Have you been in one of those specialty stores that sell specially made soaps? These don't only look really good, they also smell good. Some have excellent designs such as donuts, flowers and cakes. Or you see simpler yet still great designs in hotel bathrooms when you go on a vacation. These soaps may seem hard to make, but once you get to know how soap is made, you will realize how easy it is and that you can also make soap like those right at your own home.

The main process of making soap is called saponification. It is done by mixing fats and lye in water and these two ingredients will undergo a reaction that will result in the formation of soap. With only these two ingredients, you will already be able to make the basic type of soap.

There are two ways of how saponification can be done. The first is through the hot process, which involves heating of the lye and water solution, then continued heating upon addition of the fats. This is used when the exact concentration of the lye cannot be determined, especially when lye that was used is impure.

The other method of saponification is through the cold process. This method requires precise ingredients or it will not produce the soap that you desire. When lye and fat are mixed in water, heating is no longer required as this method relies on the heat produced by mixing water with lye. This method produces harder soap with better quality if done correctly.

The first step in making those specially made soaps is by mastering how to make the basic soaps. You can try different fats and see the difference in the final product. Once you have already mastered making basic soaps, you can then move on to using more ingredients to design your soap.

The more advanced designs would of course require more ingredients and new techniques. You would need dyes, scented oils and other ingredients that you would like to add to your soap, such as moisturizers. This way, you will be able to control the color, smell and properties of your soap. In addition to these, you may need several molds and knives so that you can shape and mold your soaps however you please.

But soap making is not all fun and games. You must also be careful as lye is a very corrosive substance. It also emits dangerous fumes when immersed in water. This is why you should take precautions such as wearing gloves and face masks in order to protect yourself from its harmful effects.

Keep on practicing and eventually, you will start coming up with soaps that are comparable to those that you see in specialty shops and hotel bathrooms. One day, you might even surpass their designs and you may want to sell your own designs and earn some money from this hobby.