DIY Dog Soap!

| thefrugalcrafter Lindsay Weirich

Hi friends! Recently I switched my dog over from a topical flea and tick prevention to a pill. I have a golden that loves to swim so it was a great solution except I worried about mosquitoes getting her and she was a bit itchy and stinky so I decided (after plenty of research to make sure tea tree oil and lavender was safe for dogs) to whip up a batch of soothing, moisturizing oatmeal soap for her.

SAM_1692

I used to give her oatmeal baths when she was a pup and had dry skin, the small amount of tea tree oil (I used less than the considered safe amount) will provide insect repellent qualities as well as soothe any scraps or bug bites she might get. Then I packaged the soap up in beautiful supplies from Papermart. These would make great gifts for family and friends. You  can see how I made them in today’s video:

You will need:
Glycerin soap base
Oatmeal
Tea Tree Oil
Lavender (optional)
Microwaveable glass measuring cup
Silicone candy mold or soap mold
Microwave (or you can use a pan of water on the stove)

Packaging:
Muslin drawstring bags
Unstrung Merchandise tags
Baker’s Twine
Stamps (paw prints, dog themed)
Ink (waterproof brown)
Brown acrylic paint and sponge brush

Directions:

  1. Chop up 1/2 lb of soap base and place in a glass measuring cup. Melt the soap per package instructions. You can do this in the microwave or on the stove in a pan of water.
  2. Stir in 1/2 cup of oatmeal. Then add 1 teaspoon of tea tree oil. The tea tree oil is an antiseptic and a natural insect repellent making this soap perfect for dogs or people who love to be outside. Tea tree oil can smell strong so to soften the scent you can add a few drops of lavender oil if you wish.
  3. Spoon the mixture into candy or soap molds and leave to cool and harden about 1 hour.
  4. Pop out the soap and wrap with plastic wrap. Package in hand stamped muslin bags. Attach a tag that says what kind of soap it is. This will prevent someone thinking it is a dog treat.

*Keep away from eyes. As with most dog shampoos do not use on their face. A washcloth with clear water is best for cleansing your dogs face. this soap can be used on dogs or people but NOT on other pets such as cats as they may ingest some of the essential oils.

I hope you enjoyed making DIY Dog soap with moisturizing oatmeal, tea tree oil and lavender! Happy Crafting!

22 thoughts on “DIY Dog Soap!”

  5. Those are adorable. I bet you could reuse the bag for doggie treats too once you use up all the soap. After all, the soap is nicely wrapped up in plastic, so you don’t have to worry about the bag getting all yucky and contaminated with soap and oil. You could even add to the tag to have it say “great for people too.”

    This got me thinking. .. you could even coordinated the decoration on the bag to the scent of the soap. For example instead of dog prints you could stamp lavender on the bag. Or if your soap smells of mint you could stamp mint leaves on the bag and use green baker’s twine. Wouldn’t that be cute?

    Okay, so I have a question, it’s a little of subject, but not entirely since it has to do with Paper Mart. Is the dry waxed tissue paper they sell at Paper Mart the same thing as the deli paper you use? (Here is the link http://www.papermart.com/dry-waxed-tissue-paper/id=7815 )

    I thought in one of your videos, I’m thinking it was the master board video, you mentioned that deli paper is sometimes called dry waxed paper but I’m not sure. Is this the same thing or is this an entirely different product?

    Thanks for all you do and happy crafting 🙂

    Like

    Reply

    1. Love your idea of the co-ordinated decoration of the bags and tags to match the contents, Ms. Curious. This is definitely something worth exploring. What great gifts these will make! (How I love blogging – we get so many great ideas from each other!)

      Shoshi

      Like

      Reply

      1. I’m glad you like my idea Shoshi. I think those would make darling little gifts. I actually don’t follow any blogs other than Lindsay’s. Do you know of any others? I see that you have a link attached to your name. I’ll be sure to check out your blog.

        Like

        Reply

      1. Thanks for the reply :-). I’m not concerned about the paper being food safe or not. I would just use it for art techniques. I’ll be sure to check out those basket liners too. Thanks for the link.

        I’ve been wanting to try the crumpled deli paper and watercolor technique you showed us. I thought it would be great if I could get the product from Paper Mart. I don’t have a Sam’s club membership so I don’t think I can order the paper from there. Plus I kind of want to support Paper Mart since they are so generous in sponsoring you. They have so many great things too! I can spend hours just looking at their site and all the wonderful products they have. My imagination goes all a buzz with what I could make with different products. It may be awhile before I place an order though. I think I’m going to save up for one big order; but if and when I place an order, I’ll be sure to let them know you sent me ;-). Thanks again for the reply. I hope you have a great day!

