The April weather in London this year has been rather uninviting, and that means one thing: more indoor time for crafts! This time, I decided to try some soap making, with a DIY melt and pour soap making kit. It turned out to be super easy, quick, and not messy at all. A perfect little project for a rainy afternoon.

I bought this soap making kit in the Works – a UK chain of stores with a wide selection of stationery and craft supplies. They typically have multibuy offers on DIY kits and you can easily find a complete starter set for a craft you haven’t tried before for just a few pounds. It’s a great way to try something new without the need to splurge on tools and supplies.

This lavender soap making kit included all the essentials: the melt & pour soap base, a silicone mould, lavender fragrance, dried lavender and – most importantly – a leaflet with instructions. It also included a wooden stick for stirring melted soap as well as parchment and twine to pack your home made soap.

The instructions were for making a single bar of soap using the whole 100g of soap base at once, but I decided to make two smaller soaps instead. I weighed 50g of soap base and melted it in the microwave – it only took about 20 seconds.

Once the soap was melted, I had to work fast. I added a few drops of the lavender scent and some of the dried lavender. I stirred everything with the wooden stick included in the kit and poured the mixture into the mould. I could see that the soap was already beginning to thicken and set. I sprinkled the top of the soap with extra lavender and left it to set for a few hours.

Then, I removed the soap from the mould and repeated the same steps with the other half of the soap base included in the kit.

I left it for a few hours and soon had two small bars of handmade lavender soap.

Making these bars of soap was fun and easy. I have wanted to try soapmaking for a while, and this pre-assorted kit was a great way to try it for the first time. There are several ways of making soap, and the melt & pour method is the most beginner friendly. In all honesty, it doesn’t fully feel like you’re making soap – the soap base is already made, you’re just enhancing it with add-ons and give it a new shape. Nonetheless, it’s still a satisfying craft to try if you’re looking for something to do on a rainy day.

Home made soapmaking can also produce great gifts. You can buy melt and pour soap base online, made with your preferred ingredients, and then add your favourite scents and decoration. I’m already planning to use this idea for Christmas gifts later this year, perhaps with some warming scents and spices – orange and cinnamon might be a great combo!

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• DIY