Blooming Roses melt and pour soap is a pink and white mini loaf topped with little pink roses and green leaves, with a subtle pink swirl inside. Soap embeds, done right, are the perfect accent for almost any soap. I made this as a tester loaf, which gives you three nice-sized bars, so you can try a design before making a whole batch.
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Materials & Tools
Soap Bases
- Shea butter melt and pour soap base for the rose and leaf embeds
- 18–20 oz premium clear melt and pour soap base for the loaf, whitened with titanium dioxide
Color & Scent
- Tail Green and Pink Watermelon from this Stardust mica set or individual Stardust micas
- Titanium dioxide mixed with hot distilled water
- Fragrance oil (I used Amazon Lily from Bramble Berry; Barnhouse fragrance oils are another option)
Tools
- Square 18–20 oz silicone soap mold
- Rose silicone mold
- Leaf fondant mold (any leaf mold works)
- Funnel pour cups, a spatula and a small spoon
- Pipettes
- Spray bottle of 91% isopropyl alcohol
- Thermometer
- Soap cutter
Fragrance Amount
Use up to 5 ml of fragrance oil per 16 oz (1 lb) of soap base. For about 20 oz, that’s up to roughly 6 ml in total. You can always use less if you like a lighter scent, but don’t go over 5 ml per 16 oz.
How to Make Blooming Roses Melt and Pour Soap
1. Mark Your Mold
Mark the outside of your mold with fill lines and cutting marks (I marked mine every 1¼ inches). That way you know where the bars will be cut and where to place the embeds. Keep in mind a mold that holds 18 oz of water usually holds closer to 19–20 oz of soap.
2. Pour the Leaves
Mix Tail Green into a little shea butter base and pour it into the leaf mold. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Run a spatula across the mold to clear the extra, then spray with alcohol. Save any soap on the silicone mat for a later project.
3. Pour the Roses
Color more shea butter base with Pink Watermelon and pour it slowly into the small roses, so no air gets trapped in all the little nooks. Overfilling is fine. Scrape the extra off with the spatula and spray with alcohol.
4. Plan the Layout
Unmold the embeds once they’re dry. Then lay them out in the empty mold to see how many you need and how they’ll fit between your cutting lines. You can trim the curly tips off the leaves if you like the look better.
5. Whiten the Base and Pour
Melt the clear base, split it into two funnel cups, and add titanium dioxide to both to whiten them. Add your fragrance. Mix Pink Watermelon with distilled water in a pipette. When the soap cools to about 123°F, pour the first cup into the mold, squirt in the pink hard and give it one swirl. Then pour the second cup. Let it form a skin and spray with alcohol.
6. Place the Embeds
Spray the embeds with alcohol (they get slippery) and place them on top of the soap, following your cutting lines. Use the center of the mold as a guide. The soap at this point is about 105°F and soft like Jell-O, so the embeds settle right in. Let the loaf set.
7. Unmold and Cut
Unmold the loaf and cut between the flowers. You’ll see a soft, subtle pink swirl inside, which suits this design.
8. Glue on Extra Roses (Optional)
I added an extra rose and leaves to the side of each bar. Remelt a little leftover soap to about 150–156°F, spray the spot with alcohol, spoon on a little soap and hold the embed in place for a moment so it sticks.
Tips & What I Learned
- Mark your mold. Cutting lines help you place embeds so they don’t get cut in half.
- Test the layout first. Lay the embeds in the empty mold before you pour.
- Pour roses slowly. It keeps air out of the tiny details.
- Glue with soap at about 150°F. It’s thick enough to hold the embed without running.
- Make a tester loaf. Three bars let you try a design without committing to a full batch.
Troubleshooting
My embeds slid around.
They’re slippery after spraying alcohol. Place them gently and nudge them back into place.
I didn’t get much of a swirl.
A larger mold makes swirling harder. Squirt the color in hard and pour in two stages.
An embed fell off the side of the bar.
Use soap around 150°F as glue and hold the embed in place for a few seconds.
FAQ
How much fragrance oil should I use?
Up to 5 ml per 16 oz of soap base. You can always use less, but don’t use more than 5 ml per 16 oz.
How big are the bars?
Cut at 1¼ inches, mine weighed about 5.3 oz each.
What if I can’t find this leaf mold?
Any leaf mold will work.
More Rose Soap Ideas
- Mini Rose Embed Melt and Pour Soap
- Rose Embed Melt and Pour Soap
- Summer Roses Melt and Pour Soap
- Daisy Flower Embed Melt and Pour Soap
- All my melt and pour soap tutorials on YouTube
If you make this, I’d love to see it! Tag me on Instagram or Pinterest, and subscribe on YouTube for new soap tutorials.
