Meeting of the Minds

It's almost Friday! I'm really looking forward to attending the Central Soapers Workshop that's happening here this weekend. This is the second year of the workshop, organized and presented by the fabulous Kenna of Modern Soapmaking. I've mentioned Kenna in my blog before...she's a superstar soaper and runs a local full time soap business - a true entrepreneur in our field! I feel so fortunate that this conference is based right here in Kansas City and I'm able to attend. I met a ton of awesome people last year, and this year should be even bigger. Free swag bags and generous prize drawings for all participants, soap labs and business presentations are all part of the weekend.

Maybe - just maybe - some of you could make the trip to good old KC and attend next year's workshop with us...so think about it! I should be able to get some photos to post next week to help tempt you into coming! Plus, you know we've got good BBQ - that should be enough to lure you guys here, right?! :)

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Balancing the Possibilities

Many soapers like myself aren't living the dream of operating a full time soap business. We have other types of work and careers that must remain top priority to pay the bills and keep our families going. Those of us who are taking a shot at soaping as a side business have to squeeze out the extra time for it in rather creative ways. We can't be profitable if we aren't working at it several hours a week. I'd venture to say many of us are in that same boat. I've done alot of thinking this weekend about moving forward in a new marketplace this season, and had another wonderful opportunity offered out of the blue. Lots of exciting things are happening, but this also brings with it a degree of fear and anxiety for me. I have a wonderfully supportive husband, but why do I immediately worry about failing? I swear I have a dozen batches of soap curing right now and lots more already packaged and waiting, but still I fear I "won't have enough"! When I...

Lots of experiments

Today I got the chance to indulge in soaping for most of the day. I did four batches today, using a technique I've never tried before, courtesy of a great Youtube tutorial from SophiasNaturals . She demonstrates an interesting form of thermal transfer that I haven't seen, immediately mixing the lye water into the hard oils until melted. The liquid oils are added after. I used this method for all my soaping today and it seemed to work well. I didn't need to use the stick blender very much at all, which helped me tremendously as I often tend to overmix. I wanted to attempt the "Holly Swirl", which is basically an in the pot swirl done twice. Sorta.. I had a lot of half bottles of fragrances, so I did some custom scent blending, too. It was a day of experimenting. Top: Small batch trying Sweet Cakes "Aria" . I used a some ruby mica for a cute little swirl. It smells so good right now. Middle: This wa...

Gearing up for Market Season

Eucalyptus Spearmint It's finally feeling like spring...in typical Kansas/Missouri fashion, it was 80 degrees on Saturday and dropped to 35 by Sunday night! Nevertheless, the farmers market season is fast approaching - only two more weeks. These babies are curing as we speak and smell out of this world. I've still got to paint my metal display pieces and I should be good to go. I have so many ideas in my head I can't seem to narrow them down to try in real life. Last year was my first experience in the market venue and, while I got lots of compliments on my set up, I'd really like to increase my sales this year. I've heard it said that you should design your market space just as you would in a store or boutique. To me, I think simplicity is the way to go in a market setting. My plan this year is to have one unwrapped bar of each scent displayed up front, and baskets with the packaged...

Sweet Scarlett Soap Co.

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