5 comments about Smart Soapmaking: The Simple Guide to Making Traditional Handmade Soap Quickly, Safely, and Reliably, or How to Make Luxurious Handcrafted Soaps for Family, Friends, and Yourself.

1. This is a great no nonsense book about how to make soap. She's smart and unpretentious. I cant wait to get started making soap. Also, the shipper shipped the book super fast. Very supreme!



2. I hate to disagree with all the 5 star reviews, but I was a bit disappointed by this book. The step by step instructions seem wordy, and there aren't drawings or photos to illustrate the steps. I'm giving it 3 stars because it's not a bad book, but if I had paged through this book at the bookstore, I wouldn't have purchased it. Many of the soap making supply companies have free recipes and videos demonstrating how to make soap, and I find those more useful than this book.
   
   I also thought that the book would have more recipes. I'm a new beekeeper and was disappointed that none of the 10 recipes in the book uses beeswax. However the author does include a conversion table for substituting other types of fats in the recipes, including beeswax.



3. This is a good concise "Getting Started" book. It debunks many of the soapmaking-myths perpetrated in older books and doesn't have a lot of extraneous material.



4. This book is true to previous reviews in that it is super easy to read, perfect instructions, and great, simple recipes. Yes, more than one, more than a few, I believe there are about ten fool-proof recipes. I had no clue what went into soap making, and heeding to all the warnings about being uber careful with lye, I was in no hurry to do anything more than craft simple bars. After my first batch, though, I was already ballsy enough to tamper with my own recipes (not that I recommend that - I'm just recommending the book). This book was the Pandora's box for my soap making passion! It's a great learning experience will all the protection built in. I would recommend this book for anyone who wants to get started the right way with soap making. Modify after becoming comfortable with what she outlines in her book.



5. This was a solid, basic guide to soap making.
   Good book if you're new to the art of making soap.

5 comments about Milk Soapmaking: The Smart and Simple Guide to Making Lovely Milk Soap From Cow Milk, Goat Milk, Buttermilk, Cream, Coconut Milk, or Any Other Animal or Plant Milk.

1. This is a very easy to understand guide to milk soapmaking. It includes easy to follow step-by-step instructions. The only problem I have with this book is that there are no pictures...the few that are in the book are hand drawn and not in color. I like to follow directions in pictures. However, I would still highly recommend this book to learn the techniques. There are also several really great recipes included.



2. Good information but more of a pamphlet, enjoyed the read/info but I felt as though I paid too much.



3. This book is one of my go to books when I need to know anything about soapmking. It is part of my menagerie of books on the subject. A great book for the beginer or seasoned soapmaker.



4. This is a wonderful book. One of the only really good ones I have found for Milk soap making.
   
   It is really easy to understand for beginners and its also good for people who have been making soap for a while. It gives some great tips and debunks some myths on milk soap making.
   
   It has a few recipes for some soaps too, I tried a few and they were all quite nice, I altered a few to make them more personal (scent wise), my favorite is the Oatmeal and cinnamon (I used Lavender instead).
   
   I loved this book and if you want to try milk soap making or already know how its a good book to read.
   
   I also liked that it wasnt a huge brick of a book and its written soap making friendly, so it can be left open while you make some soap



5. Anne Watson has created another book which demystifies soap making. Many soap makers shy away from creating milk-based soaps because of all the horror stories they've heard. Ms. Watson debunks many of those myths and presents a very straightforward approach to dealing with the successful mixing of milk and lye. This is "must have" for any soap maker's library.

5 comments about Making Natural Liquid Soaps: Herbal Shower Gels / Conditioning Shampoos / Moisturizing Hand Soaps.

1. It says in the book that the alcohol method is easier than paste because there is little stirring but I disagree. Make the paste in a crockpot instead of a double boiler. This method is all over the net. Have the crockpot on high and mix ingredients according to the directions. Bring it to a pudding-like texture w/ your stick blender (takes minutes only) then let it cook on lowest heat for about two hours. Give it an occasional stir as you walk past. After two hours turn off the crockpot and let it sit overnight. Ta da! Paste w/ little effort. The alcohol method keeps you on your toes for two hours (you're not going to leave something highly flammable unattended on a stove top!).
   