        Like

        Reply

  6. This is such a great idea, Lindsay, and what lovely gifts they will make! Funnily enough, I am just exploring the whole world of essential oils and home made lotions etc. and on one website I have been reading about tea tree oil and lavender oil for animals, and how good they are for their insect-repellant qualities. I have used tea tree oil for years as an antiseptic, and dabbed on acne spots, it works a treat. Brilliant stuff! I am in the process of making some lavender oil at the moment (steeping lavender flowers in grape seed oil) to use in various ways. I have also recently made some shea butter moisturiser (for skin and hair) and some hair setting gel from flax seeds boiled in water – both proving quite excellent! There’s something very satisfying about making your own things like this, especially as you know exactly what goes into them, and they are not full of loads of harsh chemicals.

    I am sure your dog will be delighted with the new treatment, too! On the website I read that you can put a few drops of lavender essential oil on the inside of your dog’s collar to keep fleas off, and it also makes your dog smell nice!

    Shoshi

    Like

    Reply

    1. I think adding lavender to the dog’s collar might also help soothe the dog. We bought a calming collar that was recommend by our trainer for our dog, and it reeked of lavender. I did a quick Google search, not heavy research or anything, but supposedly the scent of lavender can help relax dogs.

      Like

      Reply

  7. Going along with the decorations, a dated ornament with paw prints and maybe the dogs name could be made to match. What a wonderful gift for your dog loving friends & family…….

    Like

    Reply

      1. First Reason I write:

        Dinahsoar, you are soooo cute. I was a newspaper editor, and anyone worth a flip will have at least one oopsie. And if they say they do not, they have never read their post after it has been posted. Never fail, always at least one booboo! Just put chocolate on that booboo, and it will be all better. Plus, there are a whole lot of words that are readable with several letters added or taken away.

        My pet peeve? Those run-on sentences and poor grammar in the mix; all that and mixed up would make any high school English teacher cringe. I personally could not write a complete sentence with good grammar and great punctuation. One of my creative writing profs at Texas Tech Uni always handed back my papers and shook his head. Heck! I could barely spell – Those skills were honed when I learned to transcribe medical records. That was an eye opener for sure. The psychologist could write and dictate good English grammar and complete sentences. They did have a tendency to make up words. That was funny.

        After two years there, I had learned to really type and work with word processing and landed a job as an admin assistant for a high powered female attorney in downtown Dallas. That was a miracle! No joke.

        Everything up until that point had been typing medical records.
        That skill came in handy when my attorney was part of the defense team in Dallas for silicon implant maker Dow Corning. Amazing how monkey see, monkey do works out. Especially if you type 90 wpm and have a spell checker, AND learn kinetically! lol! AND, I would wager $500 that you craft 175 percent better than I could ever hope to accomplish. So, quit your frettin’ and go paint!

        I do digress:

        Second reason I write:

        Our Red Heeler loves water, but we have never bathed her. She is seven years old. Wait, before you scream stinko and hold your nose! When it rains, we let her run loose and she goes under ever bush in the yard. When she comes in, we tell her, “Meggie, it’s time to get spiffy!” She beats me upstairs to the office. We pull out two new dryer sheets and rub her down to the skin. When she has dried out we brush her, and she smells great for another four weeks. In the winter she rolls in the snow, comes inside, looks up and that sparkle in her eye says, “Spifffffy?” I love my Red Heeler, but we should have named her freckles.

        I will repent for writing this endless tome sometime, but tomorrow is another day. I’ll do it tomorrow! Should I sign this Scarlet O’Hara???? She must have driven Rhett Butler certifiably insane.

        AND Finally:

        For the guy who said Lindsay should quit talking. . . “Where is YOUR Mother? Ain’t you got no manners?” Funnnnnnnnnnnnnnnny! Guys telling women to hush. It’s a waste of time. It will never, never happen. Sorry!

        Besides big Guy. . . sometimes the most important part of the tutorial is in one of those ‘off the top of her head ideas or thoughts.’ So go practice being a nice guy. Okay?

        Like

        Reply

  9. Brilliant! Can I use mint instead of lavender? I honestly can’t stand lavender. It reminds me of the meanest 3rd grade teacher in the world.

    Like

    Reply

  10. Great video! Good to know that these soaps should not be used for cats. I was thinking of making some for both my dog and cat, I guess my cat will just stick with his store shampoo. lol I just want to know were did you buy the glycerin soap base? Can you buy it at Walmart or do you have to buy it at some speciality store? Thanks again for making a fun video. Have a great weekend!

    Like

    Reply

Tell me what YOU think!

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.