If you haven’t heard of the newest up-and-coming young soaper from Suds by the Sea, you are in for a great interview today! I first found out about 15-year old Emily when she commented on our Facebook Photo of the Week post that featured another young soaper, Jasmine Hales. Emily told us that she was so excited to see that there were other young soapers around and I knew at that time that I wanted to learn more about her. Back in March I was able to feature some of Emily’s soaps as the Facebook Photo of the Week and since I started soaping at 16, had a special spot in my heart for her even before I learned more about her. Read on to get inspired…
Search Results for: favorite cold process recipes
Sunday Night Spotlight: Hungarian Lavender Essential Oil
It’s time for another Sunday Night Spotlight to discuss a product in detail, including fun recipes and in this case, blends. If you have any suggestions for a Sunday Night Spotlight, let me know in the comments below! To read about last weeks spotlight, click here, and learn all about a fun and easy botanical to use in your CP and M&P soaps. Are you ready for this weeks? Read on to learn all about Hungarian Lavender Essential Oil.
4 Color In~The~Pot Swirl Soap Tutorial
This recipe is the second of two that come with the quick start guide in Bramble Berry’s brand new Business in a Box kit, and the second of many that are possible when you purchase the full kit. Along with this unique In-The-Pot Swirl recipe, in the quick start guide you’ll also receive the Sunset Ombre Soap tutorial. The Business in a Box quick start guide is a handy, downloadable PDF that contains beginning soapmaking tips, some helpful forms for business, two advanced recipes tailored just for the kit, and tips for getting your business started. The kit also contains full ingredients, equipment, 7 books and more. We’ve updated the Business in a Box kit based on your feedback from when we first launched it and it’ s better than ever. Like all businesses, it will take hard work, perseverance, and has a learning curve but this kit will save a lot on the testing, experimenting and give you a library of my favorite books to learn from.
Facebook Photo of the Week (March 1 ~ March 8)
Last week was super busy on the SoapQueen blog. Two new contests were introduced: a new Make It Month (all about the sample of the month, Oatmeal Milk and Honey Cybilla) and a call to arms by subscription service Fair Ivy. We also blogged three new tutorials: a super cute Red Apple Cold Process Soap Recipe, an anti-pinch nail polish tutorial for St. Patrick’s Day, a DIY tutorial on how to make a traveler bag for toddlers and my favorite, the shortbread recipe that I used to announce the gender of Bramble Girl to my family. Miss out on any of the daily happenings? Join us on Bramble Berry’s Facebook page to keep up-to-date and learn about the newest products, tutorials and deals. Best of all the sun is finally shining in the Pacific Northwest (well, intermittently) and all of Team Bramble Berry is soaking up as much of it as they can. Are you ready for last weeks Facebook Photo of the Week? Let’s go!
A(nother) Big Announcement!
We’ve been full of big news lately, from finding out that we’re having a baby girl (eek!) to launching this year’s Bramble Berry Athletic Club, there’s been a lot of happy hustle and bustle and I couldn’t be more excited. But before you go thinking that’s all I’ve been busy with, there’s another big announcement…a secret I’ve been keeping for almost a year now:
I’m writing a book!!(!!!!!!!!!)
I’ve been working with the fabulous team at Storey Publishing on my new print book, Soap Crafting. It has been an amazing, mind-blowing, grueling, exciting experience so far (really, a little bit of everything). The book contains 31 Soap Queen designed and tested Cold Process soap recipes that I hope will knock your socks off. The book shows how to infuse natural colorants, how to dilute and work with LabColors, incorporate fun additives and even includes a glossary of soapmaking terms. Plus, for beginners, there is a ton of introductory information about making Cold Process soap, a basic beginner recipe AND a breakdown of common soap making oils. Whew!
The book is due to come out in August (three months after Bramble Girl is due to arrive if you’re keeping track!), which feels like such. a. long. time. But as the book comes together, I’ll be giving regular updates on its progress. [Read more…]
Facebook Photo of the Week 12/3 – 12/7
This week has been so much fun for us here at Bramble Berry. We started it off with our latest Make it Monday Challenge and it’s all about my favorite holiday…Christmas! I also worked on a fun CPOP (Cold Process Oven Process) soap tutorial with an extended FAQ section and the PERFECT Christmas Red blend that you can check out here. And, if you’d like to try out something new, check out Amanda of Lovin’ Soap’s fun tutorial on how to felt your soap here. Phew, it’s been busy but great! Now onto our winner of this weeks Facebook Photo of the Week.
This week’s photo comes to us from Lisa Bilik. Lisa just got started soaping and she said these cute little moon face soaps have been such a hit at work! Thank you so much, Lisa, for being a part of our Facebook community and we can’t wait to see more of your soaping projects. Be on the lookout for a special little package headed your way!
Would you like your photo or project to be featured in a blog post? Come join us for soap talk, contests and lots of crafting inspiration at Bramble Berry’s Facebook page and share a photo with us of your latest project and your handmade soap might be next week’s feature!
You still have a chance for your soapy recipe to get featured on the Teach Soap website (and a chance to get a $10 Bramble Berry Gift Certificate). Send us an e-mail with a full tutorial, including pictures at teachsoap(at)brambleberry(dot)com. For more details, check out this blog post and some of our featured recipes: Soothing Avocado Foot Balm, Peach Pie Soap, Rose Garden Bath Tea and Refreshing Tangerine Melt and Pour Soap.
