Who Knew.....

that this monkey soap would be my best seller? Not only is it my most popular soap, but it's the most time-consuming and difficult to make. Don't get me wrong, I love my Monkey Bars, but whenever I get an order for one, I'm like, "Don't make any plans for the next hour and a half...."

I truly love the art of melt and pour soap crafting, especially when there are multiple crevices involved such as this one. Take a look at all the individually-colored parts of this soap: the fruit (looks like a mango, but I color it yellow to make it pop), the stem on the fruit; the monkey's eyes; his face; his body; and finally the background. When I first started making this soap as the first pic will show, I colored the monkey one color all the way through. I was too intimidated to try to show the detail of its face. Then I discovered these crafting tools from PJ Soaps. They are another "why didn't I think of that..." I let each section dry for at least 20-30 minutes depending on the size. When I'm working with small sections like the fruit and the monkey itself, I don't scent it. I save the scent for the background since it's the "meat" of the soap. Monkey Farts (a delicious blend of banana, mango, strawberry, and bubblegum) is a powerful scent, and all you need is a little.

Well, I'm waiting on my little monkey to harden before I pop it out of the mold. I let these set a full 24 hours because in the past I've always popped it out too soon, and I'd lose an eyeball or the fruit would stick. Then I'm like "%$#%P%" and have to start all over!