Um, where did the first half of the year go? January through March was just a blur. Then came the end of the school year, which is always crazy busy. I have no idea where June went. I tried to just work at a slow pace to try to get rid of the stress of the school year, and then I blinked, and it's now July.

Although I live in a rural area, I am close to what is known here as a bigger city. It has 8.500 people. Yes, friends, that is a bigger city by comparison. Even though they are small, they have a large Fourth of July festival with one of the best fireworks displays in the area. People drive for hours to see the fireworks.

I've heard that it can take hours to get out of town because of the traffic. If you want to be close to the fireworks, you have to get there first thing in the morning and set up camp.

We can see the fireworks from our backyard, so we get to skip all of the mess. Each year, we have a large party on the farm. Everyone brings a dish for a cookout, and we have fireworks, games, paintball, and lots of fun.

I decorate our camp area for the party, but I really don't decorate inside the house. Most people don't come inside except for the bathroom. I made some red, white, and blue cookie cutter melt and pour soap to add a festive touch.

If you're going to make these soaps, they aren't difficult to make, but they do take a while since they have three layers. Each layer needs to harden for about an hour, so plan accordingly.

FOURTH OF JULY COOKE CUTTER MELT AND POUR SOAP RECIPE

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This is one of those recipes that isn't really exact. If you have a different sized soap mold, then you may need more soap.

The soap mold that I used has 3 ounce cavities. To measure your mold, fill up the soap mold with water. Then measure how many liquid ounces of water that is. Since a liquid ounce of water weighs an ounce, this will work.

This cookie cutter melt and pour soap technique can be used for pretty much any shape. I picked stars for the Fourth of July. You can make hearts for Valentine's Day or use a shape just for fun.

I added some sweet almond oil to my soap base to make it more moisturizing. Sweet almond oil is my favorite all purpose oil. You can also just avocado oil, jojoba oil, or sunflower oil. You can even omit it if you want.

You'll want to add no more than 1 tablespoon of oil per pound of soap. You'll have to do some math depending on how much soap you use for your mold. It's best to err on the lower side because excess oil can seep out of the soap.

You'll have to do math for the essential oils. I wanted a light summer scent, so I used basil and lemon in equal amounts. You want to use no more than a teaspoon of essential oils per pound of melt and pour soap. Since you'll use two to three pours for this soap, you'll have to do some math.

If you're not a number nerd like I am, just measure your mold. Then divide the total amount by 2 or 3, depending on how many layers you want to have. Then melt that much soap and pour. Repeat for each layer. If you have some left over, then just make a teensy little bar or let it set up and add it to another batch.

INGREDIENTS

Melt and pour soap (I used Crafty Bubbles, but this one will work)
Sweet almond oil
Soap mold
Cookie cutter
Alcohol in a spray bottle
Soap colorant
1 teaspoon essential oil per pound of soap (I used basil essential oil and lemon essential oil in equal amounts)

DIRECTIONS

My directions and measurements are for four 3-ounce bars of soap. You will have to adjust the measurements as needed for larger or smaller molds.

STEP #1

I melted three ounces of white melt and pour soap. I used three ounces because that amount filled half of two molds. Add carrier oil and essential oils if desired (see above for amounts). Fill two molds half way with the melted soap. Spray with rubbing alcohol to prevent bubbles. Let the soap harden completely.

STEP #2

After the soap is completely hardened, place the cookie cutter where you'd like the cut out. Press down firmly. Be careful to stop just at the mold so you don't cut the mold.

STEP #3

Remove the stars. I placed the stars inside two more molds so I didn't have any waste and to give the bars different looks.

STEP #4

Spray all four molds with rubbing alcohol. Melt three ounces of white soap. When melted, add blue soap colorant, carrier oil, and essential oil. Spray with rubbing alcohol.

STEP #5

Fill the cut out starts with the blue soap first. Then divide the rest evenly over the two stars that you placed inside the mold. Spray with rubbing alcohol. Let cool completely.

STEP #6

Melt 6 ounces of white soap. When melted, add carrier oil, essential oil, and red soap colorant. Spray the soap with rubbing alcohol and divide the red soap evenly among the four bars or soap. Spray with rubbing alcohol to remove bubbles. Let cool completely.

STEP #7

After the soap is fully hardened, carefully pop the soap out of the mold. It comes out of the silicone molds really well. If it doesn't come out, put the mold in the freezer for about 10 minutes to shrink the soap slightly so it will come out.

Now you have four bars of handmade Fourth of July cookie cutter melt and pour soap!

The two bars where I cut out the soap worked better than the bars where I placed the cut out shapes on the bottom of the mold. Some of the soap leaked, but I was able to use a knife to cut it away.

If you'll be selling the soap or giving it as a gift, you might want to experiment or just make the cut out soap.

You can use this technique for any style or color.

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