Our fun list of social media sites just keeps growing and growing. We’ve got Pins of the week, Tweets of the week and now, Vines of the week! Vine is a super cool app for iPhones that allows you to take 6 second videos. Of course, I had to take a few Vine videos while making my leopard print spots for this week’s Soap Challenge:
Oatmeal, Milk and Honey Mantra Swirl Soap
This soap is perfect for anyone with a sweet tooth. With a delectable combination of one of our favorite fragrances Oatmeal, Milk and Honey, paired with Chocolate Espresso Cybilla, this soap is reminiscent of a delightfully sweet mocha. We used a mantra swirl technique to give the finished soap an elegant look, and I think it may even look a bit like fluffy foam or whipped cream (can you tell I’m craving coffee?).
Meet our Soap Guild 2013 Guest Bloggers
Excitement is building around our offices as the Handcrafted Soapmakers Guild Conference quickly approaches. The annual conference draws attendees from around the country, and it’s a great place to learn new techniques, make connections and befriend fellow soapmakers. I’m super disappointed that I can’t attend this year, but it’s for a very good reason: our Bramble Girl is due smack dab in the middle of the conference! To keep everyone in the loop on the fun, we are sending the famously wonderful Kat (see two of her blog posts here and here) to teach an advanced soapmaking class and two Soap Queen guest bloggers to keep us updated with blog posts and photos throughout the conference. Don’t be shy; say hello!
Michele Lang, Tierra Verde Handmade Soaps
“I’m a wife, mother, blogger, and self proclaimed soap nerd living in Lubbock, Texas—a place best known for our expansive horizons, cotton and Buddy Holly.
What began in 2008 as a mere curiosity about the soap making process quickly became an insatiable passion. I fell in love with the intriguing chemical process, the artistic expression, the earthy perfume of essential oils, and the overall connection to the beautiful ingredients. I’m really just a gal who sees handcrafted soap as a beautiful art form. I feel a connection to the ingredients and my goal is to feature them as “the star” of the show.
Natural Baby Oil
This recipe brilliant in its simplicity. The skin-loving combination of just three oils makes for a wonderfully-textured and amazingly not-too-greasy option for baby’s skin, plus the use of Oat extract takes the sensitivity of young skin into consideration. Try this oil on dry patches after a bath for maximum benefit.
How to Recycle Your Recyclables
Happy Earth Day! After a loooonng day of moving (seriously, what crazy hormonal person thought it was a good idea to move at 8.5 months pregnant?!), I thought I’d pop in with three great eco-friendly soaping ideas in honor of the day. Using clean food packaging is a great way to ensure that your products are getting their maximum amount of use before they are headed to the recycling bin; plus many of them make for a super economical mold option for testing out new soap ingredients (so your production/fancy molds aren’t taken up for testing) or an economical trial for a beginner soaper! Just to make the project as easy as it is fun, I’ve used additives and colorants that are easily found in most kitchen cupboards. Plus, you can check out this episode of SoapQueen TV for even more eco-chic ideas!
Happy Birthday, Jamisen
It’s hard to believe that two years have passed since Jamisen came home and added to our happiness quotient. We had a wonderful time with Jamisen’s birthday party. It was low-key, with family only. I’m guessing this is the last time we’ll get away without any of Jamisen’s little friends at his party.
Facebook Photo of the Week (April 12 ~ April 19)
What a fun week it has been for me here at the Soap Queen blog. Earlier this week, I introduced a brand new weekly blog feature — our Sunday Night Spotlight. This new weekly feature will pick one Bramble Berry product and I’ll go over why I love it so much and a few different recipes that I’ve used it in. Have a suggestion for a spotlight? Leave it in the comments below! There was also the free giveaway from The Saponifier. Did you miss it? It’s here. We also released a new SoapyLove e-zine kit (colorants included). Learn more about it here. After that thrilling recap, I’m betting you are ready for this weeks winner? It was one of my favorites that was posted to Bramble Berry’s Facebook page this last week, and you’ll see why!
