Welcome to soapmaking! I am new at making CP soap (which is but one of the reason I joined this board) but have been making M&P soap for years. You have an amazing amount of options when working with M&P. I usually start out with a basic 'hand milled' recipe before adding anything else but you certainly dont have to. Some of my favorite things to add are: cinnamon--1/4 tsp per 6 oz. of soap ginger--1/8 tsp per 6 oz chamomile--contents of one tea bag usually will do the trick unbrewed coffee--about 1 tsp per 6 oz There are also a bunch of fruits and vegetables that you can add but you will definitely need a preservative for those. You can also find recipes to add cornmeal, aloe, vit E, sand, witch hazel, almond and all other kinds of herbs and spices. Pick a recipe, try it out and have fun!