   Another reviewer mentions it helps to have made cold process prior to using the methods in this book. I agree. All the information you need is in the book but sometimes you have to dig for it because it's not always located in the spot you think makes sense. This is my only complaint about the book.



2. This book is simply awesome!! Numerous recipes and ideas. If you are new to soap making, I would emphasize not just reading, but studying the procedures. Great book, great recipes, great ideas!



3. I don't understand the reviews that complain this book does not have step by step instructions. There are 13 clear steps with text and photos covering 18 pages with lots of white space to aid in following the steps. The recipes for different oil combinations are listed separately but each is complete in specifying the number of ounces of oils, lye, and water required.
   
   I don't understand the reviews that complain this book requires chemistry to follow the steps. I can't find any chemical formulas in the book but there may be some hidden someplace. The 5 alternate methods re: stirring listed on half of page 25 can be confusing--just cover them up with Post-It notes or highlight the alternatives so you can more easily skip over them.
   
   
   This hot process is more complicated and dangerous than making cold process soap and it takes 4 hours or more and requires frequent attention. (The alcohol process is even more complicated and dangerous but can and should be ignored by all but advanced soapmakers.) You'll probably have to order the Potassium Hydroxide over the Web--it's a lot harder to find locally than Lye-Sodium Hydroxide.
   
   I prefer using a crock pot to the double boiler method but the instructional steps, recipes, and temperatures still apply.



4. This book is just a fun book to have. I've found all types of ideas to enhance my own recipes and even found some new ones. It's a book for a more advanced soaper, but one that a newbie to soap making could adapt to with relative ease if care is taken to not over-simplify the process or skip any steps. This book will round out your soap making collection and the products detailed inside it's pages make excellent gifts as well as additions to any beauty collection. I found it both a wonderful read and useful tool in my soap making library.



5. I had this in my wish list and my husband bought it for me as a gift. I was thrilled...and then I started reading. And it didn't make sense. So I read it again. Then a 3rd time. Then I made my husband read it. I was beginning to think I was a bigger idiot than I ever imagined! My husband is almost a genius (don't tell him I say so!), and even HE didn't know what I was supposed to be doing.
   
   I think part of the problem is the "oh you can do whatever you want, that's the great part about it". No, you CAN'T do whatever you want. It's a VERY specific process...and it's almost like it was so vague and generic that she could have been talking about making ANYTHING. I am not a whimsical person, I like a plan, I need a list of instructions to get through something. And this book was awful for that. It didn't tell me how to do a darn thing!

5 comments about Basic Soap Making: All the Skills and Tools You Need to Get Started (Basics).

1. Excellent book for learning how to make handcrafted soaps. It is very informative with full color step-by-step pictures. It includes several easy to follow recipes for vegetable based soaps. There is also a section on how to make your own wooden soap mold and soap cutter. I have made one successful batch of soap and my husband made the soap cutter tool. I would recommend this book to all people who want to learn the art of soap making.



2. Excellent detailed pictures, leaves no guesswork.
   Perfect for a first timer soap maker.
   Will treasure and return to this book for as long as I make soap.



3. It's a fantastic book for the beginners who want to start to make soap. I recomend the book to everyone.



4. This was a good no frills basic guide to making soap.
   A good book to start off with, I'd recommend it for those new to soap making.



5. I think this book is good for the starter to understand how to make soap.

5 comments about Soapmaker's Companion: A Comprehensive Guide with Recipes, Techniques & Know-How (Natural Body Series - The Natural Way to Enhance Your Life).

1. The book is showing its age and doesn't include modern techniques such as using a stick blender, or curing cold process soaps in the oven. The chapter on "Soapmaking Online" is hilariously out of date.
   
