Cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove soap creates a lustrous lather, and leaves an amazing scent on the skin.
Soap made from a Melt and Pour (MP) base cannot be entirely customized since lye and the other base ingredients have already been combined and the saponification process has completed.
But, you can still stir in desired additives to make the bar of soap your very own creation.
Nutmeg, cinnamon, and clove not only add a delicious scent to the melt and pour soap recipe, but may also offer an abundance of healing attributes for the body and hair.
Soap Benefits
Cinnamon Soap
- Helps prevent heal acne. Cinnamon may help dry out the skin enough to foster the movement of both oxygen and blood to the outer skin surface.
- Cinnamon may alleviate eczema.
- The antibacterial and antifungal compounds in cinnamon may help create a smooth and healthy complexion. This sweet smelling (and tasting) herb also helps eliminate dry skin cells and bring suppleness and a robust shine to the face and body.
- Cinnamon is often an active base ingredient in all natural wrinkle prevention and reduction creams and salves.
- If you choose to also wash your hair with this soap, it may also help your hair grow both longer and stronger. The spice can have an exfoliating impact on the scalp, as well.
- Even though cinnamon is a decidedly dark spice that will turn the melt and pour soap base a deep shade of brown, when used on the hair consistently, it can have a lightening effect.
- Cinnamon may also have the same lightening impact on dark blotches on the skin.
- The spice contains polyphenols. These compounds may help protect the skin from the damage caused by free radicals.
Nutmeg Soap
- The antibacterial, antiseptic, and analgesic compounds in nutmeg are the reason it is such a popular additive in DIY or manufactured natural facial scrubs.
- Nutmeg may also help prevent wrinkles, and prevent the skin from aging prematurely.
- The spice can also help remove blackheads, face scars sustained from acne, and help prevent and treat acne.
- Like cinnamon, nutmeg can also help face dark spots (including freckles) on the skin and even out pigmentation fluctuations.
Clove Soap
- Clove can help heal both insect bites and minor wounds.
- The earthy or woody scent of clove can cause a calming and relaxing effect for some folks.
- Clove may also have a deodorizing impact on the skin – one of the reasons it is often included in DIY natural deodorant recipes.
- This spice, like nutmeg, can have an exfoliating effect on the skin.
- Clove also helps to moisturize dry and rough skin.
Cinnamon, Nutmeg, and Clove Soap Recipe
Equipment
- measuring cup or dish glass, microwave-safe
- soap molds purchased or DIY from paper cups, plastic cups, small plastic containers, etc.
- Measuring spoons
- microwave
- Sharp knife Optional but great for helping to release soap from a mold and getting rid of air bubbles. Toothpicks also help to get rid of air bubbles.
Ingredients
- Melt and pour soap base I used a glycerin base in this recipe, but goat’s milk, aloe vera, oatmeal, and shea butter versions work equally well.
- 1 tablespoon dried powdered cloves or up to 4 drops of clove essential oil
- 1 tablespoon dried cinnamon per ½ pound of MP base
- 1 tablespoon dried nutmeg per ½ pound of MP base
Instructions
- Cut ½ of a pound of the melt and pour soap base into about four chunks using a sharp knife.
- Place the chunks in a microwave safe container and heat them for roughly 30 seconds.
- Get your molds ready while waiting for the microwave to go ding. Spraying the molds with a cooking spray lightly can help them release from the molds easier.
- If you are using plastic cups, leave about a finger’s width above the fill line so you can snip it with scissors and just peel the one-time use mold from around your soap.
- Stir in the cinnamon and nutmeg so it is completely combined.
- Add in the drops of clove essential oil or dried powdered clove and stir again so all of the ingredients are combined completely.
- Pour the herbal melt and pour base soap into the molds. Allow the cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove soap to cure at room temperature for approximately three hours or in a refrigerator for roughly half an hour.
- If you are having difficulty releasing the soap from the mold, use a sharp knife to go around the edges between the soap and the mold to get them to unattach, as is being done with the suspended floral soup mold in the photo below.
It is essential that the soap be allowed to cure completely before it is used, stored in an airtight container, or wrapped and given as a gift.
You can add fragrance to this soap recipe, but the scent of the cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove alone – even if you use dry herbs and not an oil or an infusion, is quite pleasantly strong all on its own.
When made and stored properly, a melt and pour cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove soap should retain its color, shape, fragrance, and potency for roughly 12 months.
Store the soap in a cool dry place is highly recommended – especially if using a glycerin MP soap base that is more susceptible to heat.
Tara lives on a 56 acres farm in the Appalachian Mountains, where she faces homesteading and farming challenges every single day, raising chickens, goats, horses, and tons of vegetables. She’s an expert in all sorts of homesteading skills such as hide tanning, doll making, tree tapping, and many more.