Make it Monday: #Christmas Schwag
It’s coming up on the end of the year (I can hardly believe it!) and that means it is our very last #Make it Monday challenge of 2012. We’ve seen some pretty incredible projects over the last six months and can’t wait to see what you have in store for us for this challenge! Are you ready for it?
Mission (if you choose to accept it)
- Create a unique product that follows the theme for the challenge of the week. This week is all Christmas themed bath and body products. Anything from melt & pour and cold process soaps, bath bombs, lotions, and more!
- Post your pictures of your cute and creative Christmas projects to Bramble Berry’s Facebook page during the entry period (December 3rd – December 17th).
- Your entry must have the hashtag of the week in order to be entered into the contest. This week, your picture must have the hashtag #Christmas Schwag
- At the end of the entry period, Team Bramble Berry will pick our favorite entries. The winners of the challenge will be featured on the Soap Queen Blog. You have until Monday, December 17th to post photos of your #Christmas Schwag. Please submit your photos by 12 pm (pacific standard time).
- You can submit up to three different pictures!
Fall Sweater Stripes Soap Tutorial
I’ve just added a new board to my Pinterest page: Color Inspiration! How did I go so long without this board? And have you seen the array of color palettes that are out there? Whoa. Inspiration overload. One of my favorite go-to sites for all things color is Design Seeds, and recently there was a color story posted that reminded me of a comfy and cozy fall sweater. Of course, my next train of thought was to turn it into soap, and what better way to use Bramble Berry’s newest fragrance, Cranberry Chutney?
INS Numbers for Soapmaking
If you’ve been soaping for a while, you’ve probably heard the term ‘INS Number’ and if you’re like many soapers, you scratch your head, research it a bit and then keep soaping your favorite recipe. An INS number refers to a numerical value that explains or describes the properties an oil will have when reacted with sodium hydroxide to make bar soap. It relates to the degree of unsaturation and molecular weight of the oil. Full disclosure: I don’t use INS numbers. I don’t find that they relate well to a finished batch of soap and how it will be perceived by me (or anyone) in the shower. The Bramble Berry lye calculator does not include INS numbers either. That said, some soapers swear by INS numbers though so like many soaping issues (example: to gel or not to gel?) using INS numbers is a personal preference.
Loving Lotion at Otion
Bramble Berry’s customer service team (what a great bunch of gals they are) had another fun team bonding experience at Otion last week! They made cold process as a team too so be sure to check out that post if you missed it (Cold Process and Customer Service). Team BB delved into the wonderful world of lotion making from scratch using Cocoa Butter, Shea Butter and luxurious fixed oils. The class was taught by Otion’s newest addition, Alycia! She’s already a pro at teaching classes so if you’re local and interested, check out Otion’s class schedule HERE!
Dead Sea Salts Are Best for Psoriasis
When it comes to skin care, are all salts created equal? Not according to a study done by the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology, which tested the effects of “common salt” (like table salt) vs. the effects of Dead Sea Salts.
Talk It Out Tuesday: Lip Balm
Guess what day it is? Yep! It’s Talk It Out Tuesday (you can check out previous TIOT’s on melt and pour, preservatives, colorants, bath bombs and our most recent one on lotions)! This is a fun topic because lip balm are a blast to make and use. Read on to find the answers to many of Bramble Berry’s frequently asked questions. If there is anything I didn’t cover, feel free to ask your questions in the comment section. Or if you want to get started right this very second, check out our Lip Balm Quick Start Guide on the Bramble Berry Website.
What is lip balm?
Lip gloss, lip shimmers, lip conditioners, lip sheers, lip balms and lip butters are all very easy and inexpensive to make. Generally, they are a mixture of oils and waxes combined to heal and soothe dry or chapped lips (and sometimes, they provide a bit of color as well). You can create an all-natural mixture using edible essential oils and nourishing vegetable butters or you can get wild and make them sparkly and decadent with micas and flavors. But a word of warning – once you start making your own beautifully hand crafted lip balms, you won’t be able to buy another mediocre, manufactured, tube of low quality oil and wax again. We’re all addicted to our homemade creations here and, it’s a good thing! [Read more…]
Our Displays for the Soap Guild Conference
We have been hard at work on our Handcrafted Soapmaker’s Guild annual conference display for the last few months. First came the visioning and sketching process. We knew we couldn’t bring all of our products so we carefully planned out what we wanted to bring and then designed the displays around the products we wanted to showcase. It was hard figuring out what products made the cut (because, of course, they’re all our favorites).
Before we finalized the plans, we made the entire display as a mini model out of foam core boards. Our ratio was 1/2″ to 1 foot. We have the cutest little dollhouse display (that is, if you’re into staging retail stores instead of playing house). [Read more…]
Crazy for Cubes
I know I always say this (um, like a lot), but I think I just found my new favorite mold! There are a whopping 25 cavities in this bad boy. It has a glossy finish, which I love, and the cube shape fits perfectly into the palm of my hands. Plus, they are the ideal size for stamping with our new acrylic stamp line. They’re perfect! Ok…enough gushing about the molds. Check out my specially formulated recipe below. Why specially formulated? The cube mold works best with super hard recipes. Since no air flow gets into the mold, it can take forever and a day to get the soap to release. The Sodium Lactate, low (4%) superfat plus water discount all contribute to being able to get this soap out of the mold with no sticking. Because of this, the recipe will move fast. Experienced soapers will still be able to swirl but if you’re a newbie? Stick to one color.