met and Pour soap!