Ages 5 to 8
Inspired by the movie: Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs
When Snow White asked the Seven Dwarfs to wash up before supper, Grumpy groused that next she'd want to tie red ribbons in their beards. Too bad she didn't have some of these sweetheart soaps on hand. Besides being fun and easy to make, they're great for tempting even the most determined holdouts to step up to the tub and suds up.
by Cindy Littlefield
What you'll need
- Waxed paper
- Loaf pan
- Knife
- 1 to 1 1/2 pounds clear glycerin soap (sold in craft stores)
- Large glass measuring cup or other microwavable container with a pouring spout
- Wooden spoon or craft stick
- Red soap dye
- Pearlescent powder for making opaque soap (optional)
- Heart-shaped fondant or cookie cutters (the ones used to make the soaps shown here are 2 1/4 inches, 1 1/2 inches, and 3/4-inch wide)
How to make it
Line the loaf pan with waxed paper and set it aside.
Cut 1/2 pound of the glycerin soap into cubes and place them in the measuring cup. Melt the soap in the microwave according to the directions on the package.
Pour the melted soap into the loaf pan and let it cool for about 15 to 18 minutes (it should be firm but still soft enough to cut easily). Lift the waxed paper to remove the soap from the pan and set it on a flat surface, paper and all.
Re-line the loaf pan with new waxed paper and melt a second batch of soap. This time, before pouring it into the pan, stir in drops of soap dye until you have the desired shade.
While the second batch of soap cools, cut heart shapes from the first batch. Start with the largest heart, keeping in mind that between the batches you'll want to cut out at least seven large hearts. If you opt to make a third batch, prepare it as soon as you remove the second batch from the pan, and consider adding a small amount of pearlescent powder to give it an opaque look.
To make the hearts multi-colored, cut medium or small hearts out of the centers of the large hearts and swap in others cut from different shades. You can even insert a small heart into the center of a medium one and then fit the new ensemble into the center of a large heart.