   Way too much of the content is based on the author's biases and world-view. It's hard to sort fact from opinion and trust any of her pronouncements.
   
   Some of the recipes have a lot of ingredients. I doubt that there's a good reason for a soap with 6 or 8 different oils.
   
   It's a worthwhile purchase as your 3rd or 4th book on soap making, and for it's historical interest.



2. This is an absolute "must have" for any budding or seasoned soaper. You can't go wrong with the detailed information contained in the book and I often use it as a reference when creating my soaps. The Soapmaker's Companion is an ideal starting point if you're wanting to try your hand at soap-making and coupled with some of the other books by this author, makes an excellent start to a library to keep you in project ideas for a very long time. Many of the concepts of soap making, although described in other books, are explained in everyday terminology that even a novice can master. In time, you'll find yourself creating your own recipes through modifications to those in the book. It's an excellent source to have and I highly recommend it.



3. I have been making various types of soap for the better part of a year now and am always looking for new ideas and information. With all of the positive feedback I was getting about this book I purchased it from my local soapmaking store and quickly realized there was nothing in this book I hadn't already gleaned from the internet in a more up-to-date, concise and searchable format. I have tried a few of the recipes in the book and wasn't fond of any of them. Many call for difficult to find or outrageously expensive ingredients that really aren't necessary to good soapmaking. Others just seem to have ingredients, such as the overuse of GSE, for the sake of having them. The sections on FDA requirements and starting your own business might as well have been excluded since the information there was at a bare minimum lacking. The only reason I gave it as many stars as I did was because it does offer a good information for new soapers, though I find that paying for information that is available for free on the internet a bit ridiculous. Thus, it sits on my bookshelf collecting dust.



4. With all the rave reviews I was really excited about getting this book. I'm brand new to soapmaking and was really looking forward to using this book. Thank God it wasn't the first book I purchased on the subject. If it had been I would never have tried it at all. Other reviews claim this is a great book for beginners, and I have to disagree. Perhaps the book is a bit dated as stated by another reviewer, but I found it to be too much info and what's with the GSE? That being said, there is some good info in this book, and I do like the Q&A Chapter, but I would not recommend this for a beginner. I found Anne L. Watson's "Smart Soapmaking" is a much better choice.



5. This book was a fabulous beginning to Soap Making. Well written. Easy to follow. Great recipes. Great tips. I will be interested in getting this authors other book "The Natural Soap Book". Enjoy!!

5 comments about The Natural Soap Book: Making Herbal and Vegetable-Based Soaps.

1. This book was a good read for me. I liked the author because she is very into natural ingredients and only advises us on natural perservatives to help our soaps last. She gives us some good ingredients to use that will make lovely Bars of soap. The batches are very large which will give you around 40 Bars of soap. My only annoyance about this book, is that she constantly switches from ounces to pounds to grams, all in one bloody recipe, I mean why couldn't she just use ounces or just use grams etc? That annoyed me! Other than that a good book and I'm happy I have it.



2. I have been making soap for years. But before and after every batch, there are two things I grab first, this book and "the soapmaker's companion"...Highly informative, easy to read and essential for soapmakers of any skill level...



3. This is one of the best book for anyone who really wants to know how to make soap. The book offers averything one should know about soapmaking



