Shine bright like a diamond - with home made diamond soap!

I have a friend who's name inspired my newest bathroom beauty! Ms Tatum Diamond (I know - it's an awesome name) is my bezzie London mate and fellow crafter / artist! She's always a ray of sunshine in my life so both her personality and name are shining through in this diamond soap I've made for her

What you will need:

Clear melt and pour soap

Essential Oil - I got mine from Essential Oils Direct on Amazon for super cheap

 Fine glitter

Diamond silicon tray

Small heat proof tub if you want to make the larger bar of soap

Plastic wrap

Step 1

Melt your soap down like I showed you on the Voodoo Doll soap tutorial!

Step 2

Add the glitter to the soap. How much you put in depends on how glittery you want your soap to be. I only put in a little to begin with and once my soap has set I noticed that all the glitter had drifted to the bottom - that's fine though as you can just put it back in your melting bowl and add more glitter before trying again.

I also added some orange & ginger essential oil so make the soap smell lovely and fresh.

Step 3

Pour the soap into the mould. I made sure the soap goes right to the top and I used the blunt end of a knife to take the bubbles off the top so that the soap sets clear. 

You can also apparently spray a little rubbing alcohol on the top of your soap to remove the bubble but I didn't have any in the house to try this.

You can put your soap in the freezer for 15 mins or so to help quicken the setting process but don't leave it in for too long or your soap will sweat. 

Step 4

Once set, remove the soap from it's mould and you will have your own soap diamond!

Make sure the soap is solid all the way through before taking them out - The first one I tried had only set on top and when I tried to squeeze it out, the soap spurted all over the kitchen. whoops...

Optional Steps

Step 5

I wanted to make 1 large bar of soap rather than lots of mini ones, so I melted down some more clear soap and added it to a small container which is pre-covered with plastic wrap so you can easily pull your soap out.

You want to get the plastic wrap in without it being all liney as it will put creases in your soap. the easiest way I've found to do this is by laying the plastic wrap over the top and pressing it down slightly before filling the container slowly with water - this makes the plastic wrap stick round the sides. Scrunch up all the remaining plastic wrap round the outside and then pour the water out so that it is now ready for the soap

One the soap is in the container and you have left it to set for a few minutes, carefully place your diamonds inside. The reason why I leave it to set a little is so the diamonds don't sink right to the bottom of the soap, instead sitting nicely in the middle. 

Step 6

Leave the soap to set (again you can put it in the freezer). Press down on it gently and see if it is still squidgy - you want it to be a little soft but you don't want there to be any liquid that hasn't set in the middle otherwise when you remove it from the container your soap might burst open and you will get air bubbles inside, like you can see in the photo below.

Remove the soap from the container before it fully sets solid and sit it out to set until completely firm. 

Step 7

Package your soap up and give it you the friend that adds a bit of sparkle to your life!

I'll be back,

Who do Voodoo - Make your own Voodoo soap

My friend Neil always buys the most awesome gifts (and finds the coolest wrapping paper) so when he gave me this voodoo doll cookie cutter I knew I was going to put it to good use!

I've always admired the people that can make soap look like cakes, and I guess a cookie is pretty close to a cake so when I decided to start making soap this cookie cutter was the first thing I pulled out the baking cupboard. The Voodoo doll itself was really simple but adding the red colour soap on top was a bit more difficult - not necessary to still make a really cool soap....so let's get cracking!

What you will need:

Clear melt and pour soap

Essential Oil - I got mine from Essential Oils Direct on Amazon for super cheap

 Cinnamon - I used this for colouring and it has a nice smell

Red food colouring

Voodoo doll cookie cutter 

Some kind of container that is big enough to contain your cookie cutter and is heat proof

plastic wrap

Step 1

Check your cookie cutter fits in your container. If you want to do lots you can use a much bigger container but I only wanted to do a couple as only had 1kg of soap and I didn't want to use it all up

Step 2

Take the cookie cutter out of the container and place it next to it. Then fill the container with water until it is level with the top of the cookie cutter. 

