Wow, things are going so well on the soapy side of things. A lot better than I'd hoped. My "li'l chub" bars are flying off the curing racks faster than I can replace them! My mulled cider is almost gone - only one bar left!
Although my online shop hasn't seen a lot of business yet, most of my sales are in person, via the ever almighty WORD OF MOUTH. I guess that inevitable in a little town. People are becoming familiar with what I'm doing, and I'm so glad they like my soap. It really is a joy to make and to use. I put a lot of time and care into each batch, and I'm glad that doesn't go unnoticed. :)
I'm thinking of leaving my correspondence teaching job. I would like to spend more time making more soap, as well as working on my bookbinding. I've been itching to start making more books, but time just hasn't allowed me to just yet. I have a feeling by the new year, I will leave my teaching job completely, in favor of these new loves...soap and handbound blank books. Not to mention, more time to work on art for my etsy store too. I've already gotten a few custom orders for all of these items, and I'd love to spend more time on those, than in teaching. While I do enjoy some aspects of my teaching job (mainly the students) --- I have to make a choice.
"can I eat it?"
“…but it smells so good!”
So some of my newest customers have said.
They do smell uber yummy - the coconut and the mulled cider are especially mouth-watering. As is my latest scent combo…mango macadamia nut. It even *sounds* good, so just imagine how it smells!!
I finished up printing some business cards. They turned out pretty good.
My brother-in-law suggested a cool idea --> using an empty beer bottle for a soap mold. The idea would be to pour the soap into the bottle, and once it hardened, crack open the bottle. Then voila! Soap in the shape of a beer bottle! I must admit, the idea was pretty cool, and I just might have to try it. I'd call it "bar o' beer", and scent it with a 'manly' scent of course. I could even use beer as my soap base (many have done it with good results). Of course it wouldn't smell of beer, but just knowing the soap was made from their favorite drink may beckon some gents my way. ;) Not to mention they'd make funny gifts!
So some of my newest customers have said.
They do smell uber yummy - the coconut and the mulled cider are especially mouth-watering. As is my latest scent combo…mango macadamia nut. It even *sounds* good, so just imagine how it smells!!
I finished up printing some business cards. They turned out pretty good.
My brother-in-law suggested a cool idea --> using an empty beer bottle for a soap mold. The idea would be to pour the soap into the bottle, and once it hardened, crack open the bottle. Then voila! Soap in the shape of a beer bottle! I must admit, the idea was pretty cool, and I just might have to try it. I'd call it "bar o' beer", and scent it with a 'manly' scent of course. I could even use beer as my soap base (many have done it with good results). Of course it wouldn't smell of beer, but just knowing the soap was made from their favorite drink may beckon some gents my way. ;) Not to mention they'd make funny gifts!
my new etsy shop
Alrighty folks! I should let you know that I’ve opened my own little online shop on Etsy.com to sell my handmade soap, art, and my handbound blank books (when I get some done). I’ve named it La Paperie & Cozy - not only will it be 'paperie' items like journals and other blank books, but also other 'cozy' items like my handmade soap and art. The shop is currently empty, but it won't be for long. Not only will I be selling online, but also from home in my town - in craft shops, to friends/family and craft shows when possible. My aim is to make this into my main line of work, and I'm really looking forward to it.
This blog will talk about items I am working on at the time. Feel free to bookmark both and check back for items added.
My soaps will be, for the most part, vegan-friendly. For those of you who are allergy prone to scents, you can request a fragrance-free bar, or an essential oils-only bar (all-natural with no synthetic fragrance). I will use the occassional fragrance oil for "sweet cake" bars, such as food-scented soaps.
And now, a question, actually... I'd like to survey what type of scents you all like in your soaps. What are your favourites? Are there scents in a soap that make you not want to leave the shower? ;)
I'd like to get a good cross-section of preferences, so I know what types of soap I should start making for the majority. For example, a lot of people like the fresh, fruity aromas (grapefruit, orange, cucumber, berries, etc.), while others prefer more herbal-based scents (lavender, rosemary, sage, etc.), while others enjoy food-type aromas (banana nut bread, mulled cider, mocha vanilla, etc.). There are also misc-type smells (fresh cut grass, clean cotton, first snow, etc.) List as many that prefer, in a comment here.
two more today!
Since I had today off work, I made two more batches. The kitchen smells amazing!
~ COCONUT: Straight from the tropics! Smelling like sweetened a piña colada - all it needs is a little drink umbrella! Made with generous amounts of cocoa butter for extra luxurious moisturizing properties.
~ SWEET ORANGE & RED MANDARIN: Everyone loves that sweet, fresh-fruity aroma of freshly peeled orange and mandarin - revitalizing and warm just like sunshine! Natural essential oils. Shea butter for added skin conditioning. (This soap is vegan friendly)
These two batches turned out the best yet! I'm so pleased with them. I think I've come up with my two "dream recipes" that I will stick to, for the rest of my batches. One recipe is vegan-friendly, the other utilizes a tiny bit of beeswax which is considered non-vegan friendly.
