Carmen of Earths Raw Beauty has been soaping for less than a year, but you would never know it by the number of techniques she has mastered. I first stumbled on her colorful soap on the #SoapShare tag on Instagram, and was in awe of her abilities. Each soapy design showcases a different technique, whether it be her precise layers, perfect rainbow hues or skillful swirls. If there is one consistent factor in Carmen’s soap of Earths Raw Beauty, it is that each each bar is completely distinct. Read on to find out more about Carmen, including how she got started soaping and her unique method of using goat milk. -A.M.
Carmen’s beautiful Spectrum Bits Cold Process Soap, scented with bergamot and white tea.
How long have you been soaping for and how did you get started?
I’ve been soaping for 7 months now. To be more precise it’s been 7 months and 2 weeks and I’m looking forward to many, many more. Every time I get asked this question I answer “Texas did it to me!” and it’s true! I was in Texas for a week at the end of July last year and I swear, there was something in the air. I actually started off by making skin care products in March of last year. Soap was never on my mind. While in Texas, during my very first day, I found myself watching soap making videos. Don’t ask me how I started watching them because I seriously have no idea. I just remember being fascinated by the action of a stick blender going through the melted oils and lye solution. Even now I could watch someone stick blend soap for 10-15 minutes.
Most soap makers started because they wanted a natural solution, or they wanted to give homemade gifts. I started because I was fascinated by a stick blender in action. Little did I know that the stick blender was only the beginning of the magic. I spent that entire week in the hotel room reading and watching videos about soap making. I watched all the Soaping101 and Soap Queen TV videos, and I read as much as I could. Then I ordered a silicone mold and lye from Amazon because I wanted to make sure I had them in my mail box when I got home. I got home on July 31st (yes, I remember because it’s the first day I ever made soap) at 7 p.m., and as soon as I got home I made my very first batch of soap. It was all it took for me to fall in love with soap, especially after I cut the first slice. I’ve been hooked since.
What sort of advice would you give to those soapers just starting their businesses?
When it comes to business I can’t really give any advice, I have a lot to learn in that department. It’s been less than 8 months since I made my first batch, therefore I didn’t start selling until 2 months ago. For now I sell on Etsy, and of course to my friend’s friends and their friends, the word of mouth spreads really fast.
Left to right: Rainbow Cold Process Soap, Balanced Energy Natural Soap
What is your favorite type of product to make?
Now this is a very easy question. I make all kinds of skin care products: salves, butters, balms, creams, lotions, scrubs, bath bombs (my worst enemy), etc. By far, cold process soap is my favorite product to make.
What inspires you to create?
Most of the time I get ideas out of nowhere; like while I’m doing dishes, cleaning soap, or while packaging soaps. A lot of my ideas also come to me while I sleep. It might sound weird, but a lot of my designs are from my dreams. I know, I know what you’re thinking but let me assure you, they are real dreams not hallucinations. 😉 I guess the soaping muse loves Vegas nights because she keeps visiting me, haha.
Nature also inspires me. Birds, insects, animals, plants, trees, water, they all inspire me. I also get inspired by soaps made by other soap artists, there’s so much beauty out there. I love going through #soapshare on Instagram, it’s like I’m visiting an art museum.
Carmen’s stunning Moon Bloomed Cold Process Soap. Her layers are so straight and crisp!
How did you come up with the name for your business?
Sophie is my friend’s 4-year-old daughter and she’s the most beautiful child I’ve ever seen. She has an angelic beauty, white almost translucent skin, green eyes and a heart shaped little mouth. Her face has a unique brightness and I always called her Raw Beauty. When I started making skin care products I wanted to use what earth provides us with as much as I could. I use lots of plants, dry flowers, roots, etc. So I combined Earth with Raw Beauty (Sophie’s nickname) and I came up with Earths Raw Beauty. I like it because the initials form ERB, which is pronounced like “herb,” something I use a lot to infuse my oils. And secretly, I wish my products would make everybody’s skin look like Sophie’s skin if I called them the same name I call Sophie. Well, that was a joke, but wouldn’t that be nice?
Your soapy designs are so creative and beautiful! How do you think of your designs? What advice do you have for other soapers looking to experiment with new techniques?
Thank you! As you can see from my Instagram page, I love colors and layered soaps. I also love using more than one technique in a soap. There are plenty of colors and techniques, so the sky is the limit.
