I was reminded (by Facebook no less) of a post I wrote one year ago today. It was a great reminder for me because I’m still making and gifting these items…but since I already posted about each project, I usually don’t post about it again. I’d like to share it here to give you some ideas for a handmade Christmas by giving you the link to the original articles:
The first post describes (and links to the original posts) how to make gift bags and boxes by recycling pictures from calendars, guest soaps from melt and pour soap bases and making hot or cold neck wraps from fabric. The second post deals with polymer clay projects. If you’re looking for ideas for a homemade Christmas, give some of these a try. Enjoy!
About every month or two I get in the mood to make a new door quilt for the front door. Several years ago, I managed to make 6 quilt blocks to hang on the front door, about one every other month:
Basically, I’ve never been happy trying to put a wreathe on the front door because it has a screen door that gives me only 2-3″ of clearance between the doors. Finding a flat wreathe was tough. So, I started sewing these quilt blocks to use as door decorations.
I thought I could just rotate the blocks each year, but after two years on the outside door…exposed to the sun and weather…the colors faded. I was ready to try something new.
I pulled out my acrylic paints and had Bert make me some 12-inch square pieces of thin plywood. I started with my favorite fabric block…the patriotic red, white and blue one…that I had made in fabric.
Two years later, the block is faded.
I had to improvise the paint to be solid colors, and added star appliques right to the painted wood. Here are links to the door-quilts on wood I’ve made so far:
Lately, I’ve been inspired by the lavender fields you’ve seen in photos and my plants in the garden:
Choosing a pattern:
Bert had just received his latest copy of MuzzleBlasts, that always has a page or two with a quilt block suggestion:
First, I needed to find this block (called Freedom’s Star here) in my favorite books that will tell me other names for the block. I found it in this book by Maggie Malone, with 7 other possible names:
Then I found the block in another book, that gives me ideas for balancing the colors (light and dark):
Finally, I knew I wanted to use light and dark purple/lavender paint.
Making a Miniature Block First
For each 12″ x 12″ square block I paint, I first make a miniature block on a 3″ x 3″ canvas (available from Amazon). That lets me test the pattern and the colors.
So, I draw the guidelines to make a 4 x 4 block:
…and start filling in with color:
I wasn’t sure about the yellow paint…seemed too bright. I waited until the next day to see if it looked better. I decided the yellow overwhelmed the purple, so I mixed up some lighter yellow by adding white. That seemed to help.
The final colors felt better:
I continued with the 12″ x 12″ piece of wood and drew the pattern:
After painting, I use a fine point black marker to sharpen the design (mostly because my painting skills are not as steady as I’d like!).
Ready to get a spray of satin finish to protect it from the weather. Bert will glue three magnets to the back so it sticks to the front door (which is metal).
What to do with all my miniatures?
So far, I’ve been able to line them up on the mantle. One or two never made it to the final stage of painting on wood. That’s OK. They aren’t perfect, but it’s sort of a record of what I’ve done so far! Give it a try!
It was obvious the block of soap base had bits of oatmeal mixed in. When melted, the soap got much thicker, just the way cooked oatmeal would. It made a hefty bar of soap.
You can see colloidal oatmeal is the first ingredient on the block of soap base:
The colloidal oatmeal is obvious when I cut it into cubes:
The mixture got thicker as it melted:
I listed Colloidal Oatmeal soap base as the first ingredient on the card.
This week I wanted to make another batch of oatmeal soap, so I ordered another block of oatmeal soap base. When it arrived, I was convinced they sent me the wrong soap…it was a white soap base with no evidence of bits of oatmeal!!
The package said “Oatmeal Soap Base” but there was no listing for Colloidal Oatmeal, which is the flaked/rolled oats ground fine and embedded when making the soap base.
A closer look at the ingredient list showed Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract.
Hmmm. Time to do a little research!
According to Dr. Tess Mauricio, a board-certified dermatologist, colloidal oatmeal and Avena Sativa extract are two ingredients that are derived from the oat plant and are clinically proven to protect our skin from environmental stressors and other concerns.
