Here is a homemade soap recipe that your man will just love! It’s got woodsy overtones of pine and cedar, and seriously, men love these scents. Manly, courageous, and smelling of timber, you AND your guy will truly enjoy this handmade soap!

I wanted to create a soap that men would just love to receive as a gift for the upcoming holidays, a birthday, or just any time. In my experience in making soap for men, by far the preferred scents are woodsy types. (Spicy scents come up second.)

So, I decided to combine natural cedar leaves and pine to create this lovely dark green bar of soap that your man will love…and so will you! It’s perfect for the holidays and wintertime!

I used lard in this soap because it is one of the most conditioning of all the oils, and it blends beautifully with highly cleansing oils, like coconut oil. This handmade soap is cleansing while being super moisturizing. It also creates a nice hard bar of soap, too. This means it will last a long time! Honestly, it’s a pretty perfect handmade hot process soap recipe!

Now, I’ve got lots of tutorials all over the blog for how to make handmade soap. You can take a look at that link (which has lots of pictures of the hot process soap making method), or this one is also quite detailed, also with pictures. Alternatively, check out this eBook all about how to make hot process soap with confidence!

Because there is already so much info here on the website about making soap, I’m just going to give you the recipe and not all the detailed instructions. If you are new to making soap or just new to the hot process method, please take a moment and take a look at one of the articles above.

FTC Disclosure: There are affiliate links scattered throughout this article. If you click through and make any kind of purchase, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Here is a perfect soap recipe to make for the holidays: Pine & Cedar. Your man will love it and you will too! The hot process soap making method is high lighted in this post, so you can use the soap right away! Make pine & cedar natural hand… — Here is a perfect soap recipe to make for the holidays: Pine & Cedar. Your man will love it and you will too! The hot process soap making method is high lighted in this post, so you can use the soap right away! Make pine & cedar natural handmade soap! #soap #soapmaking #howtomake #hotprocess #pinesoap #cedarsoap #pine #cedar #naturalsoap #handmadesoap #crockpotsoap

How to Make Cedar & Pine Handmade Soap…In a Crock Pot!

Since I created this recipe for the hot process method (and that’s how I tested it for this post), I’m not sure how it will perform in cold process. However, I have a feeling it would be a fine soap either way: hot or cold process. You can always run it through a lye calculator. I like this one from SoapCalc. I created it with a 5% super fat, so you won’t need to add more oil at the end.

This is a two pound recipe, which is a pound less than my usual recipes. I often will cut back on the amount of soap I make when testing a new recipe, just so I don’t waste ingredients in case it doesn’t work out.

This recipe is WONDERFUL, though, and I will absolutely be making more of this soap using different variations of herbal color and the best soap making essential oils.

Ingredients for Cedar & Pine Hot Process Soap

The Oil Mixture:

*** 15 ounces Lard (Pig Tallow) NOTE: You can find lard at your local grocer or Hispanic market. This is an Amazon link to a high grade lard.

*** 8 ounces Coconut Oil (I get mine at Costco.)

*** 8 ounces Almond Oil (or Avocado Oil, if allergic to tree nuts)

*** 1 ounce Castor Oil

The Lye Solution:

*** 12.16 ounces distilled water (I just use our filtered water from the well)

*** 4.58 ounces lye (sodium hydroxide)

The Colorant:

*** 1 tablespoon powdered dried cedar leaves (optional—-but the extra scent is amazing!)

*** 1 tablespoon powdered nettle leaves

NOTE: To make the nettle and cedar powders, you’ll have to have the dried leaves. I foraged for the cedar branches/leaves. I purchased the Nettles from Starwest Botanicals, but you can also get them from Amazon. (Don’t worry about having leftover nettle powder—-it’s INCREDIBLE to sneak into your family’s food for extra nutrition!)

If you want a green color, but don’t want to forage or purchase cedar or nettle, you can also use spirulina. A small amount will be fine for this recipe—-like a couple of teaspoons or even less.

