Hi guys!
hope youre all having a nice relaxing weekend. Ive been grinding today because well, i dont get weekends lol i tend to work hardest when the retail shop is actually closed!
aaaaanyhow, just hopping on to share a couple of things. first, i hope that those of you who have picked up some of the simple soaps are enjoying them! second, i have a confession to make --- i JUST actually used one of them for the first time in the shower 2 nights ago and i have some things im thinking about that. third, as i was cutting up all that crud today i decided to play around and have a little fun so ill tell you a bit about that tonight too :)
alright, so what im thinking after using the new simple soap i used is, dang i REALLY like the cut. the new shape is really nice to use. im definitely curious what you all think of it too. and, although i get a little extra " waste" cut with that shape/size.... i was brainstorming and think i can actually make use of it to where it wouldnt be a loss. so if we all end up loving the new shape/size, i think im prepared to have that be its way.
so, what will become of the waste cut? well... today i went in and started up two batches of soap -- its kind of a habit im getting into, even if its not whats on my production schedule i just start two small batches that will turn into something, especially since im going to be making a lot of different soaps before we decide what will officially be the " simple line" and thats going to take some time.
today, with one of the batches, i took all of the end cuts, all of the extra pieces of different kinds of soaps that ive made over the last month or so.... and stuffed them into the mold and then poured a plain white batch over them-- gave em a good mix and put a little confetti sugar on top. it also gave me an opportunity to use some of my essential oils that need using up. so today, i used grapefruit and lavender, since i have a bunch of grapefruit left over from making bunny, and both lavender and grapefruit go with pretty much every other essential oil that is in all of those end pieces. kinda nice to have a place to use both things!
another thought i had with some of the waste cut, would be to have some pretty decent size little chunks that can be purchased - lets say, as a travel or gym soap.. etc. not sure if that will become a thing, but it may. so, just something to make note of, or heck, maybe even a sample bar thats bigger than just the free slivers we pass out, if you want to try something for a week or two rather than one or two uses. mini bar, pass it on to a friend bar etc... well see. if that does become a thing, its not something that will be fully stocked in the hundreds, lol just maybe 20 or 30 every time i make a batch. ill keep it as a potential as of now.
back to the soap i made today - i was thinking, its kind of like our kitchen sink soap in a way, that none of the batches will ever be identical, theyll always be random essential oil depending on what i have a surplus of, and the slivers inside will always be different depending on what batches ive made recently. so, im kinda digging the idea of this right now. im excited to get up to work tomorrow and check out what it ended up like!
with the other batch i started, i decided to make porridge. our unscented goats milk and oats bar. i really think this bar might have a place in the simple soap line, so, well put a batch out and see what the demand is like.
I know this is going to take me a bit to get right, and i know im going to be adjusting things as we go... already im kinda like, hmm... should frenchy become part of the simple line? should bar none? i mean, it kinda makes sense. then that frees up a couple of spots in the classic line for me to bring some favorites that deserve to be there, like london fog and maybe blackjack, or joost, or nakota.... i dont know, im just flying by the seat of my pants at this point haha its so much to think about!!
i do know, all of the soaps out for testing in the simple line will not be staying and some will be tweaked. not sure who is leaving yet but theres just way too much mint going on there. however, i wanted to get a lot of mint out initially to see which ones you all like the best.
this week i plan to make just a few more. im thinking a cedar lime bar, or maybe a just plain lime, kinda wanna do a matcha bar, ehhhh.... who knows what ill end up doing. feel free to drop me some suggestions of what kind of bars youd like to see make it to the simple soap line. i kinda feel like i should have an extra scrubby bar in there somewhere.
alright all... im not all out of words or thoughts but i am done annoying you all with mine for the night and would like to hear some of yours instead!
until next,
-heidi