DIY Network

Organic Chic Party: Make-Your-Own Soap Station From "Weekend Entertaining" episode WKE-308

In this segment host Jeanne Benedict mixes herbs such as lavender and sage with other additives to create completely organic soaps. The guests of this party will be able to create their own soaps at a soap making station.

This party is rated 4 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the most difficult, and is geared toward the skills of a frequent entertainer.

Hourly Breakdown

Setting up Soap Making Station -- 1 hour
Total Prep Time -- 13 hours

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Have your guests create their own bar of soap to take home.

Materials --

Large slow cooker
Ladles
Shallow recycled trays (enough for each soap additive)
Label and directions for each soap additive
Transparent glycerin soap base
Soap additives (can include: granulated lemon peel, rosemary, thyme, ground ginger, lavender, aloe concentrate, cranberry seeds, blueberry seeds, ground pumice, menthol crystals, evening primrose oil, rolled oats, or any other natural soap additives)
Scented oils
Soap molds (one for each party guest)
Permanent marker
Wooden craft sticks
Recycled fabrics, greens and creams
Ruler with 45-degree angle
Marking pencil
Scissors
Glue gun with fabric glue sticks

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E

Make-Your-Own Soap Station

1. Before the party place the glycerin soap base into slow cooker to melt.

2. Ladle the glycerin into a soap mold (figure A), filling it 3/4 of the way full.

3. Place herbs into the soap. If adding a liquid additive, place two or three drops into the soap and use a craft stick to gently stir the liquid into the melted soap (figure B).

   Note: Work quickly to prevent the soap base from cooking and hardening before you have finished placing the additives. It takes a few minutes for the soap to set up, and it will be ready to use in a few hours.

   Expert Tip: When adding a scent to your soap-making project remember that the scents are extremely concentrated. A little bit goes a long way.

4. To make the tablecloth (figure C ), you will need a total of eight fabric wedges. Cut wedges from a variety of recycle fabrics in greens and creams. To cut a wedge, mark a 45 degree angle triangle. Cut this triangle with an extra ¼" on either side of the mark. The length will be determined by the size of the table, so make the triangle at least half of the width of the table.

5. Continue cutting until you get eight wedges. Arrange wedges into a circle, rearranging to get the desired pattern.

6. Fold one wedge over onto an adjacent wedge, with the rights sides of the fabrics together. Run a bead of glue along one edge, being sure to stay within 1/4" of the edge.

7. Press the second fabric edge into the glue, matching the edges.

8. Repeat this process of joining together the wedges in sets of two.

9. Repeat the gluing process to join together two sets of two, creating a half circle. Repeat with remaining pieces to create another half circle.

10. Join the two half circles together by gluing in the same manner as above, creating a circle.

11. To fit the circle to the table, lay the circle onto the table and trim around, making all edges smooth and even.

12. Setting up the soap making table is easy. First, place the slow cooker. Wrap a piece of material around the cooker and tie a knot on one side (figure D).

13. Next, add some herbs like cranberry, thyme, blueberry seeds, oatmeal, rosemary, lemon peel, menthol crystals and lavender. Place a card beside each herb explaining what it is, etc. (figure E).

14. Finish it off with stir sticks, ladles and soap molds.

Expert Tip: When you are offering an activity for your guests to complete during the party, it is a good idea to provide written directions in case they have never tried a project like this before.

Note from Jeanne: We used round soap molds for this soap making station, but there are a lot of other great molds on the market such as flowers, stars, etc. that might fit your theme perfectly. If you don't find what you need in the soap making section of the store, then head over to the candy making station -- they have molds too!

RESOURCES :

Whole Foods Market
Website: www.wholefoodsmarket.com

Create for Less
Website: www.createforless.com

Zwilling Cutlery
J.A. Henckels, Inc.
Website: www.jahenckels.com

Carolina Pottery
Website: www.carolinapotteryusa.com

Classic Party Rentals
8476 Steller Dr.
Culver City, CA 90232
Phone: 310-202-0011
Fax: 310-202-8542
E-mail: infola@classicpartyrentals.com
Website: www.classicpartyrentals.com

GloryBee Foods, Inc.
PO Box 2744
Eugene, OR 97402
Toll-free: 800-456-7923
E-mail: sales@GloryBeeFoods.com
Website: www.GloryBeeFoods.com

Mountain Crest Gardens
402 Bridge St.
PO Box 1023
Ft. Jones, CA 96032
Toll-free: 877-656-4035
E-mail: mcgardens@sisqtel.net
Website: mc-garden-gifts.com

Cost Plus World Market
200 Fourth St.
Oakland, CA 94607
Phone: 510-808-9504
Website: www.worldmarket.com

Mountain Valley Growers, Inc.
38325 Pepperweed Rd.
Squaw Valley, CA 93675
Phone: 559-338-2775
E-mail: vj@mountainvalleygrowers.com
Website: www.mountainvalleygrowers.com

GUESTS :

Cheryl Evanoff
Vice President, Regal Rents
6612 Shenandoah
Los Angeles, CA 90056
Phone: 310-529-0312
E-mail: Cheryl@regalrents.com

Dwight Detter
Whole Foods Market
Website: www.wholefoodsmarket.com
Note: There are more than 160 locations throughout the US, Canada and Britain and the Website will give you the closest store location.

Judi Brockman
Floral Expert
Crouch Florist
2120 Cumberland Ave.
Knoxville, TN 37917
Phone: 865-637-5683