moldable pumpkin spice melt and pour soap recipe

DIY Pumpkin Spice Soap: Moldable Melt and Pour Soap Recipe

October 5, 2017

Learn how to make pumpkin shaped soaps for fall! These DIY pumpkin spice soaps are made using a moldable melt and pour soap recipe. This allows you to not only scent these autumnal soaps with a pumpkin spice fragrance, but it also allows you to form them into 3-dimensional pumpkin shapes! Adults, teens and families will all enjoy this exciting fall craft. Follow my easy soap recipe to create your own unique soaps to use in your home or give as DIY fall gifts.

DIY Pumpkin Spice Soap

Since having learned that making or playing with homemade slime containing borax can possibly cause chemical burns, you may be looking for another option for your kids’ crafts this fall. Preferably one that’s borax free. My DIY pumpkin spice soap is the perfect solution for seasonal fun for both kids and grownups alike!

I first tried out a version of this moldable soap recipe at a girls’ craft night and we had a blast! And because you can make these DIY pumpkin spice soaps as simple or as detailed as you like, they are suitable for elementary school kids and up. (However, you may want to prepare the moldable soap base prior to handling for younger children rather than involve them in the full soapmaking process.)

What’s so great about this fall soap project isn’t the pumpkin spice scent as you might think. Rather it’s the ability to create one-of-a-kind soaps. The moldable melt and pour soap you create means you don’t need a mold to make pumpkin shaped soaps. Instead, you design and construct the shape yourself using your hands. It’s similar to working with clay. You can even use similar tools to to create small details in the soap. While mica serves as a quick and easy soap paint to decorate your creations.

Here’s a photo of my friend, Cathy, with the homemade pumpkin soap she made on our DIY night. This fall soap inspired my own DIY pumpkin spice soap project. As you can see, there’s really no right or wrong way to make these pumpkin spice soaps. It’s all about having fun!

Not only is this fall soap project easy to craft, but it’s also relatively inexpensive to get started. In addition, because you can execute this soapmaking project in a half hour or less, it’s also perfect for autumn hostess gifts for that last minute event invite.

Keep reading to learn how to make this unique adult craft for Halloween with friends. Or set aside a crisp, fall weekend to embark on this fall soap making project with your family and explore new ways to use pumpkin spice essential oil.

Pumpkin Spice Soap Recipe

These gorgeous DIY pumpkin spice soaps are made with a moldable melt and pour soap recipe to create unique pumpkin shaped soaps for fall. This easy recipe will yield one pumpkin shaped soap. However, you can easily double the recipe to achieve the final quantity desired.

These autumn soap bars can be scented with either your favorite pumpkin spice fragrance oil or a pumpkin spice essential oil blend. You can also paint your finished pumpkin shaped soaps to look like real pumpkins. Or get creative and use your paintbrush and mica to create jack-o-lanterns or painted pumpkins in fun colors.

Moldable Melt and Pour Soap Ingredients

These are the ingredients you will need to make a moldable melt and pour soap that you can form into pumpkins or other fun fall shapes:

4 oz. Stephenson Clear Natural Soap Base: I used Stephenson Crystal Hemp Melt & Pour Soap Base for this project. You can use another glycerin soap base if desired, however I do recommend that you use a brand similar to Stephenson’s for the best results.
1.1 oz. Vegetable Glycerin: You will need to add liquid vegetable glycerin to this moldable melt and pour soap recipe. This addition softens the soap base so that it is easier to mold into pumpkin shapes.
.25 oz. Cornstarch: In addition to glycerin, cornstarch is also a necessary ingredient to make this pumpkin spice soap. Without it, you won’t get a glycerin soap that you can mold into shapes.
.1 oz Pumpkin Spice Fragrance: I used pumpkin pie spice fragrance oil to scent these homemade melt and pour soaps for fall. Keep in mind that pumpkin spice has a lower usage rate than most fragrance oils. If you prefer an all natural scent, you can add 20 drops (1 mL) of a pumpkin spice essential oil blend for a 1% usage rate.
Colorant: To tint the pumpkin soap an orange color, use a small piece of an orange color bar or liquid orange soap colorant. Add just a few drops at a time until the color is achieved. Adding too much colorant can cause the soap to stain your skin. Therefore, follow the manufacturer’s guidelines for the color you choose.
Mica Powder: I used skin safe cosmetic mica powders in a variety of colors to decorate my pumpkin shaped soaps. When mixed with isopropyl alcohol, you can create a simple soap paint for your homemade pumpkin spice soaps.
Isopropyl Alcohol: Also known as rubbing alcohol, this ingredient is mixed with the mica powder to create a skin safe paint for your pumpkin soap.

