5 comments about Lye in Wait: A Home Crafting Mystery.

1. I guess I am the odd ball out. I found this authors writing style too much like reading a book in a literature class smothered in prose. What I would like to read is a mystery without a thousand descriptive adjectives.



2. Sophie Mae Reynolds is quite surprised to find the neighborhood handyman, Walter Hanover, dead in her workroom. He died from drinking lye. She has plenty of it on hand for making soap. But the police call it suicide.
   
   Sophie can't understand why a man who won the lottery and has a loving fiancée kill himself. So, she investigates. Her best friend Meghan tries to stop her to no avail. Detective Ambrose, who sends the butterflies in her stomach a flutter but can also cause her annoyance, can't stop her either.
   
   Her sleuthing leads her to peppermint and a trail of arson, bigamy, and a family secret that's quite shocking and reveals a personal connection to Walter. Can it connect him to his killer? Can Sophie uncover the killer without putting herself and those she loves at risk?
   
   Sophie is a breath of fresh air as a lovable amateur sleuth. She is so much fun as she works her way through her investigation. I look forward to reading many more adventures with Sophie.
   
   Detective Ambrose and Meghan help balance Sophie and try to keep her out of trouble. That isn't an easy job.
   
   The new craft series features recipes as well. I highly recommend this book.



3. I enjoyed "Lye in Wait." One of my best friends is a soapmaker and I've been the beneficiary of many of her lotion bars, lip balms, and new recipes. I'm glad McRae provided some good homecraft recipes on her website.
   
   I liked the down-to-earthiness of the main character, Sophie, and that the mystery gets started right away. In places, the story moved forward a bit slowly, but didn't get bogged down. And I'm always thankful when a mystery is about solving a mystery and not about everyone jumping into bed every 5 pages. All in all, it's an intelligent, cozy read.
   
   One small thing bugged me though. It grinds me when authors depict people with mental illness either as sociopaths or as sketchy and fragile. In "Lye in Wait," Debby seems to fall into the later category.
   
   Some of my dearest friends have mental illness--a physician, an attorney, a software developer, a technical writer, a martial arts instructor, and a psychologist. It takes hard work and tremendous courage for them to live well with their illness. Each has dedicated their life to helping others, in spite of the stigma, shame, and complexity brought into their lives by mental illness.
   
   Just once, I would love to see an author depict a person with mental illness as capable of compassion, creativity, intelligence, or strength, instead of as a murderer or pathetic wreck.
   
   To McRae's credit, when I emailed this "gripe" to her, she responded and said she'd discussed Debby's character with a person who lives with mental illness. That person gave Debby's character a thumb's up.
   
   I eagerly await "Heaven Preserve Us."



4. Soap maker Sophie Mae Reynolds is devastated when she finds the body of neighborhood handyman Walter Hanover on her workroom floor. The police think he committed suicide by drinking lye but Sophie Mae isn't convinced and begins looking into Walter's death herself much to the annoyance of Detective Barr Ambrose. The more Sophie Mae digs, the more complicated the case becomes. Sophie Mae doesn't seem to have a clue about Walter's death, but someone thinks she does and soon her life and the lives of those around her are in real danger.
   
   "Lye in Wait" is the first book in Cricket McRae's Home Crafting Mystery series and it has some good moments. The characters are good, starting with Sophie Mae. She is a well-written character - widowed and making a decent living with her soap and other beauty products. I liked the fact that in this book, unlike some other mysteries, Sophie Mae is seen actually working instead of letting the mystery take over the book. Sophie Mae lives with her friend Meghan and Meghan's young daughter Erin and McRae does a good job of describing the relationship between the three which is very believable. The descriptions of the meals that Sophie Mae and Meghan cook made my mouth water. While the characters and soap making elements worked for me, the mystery aspects didn't work as well. Although the book has all the elements of a cozy mystery (including the ubiquitous attractive detective) it is a little too gritty to be called a cozy, especially in the way Walter dies and Meghan's relationship with her jerk of an ex-husband. The mystery seems to rely on too many coincidences and I felt cheated at the end when the murderer was revealed.
   
   "Lye in Wait" is not a perfect mystery, but has some good moments and interesting characters and looks like the start of a good mystery series.



5. I enjoyed her books tremedously and really hope she writes more in this series!!
   Great characters and loved all the storylines.

5 comments about Handcrafted Soap.

1. Great book. Lots of good information on soap making, lots of pictures. I would recommend it for use in conjunction with another book, Milk-based soap, by Casey Makela, as I make goat milk soap, and it doesn't have anything specific to that product. But it will be very helpful otherwise.