4. I began making my own soap about 15 years ago. I learned the basics from another soapmaker in her shop in Colorado. This was before all the many books and resources on soapmaking became readily available.
   I bought this book as soon as it came out. It, along with several others, were great resources for expanding my knowledge and technique with soapmaking.
   I see so many reviews that make these types of books "all or nothing" propositions. These books were never intended to present "the ONLY way" to do anything!
   NOTE: I don't superfat my soaps and I don't use GSE. I don't do much of anything EXACTLY the way anyone else does. I do keep a huge database of information (the science of soapmaking, essential and base oil information, additive information, etc.) that I've compiled from many, many sources. THAT database is my soapmaking "Bible."
   That's the beauty of getting a good knowledge base from many, many sources along with actually experimenting on your own! Completely uneducated, very poor people throughout the ages have been able to make perfectly servicable, even magnificent soap without reading a single book on the subject, much less having the wealth of knowledge we can get on the internet. While the science of soapmaking is fascinating to me, and you can certainly make soapmaking into rocket science if you want...it really isn't rocket science!
   Go make some soap! Keep notes on what went great and what didn't. Grate your failures and use them for laundry or household soap. Blaze new trails! One of your experiments may turn out to be infinitely better than any soap you could have copied from anyone else!
   Build yourself a nice library about ANY topic you are passionate about. Read a variety of authors, enjoy the contradictions! Then GO...GO and create your own way, your own dream, your own method. Experiment. Learn from success and failure!
   If you don't have the money to buy more than one book before you start a new craft or hobby, go to the library and borrow them!
   Stand on the shoulders of giants and the wee little people who gave you even a hint of help in achieving your goals and dreams. Write your own book and share what YOU'VE learned!



5. exactly what I was looking for, recipes for all natural soaps with all natural ingredients.

5 comments about Making Natural Milk Soap: Storey's Country Wisdom Bulletin A-199 (Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin, a-199).

1. Booklet was in perfect condition. I am hoping the recipes are good. I have to purchase the ingredients now. They are a little more expensive, lol! Fast shipping.



2. The book is easy to understand.It has all the information you need to make a great soap from start to finish, it even includes recepies. I have made soap before and I am anxious to try the milk based type.I am sure sit will come out great, the book tells you everything you need to know.



3. This book introduces milk soap making at the beginner's level and includes some basic recipes



4. I am new to this hobby and like books that can simplify the process of making the gentle soaps. Lot's of recipes and well written.
   I would recommend.



5. There is very little information in this 32 page pamphlet that you cannot find free on the net. The soapmaking technique (blending) is a little scarry, to me. With the added cost of shipping & handling, you could buy a much more informative hard cover REAL book for the same price at your local book store.

4 comments about Soap Maker's Workshop: The Art and Craft of Natural Homemade Soap.

1. This is a well written guide to soap-making for the hobbyist as well as someone who may be considering taking their interest in soap-making to another level. The book describes how one might go about making soap with the ash and animal fats in the manner available a few generations ago, for the curious minded. If one is considering a commercial venture into selling their handmade soaps, this book describes some aspects one may wish to take into consideration. There is an interesting/useful range of recipes given in weights (which I greatly prefer to volume) as well as the relevant table and formula to calculate a proper ratio of fats to lye in order to accurately create your own recipe. I was pleasantly surprised to find a well-presented DVD included with safety information and a video of the soap-making process. The book is beautifully and logically presented in the manner befitting a professional educator (as Dr. McDaniel is). This book seems to include the basic skills required from which to build one's knowledge. For the readers who wish to add their own creative flair, there is very good information on fragrances and colorants. If I were hard-pressed to find any fault, I'd request some substitutions perhaps when available for some of the more difficult to source components, I am not currently living in the US and I'm having a bit of trouble finding menthol for the shaving soap recipe. So, perhaps in the next edition? I love this book, it is very interesting and the photography is beautiful as well as illustrative of the processes. Carol Buxton



2. This is a must have book in your soapmaking endeavors. I use it it conjuction with other books on the subject and it contributes greatly in my soapmaking efforts.



