How to make a soap basket tutorial

As a handmade soap maker, I find one of my
best-selling products especially at Christmastime is my handmade soap gift
basket. So.....how to make a soap gift basket’ Simple. They are easy to
make, can involve recycled/recyclable and re-used/re-usable packaging, look
awesome, and make great gifts. I find at Farmer's Markets and craft fairs
that my gift baskets are unique and always draw lots of attention. You can
also use a handmade soap gift basket as a great marketing tool (raffle one
off in your booth) or as a fund raiser (raffle one off and give the proceeds
to charity).

What You Need:

Baskets, (not too big)...I recommend the thrift store for $.50 baskets that look great. I find
thrift stores typically have a ton of cheap, beautiful baskets.

Tulle -

This is a type of fabric that looks like netting (what a wedding veil is
generally made out of). It stretches and can easily be seen through great
for soap gift baskets. Soaps can breathe, and no environmentally harmful
plastic wrap is involved. Although tulle stretches quite a bit, allow about
3/4 or 2/3 of a yard per basket (depending on how tall the basket handles
are).

Raffia -

A fancy term for long strands of dried grass that crafters typically use to
tie pretty bows and so on. If you prefer, you can also use ribbon or
something of that nature to secure the tulle around the basket. The ribbon
will need to be thin enough to fit through a standard paper hole-punched
hole--like a piece of notebook paper.

Shredded Newspaper

You'll need a filler to put in the bottom of the basket. I use shredded junk
mail and newspapers. For a fancier look, buy some colored paper and shred it
yourself in a shredder or buy pre-packaged shredded paper filler (yes, there
is such a thing). You can also use old Easter basket grass.

A Label for the Basket

I generally print out a small blurb on my company, the benefits of handmade
soap, and list what kind of soap the gift basket contains. You can print
several of these on one sheet of paper--using plain or fancy paper. I use a
single hand-held hole punch to punch a hole in the top corner of each label.
The label will be affixed to the top of the gift basket with the raffia or
ribbon. If you don't have a hole punch, you can poke a hole in the corner
with a knife or punch a screwdriver hole in the top corner.

Rubber Bands on Twist Ties

You'll use these to secure the tulle at the top of the
basket handle.

...And Some Beautiful Bars of Handmade Soap - If your bars are individually
labeled, don't worry about putting the names of the soap on the basket
label. If not, be sure to do so. You can also put a soap dish, a natural sea
sponge, or some of your other handmade products in the gift basket too
(lotion, liquid soap, lip balm, potpourri, etc).

You'll start by shredding your paper and deciding what
bars of soap will go in each basket. Fill the bottom of each basket will
shredded paper and arrange your handmade soaps nicely in the basket.
Sometimes I sprinkle dried flower petals and herbs over the soaps to give it
a little extra bang. Then you'll lay out your basket on the tulle (spread it
out flat, single-layer). Determine how much tulle you'll need to wrap all
the way to the top of the basket handle, then cut.

Now you'll wrap the piece of tulle up around the basket,
gathering it in a handful at the top of the basket handle. Pull the tulle
tight--it is very stretchy, and you want it to be as secure as possible. Now
grab it tight in your hand and rubber band it or twist a twist tie around it
to secure it in place. From this point forward, be careful not to tilt or
tip the gift basket because you're no longer able to reach in there are fix
anything if it slides out of place.

Put one of your beautiful hole-punched labels through a
piece of raffia or ribbon. Grab a some extra strands of raffia and hold the
pieces together. Tie a nice knot or bow to cover the rubber band or twist
tie holding the tulle together. Be sure the label is facing up and in an
attractive position. The raffia can be separately by pulling the ends of the
strands apart for a nicer look. You can also curl the ends of the ribbon by
running it between your thumb and a scissor blade (like you do when wrapping
a present). Sometimes for Christmas soap gift baskets, I'll also tie some
jingle bells (available at the craft store) with the raffia/ribbon and
label.

Voila! And that's how to make a soap gift basket. Enjoy!

Author Staci Marquez-Nichols,
The Soap Blog (c)...A soapmaking blog with a
soul. She has also
authored several soapmaking e-books.
Please check out her Blog and/or
E-book website and show your
support!!