2. I checked this book and a few others out of the library when I was interested in making my own soap. This is the one I used, the method is simple, and the book explains the qualities of different oils and essential oils. I'm sure I would not have started making my own soap if it weren't for this book, it really provides all you need to know.



3. Many recipes and pictures to see your finished product. A must for beginners.



4. I purchased this book and am dissapointed. It is beautiful, has wonderful color photos, but there is nothing in it that you can't find on the internet. In fact, my internet resources described hot process soap making better than this book did.
   
   Here are my complaints: There is so much repetition. She tells you the basic steps at the beginning, then for each recipe, she goes through them again. That's 16 times these directions are repeated. What a waste of space! She could have, instead, stuffed more useful information.
   
   Also, get this, she spends eight pages telling us how to fill a mold and cut the soap. Does that really need eight pages devoted to it? I think I can figure those things out on my own. (especially the soap cutting part.)I would much rather she have included more photos on the stages the soap goes through while it's cooking, or ways to visually tell when the soap is done. She uses unspecific terms like "Island" and "Waves" when not all soaps will get those "islands" and "waves."
   
   The only reason why I did not give this one star is the charts at the back of the book. They are interesting and are the only meat in the book, however I do question where she gets the information for this. For example, she tells us that soybean oil only has a conditioning number of 2 (10 being most, and 1 being least)Does she know that soybean oil is made of 50.7% Linoleic? And that Linoleic is among one of the more conditioning fatty acids?
   
   There are many other faults (like the recipes) that I could rant about but this review would go on forever. This book, in my opinion, is a prime example of someone who knows the steps but doesn't know the process behind it. She doesn't strike me as an expert and that's why you buy someone's book - because they are the expert on the subject.



5. Handcrafted Soap by Delores Boone is an excellent soap book for Hot-Process Soap Making. I currently use the Cold-Process method and really wanted to learn something in-depth about the Hot-Process method. I haven't tried any of the recipes as yet, but as soon as I get back home I will do so. The only problem I had with the book, it should be labeled as a Hot Process Method Soapmaking Book. I was actually looking for Cold-Process, and the book happend to be relatively about Hot-Process, but it was of good use for me, especially since I am trying to learn the Hot Process Method.

5 comments about Natural Soapmaking.

1. 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!



2. People who really make soap - and contrary to what others have said, it is far from an arduous or time consuming process, should do themselves a favor and pass on this book. Natural soapmaking means using lye and oils, not breaking down someone else's soap and reconstituting it.
   
   Waste of money.



3. I have to disagree with the previous reviewer about this book. I totally agree that it is definitely not a book for Soapmakers who use Hot or Cold Process Soapmaking like I orginally wanted, but it was certainly very helpfull. Her tips for making Hand-Milled Soap from store-bought soap was excellent. I currently live in the Caribbean where you can't find anything quite easy. I found a Hypo-Allergenic Soap Bar called Pure & Natural that was perfect. Matter of fact, I made one of her recipes yesterday using a PVC Mold, and it came out beautifully. As far as using Petroleum Jelly to release the Soap from the mold, it worked like a charm, just like she indicated in her book.
   
   There are alot of recipes in this book that can be used in regular soapmaking. I also love the idea that the book also has recipes and teaches you how to make Bath & Massage Oils, Solid Massage Oils, Bath Salts & Fizzies, as well as packaging and decorating your handmade items.
   
   Thumbs up for Marie.



4. If you want an easy way to personalize soaps for gifts or make other "spa" product for yourself and others this is a great starter book. It is well illustrated, great packaging ideas and label templates. Easy recipes to follow. It is exactly what I was looking for since I dabble in lots of crafts and am an expert at none!



5. I knew absolutely nothing about hand-milled soap making or soap making period and I picked this book up, read it cover to cover and enjoyed it all. I then bought my supplies (the very few I didn't already have in my kitchen) and some ingredients for two of the receipes and the rest is history. My teenage daughter and I spent the weekend making soap and we had a blast! All the steps in this book worked perfectly, although at first we struggled with the amount of time to melt the soap. Eventually we got it though and within a weekend we had our kitchen full of a variety of shapped soaps that began the curing process. I would recommend this book to anyone who doesn't have the interest in creating soap from scratch (mixing with lye, etc). It has beautiful pictures and many creative ideas for wrapping. Love this book!

4 comments about Soap Carving: For Children of All Ages (Schiffer Book for Woodcarvers).