Colloidal oat is found in the bran of the plant, while Avena Sativa extract comes from the stems and leaves. Colloidal oatmeal seems to be best used for more serious skin concerns like eczema, rosacea and dermatitis. Avena Sativa extract is better suited for more general dryness or irritation.
It was time to make another batch of “oatmeal” soap to see the difference. I added the same Vitamin E oil, Orange and Manuka Essential oils and the same color tint (2 drops).
Of course, the card to go with the new soap had to be changed:
My plan is to add a paw-shaped soap to each tin of single-use soap and see if folks prefer one over the other. Now I have two choices when I want to make oatmeal soap!
Three years ago, at the beginning of the Covid lockdowns, I was focused on making single-use soap that I could carry in my purse in case I needed it. I came up with several options…and then many public places closed and I wasn’t going anywhere anyway. Oh well!
Those first attempts were made by melting Melt & Pour Soap, pouring it onto wax paper, letting it cool and then cutting out hearts with a cookie cutter.
This was a test of patience and I ended up with a few tins of single-use soap that I tucked away just in case.
Recently, I was reading an article about Cheryl Hines. Cheryl is an actress and is married to Robert Kennedy, Jr. She and her daughter, Catherine (Cat) have started a beauty products line that focuses on using less plastic waste. Apparently, plastic waste in the beauty industry is one of the highest contributors to plastic pollution in the world! The company, Hines+Young (see www.shophinesyoung.com) makes high-end products with less plastic waste. Products are packaged in recyclable glass and aluminum tins.
I was interested to read about this company and found one of their products was a tin of single-use soap! How about that!
I can’t seem to post one of their pictures here, but the pieces of soap look like they were poured into a round mold and then cut like a pizza. That made sense! It would be quicker and easier to pour with less waste.
Of course, the website included the ingredients in the soap! They listed:
Oat protein, vitamin-rich sustainable palm oil, hydrating coconut oil and an invigorating blend of clove, sweet orange, and tea tree essential oils.
OK. I could do something similar…
Colloidal Oatmeal and Shea Butter Melt & Pour Soap Bases, Sweet Orange and Manuka Essential Oils, Vitamin E oil, soap tint. (I prefer Manuka Oil to Tea Tree Oil).
I started with a brand I frequently buy:
I chopped up 1 pound of Oatmeal Soap Base and 1/2 pound of Shea Butter Soap Base.
I put the chunks in my 4-cup heat-safe glass measuring cup.
Then the cup is placed in a saucepan with water. Water is brought to a simmer and the soap melts without getting too hot.
Of course, I usually make two at a time:
It made a lumpy mixture because of the oatmeal.
When melted, I added 1/2 tsp. of Vitamin E oil, Sweet Orange and Manuka Essential Oils. One drop of soap tint made the soap a very light orange color.
Pouring into the mold was the hardest part. I wanted a thin circle, however, the oatmeal soap got thicker as it cooled and by the time I was done pouring it made circles about 1/4″ thick.
I made a total of 32 round disks of oatmeal soap, each about 1/4″ thick.
The rest I poured into regular molds and my travel size heart shapes.
Next, I took my soap cutter and cut each circle into 6 pieces:
Each piece seemed about the right size to wash my hands. About 8 pieces fit into one of my 2 oz. tins:
I made 20 tins with about 8 pieces each. Perfect to share with my high school friends at our next luncheon to see if the size of each piece is right to wash hands. I’ll also see if the Oatmeal/Shea Butter is popular. I suspect a thinner piece would work better…I used one piece all day in the kitchen before I wanted to throw away what was left! Enjoy!
I haven’t thought about hot pads for many years. A dear friend made me crochet hot pads several times over the years and I love them! I really wanted to learn how to make more, but they always looked so complicated. I’m a single crochet kind of gal! She reassured me they were simple to make.
I finally looked up the instructions online. I found this link:
I stopped at JoAnn’s to pick up some yarn. The best yarn for these hot pads was 100% cotton…I didn’t want them to melt in a hot oven! The back of the skein says I should use a size H crochet hook. That worked for me but you could go smaller with the G or larger with theI hook.
The instructions say to make a chain of 26 stitches. That made a pretty small hot pad! I tried 32 stitches and 36 stitches. I now have three sizes of pot holders!
