Thursday 29 September 2011

Stamping Orange Poppyseed Soap...


I love stamping soaps almost as much as I love cutting them. . .  This stamp I had made by Anhoki   http://anhoki.blogspot.com/ and have been very pleased with it.






Green Clay soap with all stamping equipment, ready to begin stamping. . .



I use a toothbrush to clear the left over soap bits out of the stamp. . .








Happy Soaping, Cutting & Stamping!!
xo
Jen

Sunday 25 September 2011

Cutting Bars of Soap from Logs…


I found my wonderful soap cutter through sweet Ayu from Tokyo Soap Factory http://www.tokyofactory.net/. I loved the perfect size and shape of her soaps so much that I asked her how she cut them so perfect... She sent me to the link to Café de Savon or Rakuten in Japan http://global.rakuten.com/en/store/cafe-de-savon/item/f3090601/. For a very reasonable price, even with the shipping, I got this fabulous cutter & cutting base. 


soap cutter and base, with potpourri soap log





lining up soap log for size (Green Clay & Aloe Vera with Tea Tree & Eucalyptus Essential Oils)












 


 

I LOVE cutting soap!

xoxo
Jen

Tuesday 20 September 2011

From Trimmed Soap Slab - The Story Continues...


loving using the soap log splitter dad made for me...



not all easy... when tensing the wire (guitar string) it sometimes breaks...

 




  need to be extra careful about bits getting on the cutting wire...



lining-up the soap slab so that it cuts straight...




my mould produces 4 10-bar soap logs and an extra strip which I use for cutting up and giving out free samples.... but I could do without the extra strip...



so will alter size on the next mould I get made... not sure if it will be for just 40 bars or maybe 50 bars... but it is already rather heavy when full...



Happy soaping everyone!

xo
Jen

Sunday 18 September 2011

From Opening Soap Mould... A Pictoral Story



just opened my 40-soap mould with orange poppyseed soap in it... I will leave you with some photos...










i have been collecting the corner shavings from logs and slabs for a while... and will be making a "pot-pourri" experimental soap one of these days...

happy soaping everyone!!!!
xoxox
Jen

Tuesday 13 September 2011

Evening Market Finished, Production Mode and Shampoo Bar Disaster


Eucalyptus & Aloe Vera Soap (New experiment - only 3 oils: Olive, Coconut & Castor...)

Whew! My evening market finished on Saturday night and I am almost out of soap!

It has been a busy month selling. Sunday I woke up and re-organized my work space, or rather just organized it well in preparation for going full-on into production mode to catch up for the fall and Christmas markets.

Yesterday I made 40 bars of my Green Clay soap, which has been 1 of the top 3 sellers this summer. Today I will experiment with a new soap. I enjoy producing and selling my regular soaps, but also love experimenting with new ones, so I think I will alternate back and forth. I am experimenting with simpler soaps, focusing more and more on ingredients from as nearby as possible.

Mediterranean Shampoo Bar (new recipe... 3 oil soap with local goat milk, honey & aloe vera, scented with Rosemary Essential Oil)

As for Shampoo Bars – unfortunately the Shampoo Bar Exchange that I was so excited about didn’t work out as planned because suddenly I am not able to use Shampoo Bars at all! My hair is getting greasy from ALL Shampoo Bars, including my own, even my Shampoo Bar that I have been using for ages, that used to be wonderful. Amy from http://tenthavenuesoapworks.blogspot.com/ mentioned in a post comment that time of the year affected how the shampoo bar worked on her hair, that the summer humidity affected it negatively. That must be it? So unfortunately for now, I am back to commercial shampoo and won’t be able to fairly review the AWESOME shampoo bars that were sent to me...

As for the two shampoo bars pending my review – I will try them again late fall after confirming that mine works well again. For now I must report that the scent of the Soap Sister’s http://thesoapsister.blogspot.com/ shampoo bar is incredible, floral and fruity, like a combination of jasmine and grapes and it stays and stays!


Please note the slimmed-down size - yes I have been using this as a body bar!

Tierra Verde’s http://tierraverdesoaps.blogspot.com/ bar is super citrusy... tangy... I also adore the scent. There is something so lovely about the perfect roundness and silky smoothness.



Before getting the greasy hair problem, both of these bars lathered brilliantly and the comb-through was wonderful. Much better than my shampoo bar. I look forward to trying all of them again in the fall, including Great Cake Soapwork’s http://www.greatcakessoapworks.com/handmade-soap-blog/ bar.

Happy soaping everyone!!

Xo
Jen
PS. Leg update - Mostly healed and so greatful!! As of last week, I can actually fit into running shoes again and am walking along the beach most mornings. Slightly weaker than the other leg but fully operational and no limp!! xo