So Call Me Maybe
“As a teenager you are at the last stage in your life when you will be happy to hear that the phone is for you.” – Fran Lebowitz
(Jamisen’s got a few years to go before that stage!)
Intergalactic Planetary Melt and Pour Soap Tutorial
A great project for kids of all ages (and I’m totally counting myself in this ‘kid’ category), this theme will particularly appeal to those who enjoy their time with a sci-fi edge. Swirling multiple colors of melt and pour base into sphere molds creates a planetary feel while shimmery black mica paired with silver glitter sends the planets on an adventure through a star-filled sky.
The 15-Minute Soap Mold
This article was originally published in the March/April 2013 issue of Saponifier Magazine. I was so taken by the ingenuity of the tutorial that I asked Saponifier if I could reprint it here on Soap Queen. Enjoy! -Anne-Marie P.S. Election sign season is just a few months away!
Personal Touch: The 15-Minute Soap Mold
by Victoria Donaldson
I was never so glad to see anything end, as I was the 2011 elections. Is it just me, or did it go on forever? While driving, I was inundated with political signs for everything from president to dog catcher. After November 6, I decided it was time for the remaining ones to go, so I started plucking them up. They were destined for my local recycling center, only my trip out there ended in the discovery that my recycling center did not handle them. So I decided they would reside in my utility room until I had the time to discover where to ship them.
Then my neighbor asked for help making yard sale signs. A quick cover of spray paint and some lettering and he was set. A last minute, oddly sized, Christmas gift resulted in a mad hunt for a suitable box, bag—anything! After an unsuccessful search led to the utility room, I was desperate. I thought perhaps I could do something with a piece of corrugated plastic. Voila! It was so easy, who needs a recycling center? Then I had a lightbulb moment: if I could make a box, I could make a mold for soap. After a little experimentation, I discovered that creating several in different sizes wasn’t a problem since it’s free, it folds flat for easy storage, and it’s really, really easy. What more could you ask for? Plus it gives you a little feeling of revenge for all the TV plugs you had to sit through. [Read more…]
Feelin’ the Love
Brand new and hot off the press, Debbie Chialtas’ newest Let’s Get Soapy e-zine is now available! This 24-page full color PDF is packed with tutorials for making soaps with water-soluble paper, achieving ombre coloring and working with neon colors for bright soaps that are ready for summer.
Fair Ivy Finalists
I know many of you have been on pins and needles all weekend waiting for us to announce the finalists for the Fair Ivy 2013 contest, and you only have to wait a few moments more. Thank you everyone who participated. We had so much fun seeing all the fun products that came in! Did you miss the sneak peek of all the entries? Check it out here. We chose winners based on the quality of the product that came in (example: lather, smell, overall look for soap), the labeling and how the product arrived to us. Since Fair Ivy ships individual packages to consumers, it was important that items arrive intact and unscathed to us.
I’m happy to announce the 2013 Fair Ivy finalists. Go check them out and let me know what you think! [Read more…]
Facebook Photo of the Week (April 5 ~ April 12)
It’s the beginning of the week (Happy Monday!) and that means it’s time for a recap of the most awesome week ever! (Psst: Earlier this week, we wrapped up the Fair Ivy contest by getting the rest of our entries and posting a mashup. Stay tuned next week when the finalists will be announced. We also had a fun and engaging guest post from Jean at SoapArtOnline on how to cut one of those 25 lb. monster soap blocks and posted a much anticipated Soap Queen TV episode that has been a year in the making. Are you ready for the winner of last weeks Facebook Photo of the Week? Check it out below.
Sunday Night Spotlight: Lavender
Bramble Berry’s Grade 1 Lavender Buds have a rich and deep color of periwinkle and that traditional calming Lavender smell that will have you going back for more. Did you know that these particular buds have actually been hand harvested? We are told that they are picked before noon on the day of harvest to help prevent fast drying which gives them their extra vibrant color. A great property of Lavender is its known anti-inflammatory properties, which would be great for a skin-soothing oil infusion or a bath tea. My favorite use for lavender buds is to sprinkle them on top of cold process soap as a finishing touch.
