2011 Central NY Soapmakers Gathering

Posted on August 21, 2011 by Rose

On Saturday, July 30th 2011, 30 bath and body company owners from all parts of New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts got together in near the Binghamton area for the annual Central New York (CNY) Bubbles and Blazes Gathering. This all-day gathering held every year at a chosen destination gives owners like me a chance to meet and discuss shop, network and make new friends in the bath and body industry. For me, it was my first time and I was excited months before the date.

We were met by our gracious hostess Maria Gelnett of Soap Studio Brookside and were treated to vendor bags full of great samples from various bath and body suppliers.

We were able to participate in a product swap – which was fabulous! I participated and went home with 17 different bath and body goodies! There was a mixture of different types of soaps, creams, hair products, dream pillows and scrubs just to name a few.

CNY Product Swap

In addition, some of us participated in a Yankee swap also. It was actually my first time and it was so much fun. I went home with a brand new crockpot

– perfect for making larger batches of hot process soap! Some of the goodies scored included: mud bath kit, gourmet oils, and gift cards to fine restaurants.

Demos shown were: how to make felted soap, the latest craze – column swirling, and making whipped cold process soap.

Everyone participated in a potluck and so we were treated to some amazing cuisine from our colleagues including lavender water which I absolute fell in love with.

Door prizes were awarded to every single attendee. I received a jug of grapeseed oil! I love using that oil in toiletries. And also, raffle for great prizes were awarded to 4 very lucky people. I wasn’t one of them – but next year!

If all that wasn’t heavenly enough all attendees were encouraged to bring soapmaking tools for the garage sale. I scored a few things as I couldn’t pass up the deeply discounted wares.

I made some amazing new friends, reunited with colleagues including my first soapmaking instructor The Handmade Soap Coach who did the demo on whipped cold process soap. Of which I must try of course! and learned a great deal more about the art of making bath and body products.

CNY 2011 Gathering

Needless to say I am clearing my calendar already for next year. If you are interested in learning more about the gathering or the group please visit their site Central New York Soapmakers.

Become a member, participate in the discussions, make new friends and learn so much from them.

New Soaps for April

Posted on March 31, 2011 by Rose

On the Curing Rack!

We have two soaps on the curing rack that will be ready for end of April and will be listed at www.brooklynbath.etsy.com shortly.

Zen Green Tea Handcrafted Soap

Ingredients: Distilled Water, Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, Hemp Seed Oil and Apricot Kernel Oil.

4 oz bar/$5.00 per bar

What makes this soap different from other soaps I’ve made in the past? We used apricot kernel oil -a light oil that is good for dry skin; hemp seed oil – a lovely oil in soaps that yields moisturizing qualities to dry skin.

Ready: 4/15/11
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Lavender Breeze Handcrafted Soap

Lavender Breeze

Ingredients: Olive Oil, Distilled Water, Palm Oil, Coconut Oil and Castor Oil

4 oz bar/$5.00 per bar
(the bars are slightly larger than the usual ones so you get more soap!)

A bestseller every single month! Enjoy the soothing and calm scent of lavender in your bath.

Ready: 4/24/11

Our Ingredients

Posted on February 17, 2011 by Rose

As BrooklynBath is growing with its product line I figured I should take some time to explain what are some of the ingredients that I like to use and why.
Through the course of learning and product development I have learned about different vegetable and fruit oils, their properties and how they can contribute to beautiful skin! One of the natural by-products of handcrafted soap is that glycerin is retained in the soap. Glycerin is a humectant that helps attract moisture to the skin. In commercial soaps glycerin is a commodity. It is extracted from the soap manufacturing process and used in other body products such as lotions.
Here are my base oils that I use for making soap:

1. Coconut Oil – provides a fluffy lather to soap. It’s high in lauric acid which is also found in human milk (breast). It is highly praised as a “natural skin conditioner” as it easily penetrates skin and hair follicles.

2. Palm Oil – I like using palm oil because it provides the “hardness” that I need in a bar of soap. We use sustainable palm oil.

3. Olive Oil – not just for cooking! Olive oil has been known to have moisturizing properties. It is widely used in skin and hair products.

4. Castor Oil – a multi-purpose oil that is used in such a variety of different things. I like using castor oil because it gives my soap “extra” bubbles.

These oils alone make a great bar of soap. Personally, I barely use lotion after my shower now that I use handmade soap with the oils listed above. My skin feels less dry and much smoother.

From time to time I do add an extra oil such as sweet almond oil, mango butter, avocado oil, etc. for a super luxurious bar. Keep tuned! I will come out with some of these luxurious bars of soap soon enough.

Cold Process Soap

Posted on October 27, 2009 by Rose

Today I embarked on a new journey in my soapmaking venture. I made my first batch of cold process soap. What is cold-process soap?

Pineapple Delight

Cold-process is the saponification of vegetable oils or animal fats with lye and water. The process has a cure time of about 4- 6 weeks and the end result of this process is a pure-made soap with glycerin (humectant) as its by-product. Glycerin helps to attract moisture and helps the skin retain it.

I was very excited to experiment with my first batch as I my skin truly understands what a difference using handcrafted soap is versus a commercial bar of soap. Nothing is better than rewarding one of the most vital parts of your body. Soapmakers take a considerable amount of time and effort to create handcrafted soaps. Their love for this craft is clearly shown in the outcome of the beautifully created handcrafted soaps produced and its homely goodness only one can experience with them.

My first batch took a couple of hours to make since I wanted to make sure I took my time and fully comprehend my instructions. I prepared myself prior to making this batch by pouring over reference materials (see below for links) on the soap-making process. Taking a course in Handcrafting Soaps & Lotion Making with La Shonda Tyree – The Handmade Soap Coach helped me a lot (I’m a visual-learner).

I took full precautions when handling Lye by using safety gloves, goggles and a face mask and I still kept my gloves on throughout the whole process. I used a combination of palm oil, coconut oil, olive oil and castor oil to make my soap.

I finished my soap with using an Iced Pineapple fragrance oil (an essential oil can also be substituted for anyone allergic to fragrance oils). I also incorporated a swirl pattern on my soap to give it an appealing visual effect.

Overall, I was very pleased with my first batch and can’t wait to make future batches in time for the Holidays!

References: