Soap Queen

Tutorials on soapmaking, bath fizzies, lotions and more

Tutorials by difficulty level:

Soapy Swap Showoff + a New Swap

Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Soapy Swap. We received some ridiculously fabulous soaps, and I know everyone will be totally soap nerded out upon receiving their Swap packages. It’s been just like Christmas morning around here as the boxes have trickled in this week and last. We had so much fun this go round that we decided to do another swap…details are below. In the meantime, take a look below at a few of the awesome soaps we received for this round:

Like what you see? Don’t miss out on the fun… We’re announcing our August Soap Swap!

If you weren’t able to participate in this Swap, have no fear. We are hosting yet another Swap. This time, soaps aren’t due to our warehouse until August 12th, giving you plenty of time to plan, prepare and create your soaps. We will ship your soaps back out by August 23rd. Here is a quick refresher on how the Soap Swap works:

Anyone can participate in the swap, so if you’re a new soaper don’t worry. Our international friends can participate as well, but just expect to pay a bit more for shipping.

  • Choose from our Bramble Berry fragrance oils and email us at Swap(at)brambleberry(dot)com telling us which ones you’re going to use. Also include whether you are going to make cold process or melt & pour soap. Whatever you send us you’ll get in return, so if you send us cold process, we will send you cold process soap in return.
  • To ensure a good mix of fragrances, only 2 swap participants may use the same fragrance or essential oil from Bramble Berry per batch of soap.
  • You’ll craft 12 bars of soap that are at least 4 oz. each. If you want, you can participate in both MP and CP swaps, just make sure they are “full batches” — twelve 4 oz. bars of each process. Don’t forget to label them with the ingredients you used and your company name or soaping alias. You are welcome to use more than one fragrance or essential oil, either in a blend used in all 12 soaps in your batch or by splitting your batch of 12 soaps in half ie: 6 bars one scent, 6 bars another scent.
  • Soaps are due to our warehouse by August 12, so we highly recommend sending them by Monday, August 5 to ensure they arrive on time. Bramble Berry’s address is:

Bramble Berry Inc. C/O Soap Swap 2138 Humboldt Street Bellingham, WA 98225

  • There is no charge to participate in the swap, but you do have to pay for shipping. To make things easy, all boxes will be shipped at a flat rate of $12.35. To pay, just add the Magical Swap Express item to your cart and checkout! Your swap items will not ship until we have received payment for your shipping.
  • Once you pay for shipping, the rest is up to us! We will ship out your goodies by August 23.

To break it down:

  • To make sure we have a good mix of fragrance examples, we will only allow 2 people to use the same fragrance. We will keep a list at the bottom of this post so you can check and see if your fragrance choice is still available. Fragrance and essential oils allowed will be first come, first serve, so be sure to email us ASAP!
  • If you would like to use two or more scents, please let us know if you are doing a blend or sending multiple batches with each scent. This is extremely important as it determines how many of the Magical Swap Express Items you’ll need to buy.
  • Please send 12 bars of soap that are at least 4 oz. each. It’s no fun to send full size bars and get teensy tiny ones in return.
  • You will receive 12 bars in return of the same soaping process you sent us; so if you send in Melt and Pour, you will get all Melt and Pour bars in return. If you’d like to receive both Melt and Pour and Cold Process, you’ll need to send 12 bars of each process and pay for two shipping fees.
  • Please label your soap with the ingredients you used. Feel free to get crafty with your packaging too! Here are some examples from a past soap swap.

Ready to swap? Sign up here! If you have any questions, email us at swap (at) brambleberry (dot) com! Happy soaping!