3. This is a really great book on soapmaking. The main reason I purchased this particular one is because I want to make non lye soap and this does have recipes for it although I am just a little confused on the non lye part. I am sure I will get it though, I still have not watched the video. Looking forward on getting on my soapmaking path very soon. :)



4. All in all this is a good book written by a professional. There is some scattered information that would fill some gaps that an experienced amateur may have, particularly about cold-processed soap. It's also a good starter for the novice. The book comes with a CD that, to tell the truth, I haven't watched. The section on aromatherapy is good as is the section of resources. Authors love making soap and it shows. This having said, I have two major criticisms. One is that the properties of base oils are poorly and haphazardly described. Secondly, the artwork, although explicative, is very poorly designed from the aesthetic point of view. In many pictures there are darker areas, some objects are inexplicably cropped off, too often the colours are strident, ugly hands with dirty nails holding soap don't have a place in a book the price of which is pretty steep. One word of caution, the stick blender is fast and it may save a jeopardized soap batch but in my opinion it doesn't impart a good texture to the finished soap. In fact, as authors state, the preference between crystallized and gelled soap is personal, however the vast majority of the soaps shown in the book are marred by large air pockets. Air pockets are a major defect particularly if soap is for sale or for present. In my opinion the best general book on soapmaking still is Linda Hamblen's "Making scented soap".

5 comments about The Everything Soapmaking Book: Recipes and Techniques for Creating Colorful and Fragrant Soaps (Everything: Sports and Hobbies).

1. So many great recipes in this book. The easy to read instructions make soap making a breeze.



2. Recently purchased 3 different books on soapmaking, this is the one I go back to most often.



3. This is one of those 'basic' books that everyone should have in their soap making library. While it doesn't cover 'everything', it certainly covers a lot of territory.



4. This book is my soapmaking bible! I originally borrowed it from our local library, but couldn't live without it so I bought my own. This edition is updated and has excellent detail! I've made most of the recipes and they are wonderful--not one failure. Very helpful in answering questions for the unexperienced soaper.



5. My daughter asked me if we could make soap sometime soon, and I've been doing a lot of research and have read a lot of book when I could have just gotten this one and made it all easier for myself.
   Great book for beginners with tons of information and suggestions for if you decide you really like it and want to get more in depth in soap making. It has a long intro about how to set up and make soap safely that makes it a lot less scary to think about dealing with lye.
   Then it goes into small batch cold process recipes, which is what we wanted to start with.
   That alone is worth the cost of the book for me because it does explain the process exhaustively and well. But after that chapter it goes into a lot more things like how to make hot process soap and going from hot process to liquid and transparent (not glycerin) soaps. It also has a section on melt and pour soaps and advise on how to use molds.
   Then it got into the chapters that really made me think my daughter's question could lead to an obsession for me. Making micro-batches of soaps with single oils to see how the oils behave, how to calculate lye for creating your bars of soap with blends of oils that give the benefits you are looking for. It can be a little intimidating to look at all the science and math, but the author explains it well enough to keep it from being scary and it looks like so much fun.
   I got this book in Kindle format and I think I need a paper copy as well. Great book.

5 comments about How to Make Monstrous, Huge, Unbelievably Big Bubbles (Klutz).

1. This is a wonderful book. The bubble recipe uses common household ingredients and the bubbles you can produce are entertaining for everyone. It's an absolute must-have for parents of small children.



2. I purchased this item as a gift for my 4 year old granddaughter. Although the weather on the day of her birthday party was too windy the kids still had a good time trying to make bubbles. Later when the wind died down we were able to have fun with the wand. We couldn't make bubbles "as big as a school bus" but my granddaughter had a blast chasing the bubbles that were as big as basketballs.



3. This book and its accompanying bubble wand is terrific! My husband used it at a boys' camp where guys of all ages loved the monster bubbles. The bubble recipes included really worked well and the stories/advice included in the text are great. An all-around hit and a wonderful value.



4. I looked all over for this...this was the best price I could find. It makes FABULOUS bubbles and has a book with some scientific stuff in it for kids. I got it for a 7 year old's gift.



5. We love the Klutz bubble-maker! We always have kids over the house and they are always asking for it. The only thing about the solution is that you need to make sure that the corn starch is well mixed into the water. If the bucket sits for a little while, the corn starch settles and if you don't mixed it up again, the bubbles aren't as good. Other than that, this is a great product for all ages!