Lemon Provence - Pure Essential Soap

Here is the second of the new Pure Essential Soap collection - Lemon Provence.  This soap is made with Sweet Almond & Golden Olive Oils, Oat Milk, Manuka Honey, Kaolin Clay, Colloidal Oatmeal, Cocoa Butter & Pure Silk.  The colour comes from a little Tumeric which makes a lovely buttery yellow. 

I made my own Oatmilk for this ... I took 4 cups of distilled water and 1 cup of organic Irish oatflakes and they sat, soaking, all night.  The next day, I liquidised them together until they made a milk.  I was going to sieve the milk to remove the oats but they were so finely mixed in that I decided to use them in the soap.  It makes the soap very slightly exfoliating.  I also love the little flecks the oats leave in the soap.  The only thing I'd say about using full oatmilk for your soaps is that the lye doesn't mix in well with it - at my first mix, the lye clumped into very hard lumps so that had be carefully disposed of.  For this soap, I made a 50/50 lye solution with distilled water and then used the oatmilk for the additional liquid values.. that worked perfectly.

Manuka Honey is a well known skin loving ingredient with anti-bacterial properties, Kaolin Clay is perfect for all types of skin especially sensitive and dry skin types and colloidal oatmeal just adds to the goodness the organic oats brings to the party.

The soap is fragranced with our own essential oil blend of lemony May Chang & soothing French
Lavender with a drop of deep Cedarwood to create a citrusy, relaxing divine scent.

 It will be available for Pre-Order on http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_2027231-Lemon-Provence-PreOrder-Cure-Date-18-June.html. Many thanks to Titch Holland from www.facebook.com/takenbytitch for her video work.

Enough talk ... here are the photos! Hope you enjoy them!

 

 

Where's the Summer?! Right here!!!

Ok I am sooooooooo tired of this weather... I drove to work this morning in the fog and rain and I drove home in the fog and rain (in between, I got mega frizzy hair from working to and from lunch in the rain too!).

So, in an attempt to lure the SUN (remember what that is?) here, I'm offering a discount code from right now, right this second, to midnight on Sunday ... put in the code Summer12 in the discount code box when you order anything in the store, and you'll get 12% of everything! Excluding P+P sadly, the Post Office isn't that nice to me.

So, lets try and start the summer right here, right now... Summer12 and gets 12% discount from now til midnight Sunday... Enjoy!!!

Sunburst Nectar - Irish Pure Beer Handmade Soap

The third of our Pure Beer handmade cold process soaps is called Sunburst Nectar.

This luxury soap is made with Sweet Almond & Golden Olive Oils, Irish Pale Ale, Kaolin Clay, Colloidal Oatmeal, Cocoa Butter & Pure Silk and between its layers of warm orange and deep cream, it's fragranced with a powerful, juicy citrus accord of Irish Pale Ale, Florida Orange, deep Frankincense, Cedarwood & Musk. Deep and wonderful!

This soap is available for pre-order at http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_2010460-Sunburst-Nectar-PreOrder-Cure-Date-4-June.html.

Huge thanks to Titch from www.facebook.com/takenbytitch for her fab photography, make sure to check out her page!

  

Beer Soaps... Oh Yeah!

Well, it's all Amy's fault.

Yep, she started the whole challenge about soaping with booze.  Beer is big in Ireland, there's no doubt about it.  I couldn't find how many were actually sold in Ireland last year but I suspect it's lots... and lots, and lots and, probably, even more lots.

I don't beer, I never liked the taste of it at all.  But I found myself becoming very interested in beer in the last few weeks.  Again, it's all Amy's fault.  I made a beer soap and then realised how much fun it was ... from prepping the beer to actually making it.  Loved the bubbleage from the little tester soap balls I make from my trimmings, love the creaminess of the soap, just so much fun.  So I decided I'd do six beer soaps, a six pack.. geddit? I wanted to make them with only Irish beers (cos I'm in Ireland, seems fair) and I wanted them all to be a bit different.. from each other and from other beer soaps you can get out there.

