While there are many wonderful things about soaping, perhaps one of the best things is that it can be enjoyed by anyone. No matter what level of craftiness you are or where you live in the world, most any adult can take up soapmaking. On our Facebook page, we regularly see soapy creations from all corners of the world, from Mexico to Iceland to Taiwan. Creating small, handcrafted products make us part of a global community.
Don’t Forget to Play
“Life is more fun if you play games.” ― Roald Dahl
Happy Easter Weekend =) We did an Easter Egg hunt with Jamisen. He was beyond euphoric about the whole concept of sugar. Trying to explain to him why Easter happens was a little tricky. The internet was no help either. I stumbled over an explanation to him but had vastly underestimated the need for an actual explanation. Jamisen didn’t ask one single question about why he was made to get dressed up, carry a pink basket and go find plastic eggs filled with candy. Ah, so sweet: childhood innocence.
Saturday Night Spotlight: Argan Oil
Nearly unheard of 5 years ago, you can’t pick up a bath and beauty product now without it touting the almost magical properties of Argan Oil. While usually I take outrageous beauty claims like that with a grain of salt, this is one oil that packs a serious punch.
Facebook Photo of the Week (April 12th – April 18th)
With just a few days until Easter, we are in full spring mode. To celebrate, yesterday we kicked off our Easter Egg Hunt. Participating is easy: simply find ten Soap Queen Egg gifs on BrambleBerry.com and then email to receive two exclusive cold process recipes along with a PDF on how to use colorants in cold process. But don’t wait, the egg hunt ends on April 21st.
Speaking of contests, we’ve got plenty more going on. If you’re thinking ahead to Mother’s Day, there is still time for the ShowMomLove Contest. Simply post an image of a handmade gift on Instagram, Twitter or Pinterest by April 20 to enter to win a kit from the Soap Crafting Club. If going green is your thing, there’s also an Earth Day contest. Show us a photo of your recycled soap mold on our Facebook page with the hashtag ‘#BBEarthDay’ to win an Eco Chic Melt and Pour kit.
This week we shared a comprehensive list of tips, tricks and information for beginning soapers. Whether you want to start working with melt and pour or cold process, the Beginning Soaper Resource Roundup has you covered. If melt and pour is your soapy method of choice, this Carnation Cube Cuties Melt and Pour Tutorial is perfect for beginners. Featuring the unique Carnation Fragrance Oil (our sample of the month) and Jojoba Beads, this project will leave your skin smooth and smelling of fresh flowers.
Speaking of fresh flowers, our Facebook Photo of the Week from Whitetail Lane Farm was clearly inspired by spring:
Bramble Berry Easter Egg Hunt
Easter Sunday is coming up this weekend, which means lots of sweet goodies, egg-dyeing and of course, Easter egg hunts. But who says Easter egg hunts have to be for kids only? The Easter bunny has gone digital, and from now until April 21st we’re inviting you to participate in our online Easter egg hunt.
Carnation Cube Cuties Melt and Pour Tutorial
We’re getting back to the basics today with this cute cube melt & pour. This project is great for beginners and it’s also an excellent way to build some basic melt and pour skills. It requires that you keep a close eye on your temperatures because you don’t want to melt the delicate jojoba beads or break the smooth layers. The project also uses the Carnation Fragrance Oil, which is our sample of the month for April.
Beginning Soaper Resource Roundup
If you’re a new soaper, the amount of resources, guides and tutorials to sift through can seem overwhelming. To make things seem a little less daunting, we’re collecting the best resources from around the Bramble Berry network. We’re always excited to welcome new soapers in our community, and hopefully this post will serve as a hub of information to get you on the right track.
Some of you may remember the “choose your own adventure” books that were popular 90s. Well, think of this post in the same way! If you want to start soaping, you’ll need to figure out whether you want to tackle melt and pour or cold process soapmaking. Both methods of soapmaking have their own set of techniques, challenges and new things to explore, and there is certainly no reason you can’t master both. We just recommend starting with one so you can focus your learning. Get ready to dive in, immerse yourself in information and choose your own soapmaking adventure!
SQ Cuisine: Banana Avocado Pudding
Part of the prep work for the Moisturizing Avocado Bar, my favorite recipe in the Soap Crafting book, involves mashing up half a real avocado. When we filmed the recipe for a live Soap Crafting Club session, we had some leftover avocado and I wasn’t about to let it go to waste!
I love eating avocados on their own, but for this quick recipe I threw in a banana, some cocoa powder and voila! I had myself a pudding packed full of nutrients. This recipe was too easy — and too delicious — to not share with you all. 
What You’ll Need:
1 banana
1/2 ripe avocado
2 tbs unsweetened cocoa powder
Optional: 1 – 2 tbs. honey for sweetness
ONE: Put all in ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. Enjoy! Be sure to eat this pudding within 24 – 48 hours as the banana and avocado won’t keep well!
Soapy Social Media Roundup
Welcome to the end of another busy week! The sun has been shining and it’s been a flurry of activity around the office as everyone is getting ready for spring activities.
