There is only one recipe in the book, she just repeats it throughout the book changing the essential oils and fragrance oils for each recipe. Some she adds herbs to and some she doesn't.

Some of the herbs she uses turn brown and bleed, which is verified by her photos of her soaps.

The only way I can recommend the amounts of peppermint and lavender eo's that she's recommending is if you are buying VERY low quality EOs. Oddly enough, she has Frontier as one of the EO suppliers in one of her photos and I definately would not recommend that you use her recipe amounts for that brand.

Page 79: in this 8# batch of soap she says to add 1 oz of cinnamon essential oil. Please DON'T, you'll be sorry. Page 77, add 4 ounces to the same recipe. AAAHHH! Can we say, Red & Inflamed? Yeah, there are more... Page 57, 4 ounces of peppermint eo in an 8# batch of soap? Yikes, like taking a shower with an ice cube...

OK, ok, so you're buying your essential oils at one of these soap suppliers that buy low grade stuff and then dilute it with DPG? Okay, then pour that much, you'll probably be fine. Probably being an important word, because if they don't care about quality when they purchase,they might get the occassional good batch and then you'll be hurtin'.

Oh, and she says to add 1/2 cup dried peppermint leaf to the soap. Well, that is going to turn brown, bleed, and look yucky. There are much better ways to get an herb into a peppermint soap, say, put something in there that stays green, for instance.

As for the soap making method, it is exactly the same as your Ann Bramson book. Which is about $4.95, and this one costs $9.95. Well, except for Sandy Maine pours the lye INTO THE WATER! Hurray! First time I've seen the correct method in print. :) But she's saying to match temps at 95-98 F, put a blanket on it, etc. We know better now... There are MUCH easier ways. :)

She says to use a wooden spoon to stir. Don't ever do that. Those of us who have will tell you, the lye water eats the spoon and sooner rather than later your spoon will break apart in your soap. Wood splinter soap.

OK, here is my last complaint and then I'll shut up. Add 4 ounces of Rose oil, if you use 4 ounces of Rose essential oil and lets say you bought it wholesale. EACH BAR of soap will have about SIX DOLLARS of scenting material in it. And that's before you figure your costs of the fats, lye, etc. It'd be strong too, I'll tell ya that!

Don't even think of using that much Soapcrafters fragrance oils either.. oh yeah, I was going to shut up after that last comment....

Recommended? No, unless you're a soap book collector, then buy it for the fun history stuff and the few pic's. I don't see anything particularly harmful in there, I mean, your skin will just be a little irritated by that cinnamon and for the next couple of hours people will be asking you if you have a sunburn. Aside from that it is okay. Just seems like something she dashed off on a lazy afternoon without much effort. But the photos are pretty. :) And it is interesting to see photos of her huge soap pot and her cutting press.

49 of 51 found the following review helpful:


Easy as Pie  May 19, 1999
I loved this book I have been agonizing for month's about making soap myself. I have spent a small fortune in specialty shops for these kinds of soaps. After spending hours on the internet and purchasing 3 seperate books I decided to use Sandy Maine's recipe for a first try. I think it's going to be a success!!! Once I gathered up enough courage to use LYE!!(it's not as scary as it sounds) The next hardest part was gathering all the equipment. Most items can bee found at the local Walmart, Pic n Save, even the Thrift store!! That's where I found my postal scale. I like that every basic recipe is the same just the additive's are the only change. I would also recomend "The Complete Soapmaker" by Norma Coony. Excellent picture's!!! Deals mostly with hand milling which semms to require much less essential oil. The oils are not eaten away by the lye solution. Susan Miller Cavitch's book "The Natural Soap Book" is a good reference and full of all kinds of "advanced" information. Not really a beginner book. I would love any input or advise from any one reading this review.

