Making soap guide
What can I add to melt and pour soap?
Short answer
Melt and pour base takes small amounts of oils, butters, honey, clays, dried flowers and scrubs. A good rule from our recipe book: about 1 tablespoon of oil, butter or honey per pound of base, a teaspoon or two of clay or charcoal, and a tablespoon or two of dried botanicals. Leave out water, fresh milk and fresh aloe gel.
| Add-in | Per 1 lb (16 oz) of base | Good to know |
|---|---|---|
| Oil (olive, jojoba, sweet almond, apricot kernel) | About 1 Tbsp | Our creamiest recipe goes up to 6 Tbsp of coconut oil: softer, richer bar |
| Butter (mango, shea, cocoa), melted | About 1 Tbsp | Or start with a butter base |
| Vitamin E oil | About ½ tsp | Stir in at 125°F |
| Raw honey | 1 Tbsp (up to 4 oz in a honey bar) | Add at 125°F |
| Cocoa powder | About 2 Tbsp | Colours the bar chocolate brown |
| Activated charcoal | About 1 tsp | Deep grey to black |
| Clay or mud | About 1½ Tbsp | Mix with a little rubbing alcohol first |
| Dried flowers, herbs, citrus zest | 1 to 2 Tbsp | Best near the surface or in a clear base |
| Sugar or finely ground oats (scrub) | About 1 Tbsp | Grind oats fine so the bar isn't scratchy |
| Cosmetic glitter | Up to 1 Tbsp | Cosmetic grade only |
Start with the base, not the add-ins
A melt and pour base is already a balanced soap. Small additions change its feel, look and scent; large ones change how it sets. That's why many of the extras people want are already in our bases: goat milk in the goat milk base, honey in the honey base, aloe leaf juice in the aloe vera base, and oat kernel extract in the oatmeal and shea butter base.
How to add them
- Oils and melted butters can go into the hot base; stir well so no oil floats.
- Honey, vitamin E, scent and delicate petals go in once the base has cooled to 125°F.
- Clays and charcoal clump in hot soap: stir them into a little rubbing alcohol first, then into the base.
- For a speckled look, stir powders in lightly; for an even colour, keep stirring until no streaks remain.
What to leave out
Water, fresh milk and fresh aloe gel don't mix into a finished base: they make bars soft and sweaty and can spoil. Use the goat milk, aloe vera or honey base instead. Fresh fruit or vegetable purée, like the cucumber in our recipe book, adds pretty specks, but it brings water and plant matter with it, so treat those bars as ones to use soon. Dried botanicals keep much better.
Too much of anything, oil especially, gives a soft, greasy bar that sweats. If a bar comes out that way, cut back on the extras in the next batch.
Will flowers and herbs stay pretty?
Dried flowers keep their colour best in a clear base and near the surface. Many petals, like lavender and rose, slowly turn brown inside opaque soap, and petals on the very top can soften once the bar gets wet. Calendula and cornflower hold their colour well; sprinkle them on top just as the soap starts to set.
Updated October 12, 2026 · By the Skin Said Yes team, soapmakers in Greece
