Studio DIY Blog Crush, Ombre Inspiration, and Free Soap Tutorial!

Kelly, of Studio DIY

If you’ve been visiting the Soapylove Facebook page lately, you know that I’ve been seriously crushing on the DIY Studio blog!!  The tag line is “Make Life a Party.”  Say no more, right?!  Kelly, the adorable woman behind the blog, has incredible tutorials and stylish inspiration.  I could go on and on.  But you should check it out and get on her super fun mailing list.  Your inbox will thank you!

Yesterday she posted a tutorial for DIY ombre glassware.  So pretty! 

DIY Ombre Glassware Tutorial

Which reminds me – you can get this beautiful faded effect quite simply in glycerin soap!  A tilt of the mold is all it takes.  In conjunction with The Nova Studio, here is the Soapylove Ombre Soap Tutorial.  Enjoy!  (And if you have any questions or comments, please post them below!)

Free Ombre Melt and Pour Soap Tutorial

It’s so fun when a fashion trend translates perfectly into glycerin soap crafting! Like the “ombre” effect, which is a pretty color fade that is being used in everything from dip dyed shorts to hair color effects. Getting a perfect fade in soap might seem tricky, but with a simple technique you’ll get gorgeous results every time.

I see these soaps as a very elegant wedding or bridal shower favor, or a pretty way to add color to enhance your fragrance choice. This is also a handy technique to add to more complex designs!

Supplies: Makes 4 bars

·         4 oz of clear soap base, cut roughly into 1” cubes

·         12 oz of white soap base, cut up

·         Pastel mica colorant of your choice

·         Fragrance oil of your choice

·         4 cavity soap mold (I used Milky Way guest rectangle)

·         Spray bottle with rubbing alcohol

·         Stir sticks, mini paper cups, 2 cup heat-proof measuring cup, microwave

First we will color a small amount of clear soap with mica powder. The powder must be dissolved before adding to soap or else it will clump. To do this, spray some alcohol in a small paper cup (about ½ teaspoon). Stir in a pinch of mica powder and stir well. Melt 1 oz of clear soap base. Pour into the cup of mica solution and stir well. For this effect, I suggest using less color than you think you should. A blush of color is what we’re going for.

Now spray the inside of your mold with alcohol. Pour just enough colored soap to coat the surface.

Next quickly tilt your mold and prop it up on something like a book or magazine. Not more than 1/2” tall.

The colored layer is so thin that you must be super careful that your white soap is not too hot. Melt 12 oz of white soap base. Stir in 1 mL of fragrance oil per bar of soap you are making. Allow to cool in cup until thickened, spray hardened soap in mold with alcohol, and top off with white soap.

Allow soap to harden and unmold!

For all of Soapylove’s tutorials and class projects, go to www.soapylove.com!

How to Throw a DIY Glycerin Soap Making Party with Free Printables!

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One thing I love about making glycerin soap is how easy and fun it is, for all ages!  I gathered up my friends and family for this video to show you how to host a soap crafting party.  As a bonus, I have included the printable signs and name tags to this post!  All you need is a crock pot and a freezer, plus supplies (which you can find in the soap section of most craft stores).

One thing that really tickles me when people make soap is how magical it seems!  From stirring in the color and watching it swirl into the soap, to choosing fragrance (which is a very personal decision!), and then the fun of popping a soap out and admiring their work.  The whole process is exciting and entertaining (as you'll see with my friend Alison)!

Get everyone outside and make something useful and creative.  For the full instructions, check out Let's Get Soapy which includes your supply list and ideas for party themes.  From birthdays to bridal showers, this party idea will make you the hostess with the mostess!

Find all of Soapylove's eZines and tutorials at www.soapylove.com!

Creative Pop Love by Adrian & Gidi

Paper Art by Adrian & Gidi

I came across this awesome little gif on Pinterest and just had to share!  My love of pops goes well beyond soaps (as you can see on my Pop Love Pinterest board), and this really tickled me!  Hope you enjoy it, too.

Have a great day!
P.S. Go to Adrian & Gidi for more amazing paper art!

For all of Soapylove's eZines and tutorials, check out soapylove.com!

Great Soap Packaging Tip - Printed Tape!

Hi everybody!  I have been meaning to post about printed tape for weeks now, but you know how it is as the holidays approach - busy busy!  So today I stumbled upon TapeSwell, an amazing shop where you can find printed tape, labels, coordinating combo packs... all in gorgeous patterns. 

What is so great about this stuff is that they have the look of ribbon with the polish of a professionally printed label, so your soaps will look amazing in a snap!  Whether you wrap it around a shrink wrapped bar or around a soap box, you will be so impressed by how "jazzed up" your packaging looks.  TapeSwell even has a "Tacky Ideas" page for inspiration.