The Natural Scent:

*** 1.5 ounces Pine Scotch essential oil

*** 0.50 to 0.75 ounce Patchouli essential oil (You won’t notice the patchouli in this blend, but it will ground the Pine and help it last in your soap.)

This olive green soap smells SO refreshing—-just like an evergreen forest!

Basic Hot Process Directions for Cedar & Pine Soap

**Remember, if you are new to soap making, please take a look at How to Make Your Own Hot Process Soap in 12 Easy Steps for a detailed picture tutorial that will guide you through every step and phase.

NOTE: You can see how many steps there are! You’ll want to be sure to download the free Hot Process Soap Making Checklist at the end of the article! It’s a life-saver!

BEFORE YOU START: Be sure you have your safety gloves and goggles/eye wear on.

Step 1:

Measure out your oils (not essential oils) using a kitchen scale, and place in a large crock pot on LOW.

NOTE: You MUST use a kitchen scale to measure out your ingredients for making soap. This is because volume is different from weight, and lye reacts very differently to different oils and amounts.

**You might enjoy reading 10 Soap Making Mistakes You DON’T Want to Make!

Step 2:

Measure out your lye solution. Remember to always pour your lye into the water and not the other way around, or you could have a lye volcano—potentially very dangerous. I like to use Pyrex heat resistant measuring containers for the lye solution.

Step 3:

Once your oils are melted in the crock pot, go ahead and pour your lye solution into the crock pot too. Mix to trace using a hand blender. (The hand blender is a must or it will take literally hours to come to trace.)

Step 4:

Now you just cook your soap for around 45 minutes to an hour. You can take a look at this handy soap making guide eBook or the picture tutorials on the blog linked to previously to be sure you know when your soap is finished cooking. This is important, because you need to be sure the lye is cooked out.

This rustic soap is perfect for giving as a gift for the holidays or any time. You can combine it with a natural handmade basket too!

Step 5:

Press your soap firmly into your soap mold and allow to cool completely.

NOTE: If you have a “bread top” which may happen if your soap mold is on the smallish side for your recipe, here’s a neat trick: You can cut off this top after an hour or two and form into soap balls! Plus, you’ll be left with a beautiful smooth top!

Step 6:

Once your soap is completely cooled (I always wait several hours, and usually overnight), remove your soap from the soap mold. I like to use silicone molds because the soap just pops right out!

Step 7:

You can cut your soap as you need it, or you can cut it into all the bars to harden. Either way is just fine. I’ve found that leaving the soap block uncut until ready to use helps the soap retain its scent. Essential oils are famous for dissipating quickly in handmade soaps, and this is just a trick I learned from experience to help your soap smell great for a LONG time!

Step 8:

Enjoy!

NOTE: Once your soap is cooled, you can use it right away. However, if you allow a day or three to go by, your soap will continue to evaporate any moisture left, leaving you with a harder bar.

That’s all there is to it!

Learn how to make hot process soap with confidence in this complete guide to natural soaps.

Final Thoughts on Making Cedar & Pine Hot Process Soap

Making soap for the first few times can be a little nerve-wracking since you’re working with lye, but once you’ve done it a few times, it is so simple and easy. Fun and addicting! Creative and healthy! I love making my own handmade natural soaps!

This particular recipe turned out beautifully, and it’s a wonderful soap for gifting. I love how it smells, and my house smells incredible because of this scent too! Just in time for some comforting hygge living!

You might also like these related soap recipes, especially for the man in your life:

Sexy Wild Man Hot Process Soap

Frankincense & Myrrh Handmade Soap Recipe

Hard Hunk o’Soap Recipe for Men

I’d love if you’d leave comments! Especially if you have questions or ideas about this recipe, I love feedback! And it helps out the community too!

Hugs, Health, and Self-Reliance,

Heidi

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