Don’t be afraid to try new techniques even if they seem impossible to achieve. Believe me, none of them are impossible and all of them can be achieved by any soap maker. If you don’t have a one pound mold, consider any small plastic container and attempt new techniques in small batches. Also consider using 25/35/40 coconut oil, lard, and canola oil if you don’t want to waste good expensive oils. Not only that, lard and canola oil are cheap but they make a pretty good bar of soap, ask me how I know. 😉
Top left, clockwise: Lucky You Cold Process Soap, Winter Landscape Cold Process Soap, Sweet & Juicy Cold Process Soap, Rise and Shine Cold Process Soap
Your Instagram page features lots of lovely photos. What tips do you have for taking product photos on Instagram?
Oh, boy! I was hoping I wouldn’t have to give out my picture taking secrets. I’m lucky enough to have a very sophisticated photo lab consisting of 3 vital components: natural light in the back yard, an old white satin sheet, and my very old “first edition” iPad. But with a lot of movement on my part, positioning and re positioning the soaps in different angles and lots of screen shots I always manage to take a decent picture.
What is your favorite Bramble Berry product and why?
Now this is not fair! You cannot limit me to just one product. The best I could do is list two, one of which is fragrance oil. When it comes to fragrance oils I need to mention three. I can’t let myself run out of Energy Fragrance Oil, Made to Measure Fragrance Oil, and Orange Peel Cybilla Fragrance Oil. They soap beautifully and the scent lasts forever. I have bars made with these fragrance oils 6 months ago and they still smell like when I made them. The other product is the Hanger Swirl Tool, I just love how the length can be adjusted.
Left to right: House of Hearts Cold Process Soap, Spectrum Goats Milk Cold Process Soap
Tell us something unusual or unique about yourself!
Seriously, there’s nothing unique about me, I’m just a regular person. I can only see one thing that may be unusual about me, unusual to others but not to me. I sometimes watch TV while sitting in the splits position. I’m very flexible for my age and I don’t mind revealing that I’m 44 years young. 😉 I also do handstands every day, I go upside down a few times during the day. Maybe the frequent rush of blood flow to my brain explains some of my soap inspirations, haha.
What are some of your other hobbies and interests?
Honestly, I did not have a hobby before I started soaping. I had many interests like reading, hiking, yoga, flying trapeze, gymnastics, acrobatics, and obstacle running, but not a hobby.
What is your number one soaping tip?
Nobody can make soap without lye, but I cannot make soap without lye and goats milk. All of my soaps are made with fresh goats milk (not powder). I often get asked how my goat milk soaps are so white. I experimented a lot with goats milk; after so many experiments my goat milk goes to the oils, it does not get mixed with the lye. I always have 1:1 lye solution ready. Then I substitute the remaining quantity of water the recipe asks for with goats milk and add it to the oils before mixing the lye in (I soap at room temperature). I just don’t like the idea of lye directly interacting with the precious goats milk, even if it’s frozen. It saves not just time, but also protects the milk from going from one extreme temperature to another too many times. So, my tip for those who make soap with milk would be to mix the milk with oils instead of mixing it with lye or with the lye solution.
Top left, clockwise: Rainbow Lily Cold Process Soap, Dragon Fruit Goat Milk Soap, Christmas Sweetness Cold Process Soap, Persephone Cold Process Soap
Have you ever experienced a horrible soapy fail? How did you work through it, and what did you learn?
Of course, haha! It was about 3-4 weeks after I started soaping and the first time I used a fragrance oil. It was Bramble Berry’s Celestial Waters, but that wasn’t the cause of my soap fail. I live in Las Vegas and it gets over 110 ° F during the summer. I cut my nicely swirled blue soap and took it outside for a photo session, all 10 bars got nicely aligned side by side on a chaise lounge. I took the picture and it got posted on Instagram, the usual soapy ritual. Maybe a couple hours later I went outside and I noticed a pretty blue puddle on the chaise lounge. I forgot to take the soap inside and the sun melted it, I almost cried. But, I used 2 oz of Celestial Waters and I couldn’t let that get wasted. I ran inside, I grabbed the mold, scooped as much soap as I could and threw it back in the mold. Next day I cut it again and it looked just fine, the swirls weren’t as defined as the first time but it was nice and smooth and smelled fantastic. I still have a bar and I think I will keep it forever. What did I learn? That a “Sun Milled Soap” can be just as good as a French Milled Soap. 😉
Sea Spell Goats Milk Cold Process Soap, featuring gorgeous swirls, layers and embeds.
What do you love most about creating bath and body products?
The freedom of individualizing each product with different ingredients and scents. And of course seeing the final product, especially the soap. This craft feeds my soul and I’m so happy I can create products other people can enjoy and benefit from.
Find Earths Raw Beauty
On Etsy
On Instagram
Love Carmen’s soap, so beautiful and clearly crated by a very talented lady.
As a result I am inspired to try and be a little more adventurous.