These hot pads look complicated but that first row of stitches is basically across the diagonal of the hot pad. The hardest part of the instructions was to crochet in the back of the stitch…so I took some pictures as I went along.
At first, it looks flat as you crochet around and around. Eventually, the ends curl toward the middle.
Here’s a close up of using the back of the stitch:
Finally, I couldn’t figure out when to stop! My friend explained I should have half as many rows as the number of stitches I started with. Very helpful information! So, by starting with 36 stitches, I should have 18 rows from my starting row:
Almost done!
Ready to sew the diagonal seam together:
After making three different sizes, I think the most useful size for me starts with 36 stitches. Try it yourself! Enjoy!
Wouldn’t it be great to wash your hands, go out to the garden and not worry about bug bites as you reach down into the lettuce and spinach plants. It’s all about the scents that bugs don’t like! After a search online about these scents, I found a few that are supposed to work…and I happen to have some of them on hand.
Here are a few of the essential oils that may work to deter bugs:
I’ve also been trying to find a substitute for Goat’s Milk Melt & Pour soap. After I use it, the skin on my hands itch terribly (may have to do with my milk allergy). I thought I’d try Coconut Milk soap in two recipes. The first recipe used only Coconut Milk Melt & Pour Soap. The second used Coconut Milk Soap with Shea Butter Melt & Pour Soap.
Recipe 1: Plain Coconut Milk Melt & Pour Soap
This first recipe was to test if I could actually use the soap. I started with 1 lb. of Coconut Milk Melt & Pour Soap.
When melted, I added 20 drops of Orange essential oil and 1 drop of soap tint.
This soap worked great for me! No itchy hands! However, I was unhappy that it didn’t make much lather!
Recipe 2: Gardener’s Hand Soap
Here is the second recipe:
I started with 2 lbs. of the Coconut Milk Soap Base and added 1 lb. of Shea Butter Soap Base (hoping to get a better lather).
The chunks of soap were divided into two 4-cup glass measuring cups and set into pans of water.
When melted, I added Vitamin E oil and essential oils of Lemongrass, Eucalyptus and Rose Geranium.
Then I stirred in a single drop of soap tint and 1/4 tsp. of biodegradable mica powder. I thought the mica powder might add a little grit to clean dirty hands.
This soap was great…made a nice lather…BUT it didn’t leave much of a smell. I was so disappointed! Next time I’ll add more of each scent, or add citronella, which has a stronger scent. Oh well, at least I know I can use the soap! Enjoy!
Recently, I was sorting out all the silicon soap molds I have accumulated over the last several years. I have quite a few with tiny animals, tiny dog bones and tiny flowers. Cute, but hard to pour hot, melted soap into.
However, the molds of LEGO bricks and people are always fun. Even if the people shapes end up a little messy, the bricks work well to wash y our hands with. (The one large “people” soap in these molds is always a hit!)
Today, I wanted to use up some melt & pour soap. I had 2 pounds of Glycerin soap and a pound of Goat’s Milk soap cubes.
I don’t usually buy the soap already cut into cubes…but it’s convenient to just weigh them out without having to cut a larger chunk up. I had these on hand for when I made soap with my grandchildren.
In each 4-cup heat-safe glass measuring cup I put 16 oz. of glycerin soap cubes and 8 oz. of goat’s milk soap cubes.
Each measuring cup is set into a pan of water. As the water heats up, the soap melts. When melted, remove the cup from the water. Stir in the essential oil and soap tint. I made one cup blue with Lavender scent and the other cup yellow with Lemon scent.
I used Lavender essential oil and Sky Blue soap tint to make the blue bricks.
I used Lemon Essential Oil and Lemon-Yellow soap tint to make the yellow bricks.
This is the soap tint I use, found on Amazon. There are many choices…just make sure it says for “soap, bath bombs, etc”.
I used only 3 drops of soap tint.
I forgot to get my spray bottle of alcohol out in time…spraying the hot soap will disperse the bubbles before they harden.
You can see what happens if the soap overflows the mold. When it cools, the extra soap can be cut away…not perfect, but OK for a tiny soap.
When the LEGO molds were full, I used the extra to make a few larger soaps.
