Second Chance Soap

As a soapmaker, I accumulate boxes of soap ends and other discards that, while perfectly fine, cannot be sold. When I collect enough, I make Second Chance Soap, a crazy-quilt soap where every single bar is completely individual for its component pieces. Second Chance Soap is always donated to homeless shelters and other worthy causes.

The name itself is a double entendre; "Second Chance" refers both to the fact that it uses otherwise discarded soap and also because its recipients are often being given, literally, a fresh new start at life.

Three friends gathered at my home to help on my third iteration of Second Chance Soap. Their help in chopping up 10 pounds of my soapy discards was so very much appreciated! And their presence made the morning very fun!

Along the way, I gave them an overview on how to make cold process soap. The principles are the same, even if this is, by far, the largest block of soap I typically ever make.

Because I had a number of rainbow pride flag soaps in my discard pile, we decided that it would be fun to include some complete rainbows to surprise and delight recipients. Who doesn't love a rainbow?

These pieces were inserted by hand to maximize the chance of rainbow sightings.

Check out my very fancy mold: a dresser drawer lined with freezer paper!

After letting the batter thicken, I used a spoon to texture the top and added a dusting of shimmery, pearlescent mica for extra glamour!

In a few days, I'll pop this giant bar out of its mold before using a log splitter to cut into loaves, after which I'll cut them into individual bars.

After 4-6 weeks, the soap will be fully cured and ready to label.

The soap will then be donated to local organizations providing help to people in need of a little bonus luxury.

Past recipients include the very worthy Raphael House, which does so much not only to help srvovors of domestic abuse, but also goes after the root causes to provide help to vulnerable populations before abuse can even happen.

The idea for this soap came from a project posted by Modern Soapmaking, which helps hobbyists become successful soap entrepeneurs. Thank you, Kenna, for such a lovely idea!

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If you're a soapmaker interested in the nuts and bolts:

I made 18 pounds of new soap batter scented with 9 ounces of sample floral and citrus fragrances. The batch included 10 pounds of "old" soap cut into cubes (or julienned rainbows).

The dresser drawer mold is 24" x 12 1/2" and needed to be at least 4" high. It's lined with freezer paper.

This will make about 120 bars of soap that measure about 2 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 1"