If any of you are familiar with cold-process soap-making, I prevented these two batches from reaching the gelling stage by popping them in the fridge for about an hour. As a result, they remained an opaque ivory colour and are utterly bursting with creamy lather - just what I was aiming for! They're luxiously conditioning and sudsy. And their scents? They're both utterly mouth-watering!
I'm in the process of ordering some proper soap molds from TOG Soap Molds (he's got some great handmade stuff!) for a more 'finished' look to the bars.
I must say I'm excited about all this. I've already got quite a few orders coming in already. Weeee! And the best part is, this is so much fun! I'll never buy store-bought soap again!
Photos of new soaps to follow soonish...
~ COCONUT: Straight from the tropics! Smelling like sweetened a piña colada - all it needs is a little drink umbrella! Made with generous amounts of cocoa butter for extra luxurious moisturizing properties.
~ SWEET ORANGE & RED MANDARIN: Everyone loves that sweet, fresh-fruity aroma of freshly peeled orange and mandarin - revitalizing and warm just like sunshine! Natural essential oils. Shea butter for added skin conditioning. (This soap is vegan friendly)
These two batches turned out the best yet! I'm so pleased with them. I think I've come up with my two "dream recipes" that I will stick to, for the rest of my batches. One recipe is vegan-friendly, the other utilizes a tiny bit of beeswax which is considered non-vegan friendly.
If any of you are familiar with cold-process soap-making, I prevented these two batches from reaching the gelling stage by popping them in the fridge for about an hour. As a result, they remained an opaque ivory colour and are utterly bursting with creamy lather - just what I was aiming for! They're luxiously conditioning and sudsy. And their scents? They're both utterly mouth-watering!
I'm in the process of ordering some proper soap molds from TOG Soap Molds (he's got some great handmade stuff!) for a more 'finished' look to the bars.
I must say I'm excited about all this. I've already got quite a few orders coming in already. Weeee! And the best part is, this is so much fun! I'll never buy store-bought soap again!
Photos of new soaps to follow soonish...
new soaps
I’ve been away from soap making for a while, only because I’ve been pretty busy and I’ve also been waiting for some new supplies to arrive. Well, I’m back. And I’ve got two new soaps on the curing block…
~ ROSEMARY PEPPERMINT: Fresh peppermint essential oil with dried rosemary for texture and gentle exfoliation (This soap is vegan friendly)
~ MULLED CIDER: If you could package the smell of autumn this would be it! Undertones of cinnamon, anise and clove are blended with warm, juicy apple. (This soap is vegan friendly)
Both are enriched with luxuriously emollient shea butter and conditioning oils. I had to restrain myself from not biting into them, they looks so scrumptious. Soap in my bellies! Hope they turn out good. If they do, they’ll be the first bars o’ soap available at La Paperie & Cozy, my new Etsy store, which will be unveiled soon. I'll also be adding pictures of these soaps...soonish!
Welcome to la paperie & cozy
Welcome to ♥ la paperie & cozy ♥ ~ my home of handbound journals, handmade soap, art, and cozy what-not. This is a little blog for me to write about my adventures in all of the above crafts, but namely bookbinding!
Being an avid reader and writer, bookbinding has always intrigued me. I've recently embarked on learning as much as possible to make my own handbound blank books for myself, for my friends, and for sale/commission on Etsy (and perhaps Ebay later on). I have already made a couple blank books that I'm pleased with and I'm eager to try new and improved techniques to create even more unique handbound books.
I have also been making soap - using the cold process method. (Who doesn't like a chubby bar of aromatic handmade soap!?) Where I may mention a little here about my soap-making efforts, for more detailed "soap stories" please refer to my soap-making blog: The Soap Chronicles which I will update after every new batch.
Art is also a passion of mine, including painting and drawing in various mediums. I will also make mention of any projects that include these as well.
All in all, la paperie & cozy will be an artistic outlet. Feel free to join me! I would love the company.
Being an avid reader and writer, bookbinding has always intrigued me. I've recently embarked on learning as much as possible to make my own handbound blank books for myself, for my friends, and for sale/commission on Etsy (and perhaps Ebay later on). I have already made a couple blank books that I'm pleased with and I'm eager to try new and improved techniques to create even more unique handbound books.
I have also been making soap - using the cold process method. (Who doesn't like a chubby bar of aromatic handmade soap!?) Where I may mention a little here about my soap-making efforts, for more detailed "soap stories" please refer to my soap-making blog: The Soap Chronicles which I will update after every new batch.
Art is also a passion of mine, including painting and drawing in various mediums. I will also make mention of any projects that include these as well.
All in all, la paperie & cozy will be an artistic outlet. Feel free to join me! I would love the company.
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