Natural and sustainable living is becoming very popular these days. Everyone is becoming more mindful of what they consume, and how they consume it; why should body care be any different? Handcrafted soap has been in existence since the early days of humanity. For thousands of years, humans have craved the pleasant feeling of a well made soap, and we … Read More
The Shelf Life of Oils
Let’s talk about shelf life! When formulating your product, understanding the shelf life of the oils you are using is an important step in ensuring quality and longevity for your customers. If you’re anything like me, I don’t usually need to worry about the expiration of my cooking oils because I seem to go through them very quickly; that is, … Read More
Beer Soap For Beginners
Today, we are going to talk about making soap using a popular alcoholic drink; beer! I used the hot process method, but these observations will apply to those of you that use the cold process method, too. Let’s get started! Considerations for Beer Soap When I first began doing research about beer soap, I found many conflicting articles and conflicting … Read More
All About: Exfoliants
Let’s face it; making beauty products is like a giant science experiment in your kitchen. (Well, unless you are already a pro and you have moved onto bigger and better things!) One of my favorite parts of making beauty products is experimenting with different exfoliating ingredients. There are literally so many different exfoliants to choose from you will never be … Read More
Common Scents: Rose Absolute
Welcome to our series, Common Scents! Common Scents is a series of articles exploring the history of commonly used essential oils and how they became so popular in modern day soap and cosmetic crafting. This week, we’ll be talking about Rose Absolute! Think of a flower. Was it a rose? If it was, that’s no surprise; the rose is one … Read More
A Beginner’s Guide to Castile Soap
Castile soap is arguably one of the most simultaneously simple and complicated soaps in existence! From debates on its origin, to arguments about what it should and should not contain, castile soap means something different to just about every soap maker. The Debatable History of Castile Soap It is difficult to find a definitive answer as to where castile soap … Read More
Color Me Clean: Colorants in Soap and Cosmetics
If you make your own soap and cosmetics, and especially if you make soap and/or cosmetics with bright colors and beautiful patterns, I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “It’s so pretty, I don’t want to use it” more than once! While breaking the barrier between decoration and usable product is a challenge in its very own category, another challenge that … Read More
BAR-twork: Pencil Lines
If you’ve ever used handcrafted soap, there’s a good chance that you’ve seen soap with a pencil line, or a thin line of mica or other colorant that separates the soap either in the middle, or even in a marbling pattern. What you may not know is that this is actually a very simple technique that can be used with … Read More
Common Scents: Sweet Orange
Welcome to our series, Common Scents! Common Scents is a series of articles exploring the history of commonly used essential oils, and how they became so popular in modern day soap and cosmetic crafting. In this edition of Common Scents, we will take a look at the uplifting history of sweet orange, often referred to simply as orange or orange … Read More
Building Your Empire: The Basics of Starting a Handcrafted Business
We probably don’t have to tell you this, but Handcrafters are a very unique group of people! When you speak to someone who makes handcrafted soap and/or cosmetics, you are talking to a creative mind that is a blend between science, art and a desire to make products that genuinely make the consumer feel good. While some Handcrafters achieve a … Read More