Artist Collabrations

Recently I had a chance to collaborate with a fine local artist.  As a soapmaker, I can be caught up in the chemistry of making soap, and at times it takes a fresh set of eyes to see the potential of the art of soap.  Working with Kriss did not disappoint, we went thru the available fragrances and colors and pigments on hand and designed new combinations.  Soap was dyed, swirled and micas glittered on, and at the end we had several limited edition styles that will be offered in the next few weeks.

On Moonlight in the Garden and Young Love

For me I create by scents.  There is a wonderful primalness to how the scent of a thing can grab you and transport you to a memory, a moment in time, or even to a new place.  I create in reverse, that is I try to capture a moment, then think about the scents that would make that moment in time. 

I wanted to find a scent that would recall the early weeks of my husband and my courtship, that scent of soft goodnight kisses at the front door, under the moonlight.  A time of young love, sweet embraces and my mother's garden inside our courtyard, when we'd say our goodnights.  I blended a french lavender, roses jasmine, and freesia, to make that sweet longing scent I remembered. 

The resulting bars are peachy with soft veins of rose pink swirling thru, the perfect shade of young romance.

You can find the bars here, if you want one of your own.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/70463597/moonlight-in-the-garden-rose-jasmine-and

How to Use a Bar of Real Soap - A tutorial

OK so you now have a bar of real soap, ordered it with your amount of scrubbiness... now what?

Well the easy answer is go to the shower, but after so many people using liquid cleaners for so long, well a primer in soap use can't hurt.

First thing to know, letting your new artisan soap sit in water is bad.  It will become mushy and not last long at all, so unless using it, keep it dry (letting it air dry in a soap dish without standing water is perfectly fine, put away the blow drier). 

My technique is to use a bath scrubbie (the thing that looks like netting wadded into a knot, that they sell for liquid cleaners).  I take my bath scrubbie, wet that and then swipe it a few times over my soap bar.  Place soap out of the water and smush the scrubbie a few times for lather. 

Really that's the whole secret, no more flipping a bottle over and shaking out the cleanser, no more squinting to read if it's shampoo, conditioner or body wash in the bottle (I got that wrong plenty of times.)  Use the scubbie swipe 3-5 times and squish for bubbles.

I got me some review love!

I got some review love today.  Below is the link for you to read for yourself. 

It's nice to be recognized for working hard, and even better when you have work that you love.  There's a promotion giveaway going on until April 4th at 3girls reviews, which you'll find at the link below.

http://3girlsreviews.blogspot.com/2011/03/giveaway-piece-of-pisces.html

Help! My soap has bumpy things in it!

Often in artisian soap you'll find some exfoliants blended in.  Some common ones include: clay powder, rice flour, ground oatmeal, sugars, salts, pumpkin seeds, poppy seeds, or coffee grounds.  The finely powdered options, like clays, rice and oat flours provide "slip" and are almost always used in shaving soaps.  Medium sized pieces like sugar and salts provide a gentle scrubbiness good for exfoliation and preshave scrubbing.  Large sized bits like coffee grounds, poppy seeds and other seeds provide a firm scrubbing, ideal for heels, hands, elbows and knees.  I perfected a high-lather base formulia, so regardless of the type of exfoliant mixed in, you'll get alot of bubbles and no scratching.

Kinds of Soap

If you're not soap obsessed, you may not realize that there's several kinds of "soap", you most likely never think about the soap you rub on your or your kid's bodies at all.  So I'm tossing together a mini primer on the kinds of soap, because once you know what you're looking for, it's easier to find.

Commercial "soap":  Actually it's usually not soap at all.  Ever wonder why it's a "beauty bar" "cleansing bar" or "moisturizing bar"?  It's because by law, soap is made from fats and alkali (here that's oil and lye), and most of what's sold commercially is actually a solid detergent bar (like laundry detergent), made from cheap petroleum oil by products.  This is what causes most skin sensitivities and rashes.

Cold Processed Soap: This is the natural soap making process, it involves the reaction between fats and alkalies (here it's Organic Vegan oils and butters and Sodium Hydroxide), it's the soap Granny would've made, if she had a chemistry degree.  The process keeps the natural glycerin within the soap for maximum skin soothing and gentle cleansing.

Glycerin Soap:  It's the solid glycerin (usually clear or white, depending on recipe), that is extracted after the soapanification reaction, before the fresh soap has a chance to harden.  It's moisturizing and skin-friendly, and allows for some artsy effects, not available otherwise.

I work in both cold processed and glycerin soaps, as both have worthy and unique properties.