I have co fused myself a little though, reading through. Am I correct in assusming that the lye is mixed with a little water first as the goats milk is added to the oil? So the total weight of fluid is a combination of both?
Sorry if I seem a bit daft, I’ve only tried using goats milk that I’ve frozen first and added to lye over ice. The top of my soap cracked
Hi Jacqueline!
We love her soap too! Also, that is correct. Carmen mixes her lye with her water (a 1:1 ratio), then adds the goat milk to the oils. The milk and water make up the total liquid amount in the batch. So she’s not adding a full amount of water and then additional goat milk. That way the batch isn’t too wet. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Wow! Very inspiring!
We just love her work! 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
How DO you get the lines soooo straight? Mine always look like little landscape soaps…not bad, but just not straight, like yours. I love the “cupcake” with hearts and roses, so pretty!! Truly talented. Maybe, there’s hope for me, I just started about 3 months ago….
Thank you so much Andrea!! I have a tutorial on how to achieve straight lines in CP, I don’t keep anything secret 🙂
Just check out the making of Lucky 13 on my blog.
Her lines are amazing! 🙂
The Making of Lucky 13 Soap: http://www.earthsrawbeauty.com/the-making-of-lucky-13/
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Oh my gosh! Talk about naturally talented! What beautiful work. I can see she’s a fellow rainbow lover!!
Thank you Debbie!! I sure love rainbows! And unicorns….
She is so talented, we just love her work! 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Well so much for the “conventional wisdom” to wait a year or more before selling your soaps!! LOL! Carmen is AMAZING and such an encouragement to the diaper community! Thank you so much for sharing with us!!!!
You’re welcome Sherry! We were really excited to talk with Carmen and share her work. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I have a question for Carmen ( actually 2 questions). How do you prevent overheating of your soap when you mix the goats milk in the oils? I know you said that you soap at room temp but I tried that technique once and had terrible overheating. Do you always refrigerate or freeze your soap? Also, using the oils you mentioned, have you ever had a problem with dreaded orange spots? Your soaping talents are amazing for having only been doing it 7 months! You’re a natural!!!
Hi Vicki!
I’ve used the oil in milk method (where you add the milk to the oils instead of the lye) for almost a decade, and I’ve never had a problem with overheating, but I do keep the soap cool and don’t gel. I rarely refrigerate the soap, but in the winter, I put the soap in a closet that is around 50 F, and in the warmer months, I put my soap on top of my floor vents with the AC going. This prevents gel which can cause overheating or partial gel in goat’s milk soaps. I also use honey in all my soaps and silicone molds, so it can get hot, but this keeps it from gelling. Some soapers also use a fan blowing over their soaps to prevent gel. In addition to your to your oils and milk being a room temp, you will also need to make sure your lye-water is at room temp. I master batch my lye ahead of time so it’s already at room temp. Lovinsoap.com has a great tutorial on Milk in the oil method of making milk soap.
http://www.lovinsoap.com/2013/02/the-classic-oatmeal-goats-milk-and-honey-cold-process-soap-milk-in-oil-method/
If you don’t use any oils with a short shelf life, you shouldn’t have a problem with DOS. I’ve used avocado, olive, shea butter, canola, castor, cocoa butter, and palm for years with out any problem. I also add .5% of NATURAL Vitamin E oil to all of my batches since I superfat between 6%-8%, and I’ve got bars that are 7 years old with no DOS yet. I’ve kept them around to see if they ever develop any DOS, and so far nothing.
Hope this helps! 🙂
Heather
Hi Vicki!
Heather has some great tips – thanks for sharing!
To keep the soap from overheating, you can pop it in the fridge or freezer for 5-24 hours. You can also keep it in a cool room, like a garage or basement. That will keep it nice and cool. 🙂
Read more about working with milk in this post: http://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/tips-and-tricks/how-to-add-lye-to-milk-for-cold-process-soap/
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Thanks so much Heather for the detailed reply, I’m thinking I will try this method again now!
Hi Vicky,
All of my goats milk soaps also contain sugar, besides goats milk I add 1 tablespoon of sugar/ppo in every single batch. I warm up the goats milk and add the sugar to it mixing until it dissolves before adding it to the oils. If I had made the soaps this way when I first started I would have run somewhere with an industrial size freezer. I was so scared of the overheating I used to read about. Not anymore because I actually gel all of my soaps now and I had two batches out of over 200 that had a little bit of cracking on top from heating up. I preheat my oven at 170 degrees and all of my goats milk soaps (with added sugar) go in the oven right after the pour, no exception. I do turn the oven off after the soap goes in but the heat stays for a while anyways. Since I started
doing this my colors are more vibrant, I can always cut 8-12 hours after pouring (the best part!!) and I never had partial gelling in my soaps like I used to get with refrigeration.