Tools and Equipment

In addition the ingredients called for in my moldable melt and pour pumpkin spice soap recipe, you’ll also need some basic tools and equipment to create this project. Here is what you’ll need:

Digital scale: A kitchen scale is needed to weigh out the ingredients used to make this moldable melt and pour soap project.
Microwave: You’ll use a microwave to melt the soap base you use to make these pumpkin shaped soaps. If you don’t have a microwave, you can use a double boiler or small crockpot.
Pyrex measuring cups or heat safe containers: Microwave safe bowls or measuring cups are needed to melt and mix the soap base for these pumpkin spice soaps. I recommend that you use heat safe glass for this project and not plastic containers.
Utensils: You will need a spoon, spatula, fork or other utensil to mix the glycerin soap base with the other ingredients to make the soap moldable. They will also be used to incorporate the color and scent into the homemade soap bars.
Small bowl: A small bowl or dish is used to mix the soap paint used to decorate these pumpkin shaped soaps.
Paint brush: You will need a small paint brush to paint designs onto the soap with the DIY soap paint your create from mica and rubbing alcohol.

How to Make Pumpkin Spice Soap

Here is how to make pumpkin spice soap that you can mold into pumpkin shapes.

Make the Moldable Melt and Pour Soap Base

1. Using a digital kitchen scale, weigh out 4 oz. of the hemp melt & pour soap base and cut into chunks.

2. Place the soap chunks in a glass Pyrex measuring cup or bowl. Then heat in the microwave in 20-30 increments until melted.

3. Add color to suit, if desired, and mix well. Be sure to follow the manufacturer’s guidelines and directions for using the colorant you choose. For most liquid melt and pour soap colorants, you should only need a few drops.

4. Next, weigh out the cornstarch and glycerin. Stir these ingredients into the melted glycerin soap base.

5. Follow with the fragrance or essential oil, weighing out the necessary amount first. Then mix the scent into the melted soap.

6. Whisk the soap base with a fork until all of the cornstarch has dissolved and the soap starts to thicken. Once the soap has cooled and can be molded without sticking to your hands, it’s ready to be used to create pumpkin shaped soap.

Shape the Soap into Pumpkins

7. Working on a covered surface or parchment paper, shape the soap into a pumpkin with your hands the same way you would clay.

You can use a butter knife to help add details around the pumpkin. Once you have a pumpkin shape you like, you can paint your pumpkin spice soap with homemade soap paint!

Decorate the Pumpkin Soap with Soap Paint

8. To make the soap paint for your pumpkin shaped soaps, simply mix a small amount of mica with isopropyl alcohol in a small dish. Generally equal parts of each will get the consistency you’re aiming for. However, you can add more or less of either ingredient to get soap paint that’s easiest for you to work with.

I used green, gold and copper micas to paint my DIY pumpkin spice soap. However, you can choose any colors you like.

9. Now use a small paint brush to paint the soaps as desired.

I mixed the copper mica with alcohol first at a thinner consistency to push the paint into the grooves I made around the pumpkin.

10. Once I had mixed the color I simply used a small paint brush to paint the lines around my pumpkin shaped soap.

11. I then used a gold mica and alcohol to fill in the areas between those I painted copper.

12. Finally, I mixed up green mica and isopropyl alcohol and used that color to paint the stem.

13. Once you’ve painted your pumpkin spice soap, allow it to dry fully before handling. Then package and label as desired for personal use or gifting!

NOTE: The soap paint for this project is temporary. Once used, the mica will wash off the soap, leaving behind an orange shaped pumpkin soap that smells like pumpkin spice!

Pumpkin Pie Spice Soap Recipes

If you like my DIY pumpkin spice soap then you may also enjoy these other pumpkin pie spice soap recipes:

Pumpkin Pie Spice Soap: Nothing is better suited to scent a pumpkin pie soap than a pumpkin pie essential oil blend! This easy, fall melt and pour soap recipe can be scented using either a fragrance oil or a pumpkin spice essential oil blend. Created using different colored layers of glycerin soap and a pie shaped soap mold, this homemade soap looks delightful by a bathroom sink and smells irresistible!
Cold Process Pumpkin Soap Recipe: Learn how to make a homemade pumpkin soap recipe using canned pumpkin puree to craft a homemade soap for your natural skin care routine. Scent it with pumpkin spice for the perfect homemade soap for fall.
Hot Process Pumpkin Pie Soap: Learn how to make pumpkin pie soap using the hot process soap making method. This pumpkin spice scented hot process pumpkin soap recipe is made with coconut milk and canned pumpkin puree in the crockpot for a creamy, nourishing soap.
Fall Soap Recipe: Learn how to make cold process soap with autumn pumpkin shaped embeds. This tutorial covers how to make soap with a pumpkin spice scent and also includes other fall soap essential oil blends you can use and enjoy throughout the fall season.

If you like my pumpkin spice soap recipes, then you may also enjoy my other pumpkin spice recipes. They include the following: pumpkin spice body butter, cardamom & pumpkin spice solid coffee scrub, DIY pumpkin spice bath bombs and apple & pumpkin spice lotion. Or, if you’re looking for more uses for pumpkin spice essential oil, try these other recipes for using a pumpkin pie spice essential oil blend here.

I hope you enjoyed making my moldable pumpkin spice soap recipe. For more homemade soap recipes be sure to follow me on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Or subscribe to Soap Deli News via email for future updates, DIY projects and recipes.