1. This book is a gem in the rough. It is not slick or up-to-date looking, but it contains excellent instructions on carving soap as a prelude to carving wood. The author, an engineer, shows you how to create carving tools out of popsicle sticks. This is the one of the coolest craft ideas I have ever seen and it worked very well with a group of children from my church. Not only does he describe how to make a basic carving tool (by cutting a diagonal and then sharpening the "blade" on sandpaper) but he shows how to make a gouge and other tools too.
   
   The main part of the book contains detailed instructions on how to carve several different objects (a heart, a turtle, a dolphin coming out of water, and more), with a picture showing each stage of the carving process. These were great instructions for me; the children I worked with (ages 5-10) could have used easier models/instructions. This book is great because it shows how to introduce a new fun craft activity, carving, in a way that works for groups of kids safely and without much expense. The kids loved it!



2. Excellent book for carving. The kids enjoyed it. Well written and illustrated.



3. I am a teacher and I carve in my free time. I have always regretted that the tools for carving are too sharp and dangerous for kids to use , so sharing my hobby with the children was out of the question until I read this book.
   What a nice idea, tools made out of popsickle sticks!!
   I made a class set of the tools and my kids happily carved some of the figures suggested in the book.
   I did it with a grade three class when the kids learned about Inuits carving soapstone. The kids enjoyed it a lot. Children in higher grades will have as much fun doing it and hopefully they will be as proud of their creations.
   I can recommend this book for anyone who would like to carve with kids but is afraid to do so.
   One suggestion. Have the children bring a serving tray, or baking sheet and have them carve on that so the chips of soap will stay in the tray rather than fall on the floor!



4. Great book, has lots of detail. Especially like the instructions for making your own carving tools out of popsicle sticks.
   My 6 yr. old grandson carve a soap owl and it came out good.

5 comments about 300 Handcrafted Soaps: Great Melt & Pour Projects.

1. Great book for beginners or pros alike. I will definetly buy more books by this author



2. Terrific! So many ideas and so little time! I made about a dozen varieties of soap, and each was delightful.



3. Beautiful pictures and well written, but the format may be confusing for a beginner. It was for me. At first I thought, "300 recipes all in one skinny book?" Then I understood why. Many, if not most of the "recipes," just have a list of materials and additives, but no procedure per se. For procedure the reader is instructed to see elsewhere in the book.
   
   For instance, Recipe #175 for Triangles, which immediately caught my eye, lists the amount of melt and pour base, drops of fragrance, additives (in this case, "green, yellow, and red soap curls cut from soap sheets"), and the size of mold needed. Then it directs the reader to "See 'Soap in Soap' in the Designer Techniques section" for the how-to. Ok, let's go see... Ahh, step three tells me to follow the instructions for "Embedded Toy Soaps," yet another section to which I must refer in order to make the Triangles. Suddenly I feel like I'm on a scavenger hunt just to make a couple of bars of soap. By this time, my excitement has fizzled and I'm ready to look elsewhere... as in another book altogether. As a beginner, I'm really looking for specifics. This book was not for me. I did enjoy reading the general info on soapmaking, that was helpful. And the pictures were gorgeous to look at, but I'm glad I only borrowed this book from the library and didn't actually pay money for it.



4. I love this book because it has numerous-300- visually applealing soaps. This lets the soap crafter get away for the "Plain White Soap" and make each bar a peice of art with color and texture. A great book for beginners and those who want to take it to the next level. The book mentions that you can get most of your supplies at thrift stores to by pass an huge inverstment. I purchased all my soap making supplies from the thrift store and I am selling prfessionally.



5. as a new soap maker, i found this book really nice. it is full of very exiting ideas

2 comments about Heaven Preserve Us: A Home Crafting Mystery (A Home Crafting Mystery).

1. "Heaven Preserve Us," the second book in the Home Crafting Series, is not quite as good as the first, "Lye in Wait." The heroine, Sophie Mae Reynolds, began to grate on my nerves as she went around sleuthing in an unbelievable way. No one could get away with some of the things she did. The main mystery itself was no surprise, & the secondary mystery was just ridiculous when the answer came to light.
   
   The book kept my attention until about two thirds of the way through. There's just nothing special about the second book in this series, & I hope that third will be better.



2. I had a blast reading this book! Ms. McRae has a witty writing style that holds my interest and makes reading fun ~ what a concept! I enjoyed the twists and turns of the mystery and felt the story moved along at a quick pace. Once again, she had me guessing until the end. I can't wait for the next one, I think it's called Spin a Wicked Web and sounds great!

