Making your own soap can be very rewarding. If you don’t have the means or time to make cold-pressed soap, melt and pour is a great alternative. You can customize it to fit specific needs. You can make a soap into a spell, with each use the power of the spell gets stronger as it attracts the intended energy.
You can also craft a spell that removes something from your life a little at a time as the soap gets smaller and smaller with use. The possibilities are endless. From colours, to essential oils, flower petals and herbs you are only bound by your creativity. For those who are just starting out with soap making, I suggest getting a kit from a craft store. The kit comes with all you need to get started and usually allows you to make 10-12 bars. It also gives you an idea of what it’s like to make and if you really get into it you can go on to bigger and better ingredients and equipment.
I am using a soap mould that makes one bar at a time because that is all I want to make today. (Though I did 2 unrelated soaps because everything was already melted). The soap I am making today is to dispel a bad habit from my life. I have timed this also with the waning of the moon. Yet another thing to add to your unique soaps: lunar and solar timing, specific holidays and Sabbats all have their own energy that you can use to add yet another layer to your spell craft. If you are giving soap as a gift (which I often do) you can bless the soap with luck or positivity for the recipient.
Soap kits from craft stores generally come with two bases: glycerine and shea. There are many other soap bases that you can buy from soap supply companies. They have many more options and if you choose this as a hobby or frequent form of spellcrafting, this might be a better option.
When you have your base melted you can add fresh herbs, flower petals, even things like oatmeal for soothing the skin. I like to use essential oils because I can custom blend scents that are unique for me. If you are using essential oils, be sure to investigate using them safely. Many oils can’t be used around mucous membranes, or can be irritating on the skin, don’t play well with other ingredients etc.
Essential oils allow you to make different scented soaps at the same time if you have multiple moulds. The types of oils you use will determine what the dilution rate should be. For safety, it is recommended that you do a skin patch test before using oils all over. You can add two drops of the essential oil to 1 teaspoon of carrier oil and apply a small amount to your inner wrist. Leave it for 24 hours and see how you react.
You can use soap dyes to add color to your soap. This adds another layer to your spells. Be sure you are using dyes specifically for soap!
Here are a few ideas for magickal soaps to get your creative juices flowing:
Oils
Eucalyptus – great for colds and flu. Aromatherapy wise, the scent clears nasal passages and lungs, as well as soothing aches associated with colds and flu. It also banishes illness on an energetic level. Eucalyptus is good for purification as well.
Bergamot – a nice citrus scented essential oil, bergamot is good for uplifting the spirit or soul. This makes it great to use in instances where you are feeling imbalance in your spiritual life. It is good for stress and depression as well.
Rose – is great for love. You can use this for self-love, to attract friends, strengthen familial love and boost your confidence. Rose is good for anti-aging also. (A note with rose essential oil. It is very expensive. If you find it for less than $50 a bottle be sure that it is PURE essential oil. Some are marketed as such but are really artificially fragranced.)
Rosemary – this is good for purification and also concentration, you do need to be careful with rosemary on the skin.
Lemongrass – energizing but also brings comfort when you need it.
Frankincense – is actually really good for the skin and is very healing physically. However, frankincense is one of my favourites to make as a soap to use before ritual. It can be used in conjunction with or in place of the popular pre-ritual salt bath; to purify yourself before entering sacred space. Frankincense is also good for prosperity.
Myrhh – can be used the same as frankincense but not everyone’s skin can tolerate myrhh.
For prosperity you have many choices: mandarin, orange, sandalwood (also a very expensive oil, so be sure it is real), patchouli, bergamot, chamomile, (another expensive one), clove, mint and myrrh.
Colour Correspondences
White – Purification and cleansing, healing, spiritual enlightenment, divination, inspiration, clairvoyance, protection against negative energy. White can be substituted for any other colour.
Yellow – Vitality, change, progress, communication, confidence, joy, cheerfulness, concentration, mental clarity and visualization.
Orange – good luck and good fortune, kindness, encouragement, stimulation, abundance, achieving business goals and success in legal matters.
Red – love, passion, sexuality, courage, will power, determination, speed, aggression, fertility and physical stregth.
Magenta – magnestism, the ability to attract or speed up results. Life purpose and life path.
Pink – romance, caring, nurturing, youth, peace, friendship, femininity, emotional love and emotional healing.
Green – nature, fertility, growth, rejuvenation, recovery, healing, abundance, prosperity, balance and harmony, peace and hope.
Turquoise – changes, intellectual and intuitive insights and renewal.
Blue – peace, tranquility, calmness, truth, wisdom, justice, guidance, understanding, patience, prophetic dreams, protection during sleep (would make a good nighttime bath soap), and astral projection.
Violet – psychic abilities, divination, reversing curses and negativity, inspiration, meditation, psychic power.
Brown – grounding, protection, to increase decisiveness, to attract help in times of financial crises.
Grey – neutralizing negative influences and putting a halt to action.
Black – banishing, breaking free from bad habits and addictions, (this is great for addictions because you can wash your hands with it each time you get a craving for example), deep meditation.
Another use of colour is to represent the elements. If you want to work with certain elemental energies you could choose brown, green or black for earth, blue for water, red or orange for fire, and yellow for air.
Other things to consider are moon phase, time of day, time of year, day of the week and if you really want to get detailed you can choose a planetary hour.
You can get soap moulds in many different shapes. If you want, you can choose a specific shape to lend those energies to your soap as well.
Don’t forget that you can also carve symbols, shapes, numbers and runes into your soaps.
You can burn candles and incense as you make soap to lend those energies into your soap and keep you focused on your intentions. You can bless or charge the soap when it is cooling with either visualization, chanting, an incantation etc.
My finished soap:
Tips for Successful Soap Making
Follow the manufacturer’s Instructions!
Take your time. Rushing the process can result in bubbles, losing colour, shape and scent as well as not being able to get it out of the mould.
Never allow soap to boil. Whether you are using the microwave method or the stove top method this is so important.
Don’t add too much dye. Go one small drop at a time and stir and see if it is the colour you want. You can always add but you can’t take away.
Use a light spray of isopropyl alcohol where you see any bubbles. This is especially good when you are making clear soaps. I like to spray the exposed side while it is cooling in the mould.
Allow soap to cool completely before removing it from the mould. For some bases, this may take up to a few days (even weeks). Some soaps are ready in a couple of hours. You can put soap in the refrigerator also, but never in the freezer.
Finally, some folks like to lightly spray olive oil into the moulds to make it easier to get the soap out. I have found that the olive oil is a godsend. You don’t have any trouble getting the soap out and as a bonus, olive oil is very good for the skin! Win win!
For my example, I am making a soap for banishing a bad habit. I’ve made it black and used frankincense oil. I was visualizing my intent while I made it but also followed up by ritually charging it for my purpose once it was cool and out of the mould.
As I use the soap in my ritual it will get smaller, my bad habit will diminish with it. I made this soap during the wane of the moon to give an extra power boost to the banishing. The mould I used happened to be a peace sign which added another layer of magick as I can visualize myself being at peace without the burden of the bad habit.
Creative ideas and cosmic “coincidences” can all contribute to a satisfying magickal experience. Be open to these experiences and find bliss.
Please share your own soaps, ideas and results.
May your magickal soap crafting be blessed!
Many blessings,
Lady Black