|
Description of Book
Soaps fragrant with cinnamon, "painted" with natural coloring, stamped or laminated, that fizzes in the bath, and even has a written message. These 300 beautiful, easy-to-make soaps are gentle on the skin and a charming addition to bathroom décor. All use a simple melt and pour technique, and any craft, grocery, health food or drug store will have the supplies you need: a glycerin or coconut soap base, fragrances, additives (such as flowers and green tea), colorants (spices, dried herbs, cosmetic-grade color), and molds. What's really special are recipes for bee-shaped fruited honey bars; deliciously scented lemon sage scrub; a heart swirl with smaller, decorative soap pieces embedded inside; a French cameo; the leaf-shaped mountain therapy blend with gold luster powder; and many more.
Editorial Reviews
Library Journal
This is a continuation of the projects found in Browning's Melt & Pour Soapmaking, using commercially available soap bases. This book emphasizes soap made with additives such as essential oils, botanicals, spices, and even chocolate. There are also lovely molded soaps that one would hate to destroy by using. All of these soaps can be made using kitchen equipment, and no lye or animal fat is used in the process. Browning's books are always great additions to public libraries.
Reviews
The essential melt & pour reference
September 26, 2002
5 Stars
Reviewer from Burlingame, CA USA
Marie Browning is my personal soap-making Goddess. Her books are easy to follow, enjoyable, and full of wonderful soap pictures and recipes. This lovely book, good enough to browse as a soap art book if you don't want to make your own, features these sections: introduction, soap-making supplies, basic technique, designer techniques, the recipes, and metric conversion. There are several recipes to a page and the soaps are illustrated in color. What more could a crafter ask for? There are soaps for every level, and she explains what base to use, how many drops of which fragrances, how many drops of which colorants, what molds to use, and any additional supplies. I look forward to trying each and every one of her designs!
Finally! A melt and pour book worth looking at.,
September 13, 2002
5 Stars
Reviewer from Westminster, CA USA
I am a sucker for gorgeously photographed books. This may have something to do with my five star rating here, but give me a chance to make my case! It is about the fun, creative side of soapmaking, with emphasis on the visual and olfactory effects you can create rather than making "skin care" products per se. Of course these soaps are all perfectly functional, gentle and satisfying as soap, but you may find they make even better gifts and conversation pieces. I have made a few so far that caught my eye; indeed, with 300 to choose from, I could not possibly do justice to them all, and I apologize that I can only comment on a small fraction from personal experience. They are all lovely.
A Melt & Pour Soapcrafting Book for All Levels,
October 17, 2002
5 Stars
Reviewer from Los Angeles, CA
Whether you're a beginner or an expert soapcrafter, 300 HANDCRAFTED SOAPS by Marie Browning is definitely a must-have for your library. If you craft melt & pour and are low on ideas, you'll be inspired after just the quickest look through this book. The photographs are stunning, and I'm sure this will be mentioned in all reviews. Almost all of the 300 recipes have accompanying pictures and this is necessary for such an eye-catching craft. Ironically, the one photo that could have been improved is the cover shot---the background is a bit too dark to effectively highlight the soaps.
This book is up-to-date as the author mentions more than her standard coconut oil, clear or opaque glycerin melt & pour bases. Olive oil, avocado and cucumber, goats milk, colored, and the newer frosting bases are described and pictured. Marie Browning offers helpful suggestions for selecting QUALITY soap bases and her advice is very important for those beginners who tend to buy whatever's on sale or available. As the author of a book about melt & pour soap and a soapcrafter for several years, I've learned that you must read the ingredients.
For those looking to explore the boundaries of hand-milled [sometimes called
rebatch] soapcrafting, you'll be advised to purchase a copy of her earlier book, BEAUTIFUL HANDMADE SOAPS. Ms. Browning's latest offering is for melt & pour soapcrafters only! Her recipes can be adapted to hand-milled soap however. She has a handy chart comparing hand-milled and melt & pour.
Marie Browning has concocted so many new recipes that I'd recommend a person look at the photographs first, then go back and match the photo numbers with the recipes.
With the holiday season fast approaching, you'd better hurry up and order this book so you have time to make some of these wonderful recipes to give as gifts. But the best part about soapcrafting is that it's an inexpensive hobby that can be done year-round because there's always a forthcoming holiday, and people always use soap!
|