5 comments about Melt & Mold Soap Crafting.

1. I think I have every M&P book out there. I wish I'd bought this one first, because it's the only one you need. Great book!



2. I really like this book and when I bought this book, I bought another M&P book. All I can say is I like the other one better. I like that there is a picture for each recipe but what seems to be lacking here is what fragrance to use at least on some of the recipes. I understand that some things should be left to the imagination but when it comes to recipes that I am trying to copy, I want to be exact and to kind of feel what she feels when the soap is used for the 1st time. There is no way I could make cake without knowing the full list of ingredients and I feel the same applies here. Overall this is a great book and a good read.



3. Although this has a slick commercial look about it (I tend to doubt the usefulness of commercial stuff!), this is a great beginner's book for learning and doing Melt and Pour soapmaking.
   
   This was the first book I bought, so perhaps there is some sentimental value for me. But it has clear written and graphic instructions on melt and pour soaping, along with useful information such as a guide to additives, basic information about setting up your work area, selecting and preparing your molds, determining the right temperature (thermometers are not so necessary in melt and pour, so you're going by 'behavior' and look of the glycerin). A troubleshooting page is included -- even with melt and pour, there will be problems! She has small sections (sometimes just a page) on mastering fragances, color theories, and other useful bits throughout the book.
   
   Please note that in my reviews, recipes are very secondary to me. In looking at and using soapmaking books, I'm looking for information on how to (create swirls, mix colors or scents in better, use additives, package, wrap, sell). Recipes give me ideas for recipes to make on my own.
   
   I like the variety she offers -- very brief bits on all kinds of soap making - loaf, french milled soaps, commemorative soaps, tube (cane) soaps, leftover soaps (she calls this shelter soap, which makes me wince a bit), soaps with small toys in them, bath salts, soap tassels (invented by Sandy Maine, see my review of one of her books), gemstoneskitchen soap and more).
   
   Her recipes are written as instructions, telling you what you will learn. About 30 recipes, ranging in level of difficulty from one (moldless soap, saving face soap, tropical indulgence soap are examples) to five (Kaila's happy to be bar). She has a recipes for a Victorian bridesmade cake soap (difficulty level four) that looks good enough to eat. Most are in the one to three difficulty level.
   
   Four stars, though, not five. This book is missing some information, and its sources in the back are incomplete. You will need a lot more detailed information for learning how to develop your own recipes. And I wasn't impressed by the picture, on the rainbow loaf soap page, of food coloring bottles -- food coloring is inexpensive, handy and can be used, but it will not last. No note is made of that in this section, though it really should be noted for beginners.
   
   
   A basic book for beginners -- and fun recipes to try and to add to your own collection.



4. Contains some nice recipes & ideas to craft soaps out of store-brought M&P soap bases.



5. The photographs and instructions in this book are very inspiring, and overall mostly everything you need to know about melt and pour soap crafting is covered. This book will inspire you to create some beautiful soaps. My only (minor) complaint would be that I would have liked to see a few more recipes that were more practical, rather than simply decorative.

5 comments about The Soap Book: Simple Herbal Recipes.

1. This is a really beautiful book -- the photography is gorgeous and I like Sandy Maine's style of writing. She is very readable.

   But...

   There is one recipe in this book, dressed up with different fragrance/essential oils and "fillers". I think this shows a total and complete lack of imagination, considering the WORLD full of God's beautiful, healing oils He put here for us to enjoy. But all it is is olive oil, coconut oil, Crisco...olive oil, coconut oil, Crisco...olive oil, coconu-- well, you get the picture.

   I also think that adding 3 ounces of lavender to that baby soap is going to just about knock the baby across the room. That is an awful lot of scent for a baby soap.

   I'm not sorry I bought the book. The pictures alone gave me some great ideas for packaging and displays. But buy another book if you want some REAL recipes. Save the money you would have spent on buying the enormous quantities of essential oils for these soaps and spend it on a gorgeous bottle of avocado oil. Let your imagination soar. Soapmaking is, in my opinion, an art form. It doesn't have to be as plodding and pedestrian as this book makes it seem.




2. The photos are wonderful. The recipes are only varied according to the eo's that are used. The amounts of eo's would not apply for pure eo's. Soapmakers beware! Start with a small amount of eo, find out how it effects your skin and those using your soap, you can always adjust.
   non tallow soap is too soft to make for everyday use. I use my soap for everything, including the laundry. I would not be able to do this with a vegetable soap. Tallow also cuts the cost, and last a lot longer.