Cold Process Fragrances:

# 10x Orange, Hungarian Lavender and Roman Chamomile blend – Alicia A.
A Apricot Freesia – Laurie W.
Apple Jack Peel – Jeanette M.
Anise – Lisa N.
Almond Biscotti – Rachel D.
B Blueberry Fragrance & Lemon Verbena Blend – Traci C.
Berrywine & Bordeaux blend – Kelly N.
Blueberry Fizz – KeMira H.
Black Amber & Lavender and Chipotle Caramel – Susie M.
6 Bonsai – Ronnell L.
Buttercream & Snickerdoodle FO, Peppermint EO and Cinnamon Leaf EO blend – Linda M.
Beau Brummel & Ancient Sedona – Kristie M.
Blackberry Cybilla and Black Tea blend – Nicole W.
Buttercream & Snickerdoodle FO – Heather J.
Bonsai – Stacy
Berrywine – Carrie L.
Black Amber & Lavender – Suzzannemarie B.
C Chamomile Bergamot – Nikki H.
Chocolate Espresso – Carly L.
Cinnamon Sugar – Shannon M.
Crisp Apple Rose – Hilda B. and Tea W. (Fragrance closed)
Cranberry Realistic – Dawn
Celestial Waters – Nyota F.
Crisp Anjou Pear – Catherine W.
Citronella & Lemon Grass – Kayla A.
Chamomile & Bergamot – Flor A.
Chamomile Cybilla – Victoria S.
Chai Tea – Jamie J.
6 Coconut Lemongrass – Megan M.
6 Christmas Forest – Lannette H.
Cucumber Melon– Janet R.
 Christmas Tree – Pam E.
Chocolate & Mint – Jaslind G.
Crisp Apple Rose – Jaslind G.
D Dragon’s Blood – Nikki & Flor A.
Drakkar – Michael C.
Dark Chocolate & Peppermint – Celena
E Energy – Ashley P. & Kayla L. (Fragrance closed)
Exotic Fruit Smoothie – Susan B. & Melissa S. (Fragrance closed)
G Ginger Lime – Heather B.
Ginger Ale – Kersten W. & Megan M. (Fragrance closed)
6 Grapefruit and Tangerine – Lannette H.
Grass Stain – Jody M.
H Herbal Essence – Kelly J. & Liz Read (Fragrance closed)
Hazelnut Toffee – Lisa L. & Elizabth M.
Honeysuckle – Christina M. & Brittney P. (fragrance closed)
I
K Kumquat – Morgan B.
Kentish Rain – Shawna F.
L Lavender, Tea Tree, and Geranium Blend – Dawnia R.
Lavender, Lime
& Blackberry – Leslie C.
Lemon Verbena – Sue S. and Karen P. (Fragrance closed)
Lettuce – KeMira H.
Lime – Nikki H. & Amy B. (Fragrance closed)
Lemon Grass – Maria K.
Lovespell & Lemon EO – Ariane A.
Lemon – Christy B.
6 Lavender Green Tea – Ronnell L.
Lavender & Bergamot blend – Alex R.
Lychee Red Tea – Amy B.
Lavender & Herb – Amanda S.
Lemongrass and Sage Essential Oil – Sandi S.
LoveSpell – Erin C.
M Moonlight Pomegranate – Mary S.
Macintosh Apple and Mango Mango Blend – Dawn W.
Marrakesh – Amy B.
Moroccan Fig – Carol R.
O Oatmeal Stout and Almond Biscotti – Autumn B.
Oatmeal, Milk and Honey – Sheri B.
6 Orange Grove – Jean C.
P Pineapple Cilantro – Holly K.
Pink Grapefruit – Nikki H.
Pinot Grigio – Karen H.
Pumpkin Pie and Chocolate Espresso – Andrea
Plum Tea – Celena
Patchouli – Lori S.
Plumeria – Sophene A. & Heather C. (Fragrance closed)
Pumpkin Lager – Elizabeth M.
Persimmon Pudding – Michelle U.
R Relaxing – Kathy S.
Rise & Shine – Mary S. & Julie V. (Fragrance closed)
Raspberry Porter – Jody P.
Rosehip Jasmine, Ylang Ylang and French Vanilla blend – Kathy M.
S Summer Fling – Gretchen O. & Julie V. (Fragrance closed)
Sweetgrass – Aurora G.
6 Southern Peach – Jean C. & Debbi C. (Fragrance closed)
Sleigh Ride – Abigail T.
T Tomato Leaf & Grass Stain – Teresa F.
Tropical Punch – Marsha F.
V Vanilla Select – Michele L.
Vanilla Select, Dark Rich Chocolate and Cybilla Blackberry blend – Michelle K.
Vetyver – Rachel W.
Vetyver and White Ginger Amber blend – Dawn W.
Vanilla Oak – Alison D.
W Wasabi – Robin S.
White Ginger & Amber – Nancy C. & Heather Folks (Fragrance closed)
White Tea & Ginger and Sandalwood blend – Elizabeth K.