As far as DOS it’s impossible for me to give an answer. I have a bar or sliver of every batch of soap I made since I started soaping and so far no one develop DOS. But my oldest soap is only 8 months so I don’t know what will happen in the future.
Thanks for sharing your tips Carmen! 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I’ve been soaping for two years and I make a batch almost every weekend and I make 200 additional bars during Christmas and my soaps, nice though they are, are not this good! I love the circular soap with the outer ring and I am planning to do a variation of that this weekend. I got the idea from the confetti soap in your last post and I am going to do a pastel color theme with an outer solid ring for the gals and a tan and buttery yellow confetti with an outer black ring for the guys. I don’t like social media so I certainly wish we could post pictures here. Do you think your IT department could make that happen?
I’ll tell everybody how the two confetti circular soaps went next week
I agree! I don’t have Facebook or Twitter or any of these social medial outlets where you have to make an account, and there are so many hashtags and sites out there. You can’t even look on Pinterest unless you have an account. I know BB has a Facebook site, but I don’t know the first thing about how/where to post stuff there, and again, I’m sure you have to be on Facebook to use it. No big deal to me really, I’m not marketing my products, I’m happy being “urban Amish” and not using it. I don’t even have a cell phone 🙂 . But, BB will tell you they are a social media company so, that’s just how it is.
Thanks so much for your suggestion James! I’ll pass it along to our blog designer.
You can email your photos to us if you like. We’d love to see them! Our email is info (at) brambleberry (dot) com. There are also image sharing sites, like Imgur and Flickr. You can post your photos on there and it gives you a link you can share on our blog. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
So happy to see this! Carmen is my favorite on Instagram too!! All the soaps are amazing!! And I love how helpful she always is- I just asked about her goats milk technique the other day and she generously shared her tips. Great job!!
Her Instagram page is so beautiful! Thanks for reading Martina. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Awhhh….thank you Martina! You are always so sweet!
OMG YES bath bombs will be the death of me!!!
I’ve definitely had some frustrating bath bomb days myself! This post has some tips to make the process go a little easier though: https://www.soapqueen.com/bath-and-body-tutorials/bath-bomb-questions-answers/
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I actually had success using your recipe! I only make bath bombs for friends and I only use your recipe. Thanks for sharing it!!
You’re welcome Carmen! So glad to hear that. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I LOVE how Carmen’s soaps look!! I follow her on Instagram and I wanted to like every picture so bad but I didn’t want to seem like a crazy lady 😛
Your soaps are so creative and luscious looking. Great job!! I can’t wait to see what you have in store for us next!
I just love her Instagram page, it’s so beautiful! 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Thank you Brittany! I love the likes I get on Instagram, don’t be afraid to seem like a crazy lady 😉
I strongly believe every woman needs a little bit of craziness :))
i knew it! it’s the only way I use raw goat milk:( and I’ve been trying for a while to “convert” some of my Romanian fellow soapers 😉 to give it a go☺ I’ve just shared this Carmen! can’t wait to see what you create next☺
It’s such a good goat milk tip, I can’t wait to try it! Thanks so much for reading and sharing. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I’m a “full breed” Romanian, hahaha. So now at least 2 Romanians use the goats milk mixed with oils 😉
Thank you so much Ann Marie and entire Bramble Berry team for this opportunity. I still can’t believe it!
You’re welcome Carmen! Thanks for sharing your work with us. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I absolutely love Carmen’s soaps. My favourites are Moon Bloomed and Lucky 13, the straight layers are fantastic and she is definitely a master at that. I follow Carmen on instagram and always blown away by her soapy creations. Fab!!!
Thank you, Carolyn! I admire your work very much!!!
Oh my gosh, the Lucky 13 soap is so amazing! The layers are so crisp and clean. I totally agree Carolyn, her creations are stunning. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
Lucky 13 Soap: https://www.instagram.com/p/BB6VRjvly7i/
Just breathtakingly beautiful! You’ve inspired me! Can I jut say “You go girl!”
That means a lot to me! Thank you so much!!!
Agreed, her work is stunning!
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry
I LOVE Carmen’s work! I always save pictures of soaps that inspire me and that I find to be beautiful, ingenious, and artistic. It’s no surprise that a number of those soap photos have turned out to be hers! I can hope to be as accomplished when I grow up ☺
Thank you so much, Michael!!
We love her work too! I love checking her Instagram page to see the new soapy technique she has tried. 🙂
-Kelsey with Bramble Berry