Rating: 
Summary: Great Reference for Beginners!
Review: Even though this book is entitled "Natural Soapmaking" it really refers using items such as herbs, etc in your soaps and not to the cold process you would doing when making soaps with lye (which can take a month to cure). These are easy receipes for someone just starting out and want to learn creative ways make soaps which gives you immediate results. It gives good instructions and information about aromatherapy, what different colors mean and what certain herbs to enhance your soaps. Although, she recommends putting Vaseline in the molds to assist with the releasing of the mold - you really do not need to do that! As long as you wait for the soap to harden completely that step is unnecessary! And for the cold process/lye makers you may want to pass on this one because you may be disappointed! It is a great addition to your Melt and Pour Soapmaking by the same author!
Rating: 
Summary: good practice for the beginner, but disappointing results
Review: For the person who wishes to start making his or her own soap, this method of soapmkaing will be easiest (no lye involved!). Marie Browning's method is to purchase a "basic" bar of soap, melt it down, then add in your own ingredients to personalize the soap. I love the idea of personalizing soaps; however, I found that locating a natural, "basic" soap was impossible. Virtually every brand has fragrance and additives that will effect the result of your soap (i.e., if you use a bar of Ivory soap, a thousand drops of aromatic essential oils won't disguise the Ivory soap scent). Browning does not make any brand suggestions of "basic" soaps, but I suggest to try an organic food store. Browning's molding method is questionnable as well: the soap does not release from its mold by simply dousing the mold with Vaseline. I enjoyed the additional information, such as how to make bath salts, facial cleansers and how to package your products. Those tips are creative and fun. If you are frightened of dealing with lye and want a simple, quick method of soapmaking, this book will be enjoyable for you. Tip: purchase an encyclopedia of cosmetic ingredients. It will aid you in selecting quality ingredients to use in your soaps, because this information is not provided in Browning's book. Lastly, don't expect your soaps to look as beautiful as Browning's until you've truly got the hang of it. Once you've mastered this method you can advance to making your own soaps from scratch!
Rating:
Summary: Great for beginners!!!
Review: I absolutely loved this book. I've looked at many soapmaking books and this was the easiest to understand. I made soaps for my friends for Christmas last year. I didn't have to have a degree in chemistry to make my own soap!!!
Rating:
Summary: Great for beginners!!!
Review: I absolutely loved this book. I've looked at many soapmaking books and this was the easiest to understand. I made soaps for my friends for Christmas last year. I didn't have to have a degree in chemistry to make my own soap!!!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Book - Must Have
Review: I am a professional soap maker and found this book to be most informative on making other bath products, such as bath oils, facial scrubs, massage oils, massage bars, etc. Marie Browning is extremely creative in her packaging. Her ideas are great for both personal and professional use. You won't be dissapointed.
Rating: 
Summary: Just what a busy woman needs to make her own soap!
Review: I found this book to be exactly what I wanted. I'm a working wife who dabbles in many crafts and hobbies. I wanted to try my hand at crafting a few bars of soap without all the fuss needed for lye soaps. I grated castille soap to make mine and I was very pleased with the results. I made the Pet Soap and it works well on my Westie. I disagree with other reviews below. I purposely bought this book because it tells you up front that it is not a "from scratch" recipe book. I was not mislead into thinking I was making true (from lye) soap. The pictures were well done and the instructions are clear. I found most ingredients available in a local store dealing in all natural products. I still purchase handmade soaps from true soapmakers...but it's also fun to make these soaps for my family and friends.
Rating:
Summary: Buy for the gift ideas, not for the soaps
Review: I have read and used Marie's "Natural Soapmaking" book in it's paperback version. As a nutritionist I would rather focus on the enhancements rather than the actual soap. If lye/fat homemade is what you want; but, you don't want to fuss with the danger - then order some. The internet is bursting with websites of soapmakers willing to sell you their unscented soap. Ms.Browing clearly states this on page 9. Not once did she recommend any brand. Under the title of "What is Soap?" (page 8) she warns against commercial detergent soap and beauty bars. My advice to all interested in soapmaking is to give this book a try. I don't need to extract essence oils to make fragrance! The only thing I'd like to request from Ms. Browning is that she please give a list of suppliers in her next book. I'll be looking foward to it!
Rating:
Summary: Yes - it's a shortcut
Review: The best thing about this book is the section on packaging. The suites of products look great.
Rating:
Summary: "Natual" is not the word I'd use...
Review: This book has one basic recipe: it describes the difference between soap and detergent, and then tells you to pick your "base soap" from one of the real soaps available in your supermarket. Then it tells you how to add "natural" items to the remelted "base soap" to make it more attractive.The main redeeming feature of the book is it's exellant description of packaging, and suggestions for putting together a superb gift box of soap. This section, which is the largest section in the book, is definitly worth the price. It even has patterns for some pretty fancy decorating techniques, in terms of packaging. In my opinion, however, this is NOT a book about making soap. It's about SELLING soap. And, as a book about selling soap, it's very good.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book for the Experienced Soap Maker
Review: This book is great for people that already make their own soap. She has wonderful recipes for hand-milled soap, bath salts, bath oils and massage oils. There are also some very descriptive and beautiful packaging ideas. If you do make your own soap, make a batch of unscented cold processed soap and grate it - then this book will really be helpful to you. Unscented vegetable soap is sometimes difficult to find.
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