Lowest Cost Bulk Melt and Pour

[normalgalmakeup]

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone had any suggestions or links to suppliers for the most affordable bulk melt and pour soap. I am not at the point where I can buy 200 pounds at once or anything but more like the 23-40lb cases. I have waited for sales and used a coupon and the lowest I have been able to get it is for around $3.25 a pound. That was when Wholesale Supplies plus had a 25% off sale plus I was able to get an additional 15% off. I have looked there and at Nature's Garden, Bulk Apothecary, Lonestar Candle, etc. Since I am newer to this, I am sure there must be reputable suppliers where I can source it from.

I was considering trying to make my own soap base, although when I calculated the figures, it doesn't seem much cheaper than purchasing.

Lastly, any tips on how to cut those 23lb blocks of soap base? I nearly killed myself last night just trying to cut a pound of soap from the huge block. Thanks so much for any help and advice!

 

[AliOop]

I was considering trying to make my own soap base, although when I calculated the figures, it doesn't seem much cheaper than purchasing.

Sorry I don't have any answer to your question, but I am curious... if you are willing to make your own base, why not just make cold process soap instead of M&P?

I'm not down on M&P, but CP soap is way nicer on my skin due to not requiring a lot of ingredients necessary to make a meltable base.

 

[FFLinOhio]

I use a double handled cheese knife to cut my big blocks of MP down to size.

We buy from WSP. BA doesn't have what we like to use. I do the same...try to wait for their MP soap sales. Prices have gone up since COVID. I am hoping the cost will go down but nothing else in the world has.

https://www.amazon.com/Winco-KCP-15...ble+handle+cheese+knife&qid=1699416925&sr=8-6

 

[LucyFae]

I've bought from Aztec. I really like their clear MPs (tried clear, "natural" clear, Hemp, and honey). For white MP I use goats milk usually, and I had big issues with their "natural" GM mp. You can read the super long post on my profile if you'd like. They did send me out a full replacement almost a year after my order when I contacted them, which was a plus, but I still haven't had time to try it out and see if those issues resolved.

I can Def recommend their clear MPs though. I've tried a handful of brands, and aztecs clear is one of my favorites. Stays nice and fluid for complicated designs. Iirc, with shipping to me, it was around 4-4.50/lb, and I think I bought 30 or so pounds.

 

[A-Polly]

My very favorite bases are the ones made by SFIC, which have ingredients that seem more like soap and less like detergent (for instance, the first 3 or 4 ingredients are regular soaping oils, and I don't think any of their bases contain sodium laureth sulfate). I use them for projects with my grandchildren and am always amazed at how nice the soap feels. I'm sure this brand is sold at many retailers, but the ones I have from Bramble Berry come in one-lb blocks. I looked up the SFIC company once to see how much it would cost to order directly, but the minimum was something huge, like 400 or 500 dollars. The site shows bases available in tubs of approx. 43 lbs, which would likely be the cheapest way to buy, but who knows how much shipping might be (SFIC is located in California). A big solid lump of base sounds like a huge pain to deal with, anyway! I remember that Bulk Apothecary used to carry SFIC along with other brands. I'll bet more vendors would come up in a Google search. You'd definitely need to try a few pounds before buying in bulk, though, since you are accustomed to another kind. Good luck with your search!

 

[lsg]

I just made a 2 lb batch of translucent M&P with the supplies I had on hand. I figure it cost me about $8.50 for a two pound batch. After checking prices online, I think I might have saved a couple of bucks. Let me know if you want the recipe.

 

[dwsterling]

I just made a 2 lb batch of translucent M&P with the supplies I had on hand. I figure it cost me about $8.50 for a two pound batch. After checking prices online, I think I might have saved a couple of bucks. Let me know if you want the recipe.

I’d love to try out the recipe and see if it would be something that we could do in a class. What did you use as the solvent?

 

[lsg]

Vegetarian Formulation:
5oz Distilled Water (for Lye)
2.6oz Sodium Hydroxide (Lye)
5oz Castor Oil
6oz Coconut Oil
6oz Palm Oil
9oz Propylene Glycol
3oz Glycerin
3oz Sugar dissolved into 3oz Distilled Water

Formulation with Tallow:
5oz Distilled Water (for Lye)
2.5oz Sodium Hydroxide (Lye)
5oz Castor Oil
6oz Coconut Oil
6oz Tallow
9oz Propylene Glycol
3oz Glycerin
3oz Sugar dissolved into 3oz Distilled Water .

Here is the tutuorial: