# Reading Material



## Rusti (Jan 21, 2016)

What are some of your favorite sources of reading material, especially for n00bs with just two batches under their belts.

From blogs, websites to books (I love books) I'm curious, what are your favorites?


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## shunt2011 (Jan 21, 2016)

Soapmaking 101 on you tube.


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## IrishLass (Jan 21, 2016)

For me, the forum is a definite #1 for me. The vast amount of valuable information that one can glean from reading all the give-and-take conversations just can't be beat. When I first started 10 years ago, I became a member of a handful of different soap-making forums on the net and read each one of them, starting from the archives and moving forward before I even made my first soap. It took me about a year of reading, but it was time worth spent.

As books go for beginners, probably the best recommendation I have to offer is "The Everything Soapmaking Book" by Alicia Grosso. There are other good one's out there, too, I'm sure, but hers is one of the few I actually own that I know have been helpful to newbies.

One of the other books that I own is "Scientific Soapmaking" by Dr. Kevin Dunn -a most excellent book- but it's a very technical one that newbies will not find to be a very simple/fun read. lol It takes you behind the scenes into the nuts and bolts of what chemically goes on inside a soap.

As for videos, I like watching Soapmaking 101, EvesGardenSoaps, Ariane Arsenault, and RoyaltySoaps.

For blogs, I like reading The Curious Soapmaker. She has some interesting articles on there.


IrishLass


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## KristaY (Jan 21, 2016)

I love Auntie Clara's site. She does some very interesting stuff with detailed info and great photography.

http://auntieclaras.com/


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## lsg (Jan 22, 2016)

I like this one: 
Soap Crafting: Step-by-Step Techniques for Making 31 Unique Cold-Process Soaps by  Anne-Marie Faiola.


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## cinnamaldehyde (Jan 22, 2016)

I learn a lot from scouring old (and new) threads on this forum.

I also really like Auntie Clara's blog and the Soap Queen blog.

Scientific Soapmaking is a fantastic book, but I am a bit of a science geek and enjoy the technical aspects of soapmaking.


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## navigator9 (Jan 22, 2016)

As far as books go, I love Anne Watson's. I learned to make soap by reading her "Smart Soapmaking." It's strictly _*how *_to make soap, not about fancy techniques, just good, basic soapmaking. She's written others, too, and their Kindle versions are often free on Amazon. I love her!


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## LoveOscar (Jan 22, 2016)

I'm in love with a natural soap blog, and the e-books, from thenerdyfarmwife.com  which has been a great resource for me.


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## SplendorSoaps (Jan 22, 2016)

If you're just starting out, the Soap Queen blog (Bramble Berry) has some nice video tutorials. I think I watched Anne Marie's beginner videos about 50 times before I attempted my first batch!


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## Rusti (Jan 22, 2016)

SplendorSoaps said:


> If you're just starting out, the Soap Queen blog (Bramble Berry) has some nice video tutorials. I think I watched Anne Marie's beginner videos about 50 times before I attempted my first batch!



I'm actually quite familiar with the Soap Queen's blog - I used her basic beginner recipe she lists there as my first batch (though I was brave and added some FO to it because I like my soap to smell nice too).

I bounced all over Youtube though, from one videographer to the next. It was where I got the idea to use our coroplast sign material we have for our vinyl stuff to make a mold.


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## niclycha (Mar 21, 2016)

The Ultimate guide to soapmaking on audible I've listened to a couple times while driving to work.
Amanda Mccarthy is the author 
Ultimate Guide to Soapmaking


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## LisaAnne (Mar 21, 2016)

I like all of the above and modern Soapmaking and humblebee and me. This forum though has taught me the most. Live conversations and voices of experience.


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