Don't overfill as it will make it very difficult to cut out your soap

Step 3

Get rid of any of the remaining water left in the jug and then pour the water from the container back in the jug.

This will let you know how much soap you need - I had 500ml of water so I needed 500g of soap, which I then measured out in a glass bowl

Step 4

Dry out your container and then cover the inside in plastic wrap. Smooth it out as much as you can so that you don't end up with lines across your soap.

Step 5

Put the water you had in your jug in a pan (adding more/less as needed depending on the size of your pan) and then put the bowl on top and start melting your soap. The water shouldn't be touching the bottom of your bowl, it should be just enough so that the bottom of your pan doesn't burn.

You can also melt your soap in the microwave but I prefer old school - Just Google microwave melt and pour soap if you want to find out more

Step 6

Pour your melted soap back into the jug and then you can start adding the smelly stuff! I used orange and a tiny drop of ginger oil, then adding a dash of cinnamon for the colour and extra Christmassy smell.

If you are struggling to get any lumps out of your cinnamon you can put it back on the heat for a little but and that helps smooth it out

Step 7

Make sure your cookie cutter is back next to the container and pour in your soap. I filled 2 containers with this amount

Step 8

Leave your soap to set for 15 minutes and then check to see how it's doing. It should be all one piece but still flexible so you can bend it without breaking. If you leave it too long then it will it make it too hard to mould

Step 9

Remove your soap from the container and then press your cookie cutter on it

Step 10

Remove the remaining soap from around the side and place it on some grease proof paper or same plastic wrap if it's not ripped

Step 11

Take the side of your cookie cutter that has the design and press it down on top of your soap. Again this needs to be done before your soap gets too solid.

Once I removed the cutter, I then pressed down in the heart a little more to give me some more room for the red soap.

Step 12

Take your remaining bits of soap and melt it back down again, adding a couple of dashes of red food colouring.

Step 13

Drizzel the red soap into all the places of the voodoo doll you want to be a bit darker. I left the soap to set a little before starting so it was a bit thicker and easier to pour.

Step 14

Leave your soap until it is completely solid and then you can put it in your bathroom to entertain all your friends or you can give it to someone as an awesome gift - and if someone gave you the cookie cutter you are using then remember to pay them back with one of you homemade soaps!

I'll be back xx

Knitted Baby Blanket

So when I found out I had a new baby nephew on the way, I got knitting fever bad! 

I made him baby booties and a hat but this blanket was my favourite! It was so simple to make and as it's made from wool and fleece, it's a really warm cover for in the buggy.

What you will need:

2 Shades of chunky wool - I got mine from John Lewis (I needed 1.5 balls of each colour)

10mm knitting needles - I got a pack of lots of sizes at a great discount from Curtzy

Cream Fleece

Thinner wool or thick thread (I used this navy glittery wool)

Large sewing needle

Scissors

Step 1

Cast on 12 stitches and start knitting! 

You just need to do a simple Knit row for this pattern, nothing fancy. Also, if like me you are rubbish at counting your lines, then for each 2 knit lines you do, you start to see a pattern form in your knitting - I started counting this pattern and once I got to 50 I stopped. As the pattern was easy to see, I could check the count as much as I wanted without having to keep track in my head.

When you Cast off, leave a tail double the length of the width of your blanket - this will be used for stitching the pieces of your blanket together.

Step 2

Repeat 6 times - 3 in each colour

Step 3 

Stitch all your stripes together by holding two stripes together, so that one has the tail piece at the top and one is at the bottom. Put the tail piece through your sewing needle and weave in and out the long edge of both pieces, knotting at the end.

When you flatten it back out you will see the two stripes together, so just repeat the process until all stripes become one piece. make sure you always sew to the same size as it will leave a bit of a rugged look on one side that you can then cover up with the fleece. 

Step 4

Cut your piece of fleece so it is slightly larger than your blanket.

