|
Publisher:
Sterling/Chappelle (Distributed in UK by Chrysalis Book Group) |
Release
Date: October 2003 |
ISBN:
080696863X |
Awards:
|
Format
Reviewed: Large Format Hardback |
Buy
it at Amazon |
Read
an Excerpt |
Genre:
How-To Books/Soap Making |
Reviewed:
2004 |
Reviewer:
Rachel A Hyde |
Reviewer
Notes: |
Copyright
MyShelf.com |
|
300
Handcrafted Soaps
By Marie Browning
Have
some good, clean fun and make your own soaps! No, you don’t
need wool fat or lye, and this is NOT a book that tells you how
to do the cold process method, but if you fancy learning how to
be creative with melt and pour soap compound then this book is for
you. It starts off by telling you what you need; the difference
between the various soap bases for example, fragrances and how to
use them safely, additives and tools. Reassuringly, it manages to
avoid mentioning a lot of expensive or unnecessary items and the
basics of the process are explained in enough detail to be easy
to understand. I like the way all the various hazards of soap making
are covered, as in when they crop up, and throughout the book the
reader is always told why something is unadvisable (or a very good
idea). This makes learning how to do it safely stay in the mind
and become part of the process; a very important feature of any
“how to” book.
Less impressive is the truly
vast number of molds, and some very obscure fragrances that are
used throughout. If you live outside the States many of these are
impossible to obtain, although it is true that they can be obtained
from US companies via some websites. What would have impressed me
more would have been to show how one easily obtainable mold could
be used in a variety of different ways. On the plus side you can
learn how to add pictures to soaps, paint on them, use rubber stamps
and make them look like fossils among other methods. This book conveys
the message (which I can back up) that soap making is a whole lot
of fun and it makes a nice change to see a book on melt and pour
work; most of the other soap books I have seen are about other more
involved methods. If you want to make some great gifts for people,
or even sell your work then this ought to start you off on the right
footing.
|