I’ve been experimenting with lots of Easter-y crafts, including these cute little egg shell candles. I even got to make an awesome frittata with all those egg yolks! In toddler land, Jamisen and Lily are doing well and sometimes they even pause for a half-second so I can get adorable Instagram photos like this. I think they’re the cutest kids in the world, but I may also be a bit biased =)
In the next few weeks, be on the look-out for more contests, Soap Queen TV videos and fresh, fun projects. For now, take a look a my favorite soapy social media items from the past two weeks:
Pins:
Facebook Photo of the Week (April 5th ~ April 11th)
One of the best things about the soaping community is how generous soapers are to one another. This week we announced the lucky winner for the Soap Guild Ticket Giveaway, and were blown away when another soaper came forward to giveaway her ticket as well. Congrats to the winners of the ticket giveaway — Gates of Burly Stone Soap Co. and Dawn of Horsin Around Soap. We can’t wait to hear about your experiences!
With summer quickly approaching, it’s time to prep your skin for the sun. Exfoliation is the key to healthy, glowing skin and this Margarita Salt Scrub Tutorial leaves your skin feeling silky smooth. Curious about which exfoliant is right for your project? The new Exfoliant Sampler Pack allows you to experiment with eight different kinds. If you’re instead looking to sooth irritated skin, the Sunday Night Spotlight: Oats has great info and project suggestions.
Speaking of sun, look no further than our Facebook Photo of the Week for lots of bright sunshine rays. It could bring sunshine to even the gloomiest of days!
Hooray for Earth Day! An Earth Day Contest
Everyone is familiar with recycling. Even at a young age, we’re always taught that recycling, reusing and reducing is the way to go. This Earth Day, we’re not just recycling — we’re upcycling! Upcycling is all about turning something old and used and turning it into something new and beautiful. Instead of throwing those used food containers in the trash, use them to create beautiful soapy projects.
To celebrate Earth Day, we’re using the concept of upcycling and asking you to get creative. From now until April 21, we want to see your most creative recycled molds. If you make soap using a milk carton, yogurt cup or even egg shells, we want to see it! Post photos of your soap — and your mold — on our Facebook page with the hashtag #BBEarthDay to win an Eco Chic Melt and Pour Kit.
The kit contains 2 lbs. of Organic Melt and Pour Base, 1 oz. Spirulina Powder, 1 oz. Cranberry Seeds, .5 oz. Orange Valencia Essential Oil and .5 oz. Lavender 40/42 Essential Oil.
Scrub up with Exfoliants
There are many options when it comes to adding scrubbiness to your products – everything from salt to sugar to seeds to clay. Exfoliants are primarily used to scrub away dead skin cells to reveal new skin underneath. They are also a cornerstone of many healthy skin-care routines. Exfoliants can vary greatly in size, from large cranberry seeds to very small, very fine powders such as Bamboo Extract. If you want to try a wide variety of options, pick up an Exfoliant Sampler Pack to add a world of colors and scrub effects to your products.
Margarita Epsom Salt Scrub Tutorial
Nothing beats relaxing on a hot sunny day with an ice cold beverage — especially if it’s a margarita! We took some inspiration from a classic summer drink for this festive and easy salt scrub.
The extra fine Epsom Salts are like sand, and make for a wonderfully gentle exfoliant. The combination of Deodorized Cocoa Butter, Coconut Oil and Jojoba oil help suspend the granules and provide plenty of skin-loving goodness without melting too much — no messy pools of oils will form on top of this scrub! We experimented with Coconut Citrus Sorbet and Lime fragrance oils to get the perfect sweet scent, but you can certainly adjust it to suit your tastes. Scrub up!
Soap Guild Ticket Winners Announced
It’s been a little more than a week since we announced our Soap Guild Ticket Giveaway. I know everyone has been waiting patiently to see who won. With hundreds of inspiring stories to sift through, making a choice was not quick and was not easy. With the help of the Bramble Berry team, we finally reached a consensus.
We’re excited to announce Dawn of Horsin’ Around Soap as the winner of our ticket. Dawn’s commitment to volunteering in her community and her desire to help other women start small businesses is inspiring! Dawn’s soaps are bright, fun and full of color, and her packaging is elegant and professional. Take a look at some of them below:
And now… the twist no one saw coming! When we announced we had a Soap Guild ticket to give away, another soaper who couldn’t attend the conference came forward and said she wanted to give her ticket away as well. From the long list of incredible stories, the soaper chose Gates of Burly Stone Soap Co. as the recipient of her ticket. Gates and his partner Maurice make manly (some may even say “burly!”) bars of soap, and although they started making soap only 9 months ago, we all have high hopes for them. Take a look at their soaps below:
Thanks again to everyone who shared their stories with us — we wish we could have given everyone a ticket! The conference isn’t until May, but we’re already excited to hear about Dawn and Gates’ take on all the soapy workshops and presentations. Thanks again to everyone who shared their stories, and congratulations to our winners. Happy soaping!