3. I bought this book several years ago--and just got around to making soap for Christmas presents this year. This book was inspiring since it was short, simple, straight-forward . . . recipe was same--just different blends of essential oils.
   
   DON'T USE 4 OUNCES OF ESSENTIAL OILS per batch--WAY TOO MUCH: 1) pool of excess essential oils sits on top of soap, 2) soap never hardens up quite right (according to Cavitch's book), 3) Essential oils are EXPENSIVE, 4) Scent is TOO STRONG, 5) Some essential oils (like cinnamon) used in called-for amounts actually too concentrated for skin (read other reviews!)
   
   This book is a great starter for novices if you do the following: 1) cut the recipes by 1/4 to learn on smaller batches since the ingredients can be costly--in case your batch does not turn out during your learning stage; 2) invest in a good digital scale that allows you to "zero out" after adding each successive ingredient to the same container (accurate to 1/4 ounce and much faster--many initial mistakes attributed to measuring errors); 3) buy coconut oil at Walmart (under $3 for 31.5 oz); 4) obtain reasonably priced essential oils via internet at A Garden Eastward (http://addy.com/brinkley/); 5) Buy one of Susan Cavitch's soapmaking books next to learn from your mistakes and/or take your soapmaking to the next level--by then, you'll be motivated to absorb more complex information that seemed overwhelming/initimidating at first--which will make so much more sense once you've made a couple of batches.



4. Not tons of info and the recipes are pretty basic but if your just starting with soap making its a nice lil book and doesnt take up a ton of room. I would pair this with the book by Anne Watson called "Smart Soapmaking" and a good aromatherapy book to help figure out scenting and what goes well and what each oils properties are.



5. This was my first soap making book. That said, it turned me off to soap making for a good 7 years until my excess of goat milk motivated me to find a better resource for learning to make soap. Sandy Maine includes only 1 recipe in this book, which is difficult to get to work, with no discussion about lye calculators, stirring with a blender, proper superfatting, etc. The approach to mixing the lye and oils is antiquated- never do you need to mix at EXACTLY the same temperature as her book states. You might learn how to follow a recipe from this book, but if you really want to learn how to make and formulate your own soaps, research the web and communicate with others in the business.

5 comments about Soap: Making It, Enjoying It.

1. I had this book and lost it. It is the best soap book I have found. It is clear and the directions are easy to follow.



2. I would recommend this book for anyone wanting to make soap at home. She gives a good understanding of the actual process, great recipies, and step by step directions.



3. I go thtis book hoping to get really informed. I found this book to be confusing and hard to follow. It would be nice if there were picture instead of drawings.



4. ...times have changed. That being said, I love this book....it's the book that got artisan soaping started and she has some lovely recipes. Her recipes do make good soap.
   
   Unfortunately, the last edition of this book was published in 1975. Methods have changed, safety precautions have changed (she didn't wear gloves because a lye burn was easier to deal with than the limited movement....WRONG....wear the gloves). She also adds water to the lye...this is inviting a volcano....just don't do it.
   
   On the plus side, there are great ideas for "found" molds, great ideas for shaping and sculpting your soap, and an interesting (if verbose) history of soap.
   
   I would recommend it for its historical value and great soap recipes, but invest in a more modern volume for your first attempts. Alicia Grosso and Anne Watson's books are up-to-date, safe, and much more friendly for the soaping newbie.



5. This for me was a waste of my money, time and effort. Would not recommend this book at all. Didn't care for the history, completely boring for me and that is all I can say. Skip this book.

4 comments about Making Natural Milk Soap: Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin A-199 (Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin, a-199).

1. Learn the time-honored secrets of making moisturizing, skin-nourishing soaps with milk!
   Create this sought-after soap at home using the specialized yet simple techniques Casey Makela has developed in more than 15 years of soapmaking. Covers how to make moisturizing milk-based soaps like Oatmeal, Peaches and Cream, and specialty soaps.
   Contents include, but are not limited to, making molds, working with lye, preparing the milk, basic equipment, scents, ingredients, specialty recipes, preserving and packaging. This book contains excerpts from another book written by Makela - "Milk Based Soaps."



2. There is very little information in this 32 page pamphlet that you cannot find free on the net. The soapmaking technique (blending) is a little scarry, to me. With the added cost of shipping & handling, you could buy a much more informative hard cover REAL book for the same price at your local book store.



3. I am new to this hobby and like books that can simplify the process of making the gentle soaps. Lot's of recipes and well written.
   I would recommend.



4. This book introduces milk soap making at the beginner's level and includes some basic recipes