Kudos to Bramble Berry customer Gigi from Under The Willow for being featured on the Martha Stewart Community Forums homepage! That's a big coup and quite a cause for celebration! Woo-Hoo for Gigi for helping to raise the profile of handmade soap. The best soap supplies on the internet are found at … Continue Reading
Writing a business plan, step one
Writing a business plan is like flossing or forcing yourself to exercise daily. It's good for you. You know it's good for you. It's just not very much fun and has no immediate pay off. The banks like business plans. Investors demand business plans. Supportive families feel better when you have a … Continue Reading
How did they know?
You Are an Iced Coffee You're always on the go... so much so that you can't stop to drink warm coffee Iced coffee is the perfect energy boost for your crazy, hectic life And truth be told, you like your life to be on full throttle You stack activities constantly, so that you never have to … Continue Reading
Bath Bomb Cupcake Redux
Jennifer at Creative Wanderings got inspired by my cupcake experimentsand made some very successful bath bomb cupcakes. Her frosting looks amazing! And the sprinkles are a cheery touch. Thanks for sharing! The best soap supplies on the internet are found at Bramble Berry. Click here to browse … Continue Reading
Palm Oil – A mixed bag
Palm Oil is one of my favorite oils in soapmaking. It contributes to a harder bar and also helps Coconut Oil do its job and lather up big bubbles. Unfortunately, there are some negative repercussions from using Palm Oil to the environment. How can something natural be harmful to the environment? … Continue Reading
Pan Soap Bars
These soaps were made by placing small square soaps in a cookie tray. More details are here. While the photographs are not the best, the soap still turned out delightful. The soaps were cut with a large sharp butcher knife Notice the wrinkle on the bottom right hand corner? That wrinkle is from … Continue Reading
Word Bars!
I made Alphabet Soap last week and have already posted a bit about my forays into the project. Here is the final result of the first bars. This idea would be wonderful for a children's birthday party (thank you Michelle from Blissful Creativity for the suggestion!) or as favors to give away at any … Continue Reading
Essential Oil Safety Guidelines
General Guidelines for working with essential oils - keep away from fire or naked flame - store in a cool place - keep out of sunlight - plastic bottles are a no as they allow the essential oil to evaporate and take on the plastic smell; additionally, plastic bottles generally collapse as they … Continue Reading
Great use of color & stamping
The Chamomile Lavender fragranced soap above is a great use of color and stamping. Irena at Ginger's Garden does a wonderful job mixing color, scent and decorative touches like these adorable dragonfly stamps. The best soap supplies on the internet are found at Bramble Berry. Click here to browse … Continue Reading
Beeswax in Melt & Pour
Often, new soapmakers will be dissatisfied with their melt and pour base - believing it to be too soft or not as long lasting as commercial (detergent based) bars of soap. Adding additional waxes makes intuitive sense. After all, waxes are hard! You would think that extra waxes in your melt and pour … Continue Reading
Alphabet Soap!
Bramble Berry got the cutest mini alphabet soap mold in stock. It will be on the site for sale next week here. The mold is also food grade so you could use it for chocolate as well. I spent 4th of July playing with the mold and designing some fun word projects. I poured regular white melt and … Continue Reading
Did you get burned on the 4th?
If you're like many Americans, you used the wonderful mid-week holiday for sitting in the sun and hanging out with family and friends. If you're like Nicole at Bramble Berry, you also toasted yourself beyond a nice tan and all the way into a red burn. Aloe Vera is a herb for minor burns and cuts. … Continue Reading
Moon Valley gets national press
A big shout out to another local Washington company Moon Valley Bees & Botanicals. There is a significant plug in the February Herbs for Healthmagazine. Their Lotion Bar was featured in the "Product Showcase" along with a full color photo of their packaging and the bar. I bought their Lotion Bar … Continue Reading
Boar Soap
This is one of the more um, realistic bars of soap that I've seen. The mold looks very intricate. Buy your own Boar at Hapaculture. It's a reasonable buy at $7 for 6 oz. The best soap supplies on the internet are found at Bramble Berry. Click here to browse Bramble Berry. Have a question … Continue Reading