So here's the first one, Lemon Nectar.  Oh I decided to call them all somethingsomethingsomething Nectar... it was the drink of the God's after all, seemed fitting.  So this is made with Beamish Irish Stout which is my hubs favourite pint and it's from Cork, which is where we want to live one day.

I decided that I'd add some extra goodies in all these soaps so all the Pure Beer soaps have colloidal oatmeal that helps to calm sensitive skin, silk that adds an extra level of luxury and either clay or Dead Sea Mud for their skin lovingness.

So Lemon Nectar is made with Beamish Irish Stout, colloidal oatmeal, tussah silk and kaolin clay with Sweet Almond & Golden Oil Oils and tons of creamy Cocoa Butter and is fragranced with my own blend of zesty citrusy May Chang and deep and earthily sexy Patchouli.  It smells incredible!!

Pics below... I'll show you the others in the next few blog posts.  This one is available for pre-order right now http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1993049-Lemon-Nectar-PreOrder-Cure-Date-28-May.html.

Temptress .... can I say divine?

Here is one of my latest soaps... Temptress.  The name came about because a soaping friend called me a Temptress for showing so many soaping images... I thought, that's a GREAT soap name!

So here she is ... my Temptress. This luxury handmade soap is made with Sweet Almond Oil, Golden Olive Oil, Cocoa Butter, Coconut Milk, Kaolin Clay, & Pure Silk and is fragranced with a blend of sensual sandalwood, warm amber, a light spicing of ginger with a dash of cinnamon, a drop of darkest patchouli, all drizzled with dark chocolate. Drooling yet?

Available on Pre-Order now and fully cured by 24 May ... check out http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1991582-Temptress-PreOrder-Cure-Date-24-May-.html

Enjoy! 

Blue Belle

Another new cold process soap... I cannot get to do enough soaping!

This is fragranced with the scent of Bluebell and Wildflower woods, dappled in the sunlight, after the rain.  It's a beautiful floral with a lovely green background.  I looked up images of bluebell woods and tried to recreate them in this soap.

I used my usual blend of Sweet Almond & Golden Olive oils along with lashings of creamy Cocoa Butter and also added Goatsmilk, Kaolin Clay and Pure Silk... a sheer treat for your skin.

This is available for pre-order on http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1981933-Blue-Belle-PreOrder-Cure-Date-21-May.html.  The soap will be posted ASAP after the cure date (21 May).  Enjoy!!

 

Rum Runner

This is a remake of Rum Runner - a soap for men (but women will steal it, no doubt about that!). The fragrance is described as an exotic blend of Allspice, Cloves & Nutmeg drizzled with Sweet Orange on a bed of crisp Pine Needles nestled within a deep warm base of Patchouli & Vanilla. It honestly smells like the sexiest man in the Universe! Packed with Sweet Almond & Golden Olive Oils with tons of creamy Cocoa Butter and Goatsmilk, this is a total treat for the man in your life!

Available for pre-order from http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1904217-Rum-Runner-PreOrder-Cure-Date-9-April.html

More Videos!

More soaping videos!!

Lemongrass Verbena

Available on Pre-Order on http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1591941-Lemongrass-Verbena-PreOrder-Cure-Date-2-April.html

Pink Champagne

Available for Pre-Order on http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1904203-Pink-Champagne-PreOrder-Cure-Date-9-April.html

Coconut Lemongrass

Available for Pre-Order on http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1904173-Coconut-Lemongrass-PreOrder-Cure-Date-9-April.html

Lots more to come!!! 

Soaping Videos & Images

I haven't kept the blog up to date with our soaping videos! If you don't know, I have my own channel on You Tube .. just click on http://www.youtube.com/thesoaperstar and you'll see all our videos.  I do a combo of cutting videos and making videos.  I was so nervous when I started out but I really enjoy making them now.  My trusty sidekick, Titch, is the videographer and we have such a blast making our videos together.

Here are a few of the recent ones (I think I posted the Making of Intrigue last so this is it from there on).

