We Have Lift Off!

Well it's been a while since I posted. Things are going really well. We've made a lot of progress with our soap recipes and have even sold 12 bars! This is very encouraging. Just months ago I was beginning to wonder if we were ever going to get this business off the ground! But thanks to some encouraging words from my husband and the willingness of friends and family I feel that we're moving forward!

We have successfully made 4 batches of soap that are for sale, but most of my sales have been in-person instead of through Etsy. I'm hoping traffic will pick up a little before Christmas. We're still working on some new color combinations and scents.

Thanks for your continued support! I'm willing to do pre-orders and custom orders too!


S*S*Soaps

The Precipice of Production

I'm excited to say that production has finally begun! It's been an eventful couple of weeks trying to get supplies in order and avoid a hurricane!

Sign for farmer's market

In case you hadn't heard, which I highly doubt, Virginia Beach (and most of the East Coast) was slammed with a hurricane just last week. It looks like there's also another one on the way!

I found myself some wonderful new soap molds that will allow me to pour multiple batches at once! I also finally received all of my fragrance oils, some of which had been sold out and had to be re-ordered.

Cooking up some soap

So far I have 2 out of the 4 batches poured and waiting to solidify and be cut. I'm hoping that I will have the next 2 poured out tomorrow evening. There is a 2-3 week curing period for these soaps so be looking out for listings on Etsy sometime near the week of September 18th.

Sneak Peak

I also had an idea suggested to me by my sis-in-law that I should offer to do customized colored soaps for different occassions. Any thoughts? Is that a product you would be interested in? Say for a wedding or school event? Let me know what you think!

Thanks for your patience!

 

S*S*Soaps

New Soaps!

Keep your eye out for these upcoming soaps!
Sandcastle
Shoreline
Buried Treasure
Coral Reef

Looking forward to feedback!

S*S*Soaps

Moving Forward

I have definitely gained momentum towards growing my soap "business". I have an etsy shop established (www.etsy.com/shop/SarahsSeasideSoaps) and even have my own page on Facebook! Johnathan and I are both really excited for this adventure to move forward.

I have been researching soaps for weeks now and am still currently looking for a reliable supplier but I'm hoping to begin serious processing within the next few weeks. Keep your eye on my store for the first listings!

My Etsy store banner!

My business card!

S*S*Soaps

The Beginning

Here we go everyone! I have officially begun my journey into the world of homemade soap. After much research and encouragement (harassment?) from my husband I have decided to really try and make this soap thing work.

Since some of you are probably wondering how this idea came to be, I'll do my best to describe it. After Benjamin was born I struggled with the idea of returning to work. I felt the need to use my chemistry degree I had just acquired, but I could not willingly leave my son in someone else's care. The solution? Find something that I could do from home.

My husband, Johnathan, had been determined to build a home lab in our house. I was less enthusiastic about this prospect and so I took a trip to the library to try and find something that was not as intense as a "home lab."

I sat down at the communal computer staring at the search catalog box with the blinking cursor wondering, "What do I want to do?" So I typed in 'crafts'. I get all sorts of crazy books for kids' crafts with popsicle sticks and brown paper bags. Nothing there. Let's try 'homemade'. Mostly recipe books and a few homesteading books. Interesting.... but not really what I wanted. Finally out of the blue I decide to try 'homemade soap'. And with that click of the "search" button my journey began.

As with all journeys (especially crafty and slightly hazardous ones) there were several failed attempts: soap leaking through cracks in boxes, oil separating into layers as the soap dries, block of soap from mold not fitting into the cutter box even though they came as a set (WHAT?! I PAID HOW MUCH FOR THIS SET?!). We've cracked a few jars and burned a few batches but we finally succeeded in producing a bar of soap!

Left: Block cutter   Right: Mold box with soap

First time using the Soap Cutter

I still haven't found my niche in the formerly unknown world of homemade soap. But I can say with confidence and excitement... this is the beginning of something good.

*SS Soaps*