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I LOVE homemade soap....

Sometime around mid 1998, I ran across a book about making your own soap. Up until that point, it had never even occured to me make my own soap. Grandma made "lye soap" but my mother never seemed to be very impressed with it, so we used whatever was on sale any given week when the grocery shopping was done.  I purchased that book, looked through it, layed it aside.  Total lack of interest.  It stayed on the bookshelf, and was moved with us four times. Then in 2003, another book came into my possession about making herbal body products. For some unknown reason, this book prompted me to drag the soap book off the shelf. After talking with a friend about homemade products, she sent me a link that she had found to a supplier site. This prompted more online research....and as they say....the rest is history! 

The first big lesson learned with this craft was that just because someone writes a book about soap, or posts a soap recipe online doesn't mean that it is good or that they know what they are talking about!  The next lesson learned was to research, research and then research some more because there is something new all the time.

The first batch had me hooked. My initial intent was to use only essential oils for fragrance, but it didn't take long to decide to branch out into the world of fragrance oils....a bar of chocolate scented soap is wonderful!  But whatever the fragrance, the feel of homemade soap and the after effect of soft skin just can't be beat.

  Hobby or Addiction

It's hard to say. It doesn't seem possible to get enough. I am always looking for new fragrances, new oils to use, or new additives. The end result is a good thing, but then there is never a true end, because I am always making one more batch.  My family and friends appreciate this fact, because they reap the rewards of constantly being supplied with a new product to try out for me.

Often times, I consider turning this hobby into a business. The only thing that has prevented that happening to this point is lack of work area space.