Lie your blanket on the ground so the side you like most is lying flat on the ground, then put the piece of fleece on top. Fold the fleece under round the edge of your blanket and pin it in place all the way around

Step 5

Take your thinner wool and do a blanket stitch all the way round

Step 6

Wrap your baby up in your AMAZING blanket, or yourself if you make it large enough!

Hopefully Jackson and I will have many long walks out and about so we make good use of this!

I'll be back xx

Knit your own Dinosaur Hat

After knitting my first couple of pieces, I started to feel adventurous and wanted to try something a little more challenging.

I decided with it being so cold outside I would make a hat for my new nephew, but not just any hat - this is a hat that will keep all those monsters under the bed at bay

What you will need:

2 Shades of chunky wool - I got mine from John Lewis

10mm knitting needles - I got a pack of lots of sizes at a great discount from Curtzy

White and black felt

Black Thread

Large sewing needle

Scissors

Step 1

Cast on 31 stitches.

Note: This will make a hat for about a 1-2 year old. Add or remove stitches to change the size you want to make, but keep it as an odd number

Step 2

For this number of stitches, your hat needs to be about 8 inches long. I found it easier to measure the length every now and again, rather than counting the number of lines I've stitched

To get this style I did one full line of Knit and then 1 full line of  Purl and repeat until you have your chosen length, finishing on a Purl line - this is called stockinette stitch. If you forget what line you need to do next then here is a simple way to remember - If the flat side is facing you then it should be a knit line and if a bumpy side is facing you it should be a purl line

KNIT                                                 PURL

You might find the bottom of your hat rolls up - don't worry about this, it will help your hat fold over at the end

Step 3

Two more lines need to be knitted to finish off the main hat shape, 

Line 1

Knit 1
For the rest of the line Knit 2 together (repeat until line finished - you should end up with 16 stitches on your needle)

Line 2
Purl 2 together (repeat until line finished - you should end up with 8 stitches

Step 4

Cut the wool from the ball so you leave a length of wool that is at least double the length of your hat.

Put a large sewing needle on the end of the wool and then pass it through all your stitches on the knitting needle before removing the knitting needle out from under the stitches. 

Step 5

Pull on the end of your wool so that all stitches gather and and then tie a knot in the wool so that all the stitches are held

Step 6

Weave the end of the wool in and out from the top of the hat down the sides, until you get to the bottom and there you have your hat shape. Finish by tying a knot and weave the end piece of the wool back into the hat (if it's too long then just weave it a few times and cut the rest off).

Step 7

Turn the hat the right was out so any knots/weaving are on the inside. Your hat will also start naturally rolling itself up at the bottom - use this create a rim and give it a few stitches with thread to keep it in place

Step 8

Next you want to start your spikes for on top of the hat.

For this size of hat, you should cast on 8 stitches but you can do less if you want a smaller spike. Try and leave a long piece of wool at the end - this will be used for stitching your spike to the hat.

Step 9

Knit the first 2 together, then knit each other stitch in the row singly. 

Repeat this for each spike until there is only one stitch left and then cast off

Step 10

Congratulations - You have made your first spike. Now repeat to get 3 more!

Once you have all your spikes, take one and thread a large sewing needle on the end

Step 11

Weave the tail of the spike in and out the top of the hat, pulling the final stitch through to the back and then weave the remainder on the inside of the hat to secure it.

Step 12

Repeat for the other 3 spikes, leaving more room at the front than the back. I also followed the stitched line done the back of the hat to help cover it up

Step 13

Next we need to work on the face.

From the white felt cut out 2 large circles and some teeth. From the black felt, cut two small circles

Step 14

Stitch the black circles to white ones - I did them slightly off centre, but play around with them on the front of the hat before stitching to get your positioning right.

Step 15

Stitch the eyes to the front of the hat, slightly under the rim. Make sure you don't do the stitching too tight otherwise there will be no give in the hat then you are putting it on.

Step 16

 Stitch the teeth on the inside of the rim, making sure the stick out on the bottom - again don't stitch too tight!

And there you have it...one dinosaur hat, ready for any adventure out.

I'll be back xx