Ian Terry of the Soapmaking Forum is actively seeking tutorials for the sister site SMF Tutorials in the following categories:
I gave him permission to use my “How to Make Goat’s Milk Soap” tutorial from this blog. In return, he has included a link to my website and blog, and added a banner. If you are interested in submitting a tutorial, you can contact Ian.
Check out this endorsement of Great Cakes Soapworks Cinnamon Bun Coffee Soap and Vanilla Latte lip butter:
Are you on Facebook? Are you a fan of Great Cakes Soapworks? Well, guess what! I just created a fan page on Facebook for Great Cakes Soapworks! If you would like to make your fan-ship (is that a word?) official, please scroll down and click the button on the right sidebar of the blog itself that says “Become a Fan” under the Networking section. You might notice a big blue bird inviting you to follow me on Twitter as well. If you follow me, I will follow you! I’m still learning my way around the Tweet Deck, so if you have any Twitter advice, let me know!
That’s all for now. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
#5: Aromatherapy
There are two ways to scent a handmade soap – naturally with essential oils, or synthetically with fragrance oil. Very few store-bought soaps are scented with essential oils. Natural essential oils have various properties that can affect your mood and can truly be therapeutic. Lavender, for example, is universally known for its calming effect. I blended mint and eucalyptus essential oils for a Stress Relief soap. Customers say it actually works!
“I absolutely love the Stress Relief soap because it really does help relieve the stress in your life. The smell is so refreshing. I love all your soaps, but this is my favorite.”
-Tracie C., Olathe, KS
#4: Serves multiple purposes
Cleans your skin AND:
Removes odors (Coffee soap)
Naturally repels mosquitoes and other bugs (Bug Off soap)
Controls oily patches (Clarifying Facial soap)
Dries up poison ivy or poison oak (Old-Fashioned Lye soap)
#3: It doesn’t irritate sensitive skin
Let’s face it. Skin allergies are prevalent. My older daughter fights excema on the backs of her knees and the insides of her elbows every winter. I visit with lots of people at the local farmer’s market. Many of them tell me they have sensitive skin and can’t use regular soap. I always advise them to start with the Creamy Castile soap – a fragrance free, pure olive oil and goat’s milk soap. The fewer the ingredients, the less likely to have a reaction.
“I have the most super-sensitive skin, which is now dry. Almost all soaps and creams break out my skin, even after using them only once. Over my lifetime, I have probably tried over a 100 products that irritate, break out my skin and clog my pores. I have been using Great Cakes Soapworks soaps for several years now. I can’t live without the Creamy Castile Soap. I use it for my facial soap and use the scented bars in the bath.” – Nancy H., Lenexa, Kansas
#2: It moisturizes your skin
Store-bought soaps tend to be drying. I used to have such itchy, dry skin before I switched to handmade soap. I couldn’t believe how soft and moisturized my skin felt after showering with handmade soap! Why is that? Well, the simple answer is the glycerin that is found in handmade soap. Glycerin is a humectant, which is a substance that helps your skin retain moisture.
“I have struggled with extremely dry skin all my life. I felt like I had tried everything under the sun from home remedies to the advice of dermatologists as well as a couple of allergy specialists. I believed I’d spend the rest of my life with giant claw marks on my legs and arms because I would scratch in my sleep. Now that I’ve started using your handmade soaps, I no longer fight dry skin!”
– Sheila D., Lenexa, Kansas
#1: To avoid the chemical-laden cleansers
Shower gels are the worst for packing in the artificial foaming agents and other nasty ingredients. It’s not even soap! Check the labels. The following common ingredients may irritate your skin: sodium lauryl sulfate, sodium laureth sulfate, Cocamide Dea, DMDM Hydantoin, and many others. Check the Skin Deep database to find out whether the ingredients in your current cleanser could possibly be irritating or even toxic.
I’ve been exploring some information about what substances actually penetrate our skin – both the good and the bad. You can find out how I started on this journey by reading my ponderings about how much the skin absorbs and the comments I’ve received. This topic will continue to be explored, and I’m anxious to hear your feedback on the subject!
Peppermint Soap
Just to let you know what’s going on in my world! My brain is usually spinning about this time of year as I think about gearing up for the farmer’s market and another busy season selling soap. I’m going to address my soapmaker friends in this post to see who is thinking like I am.
How many of you are wondering which new scents to make, how many different scents to offer at one time, or how many of each soap to make?
Or how about which new products to pursue, and how to better market the ones you already make? What is your best selling product other than soap?
What are your best marketing ideas?
What are you doing to promote your business on the internet?
Here are my thoughts:
1. I have about 10-11 soaps that I like to keep in stock at all times, with about 3-4 that are seasonal and return every year.
2. As my business has grown, I have doubled the amount of soap in each batch of these stocked soaps.
3. I usually have about 20 different soaps available at a time. (Is this too many?)
4. I find that soap is by far the best selling product that I make, but I can’t imagine my business without lotions, shea butter, lip butters, and bug off products. Even though the bug off products are seasonal, they are no doubt the second best selling products.
5. I have been promising a facial moisturizer to my customers for many months. This would be my new product for this year.
6. I am thinking about how to get more links to my web store. Several of my friends have linked to it from their blogs or websites – THANK YOU!! If anyone else wants to link to my store, please let me know!
7. Getting testimonies and referrals from existing customers are wonderful!
Ok, so I entered a contest among soapmakers for the “Best Swirled Soap”. There are 49 entries, and I must say there are some extremely talented and creative soapmakers out there. The winner’s soap photo will be featured on the front cover of the next issue of “The Saponifier”, an online magazine for soapers. I don’t expect to win this contest, but if you would like to be a part of the action, and see some really beautiful soaps, you are welcome to go vote. The polls are open until Friday, January 30th. If you know my soaps, you will recognize my entry right away. 
Click here to see the entries and place your vote.
Update: If you tried to vote for my soap, but couldn’t, the problem has been fixed! Saponifier is offering a free Holiday Gift Guide for re-voting!!
Well, subscribers, I’m sort of assuming that you like my blog. You wouldn’t have subscribed if you didn’t! Great Cakes Soapworks recently joined a network called Blogged. The editor has rated my blog at an 8. I would love to receive feedback from you as well! Please visit Blogged and click on the large orange button that says “review this blog”. You can rate it on a scale of 1-10, and/or leave comments. Thanks for participating! I look forward to hearing what you have to say!
Great Cakes Soapworks has been featured in the November issue of 435 South Magazine! It’s a local magazine with articles and information about dining, fashion, shopping and event resources for southern Johnson County, Kansas. The editor found my website a few weeks ago and requested some pictures. They have also featured several other local bath and body companies, including Indigo Wild, which was started by Emily Voth at a farmer’s market much like I started my business, only hers is now a factory in Kansas City with 12 full-time and 30 part-time employees, and featured in national press magazines like Lucky, Shape, W, and Maxim. She’s been in business about seven years longer than I have, so this is pretty inspiring!
Apparently the 435 South Magazine is distributed to certain neighborhoods in the area, but not mine. I was able to get a copy from a friend in Overland Park who receives them in the mail. They claim to have a readership of 75,000. I feel so honored to get this bit of free advertising! Unfortunately their website is currently being re-designed, so you can only see the front cover of the current issue.