9 Easy Melt and Pour Christmas Soap Recipes
Want to make some soap for DIY gifts, or just want some fun and festive Christmas soaps to wash your hands with? Either way, here are some of the easiest melt and pour Christmas soap recipes to enjoy!
Melt and pour is my favorite way to make soap during the holidays because the hard part is already done for you. There’s no lye to handle and no weeks of waiting for soap to cure. You just melt the base, stir in your scents and colors, pour it into a mold, and it’s ready to use or wrap up in a few hours. Plus, I can easily make them with my kids 🙂
Many of these are my own recipes that I’ve made in my kitchen, along with a few favorites from other makers. Most use only a handful of ingredients, and lots of them are simple enough for little ones to help with too!
Christmas Melt and Pour Soap Recipes
Nothing says Christmas quite like candy canes! This candy cane soap uses a goat's milk melt and pour base with a blend of peppermint, sweet orange, vanilla, and spearmint, so it smells sweet and minty instead of just sharp peppermint.
It makes a big batch too, which is perfect for gifting!
This gingerbread soap smells just like holiday baking. It's made with ground ginger, ground cinnamon, and a gingerbread essential oil blend, and the spices give it a warm brown color without any dye.
Pour it into a gingerbread man mold for the cutest stocking stuffers!
If you love a cozy mug of hot chocolate, you need this hot cocoa soap. Cocoa powder gives it that deep brown color naturally, and a mug mold with little white soap marshmallows on top makes it look just like the real thing.
This one is always a hit with kids 🙂
Bring the smell of a fresh Christmas tree into your bathroom with this pine needle soap. A clear glycerin base, green mica powder, and pine essential oil are all you need. It looks beautiful in a tree-shaped mold or as a simple green bar.
This cinnamon loofah soap is a soap and scrubber in one. Ground cinnamon and cinnamon essential oil give it a warm, spicy holiday scent, and the loofah inside gently exfoliates dry winter skin. It only takes a few ingredients and looks so pretty wrapped up as a gift.
This orange soap is made with orange peel powder and orange essential oil for a bright, fresh citrus scent.
To make it more festive, add a few drops of clove essential oil or a pinch of ground cloves for that classic orange and clove pomander smell. It's Christmas in a bar!
Vanilla is a classic cozy scent, and this vanilla soap uses real vanilla beans for those pretty little specks throughout the bar. It's warm, comforting, and gentle, which makes it a great gift for anyone who doesn't love strong scents. Pair it with the gingerbread or hot cocoa soap for a sweet holiday set.
Eucalyptus has a fresh, powerful scent that is perfect for the holidays and the colder months. Add some green mica powder and use a Christmas tree soap mold to make this eucalyptus soap extra festive!
Celebrate the meaning of Christmas with two of the three gifts from the Wise Men in this incredibly easy to make soap! While the colors are stunning, the smell is my favorite part.
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What You Need to Make Christmas Melt and Pour Soap
With any melt and pour recipe, you luckily won’t need much. Here are the basics for the Christmas soaps above.
Melt and Pour Soap Base
I personally love using a goat’s milk soap base because it moisturizes my skin and gets really bubbly compared to others I’ve tried. These are the ones I’d reach for with holiday soaps:
- Goat’s milk – creamy and great for most of these recipes
- Shea butter – extra moisturizing for dry winter skin
- Clear glycerin – best for see-through soaps like the pine needle and snowflake soaps
Soap Molds
I only use silicone soap molds because the soap pops right out! A large square mold works for simple bars, but these holiday molds are incredibly cute:
- Gingerbread man
- Christmas trees
- Snowflakes
- Christmas mold set
- Mug for the hot cocoa soap
Essential Oils
Essential oils are what make these soaps smell like Christmas! Here are the ones I use most for holiday soaps:
Mica Powder
If you want to add color, mica powder is a more natural route than soap dye.
A little green, red, or white goes a long way. Spices like cocoa powder, cinnamon, and turmeric will also color your soap naturally, so many of these recipes don’t need any added color at all!
How to Wrap Christmas Soap for Gifts
Homemade soap makes such a sweet gift for teachers, neighbors, and stocking stuffers, and it doesn’t take much to make it look special.
- Wrap it airtight first. Once the soap is fully hardened, wrap each bar tightly in plastic wrap or a shrink wrap bag. This keeps the scent in and the moisture out.
- Add a festive layer. Tie on some twine or ribbon, wrap a strip of kraft paper or holiday paper around the middle, or slip the bar into a small cellophane or muslin bag.
- Label it. Add a tag with the name of the soap and the ingredients, so anyone with sensitive skin knows what’s in it.
- Make a set. Pair two or three soaps that go together, like gingerbread, hot cocoa, and vanilla, or candy cane and pine needle. Add a bath bomb or sugar scrub for an easy gift basket!
You can make these soaps a few weeks before Christmas with no problem. Just keep them wrapped and stored in a cool, dry place until you’re ready to give them 🙂
Christmas Melt and Pour Soap FAQs
How long does melt and pour soap take to harden?
Most small bars are firm in one to two hours at room temperature. Larger or deeper molds can take several hours, so I like to leave them overnight to be safe.
If the soap doesn’t pop out of the mold easily, give it more time.
How much essential oil should I add to melt and pour soap?
I stick to about a 1% dilution, which is around 60 drops per pound of soap base. Stronger oils like clove, cinnamon, and peppermint can irritate skin, so use less of those and never go over the amount in the recipe!
Why is my soap sweating?
Melt and pour soap is high in glycerin, which pulls moisture from the air and leaves little beads on the surface.
To prevent it, let the soap harden at room temperature instead of in the fridge or freezer, then wrap it airtight as soon as it’s firm.
How long does homemade melt and pour soap last?
Wrapped and stored somewhere cool and dry, it will last about a year. The scent is strongest in the first few months, so holiday soaps are best made the same season you plan to gift them!
Can kids help make these soaps?
Yes! Melted soap base is very hot, so an adult should handle the melting and pouring. Kids can pick the molds, stir in colors, and help with wrapping.
Final Thoughts
Hopefully these Christmas melt and pour soap ideas sparked your creativity! Whether you go with a classic like candy cane or gingerbread, or something cozy like hot cocoa or vanilla, these soaps are such an easy way to add a handmade touch to the holidays.
You don’t need to make all 9. Pick one or two that sound fun, grab a soap base and a festive mold, and you can have a batch ready in an afternoon. They make sweet gifts for teachers, neighbors, and stocking stuffers, and they’re a great project to do with your kids.
If you make any of these holiday soap recipes, I’d love to hear which one was your favorite!