29 of 30 found the following review helpful:


Inspired Scared Novice--But Use Only 1/2 Essential Oils!!!  Dec 23, 2004 By Sharon
I bought this book several years ago--and just got around to making soap for Christmas presents this year. This book was inspiring since it was short, simple, straight-forward . . . recipe was same--just different blends of essential oils.

DON'T USE 4 OUNCES OF ESSENTIAL OILS per batch--WAY TOO MUCH: 1) pool of excess essential oils sits on top of soap, 2) soap never hardens up quite right (according to Cavitch's book), 3) Essential oils are EXPENSIVE, 4) Scent is TOO STRONG, 5) Some essential oils (like cinnamon) used in called-for amounts actually too concentrated for skin (read other reviews!)

This book is a great starter for novices if you do the following: 1) cut the recipes by 1/4 to learn on smaller batches since the ingredients can be costly--in case your batch does not turn out during your learning stage; 2) invest in a good digital scale that allows you to "zero out" after adding each successive ingredient to the same container (accurate to 1/4 ounce and much faster--many initial mistakes attributed to measuring errors); 3) buy coconut oil at Walmart (under $3 for 31.5 oz); 4) obtain reasonably priced essential oils via internet at A Garden Eastward (http://addy.com/brinkley/); 5) Buy one of Susan Cavitch's soapmaking books next to learn from your mistakes and/or take your soapmaking to the next level--by then, you'll be motivated to absorb more complex information that seemed overwhelming/initimidating at first--which will make so much more sense once you've made a couple of batches.

43 of 47 found the following review helpful:


A waste of time.  Jul 07, 1999
This book may have been interesting when published in 1995, but it's woefully inadequate for today's home soapmakers. Not good for beginners due to the weak and incomplete instructions given. Vital safety and troubleshooting issues were totally ignored. One of the recipes is downright insane. "Mechanics' Body Repair Soap" calls for 2oz. of highly flammable kerosene, a degreasing agent and "scent that only a mechanic would love". No hazardous materials warning. She regards it as an ordinary fragrance oil. I wouldn't want to overturn a potful of scalding hot, caustic lye doing that one. The author owns a well-staffed soap manufacturing plant and is totally out of touch with what she calls "common, everyday folk". She offers only one boring recipe using 38 ounces of Crisco, 48 ounces of inexpensive carrier oils, 12oz. of lye and 32oz. of water, including unsoftened bilge from the tap. A small fortune in strong herbal essential oils is added to that. Result: Loads of waxy-looking soap blocks in harsh, dull colors. OK for outdoorsy men, but no aesthetic appeal for the average woman. Nothing on moisturizing additives, attractive coloration, light fragrances or anything else women tend to look for in toiletries. She relegates ever-popular Lavender scents to "elderly women" and writes in a generally condescending tone. The proofreaders had a few spelling problems as well. There are much better instruction books available. Among them, "The Hand Made Soap Book" by Melinda Coss. Published in September 1998. A beautiful book with lots of great ideas.

22 of 23 found the following review helpful:


Just one recipe. One. That's it.  Jul 02, 2004
This is a really beautiful book -- the photography is gorgeous and I like Sandy Maine's style of writing. She is very readable.

But...

There is one recipe in this book, dressed up with different fragrance/essential oils and "fillers". I think this shows a total and complete lack of imagination, considering the WORLD full of God's beautiful, healing oils He put here for us to enjoy. But all it is is olive oil, coconut oil, Crisco...olive oil, coconut oil, Crisco...olive oil, coconu-- well, you get the picture.

I also think that adding 3 ounces of lavender to that baby soap is going to just about knock the baby across the room. That is an awful lot of scent for a baby soap.

I'm not sorry I bought the book. The pictures alone gave me some great ideas for packaging and displays. But buy another book if you want some REAL recipes. Save the money you would have spent on buying the enormous quantities of essential oils for these soaps and spend it on a gorgeous bottle of avocado oil. Let your imagination soar. Soapmaking is, in my opinion, an art form. It doesn't have to be as plodding and pedestrian as this book makes it seem.

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