Melt & Pour Fragrances:

Lemon Verbena Yankee Type – Jade H.

B Baby Rose – KeMira H.
Beau Brummel – Toni K.
C Cherry Almond – Jade H.
E Energy – Carly L.
G Ginger Pear – Becca S.
H Herbal Essence – Nikki H.
Hazelnut Toffee – Elizabth M.
L Lettuce – KeMira H.
Lovepsell – Kayla L.
Leather – StacyLemon Verbena – Jade H.
M Moroccan Fig – Carol R.
P Peppermint 1st Distillation – Jasmine
R Rain – Nikki H.
S Strawberry – Marsha F.
T Tangerine & Champagne blend – Jasmine
Tropical Vacation – Laura H.
Tropical Punch – Tea W.
Y Yuzu and 10x Orange – Kelly J.
Like it? Share it!

You may also like these

sunlit-soapThe Final Facebook and Instagram Photo of the WeekearthcaresoapsFacebook and Instagram Photo of the Week (Dec. 17th ~ 23rd)suds-monkey-soap-companyFacebook and Instagram Photo of the Week (Dec. 10th ~ 16th)15047016_1815426438716567_4538013804448972800_nSoapy Social Media Roundupmelange-jolie-llcFacebook and Instagram Photo of the Week (Dec. 3rd ~ 9th)

Become an email subscriber

Enter your email address below and you will receive all our new posts directly in your email inbox.

Previous Post:
Next Post:

48 Comments

  1. Do you know the date of the next swap? Now that I have about 6 months of soaping under my belt I think I am ready to try the swap.
    Thank You
    ML

    • Hi Mary Lou!

      At this time, we do not have a date set for our next soap swap, but be sure to subscribe to the Soap Queen blog so that you can be kept up-to-date of all our swaps, tutorials, recipes and more! =)

      Happy Soaping!
      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  2. Hi Brambleberry Team,
    I just learned about the swap and I am very excited to particpate. I unfortunely dont have the time to make and new batch of cp and have it fully cure so I will have to swap some m&p. I will email the swap email box when I make up my mind. Ugh what to do, what to do? 🙂

  4. Hi! I’m really excited about participating in the August swap. My question is, I make hot process soap (as well as M&P). Can I enter my HP soap?
    Thanks,
    Trill

  5. I pulled my soap swap soap out of the mold this afternoon. The colors are awesome! I blended the lemonade fizzie with a gold mica and got a really cool looking green (who would have thought!) The house smells fabulous with the Herbal Essence fragrance. I must say, it brought back memories of my college days when I had long hair and always looked forward to shampooing with this fragrance. Thanks for the memories!
    Liz

  6. Hi, can I send in cupcake soaps, or should they be bar soaps? Thanks for setting up the swap, I am looking forward to this!

  7. I just made a batch of Guinness Stout Soap and I am really happy with how it turned out. I would like to include it in the soap swap but I did not add a fragrance, I wanted it to have the olive smell of the guinness. Can this soap participate or does it have to have a F.O. or E.O.???

    Thank You

  8. Hi I got a question. i signed up for the august swap, already purchased the swap , but i dont see my name on there. is it going to be updated here or on the facebook page?

  9. I very much want to participate in this swap, though the link to sign up is not working for me. Is there any chance someone could help me so that I can. Thank you.

  10. When do I purchase the magical swap thing-y? This will be my first swap too and want to be sure I do it right. I will email you now with my fragrances. Thanks!

  11. I’ve already started drawing out my design (actually I stopped working and did that, had to remind myself I’m at the office still)

  13. I’ve never done one of these and I’m pretty new to soap-making. Would it be OK to send shampoo bars?

    • Hi Alex,
      Yes, that’s okay! Since you would still be using the cold process technique, we can still count it as “soap.” Just make sure you clearly label them as shampoo bars and you’re good to go.

      -Kirsten with Bramble Berry

  14. Oh, does anyone know any tips on lining up text on a ROUND label. I entered the company name and label size into the Microsoft Word program but after several unsuccessful attempts at proper alignment of text on label I decided to let it rest for then. You’d think I would have kept it simple and bought rectangle shaped labels. Thanks if you have any thoughts!!

