Aluminum Jello Molds

Wow, time seems to really fly by, lately!  I apologize for not keeping up with this blog as well as I would like.  I will definitely try to be a little more on top of it!  Today I would like to share a small collection of Jello molds.  I say small, because my daughter has an amazing collection.  She started collecting these aluminum Jello molds when her grandparents were moving into a retirement community and "breaking up" their home.  Her grandmother had a few of these types of  molds and my daughter really liked them.  As usual, in our antiquing forays, we became aware of the many different mold shapes available.  She has a few plans on how she wants to use them, so I basically started collecting them for her for a Christmas gift.   In the mean time, she started keeping an eye out for them, also.  This is our favorite type of collection, lots of different types of items available and a nice low price!  As I amassed a nice collection for her Christmas gift, I realized that they are a really nice size and shape for both unique desserts and crafting.  I am not really a Jello lover, so had not really thought about other uses for them.  So, I decided that I would keep a small collection for myself, because I had an idea in mind.  Sorry, Abby! 

Here is my collection of Aluminum Jello molds.  I decided to keep four each of some of my favorite designs.
Although, I have not been able to find a lot of history about these vintage molds, they appear to be from the 50's when Jello was "King."  I even found a Jello Mold Contest that appears to be a yearly competition...and believe me, there are some pretty amazing Jello creations presented!

To me, the molds looked perfect for creating decorative soaps.  I've always wanted to try my hand at soap making and decided to start with the basic melt and pour technique. I am extremely happy with the results.  I purchased my supplies at LorAnn Oils (www.lorannoils.com), basically using their Goats Milk and Clear Glycerin Soap Bases.  They have a nice tutorial on-line and I was able to learn how to add color and fragrance and layer the soaps to make these pretty little molded soaps.

I made this soap by using primarily the clear glycerin soap and adding a peach color and peaches and cream fragrance.  I cut small flowers from the goats milk base and added it to the mold before and after I poured in the clear base.

For this soap, I colored the clear base with a  teal color and added  a "white tea" fragrance to both bases, before layering.  One great thing about making soaps, clean up is a breeze!

This soap has a cucumber-melon fragrance, and smells wonderful!

Wild Cherry!

Pumpkin Spice!

Lilac!  I added the tinted Goats Milk Glycerin base for the grapes and leaves before I added the tinted clear glycerin base.

 And the best thing about these soaps is that they are so nice to use in the shower and they smell great!



The next step for me is to learn how to create the soap bases and make my own soap from start to finish!  But until then, I think I will continue to have fun and keep using the melt and pour method.  So, the next time you're on ebay or at an antique store, keep a lookout for vintage Jello molds and have fun creating!

Hope you have a great week!  Stay warm!