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The Complete Idiot's Guide To Making Natural Soaps (Idiot's Guides)

Leave no soapstone unturned! Soapmaking has always been a popular craft with a dedicated group of followers, but with the explosion of urban homesteading and people looking to go green, noncrafters are now joining in on the fun. Whether it's making natural soap to live greener, give as gifts, save money, or make money, The Complete Idiot's Guide(r) to Making Natural Soaps has everything the new soap maker will need to create organic, natural soaps of all kinds. •Includes recipes to make a wide array of molded, poured, and liquid soaps •Contains soap recipes for body as well as household and even pets

Series: Idiot's Guides

Paperback: 208 pages

Publisher: ALPHA (June 1, 2010)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1615640223

ISBN-13: 978-1615640225

Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 0.4 x 9.1 inches

Shipping Weight: 14.9 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (57 customer reviews)

Best Sellers Rank: #805,996 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #113 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Folkcrafts #197 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Nature Crafts #472 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Crafts & Hobbies > Candlemaking

There are three fundamental issues with this book.1. This book purports itself as the "natural soap" guide. Perhaps naively I would expect this to carry some environmentally friendly/ethical notions (especially with a catch phrase of "live greener and cleaner"). However this book uses palm oil like it is going out of fashion (which indeed it should be) with no suggestions for substitutions. Palm oil has some great qualities for soap making, particularly its hardness, however its production is responsible for vast destruction, particularly of the habitats of orangutans in Malaysia and Indonesia. The alternatives include coconut oil and addition of butters (like shea butter) although these alternatives are not clearly identified in the book.As a note to soap makers, if you are set on using palm oil, it is possible to source ethical (read sustainable) palm oil. If you are in Australia, here is a great supplier of sustainable products [...]2. If you don't mind buying a guide that relies on a free internet calculator tool (soapcalc... search google for soap calculator) then go ahead and buy the book, however the calculator is completely self explanatory and does not require an "idiot's guide" to figure out how to use it. Soapcalc is a great tool however I would expect a book to explain how to make these calculations without the internet; and it fails to do this.3. Inconsistency is a big flaw in this book. Take for example their discussion on amount of essential oil to add. On page 30, the book states "Most essential oils should only be used at .5 percent..." This would equal 5g of essential oil per kilogram. However in a later chapter the book states "If your essential oil is a strong fragrance, use .5 ounce (14.7grams) percent per 1 pound (453.

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