Customer Reviews

Making Scented Soap: 60 fragrant soaps and bath bombes to make at home

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

The concern of using SDS and EDTA on my daughter's skin made me look into making my own soaps. I browsed about a dozen of books and this is the only one I bought. It is a great book. It is concise and informative. It is practical, yet it's not "dry". It was written by someone who wants to TEACH you how to make soaps. It overviews base oils and their properties, botanicals and essential oils. It shows how to make cold-processed soap bars, liquid soap, clear soap, massage melts and bath bombs. Many recipes are listed, but most important it delivers a ground knowledge that you can use to design your own recipes, if you so chose. It's the only book I know that teaches the general principles of blending essential oils. The chapter about resources shall direct you well, whether you want to buy in Europe, the U.S. or Australia. Lye calculator and all recipes are given in both metric and imperial. The pictures are magnificent. I recommend this book.

Before I started making soap, I researched several books on the subject. Many books in the market are helpful. Depending on what type of soap you are seeking to prepare, what is your budget for equipment/supplies and finally how much time you would like to spend in the kitchen, these are all very important things to know before you start the craft of soapmaking. There are many different methods that can help you achieve soapmaking, this is why I recommend that beginners do some type of research before starting this craft. I am a beginner and read most books. I read from the oldest method of soapmaking to the newest. Now, since I love cooking and art, I decided to make cold processing soap (involves using lye, etc.) because I love the art form of making such a beautiful product plus it also allows me to control what I use as my soap base.

This book has far been the best book on making good-quality soap. Why? Because the recipes include base oils, herbs and essential oils that make these soaps outstanding. Now, with this said... it may be costly, again depending on your budget and if you do your homework. I purchased most of my ingredients online and saved money. This is craft that can be taken both ways.. if you want something easy to make, faster to use and economical, then melt & pour may be your niche since MP soap can be used immediately versus CP which requires time to cure (upto 4-6 wks.)

I have made soap using these recipes on this book and they were perfect. The scents are wonderful and are curing as I type. The instructions are easy to understand in this book. My only suggestion would be 1) I find out that the temperature of both the base oils and lye should be 100 rather than the suggested temperature in the book before blending together and 2) I experienced a great challenge when I tried to take the soap out of the mold. I didn't use any type of mold release and had difficulty releasing my soap. So, the next batch I placed a plastic trash bag inside my mold and this worked great but had lots of wrinkles on my dry soap. What I did to avoid these problems is that I purchased a mold that requires no freezer paper, bag or mold release. This mold is sold on ebay for an excellent price. So far, I've made 3 batches and can't wait to use my scented soap.

I hope this review helps soapmakers and that they enjoy the craft just as much as I am.

I checked this book out from the library, and yes it has some nice recipes but not for the asking price. The cover has a price of 19.95 why is everyone asking so much? Soap makers companion is just as good if not better.Soapmaker's Companion: A Comprehensive Guide with Recipes, Techniques & Know-How (Natural Body Series - The Natural Way to Enhance Your Life) I am an experienced soap maker and would never pay this much for a book like this. Basic soap recipes with some nice essential oil combinations but nothing you could not find on the internet for free. Basic Bath Bombs but again very basic and nothing you could not get on the internet search; many wholesale supplies have soap and bath recipes for no charge. All of the recipes on my website are from the Soap Makers Companion with the addition of many of my own ingredients (ideas) [...]

I recently purchased Linda Hamblen's book "making Scented Soaps" and I love it!!
It was a little pricey but well worth the money!! I am an accomplished soap maker and I sell my products locally as well as on the web and having Linda's book gave me a fresh new approach on soap making.
Her bath bombes are outstanding!!!
Doreen Fish
Vancouver Island,BC
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I have many soap books and this one is the best. The soaps, bath bombs, and massage melts are fantastic! I wish I could give this book 100 stars! The pictures are beautiful.

Borrowed book from library and thought it was an excellent book. I would just like to know why this book sells for so much. I really want to purchase it but the prices are outrageous.

This is a great book!! It has very clear instructions, explains the chemistry in a straightforward way and has beautiful photographs of the finished products. I got this to make bath bombs (it's very easy with her instructions!!) and am inspired to try more-- massage melts, soaps, etc. Diverse, creative recipes. Definitely worth every penny and more!!!