    • Hi Sara Jane!

      Getting a round label to work can be a little frustrating, but your program should have an tutorial for the alignment tool that would allow you to get it just right. I’d also suggest asking at the Teach Soap Forums to see if any of the soapmakers there have experience with round labels and are willing to give you some tips.

      Teach Soap Forums: http://www.teachsoap.com/forum/

      I hope this helps! 🙂
      -Becky with Bramble Berry

      • I use round labels as well and heres the trick…

        Purchase round Avery brand labels at office max or staples or any store that sells office supplies. Once you do that, go to avery.com and u can set up a profile and enter the product number of the labels you purchased. At that point you can use a pre-made template or type your own text and upload pctures. Designsd can be saved for future use as well, which is why u need a profile. The software on the website will shrink to fit and when you r typing, you can type around the inside of the label or in a box in the middle of the label. I use it all the time and it works great. If you dont use avery labels, u can still print but check the dimensions of the labels and correspond them with labels of your own. I usuallly use the 2 inch diameter labels. Hope this helps!

    • I have a software program I bought called printshop. It allows you to enter the diameter of the label or create your own according to what you have or what you may cut out. Once that’s set it has lines to guide you. Printshop.com.

  15. Well, I would like to participate again and make cold process soap this round…..maybe; let me think about it. And, I would hope to have all the soaps fit in the shrink wrap wrappers so I don’t have to add baggies to cover that look so sad. And, hope I will figure out how to get the ingredients list to center and fit on the round labels I purchased. Then I won’t have to use photo mount to glue ingredients list to the back of business card. This lat swap was definitely a test run on wrapping and getting the labels right. This is a perfect motivator for me though to stay persistent and keep working to get it better. Plus I love looking at all the soaps!! Awesome!!

    • Hi Sara Jane!

      We can’t wait for you to get started on this soapy swap and will be waiting eagerly to see what your looks like. Keep us updated on your progress. Happy Soaping! 🙂

      -Becky with Bramble Berry

  16. Woohoo! Another swap! Thank you so much for setting this one up early – I know what FO’s I want to use, but it takes me forever to decide on a design/additions/packaging!

    • He he I totally understand – inspiration overload right? =) I’m totally excited for the next swap, if it’s anything like this one it’s going to be a home run!

      -Kristen with Bramble Berry

  17. Wow, those are some gorgeous soaps! And I’m so psyched to see my soap included in the collage! I’m glad that they made the trip okay. I can’t wait to get my swap box! Thanks again for hosting the swap, Team Bramble Berry!

  18. Hello Anne-Marie !

    I would like to participate but I think it’s dificult for me because I’m in Spain and transoceanic shipping is too expensive.
    If I understand correcty, there are three shipments. One for costs of purchasing chosen fragance, another by sending you my bars, and another by sending me swap soaps, isn’t it?

    • Hi Lidia,

      You’re correct regarding the shipping costs involved. I totally understand that international shipping can be cost prohibitive but sure hope you’ll be able to still participate in the swap! Let us know if you have any further questions =)

      -Kristen with Bramble Berry

  19. Dumb question… You send 12 and then get back 12?
    if you send M&P, do you only get back M&P? I fell stupid because I’m not understanding exactly how this swap works.. I am so sorry. I would like to participate. I have a great M&P soap I do for summer that I would consider submitting.. It sounds like fun..Maybe?

    • Hi Laurelle,

      Yep, you send in 12 soaps and receive 12 soaps in return. If you send Melt and Pour, you will receive all Melt and Pour. You should definitely sign up for if you can! We’d love to see your awesome soaps =) And don’t hesitate to let us know if you have any other questions – you can always comment here or send an email to swap(at)brambleberry(dot)com.

      -Kristen with Bramble Berry

Trackbacks

  1. […] I love participating in swaps! They not only help me get ideas for packaging and product design, but also allows me to try out the skin feel of oils and butters that I may not have considered using before. So, when I saw that Brambleberry was doing a soap swap for August I thought I would sign up! You can find out all about the swap here: Brambleberry Soap Swap […]