If you like super sweet designs like I do, check out KawaiiYa which has all Kawaii style printed tapes (called "deco tape" in the Japanese stationery world).

For a sophisticated look, try washi tape, which is a beautiful paper tape (like masking tape) that you can tear.  It has a matte look and feel instead of glossy like the above tapes.  Cute Tape has an awesome selection, and an incredible gallery of customer photos. 

Feel like going on a Google adventure?  Try these searches to discover the world of pretty tape:

Deco Tape

Decorative Tape

Washi Tape

Printed Tape

Kawaii Tape

MT Masking Tape

Have fun!
(Psst!  Still looking for some super cute gifts?  Check out the new Soapylove gift sets with Soapy Pops and matching Mini Bath Bombs!  Super new and super awesome!)

Ladies Only Summer Camp!

A few weeks ago it occurred to me that many of us spend our summer sending our kids off to fun camps, but where are the camps for moms?  So I threw a little party for all the ladies (moms or not) with crafts, lunch, drinks, and even home made ice cream.  Here are a few pics that my sister took (thanks, Cher!!).  Maybe you'll be inspired to throw a little summer camp day of your own - you deserve a break, too! :)

First we did a tie dye project (because what's more summer campy than tie dying?).  I got some white cotton gauze at a fabric store and made some really basic scarves.  Then I got dyes and supplies from Dharma Trading Company in Olive Green, Dusty Rose, and Black.  We all knotted up and rubber banded our scarves then went to town with lots of dye.

After the scarves sat in the sun for a while (the heat speeds up the color setting) I rinsed them out with the hose (like my new dark hairdo?). Then we laid our scarves out on the grass to let them dry, admiring each other's neat designs, and grabbed another Watermelon Margarita.

After that we made Erin Pikor's Solid Sugar Scrub Cubes.  They were fun and easy to do. I put out the basic ingredients (sweet almond oil, fragrance oils, sugar, additional exfoliants such as ground loofah and jojoba beads) plus a rice cooker of melted soap base.  So it was easy for people to mix up their scrub and pour it into clam shell boxes.  No freezing or unmolding to worry about.  Everyone's scrubs came out beautifully - it's such a great recipe! 

Finally, I made a batch of S'Mores Ice Cream.  You can't really go wrong with anything that has Marshmallow Fluff, right?  The Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker made it go really quickly, plus it was fun for people to watch.  

I know many kids will be heading back to school soon, so don't miss a chance to get your friends together and have some grown-up fun.  There are tons of great projects online that would be perfect for a craft party.  Here are some sites I used to get ideas:

Craft Zine
Soap Queen
Martha Stewart (great Summer Crafts section)
Dharma Trading Company

Have a great Monday!

Pretzel Day!

Just this past weekend, my family moved to a house in the same nieghborhood my husband and I grew up in - Tierrasanta. We bought our last place before I got pregnant over 4 years ago, and 2 kids later we were still living in our 2-bedroom-with-no-yard-at-all-condo in an eclectic but very un-kid-friendly area. So we are all breathing a huge sigh of relief as we enjoy a real house with a room for each kid and a real yard. It's exciting!

Another HUGE perk of living in Tierrasanta is that I'm now just a few blocks away from my sister, Cheryl. She is always doing something fun! Like yesterday morning her daughter called me and asked if we all wanted to come over and bake pretzels. Um.... YES, we would!

When we got there I was so happy to see my mom was there, too. Cheryl had the dough made already and put it on the table, ready to be cut into pieces and rolled into ropes. Even my youngest loved that and got right into the action. We twisted, knotted, rolled, and made lots of gorgeous pretzels.

Then, like bagels, the dough has to be boiled. It was neat because you have to add 1/2 cup of baking soda to the water, which bubbled way up! After they were all boiled the pretzels were put in the oven and salted.

After they cooled we all started munching. Delicious!Thank you Cheryl, for a really fun and yummy afternoon, and for all of these fabulous photos!!

Get Ready to Be Inspired by Inspired Ideas!

Guess what? Mother's Day is on Sunday - and today is Wednesday! Do you know what you're doing for the Mom in your life yet? I don't. My Mom is really tough to shop for. But last night I discovered an incredible eZine called Inspired Ideas, and now I'm not sure what to pick!

Inspired Ideas is a great FREE eZine with 18 issues full of beautiful, feminine projects. Plus it's really fun to flip through the beautiful photos and collage-style page layouts. I'm torn between the photo decoupage votive candle holders and the cupcake flower arrangement. Tough call!