Here’s where I recommend getting soap making supplies! I often get asked on my How To Make Soap channel where to get soap supplies, so I thought I would include a list of my favorite suppliers here all in one place!
Where to buy soap making supplies?
One question I always get asked when I’m making my soap live is, “Where do you buy your soap making supplies?”
I answered the question of soap supplies in full detail in my How to Make Soap for Beginners E-Course, but I thought I would put it here for my viewers who want just a general idea of where to start.
By the way, if you are brand new to soap making I would highly suggestion getting my E-course… I walk you through how to make soap at home step by step with video included!
I buy my soap supplies from several places. They are all good and have their products that I prefer. You might check locally at different stores to see if you can get some of these soap making supplies cheaper in your own town rather than having to pay for shipping. Some of the soap supplies that I’ve found locally are olive oil, coconut oil and lye when I just need to make a batch or two of soap.
Here are a few of the places where I buy soap making supplies online.*
*Some of these links are affiliate links and we do get a small portion if you purchase using these links. Thanks so much for supporting our work here!
Where to Buy Soap Molds
This was the first soap mold I used and I love it!
Wooden Soap Mold Box With Hinges– This is my most favorite 5 lb. wooden mold that my friend Daryl made and now you can get one too! You can find it here.
Liners – I love this silicone liner and this oven liner to line my wooden molds.
Where To Buy Lye
Essential Depot – This is where I’ve been getting my lye for a couple of years now. It’s always fresh and easy to use in the 2 lb. bottles. (I joined their greener life club to get an even better discount on their lye.)
Small Hardware Stores like Ace Hardware – 100% lye drain cleaner for small batches of soap. (Make sure it’s 100% lye.) You can only get about 2-3 batches of soap out of the 1 lb. containers of 100% lye drain cleaner, but if you are in a pinch or just want to try a batch or two it will do.
Where To Buy Base Oils
Essential Depot – I especially love their Shea butter. They also have all the base oils you need and if you want to test out a few oils before buying them, they even have soap making kits with everything you need to give it a try.
Big Lots– They have great Coconut Oil in big 102 oz. containers.
Walmart– Olive Oil – I buy the light olive oil so it doesn’t discolor in my soap as much.
Soaper’s Choice – They have all the base you need but don’t carry any fragrance or essential oils.
Wholesale Supplies Plus– I occasionally will get a base oil from here but even with free shipping their prices can be quite a bit higher than Essential Depot and Soaper’s Choice, so their shipping isn’t really free.
Where to Buy Colorants
Homemade Soap Making Supplies– My soap supply store has a great variety of colors and I’ve always had success with every one!
Where to Buy Fragrance Oils
Essential Depot They have a nice variety of fragrance oils and a great selection of essential oils.
RusticEscentuals.com– Fragrance
NaturesGarden.com – Fragrance Oils
Where to Buy Soap Supplies – Equipment
Hand/Stick Blender
A stick blender is not a must, but it does make soap making much easier. It is one of the items people most ask about after seeing me use it on my soap show.
Before stick blenders, soap makers would stir soap by hand or with a stainless steel spoon or wooden spoon. You can still make soap by stirring by hand but, by hand, it takes between thirty minutes to an hour for your soap to reach trace. A stick blender is one of the soap supplies I highly recommend. Here is the hand/stick blender I use.
Digital Scale
A digital scale helps make sure you have the correct weight of all the ingredients. I have made recipes using cups instead of ounces by weight, and they usually don’t turn out. You can get a good digital scale on Amazon here.
You can also borrow one from a family member or friend or sometimes find them at thrift stores to save some money when you’re first starting.
Thermometer
A good thermometer helps make sure your oils are about the same temperature as your lye/water mixture. Again, you don’t have to have this. You can have both your lye/water and your oils around room temperature if you want. Different temperature can affect your soap in different ways. For beginners, either room temperature or around 100 degrees is a good starting point. Here’s the thermometer I use.
99% Rubbing Alcohol
You spray 91%-99% rubbing alcohol on soap after you pour it in the mold to keep soda ash from forming. It doesn’t always get rid of 100% of the soda ash, but does help most of the time.
You can buy 99% rubbing Alcohol and use it, but it is hard to find and I wouldn’t get it until you know you will be making a lot of soap.
Can I use my regular kitchen items to make soap or do I have to have dedicated soap equipment?
This is up to you. I personally have no problem using my kitchen equipment to make soap. Oven cleaner and drain cleaner are made of lye. Food grade lye is used to make pretzels, olives and canned mandarin oranges. I’m not saying you should eat lye but I have not read anything anywhere that says that lye stays on equipment after it’s been washed.
If you are worried about it, you can keep a container just for your lye and use it only for that purpose.
One note: As soon as I’m done pouring my lye into my oils I immediately rinse out my lye container. This is a precaution so I don’t forget to rinse it later or so other family members don’t accidentally use the unwashed container.
If you wash your items well, there shouldn’t be a problem. It’s just soap. If the bowls and spoons you use to make it are washable, you should be able to wash them off and there shouldn’t be any problem.
If you are uncomfortable using your regular kitchen equipment to make soap, feel free to buy and use a dedicated set of soap making equipment. The choice is yours.
One note: This is a beginners e-course to soap making, so I don’t go into fragrances a lot. If you do start using fragrances, some fragrances could “stay” on your wooden spoon and plastic utensils. If this happens, I would get separate soap only utensils for that, You can soak those items in baking soda water and that should remove the fragrance “taste”.
Note:
Make sure you ONLY use stainless steel, plastic or wooden equipment for soap making. If you use aluminum, lye will react with it and cause it to discolor badly.
I hope this list gives you a good start on where to buy soap making supplies. It can be daunting at first, but if you start with my recommendations and then work your way into new products it will give you an easy start without having to do hours and hours of research on soap making supplies!