Instead of making everything from scratch – you know, emulsions, fractionated oils, lye, chemicals – I use bulk unscented bases that are professionally made for this purpose.

Using product bases is a fairly new method that wasn’t available until a few years ago. It ensures that you get professional, usable products on the very first attempt. The bases I recommend are absolutely wonderful in terms of natural, high-quality ingredients. One supplier has shea butter as the second ingredient!

For most people, the main reasons for making products “from scratch” are:
1) The ability to use high quality natural ingredients but still have a reasonable cost.
If you see “shea butter lotion” in Whole Foods or Origins, it costs an arm and a leg, and there’s not much shea butter in it. In the past, making shea butter lotion from scratch was the only way you could get real shea butter lotion at an affordable price.

But now, many spa suppliers have opened up their unscented base catalogs for crafters like us. You don’t have to make your own basic shea butter lotion if you don’t want to spend the time – you can just buy the base and add your own cool ingredients to it.
2) Getting products in your favorite scents.
Using bases is perfect for this! You can cut straight to the fun part, scenting your toiletries with your signature scents. Some fragrances are so hard to find, especially old-fashioned florals like lilac and honeysuckle, that the only thing to do is make them yourself!

I have an entire section devoted to helping you choose, find, and make your own fragrances. It was so much fun to write, and I think it will help you find the perfect fragrances for your bath and body products!
3) Using your creativity
For me, this is the main reason to “make stuff.” Creativity! It wakes up the brain. But making products from scratch is often a chore that gets in the way of creativity, at least for me. I have to go through the motions of making a basic lotion or gel before I can add my “mad science” ingredients (silk, weird botanical extracts, whatever!)

In fact, for me, making bases is a boring task that I hate. It’s a lot like stretching and gesso-ing canvases before you can paint on them! (I went to art and design school.) By using bases, I don’t have to worry if my products will turn out (or worry that my expensive extra ingredients will be wasted.)
Want to experience a pioneer activity or lifestyle
The bases method is admittedly modern. If what you’re after is to experience the romance of using historical methods, then you should make everything from raw materials! It can be incredibly fun, it just takes practice. Many people do it, though, and if you persevere, you will get good at it.

One thing, though… if you want to get started making products from scratch, do not learn from websites. You’ll spend more time researching and trying to cobble together enough information to hack it. Some of these sites are from amateur enthusiasts who don’t know how to teach that well, and they may promote wrong information about ingredients and safety practices.

Instead, go to Borders or Amazon and buy some real, published books with photos. Read the reviews or do your own flip-through. This alone will save you a lot of frustration.

If you just want to make good, basic products, try my method. By using bases, you save a lot of time and gruntwork. Your products will be ready to use or give in about 5 minutes (unless you do something experimental.)

Ready to get started? Buy “How To Make Popular Bath and Body Products” in combination with the Perfume Fast Guide for only $27.

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