Buttered Maple Pecan

 

This is available for pre-order on http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1903634-Buttered-Maple-Pecan-PreOrder-Cure-Date-26-March.html.

Seduction

Available for pre-order on http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1903771-Seduction-PreOrder-Cure-Date-26-March.html 
Perfect Storm

Available for pre-order on http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1903674-Perfect-Storm-PreOrder-Cure-Date-26-March.html 
Peony Sorbet

Available on pre-order from http://www.iamhandmade.com/ourshop/prod_1591945-Peony-Sorbet-PreOrder-Cure-Date-2-April.html

Hope you enjoy a look at our videos and images, we've loads more to come! 

Paradise Found - Cutting Video

I thought you'd like to see the cutting video we made this evening for Paradise Found - this is the soap I made on Saturday using the faux funnel technique.

It worked out really well, I LOVE the colours, the glitter, the pattern and, above all, the fragrance is just amazing.

Titch and Malky were involved too... as you'll see.... enjoy!!!!



Here's the link if you can't see the video itself.. just click HERE.
The soap will be fully cured in early March and will be available online from www.iamhandmade.com.

Paradise Found - Faux Funnel Video

I thought I'd show you my new video made today of the new soap I made using my new mould.

Paradise Found is a floral woody type fragrance and is described as a luscious fruity-wood fragrance with top notes of bergamot and rose. Sweet, rich blackberries, dry leaves, and an amber-cinnamon blend round out this gorgeous designer scent.  It's really lovely and very unisex I think.

I wanted to do a faux funnel swirl and was told this fragrance oil worked fine and gives enough time to play around so I thought I'd go with it.  I found it thickened up a bit but, hey ho, I can work with it.

Despite the soap being a little thick, I still managed to get the swirl ok .. at least on the bottom half of the soap anyway! I love the colours I choose, a nice bright blue with sparkle gold and white.  I can't wait to cut this!

Hope you enjoy the video .. Titch and I are chattering all the way through, just as ever.  I'll show a cutting video on Monday or so.

Enjoy!



If you cannot see the video (subscribed by email etc) then just click "I wanna see your movie" and you'll be taken straight to You Tube.  

First Irish Soap Swap

I joined in with an Irish based soap swap recently - I've met two other soapers from Ireland (one in the East and the other in the South West) on a soaping forum and we decided to do a swap of our soaps! We eventually got round to it in January (after all the hard work we all put in over the Christmas period) and I received their soaps this week.

I have to apologise in advance if the photos aren't up to the usual standard .... they were taken on my mobile phone camera which isn't as good as my regular camera.

First up are soaps and a trial sugar scrub from Lí Ban Ireland - Rose has been soaping for quite a number of years (well, more than me!) and has huge experience.  She uses essential oils in the main for her fragrances and is an expert blender.  Below are pictures of her new Chai Latte and Mayan soaps and her trial sugar scrub (technically the Chai Latte isn't included in the swap, I'm buying that from her because I just loved the sound of the essential oil blend she used!).

Secondly, Hajni from Mianra Soaps sent me her Cedar & Patchouli soap and her Rose Clay as well.  Her packaging was just lovely, but I sadly rushed in and opened them up before even thinking that I should take photos of the package.. stupid me!

I'm in the middle of testing them now - I always give things a long test, I don't believe in giving an opinion based on one or two uses but I will say that the soaps from both companies are just lovely and very lathery.

I also don't see my role as a public reviewer of other people's work ... there's more than just soap at stake  but I know I won't be disappointed by either of these.

Hope you enjoyed the pics and I hope Rose and Hajni are both enjoying mine!

Picture 1: Lí Ban Ireland - Chai Latte soap and trial sugar scrub

Picture 2: Lí Ban Ireland - Chai Latte (left) and Mayan (right) cold process soaps

Picture 3: Mianra - Cedar & Patchouli (left) and Rose Clay soap (right)

Picture 4: Mianra Soaps

Picture 5: All the soaps together ready for testing