What is The Natural Soap Making Book for Beginners about?
It’s a beginner-friendly guide to making soap at home using natural oils, herbs, spices, clays, and essential oils. It focuses on teaching the full process (especially cold-process soapmaking) and then applying it through recipes and tutorials.
Who wrote The Natural Soap Making Book for Beginners?
The book is written by Kelly Cable, a soapmaker and herbalist behind the Simple Life Mom blog.
Does this book teach cold-process soapmaking step by step?
Yes—there’s a full cold-process chapter that breaks the method into 10 steps, explains trace, and includes a starter tutorial recipe. It also includes troubleshooting tips for common problems like seizing, overheating, and soap ash.
Is this book actually beginner-friendly if I’ve never made soap before?
Yes, it’s designed as an entry-level soapmaking resource that starts with foundations, supplies, safety, and key terms before moving into techniques and recipes. The author compares soapmaking to baking: if you can follow a recipe, you can make soap.
Does the book use artificial dyes or fragrance oils?
No—the recipes and guidance focus on natural colorants and essential oils rather than artificial pigments, dyes, or fragrance oils. The book also explains why it avoids certain controversial additives like titanium dioxide and many brightened micas.
What kinds of natural colorants does the book teach you to use?
It teaches natural colorants like activated charcoal, clays (rose, bentonite, Moroccan orange), turmeric, cocoa powder, spirulina, madder root, indigo, and annatto seed infusions. There’s also a chart showing when to add each colorant and how much to use per pound of soap.
Does it explain essential oil safety for soapmaking?
Yes, it includes safety guidance, patch-testing advice, and special precautions for babies/young children, pregnancy/breastfeeding, and the elderly. It also lists essential oils to avoid and explains the difference between top, middle, and base notes for longer-lasting scent blends.
What soapmaking supplies do I need to get started?
It lists required safety gear (like gloves and protective eyewear) and core tools such as a stainless steel pot, scale, thermometer, stick blender or hand mixer, bowls, spatula, parchment paper, and a soap mold. It also explains mold options, including loaf molds, silicone molds, and DIY molds.
Does the book teach how to work with lye safely?
Yes, it explains that cold-process soapmaking requires lye and gives clear safety steps, including wearing protective gear and mixing lye into water outside to avoid fumes. It also explains what to do if lye gets on your skin.
How long does it take to make a batch of soap using the recipes in this book?
Many recipes list a hands-on time of about 1 to 2 hours, plus time in the mold (often 24 hours). Most cold-process recipes then cure for 4 to 6 weeks for best hardness and longevity.
How many bars of soap do the recipes make?
Most recipes are designed to yield about 3 pounds of soap, which the book notes can be cut into 12 bars of about 4 ounces each. Some molds may include dividers so you don’t have to cut the bars yourself.
Does the book include troubleshooting help if my soap batch goes wrong?
Yes, it includes a troubleshooting table covering issues like soap not reaching trace, tracing too fast, seizing, cracking, partial gel, separation, and soft soap. It also explains rescue methods like hot-processing and hand-milling (rebatching).
Are there recipes for sensitive skin or fragrance-free soap?
Yes, there are gentle and unscented options, including a Gentle Baby Soap recipe that’s kept unscented for babies and people with allergies. There are also recipes labeled for sensitive skin, such as a Sensitive Skin Body Bar with Coconut Milk.
Does it include nut-free soap recipes (including coconut-free options)?
Yes, it includes recipes labeled nut-free and a note on nut allergies that calls out oils to watch for and suggests substitutions like babassu oil. There’s also a dedicated Nut-Free Soap recipe designed for people with nut allergies, including coconut.
Are there recipes beyond basic body bars, like shampoo bars or laundry soap?
Yes, the book includes specialty bars such as shampoo bars, a shaving bar, a laundry bar, pet shampoo, acne-focused soaps, and camping/bug-repelling soap. It also includes salt “spa bar” recipes and seasonal gift-style soaps.
Does the book teach decorative techniques like swirls and layers?
Yes, there’s a decorative techniques chapter that teaches embossing, swirling (basic, spin, and slide methods), and layering. Each technique includes step-by-step instructions and at least one guided tutorial recipe.
If I want to create my own soap recipes, does the book show me how?
Yes, it includes a recipe-design chapter that explains how to use a lye calculator (the author recommends SoapCalc.net), how to choose base oils by properties, and how to plan additives, color, and scent. It also includes a recipe planning worksheet and suggested base oil combinations.
