Make natural soap for fun. Just like baking a cake, you can choose to start with a kit or make it from scratch. Easy soap making methods can be as simple as amelt and poura or a more involved mixing of fat, lye and water. No matter what method you choose, you can have fun experimenting with fragrances, essential oils or herbs, and colors. Be artistic! Be creative!

The "melt and pour" method is safe enough for kids to do. Choose from soap bases like goat milk, honey, glycerin, olive & aloe, oatmeal, shea butter or any other base you can find on the market. They're all a little different, so choose the one with the qualities you prefer.

To make a bar soap, just melt the soap base completely, stirring frequently. Add your desired fragrances, colors, or essential oils. Pour the soap into the molds and let it cool. If you get something that's not quite what you expected, you can re-melt and try again!

Feeling adventurous? Try the more advanced method using fat, water, and lye. You will need a little more equipment, time, knowledge and caution. Lye is a caustic agent that requires special handling. Use eye protection and rubber gloves, and keep it off your skin and clothes. Also, lye will damage aluminum and Formica so avoid contact with table tops and counters. For details, recipes and more ideas, type "make natural soap" into a search engine.

Making soap is not only fun, it saves money. Compare the cost of fancy soaps to what you make yourself! Use your imagination to make your own soap look and smell exactly like you want. You can even start your own soap business!

Making your own natural soap is also environmentally friendly -- store-bought soap was made in a pollution-causing factory. Before World War I, people used to make soap at home from leftover cooking fats, using purchased cans of lye. Before that, people made lye from wood ashes.

Best of all, you have total control over what goes into your soap. If you are allergic to one ingredient, simply substitute another. Vegetarians will appreciate soaps made from vegetable rather than animal fats. Skin is the largest organ of your body. Knowing what's in your soap is great way to help take care of it. Sustainable living certainly has some healthy side effects!

Fun, flexible and creative, not to mention healthy and economical -- that's what making your own soap is all about. With so many easy soap-making recipes available, you're sure to find a way to make your own unique soap. Anyone can do it.