Each tiny soap is wrapped in plastic wrap. The tiny people fit in a small snack-size Zip bag. This keeps the soap from absorbing moisture from the surrounding air.
Last year I made a salve with arnica-infused olive oil. Arnica is an ingredient that is added to salves to help relieve aches and pains, bumps and bruises! Look for it in your over-the-counter salves. You can read about making the oil here: https://marykisner.com/making-arnica-infused-oil-for-tropical-salves/.
I shared the salve with just a few people because I didn’t know how effective it was; I wanted to give it a try first. I’ve used it for the last 6 months with some success in reducing small bruises, if used right after they appear.
About Arnica
Arnica is not as well-known as lavender and calendula and is sometimes included in over-the-counter ointments and creams sold to soothe occasional aching knees, joints and muscles. It is often used in homeopathic remedies, which means the products contain very small amounts of the active ingredients. Making infused oil with dried arnica plant material is a great way to incorporate these ingredients into body care products. I purchased a bag of the dried flowers on Amazon.
The dried flowers aren’t as pretty as the fresh ones!
Arnica comes from the perennial herb Arnica Montana. It is a yellow-orangish flower that grows in the mountains of Europe and Siberia and the mountains of northwestern North America. It is sometimes called the “mountain daisy,” because its color and petals look like the familiar flower. It yields an essential oil that is appreciated for its ability to reduce pain in osteoarthritis joints and reduce bruise discoloration.
NOTE: This plant does have some drawbacks or cautions for people that are allergic to certain plants of the Asteraceae family…like ragweed, marigolds, chrysanthemums and daisies, or are using blood thinning medications.
Please do your own research about any plant material you might work with, but this process of infusing oil with any plant material would be the same.
I still had some infused oil left from my first project; it kept well in the back of the refrigerator.
The ingredients in this Bruise Balm
I scooped out 1 cup of infused oil and weighed out 32 gm of beeswax into my 4-cup heat-safe measuring cup. The cup is placed in a saucepan of water. I brought the water just to a boil and turned the burner down so the water stayed simmering.
When melted and removed from the stove, I stirred in 1/4 tsp of Vitamin E Oil and 20 drops each of Vanilla and Manuka Essential Oil.
Using a disposable pipette, I filled 36 small tubes and 6 larger ones.
I decided to just hand write the label…nothing fancy. I don’t want folks to get them mixed up with lip balm!I try to label everything I make so the ingredients are clear.
I hope to share these with my high school friends at our monthly luncheon… built in guinea pigs! Try it yourself! Enjoy!
A few weeks ago I was ready for a new quilt block on my front door, but I had to wait until after cataract surgery so I could actually see well enough to paint! The quilt blocks on wood are similar to the door quilt blocks I’ve made from fabric. You can check out those at https://marykisner.com/time-to-bring-out-the-spring-door-quilt.
These blocks lie flat against the front door and do not get squashed between the door and the screen door the way a wreathe might.
Then I started painting a quilt block onto a 12″ x 12″ square of thin plywood. They attach to the front door with magnets (obviously the door under the paint is metal!) Here are the three I’ve already done:
Painting a quilt block is certainly a different experience from sewing. I’m working with solid colors in paint. With fabric I can vary the print to make the block more interesting.
This time I wanted to recreate my favorite quilt block. It is called a Double Star in one book and Rising Star in another. I used it in a full-size quilt that I made for my son and his wife a few years back. I’ve called it my Southern Cross Quilt because I chose 5 blocks to represent the stars in the constellation, the Southern Cross. He had recently finished graduate research in Antarctica and I was missing him. Can you see the blocks that represent the stars?
The four major stars in the constellation have white double stars; the smaller star close to the white one on the right has a print center.Here’s how another quilter represented the Southern Cross in her quilt.
Making the Winter Star Block
I start each painted block by first choosing a pattern. This star block is called Double Star in one book and Rising Star in another. It’s based on a 4 x 4 pattern so it was pretty easy to sketch out.
I use a tiny 3″ x 3″ canvas to practice. It has a little easel so I can look at it while I work on the 12″ x 12″ plywood.
