Easter Craft - Soap Jelly

The kids were so excited yesterday that Spring had officially arrived, so I thought I'd surprise them with some Easter Soap Jellies. Soap Jelly is an interesting concoction of gelatin and soap, and the end result is something like a Jello Jiggler or Knox Blox with some sudsing action. I've never made Soap Jellies before, but a friend gave me a recipe (thanks, Ann Cornell!), so I thought I'd give them a try.

For this soap craft you'll need:

--One small and one medium glass bowl or pitcher

--A stainless steel mixing spooon

--1 pkg plain, unflavored gelatin, such as Knox (not Jello)

--3/4 cup water (preferably distilled)

--1 tsp salt

--1/2 cup liquid soap or body wash (I used a handmade, sulfate-free shower gel)

--color, as desired (I used a blue ultramarine powder, but a liquid FD&C dye would work, too. Just be careful to use dyes sparingly -- too much will dye skin and tub!)

--skin safe fragrance

--molds

--rubbing alcohol (optional)

Step One: Heat the water to boiling in the small mixing bowl. I zapped mine in the microwave for 1 minute, 50 seconds. Then add the salt.

Step Two: Sprinkle the gelatin powder in the medium bowl, and Pour the salted water on top, stirring to dissolve.

Step Three: Add your liquid soap to the gelatin/water mixture and stir to combine. Then add your color and fragrance, and mix well, but slowly, so you don't overfoam.

Step Four: Pour into molds -- I used the Jello Jiggler molds you get for Free at the grocery store and a small Bunny mold designed to make ice cubes -- and refrigerate for at least two hours.


(I'm pouring with one hand, and taking the photo with the other!)

Step Five: Your Soap Jellies will likely have a bit of foam on top after the pour, and if that bothers you, you can spritz with some rubbing alcohol to pop the bubbles, but it's not necessary. Then place the molds in the fridge for at least a few hours to set up.



They're ready! I unmolded after two hours, but I think they could have used at least another hour or two. The small Bunny cavities were a bit of a disaster.

But the Jello Jiggler Molds worked out pretty well! Here's Ava with the "Easter Basket."

The Shower Verdict: I've got to say, these feel pretty cool -- just like Jello, but with suds! The kids were pretty excited to use them in the tub. Ava said, "These are so cool! They're so smooth and soft on your skin. I loooooove Soap Jelly!" William's kept slipping out of his little hand, which he thought was pretty great. He spent most of his shower cracking up. But between laughing, he said, "This is awesome soap, Mom. I like taking a shower with this stuff."

One thing is for sure though: They dissolve fast! I had to run back down to the fridge to get each of the kids another one to finish their shower. The Easter shapes were cute, but if I were to make these again, I think I'd just pour them in a slab mold and cut bigger squares so they'd last a little longer, or you could even pour into clean, recycled fruit or yogurt cups. I think I'd also reduce the water a little bit so they'd be firmer and possibly longer-lasting.

If you're going to make these at home, keep in mind that the recipe contains water and lacks a preservative (even if you're using a commercial, preserved liquid soap, it may not have enough to handle the extra water), so it's best to keep these in the fridge until use and use them up within a few days.