First, I paint the back of the wood to seal it from the weather.Then I pencil out the pattern I will paint.I’ve learned to work from the center out and rotate the wood so I don’t smear my hand through the wet paint.The finished block is ready for a final spray of satin finish acrylic spray. Bert will then glue magnets on the back so it will stick to my front door.
I’ll enjoy this door quilt for a month or more this winter. It won’t get squished and it won’t fade like the fabric blocks do…and the quilt pattern makes me smile! Enjoy!
Have you ever wondered how the process of making soap was discovered? It is a complex chemical process that I don’t even need to learn about while I make things with my melt and pour soap. I start with a product that has been commercially produced that takes all the complexity out of it for me.
But I’m frequently asked, how is melt and pour soap different from “regular” soap? Who even figured out how to make it? In an article about the origin and history of soap I found these paragraphs:
“According to Roman legend, soap was named after Mount Sapo, an ancient site of animal sacrifices. After an animal sacrifice, rain would wash animal fat and ash, that collected under the ceremonial altars, down to the banks of the Tiber River. Women washing clothes in the river noticed that if they washed their clothes in certain parts of the river after a heavy rainfall their clothes were much cleaner. Thus, the emergence of the first soap…or at least the first use of soap.
The earliest known written soap recipe was written on clay tablets and is credited to the ancient Babylonians. A soap-like material found in clay cylinders during the excavation of Babylon…is evidence that soapmaking was known as early as 2800 B.C. Inscriptions on the cylinders indicate that fats (rendered from a slaughtered cow, sheep or goat) were boiled with wood ashes and water.”
So how about that! Up until about the 1600’s soap making rose and declined with the popularity of bathing and personal hygiene in a culture. The availability of other animal fats and vegetable oils encouraged each culture to develop their own signature soaps. like olive oil soap in Italy.
Discoveries in the early 1800’s in the process for transforming common salt (sodium chloride) into an alkali called soda ash and the chemistry behind the relationship of glycerin to fatty acids were instrumental in setting the stage for mass soap production.
Additives to basic soap recipes helped to make the final product appropriate to be melted down and poured into shapes. This final product…a melt and pour soap base…is what I use to customize with fragrance, color and plant material to make my soaps.
If you look at the labels of the melt and pour bases I use, you’ll see the chemical components that have been combined to make that soap.
As you can see, both of the soap bases shown above have a combination of oils, water and lye (sodium hydroxide) along with various additives (emulsifiers) that help the extra ingredients (like Aloe Vera gel and goats milk) stay mixed. The actual chemistry of working with caustic lye has been done for me.
Now when I melt the Aloe Vera soap base down, I can add additional ingredients like fragrance, color and even plant material, like Aloe Vera Gel to the soap.
Things I will add to the Aloe Vera soap base.Bars of soap ready to be wrapped in plastic wrap so they don’t absorb moisture from the air around them.
I’m also learning which soap bases I like best! Apparently, soap will act differently depending on whether the water in my house is hard or soft. With our hard water, some soaps will make a nice lather, others will not. I’ve also found that I’m not happy using goats milk soap…my hands will itch after a few days. Not sure if that has anything to do with my allergy to dairy products, but I now know to avoid goats milk soap.
I’m grateful I don’t have to deal with the caustic chemical process of making soap. I also don’t have to wait 6 to 8 weeks for the soap to “cure,” which allows the crystalline structure of the soap to solidify. If you see a display of bars of soap at a craft fair with each one wrapped with just a paper sleeve and exposed to the air, you know that they were made using the hot chemical process with lye…which will continue to cure over time.
By using the melt and pour soap base, the curing time is already done. After I melt the soap down and pour it into molds, within an hour or two it is firm and ready to use.
Because melt and pour soap contains glycerin it will continue to absorb moisture from the air and could leave a white residue on the soap. That’s why I wrap each bar of soap in plastic wrap when they are done.
These Aloe Vera guest soaps, individually wrapped in plastic wrap, will stay clean and dry until needed by a guest.
So, while I’m constantly trying new things with melt and pour soaps know that I’m working with real soap…it’s just the caustic chemistry I’m avoiding. Using melt and pour soap is safe for even young folks to make cute and useful gifts for themselves and others. Enjoy!
