New Soap Stamp with my Logo

A few weeks back i decided to order a soap stamp with my logo from Lasercutz.co.uk. 

The stamp is made from acrylic (perspex) which gives it good compressibility. 

The soap came through the post a few days back and i have only tried it on my new batch of 'Rose & Geranium' Soap but I'm already in LOVE with it!!! 

These are a few pictures taken soon as i sliced the soap.  I was instructed to make a batch test and stamp at different stages throughout the curing process, however my first attempt proved success full so i just stamped away.

Honey Oat Fingers

'Honey Oat Fingers' are one of my childhood favourite recipes, i have always loved making and eating them and at times i have had terrible cravings for them. They are really quick and easy to make (within 30 minutes, if you have all your ingredients ready)

Ingredients:

3/4 cup plain flour
1/4 tsp bicarbonate of soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup dessicated coconut
1/4 cup raisins
125g sugar
1 tbsp honey
125g butter
1 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch of salt

Method: 

mix all dry ingredients together in a bowl 

melt butter and add to the dry ingredients

thoroughly mix the ingredients together and press firmly into a lined tray 

bake in a moderate oven (gas mark 4, 180C) for 15 minutes

remove from oven and cut into slices whilst hot

allow to cool
....and enjoy with a nice cup of tea :)

Soap Packaged in Lace

I have a million meters of lace which i have been saving especially for packaging soaps, it gives a lovely vintage & feminine look. I love wrapping special occasion soaps with lace especially wedding, christmas and eid soaps.  Here are a few i have wrapped for christmas fairs this year.

Cream 5" wide lace which i sewed into little pockets to give a good firm wrap and square edges

White 2" lace from my mums old lace collection, the size was perfect to wrap around once, just like cigar packaging

Cream 2" lace from my mums old lace collection

Purple 3" lace which was wrapped around the soap twice

ROSE SOAP

I was going through some of my soap pictures and realised that i had forgot to put up pictures of my 'Rose Soap'.

When i make rose soaps i naturally think of simple and classic designs and recipes. I usually like to keep them just as 'Rose soap' with not too much other scents or colourings added....i honestly don't know why, its just a personal preference ( i also make a rustic rose soap with a lovely woody scent, i have blogged on this soap before)

I wanted to achieve a really vintage look for this soap apart from rustic and natural, so i used a shea butter recipe and added the tiniest amount of pink clay to give a faint pink colour which i love.  I didn't want the soap to be pink or white/cream so this really pale pink colour looks perfect against the pink rose petals. I scattered rose petals on top of the soap purely for the decorative effect and exfoliating properties. 

Overall i achieved what i was aiming to produce, a lovely creamy soap which reminds me of a vintage english rose garden !!

I have 5 'Rose Soaps' remaining in my folksy shop, so if you would like one of these lovely soaps please come and visit my shop www.bobbinsandbalms.folksy.com

The 'SM Strand' Stall at Covent Garden

last year i came across a blog who mentioned a really cute soap stall in Covent Garden called 'SM Strand'

Since i was visiting Covent Garden today i thought i would go and find this little stall and check out their handmade soaps, and I'm so glad i did!!! The soaps are fantastic, natural, rustic, homely and they look and smell absolutely amazing.  I asked the assistant kindly if i could take some pictures of the stall and she was happy for me to snap away.

 

and the best part was the business cards....samples and contact details in one, the first time i have seen this and i loved the idea.

October 2011 Soaps (part 2)

During October i was busy preparing soaps for christmas fairs and gifts but i didn't get round to taking many photo's. The few photo's i did take i was not happy with and honestly i was a little embarrassed to put them up...(i am still working on my photographic skills !!! )

I made 10 different batches in total all seen in the first picture below, and  i will be wrapping them in lovely christmas wrap which i brought from paperchase this week.  The soaps are on the curing rack and still have a week to go, when they are ready and packed i will try to take a few decent photos.

LEFT ROW-TOP TO BOTTOM

YLANG YLANG & GRAPEFRUIT

A creamy shea butter soap scented with ylang ylang and grapefruit.  

When i added the essential oils the mixture started to thicken in the pot, so i had to work really quick and you can see the bumpy look of of the soap. I added a line of cocoa through the centre and topped with chamomile and heather flowers.

ORANGE & FRANKINCENSE

I have already blogged on this soap in a previous post so i wont go on about it too much.

PINK CLAY & GERANIUM

One of my favourite soaps with tonnes of creamy shea butter.  I added 1 tbsp of pink clay per lb of fat but the colour was not as strong as i had hoped for!!

WINTER SPICE

I love the smell of this soap, it reminds me of 'Bakewell Tarts'. 

I infused my water with madder root and added it to the lye, the outcome was a lovely pale pink colour, however it seems to be fading in the centre.  the soap is scented with bay leaf, cinnamon, clove and orange essential oils and the soap is topped with poppy seeds for exfoliation.

CHOCOLATE & PEPPERMINT

Smells Divine....almost like real chocolate!!! the kids are waiting eagerly for this little beauty to cure

RIGHT TOP TO BOTTOM

GREEN CLAY & TEA TREE

Another one of my favourite shea butter soaps with green clay.  I have added tea tree oil and a little hint of peppermint essential oil.

CREAMY LAVENDER

A really creamy soap with loads of shea butter added.  The soap is scented with lavender essential oil and topped with lavender flowers. I love the simplicity of this soap !!

GOATS MILK, LEMONGRASS & CALENDULA

I have blogged on this soap in an earlier post

COFFEE CINNAMON 

Another food based soap.  

I added coffee to my lye instead of pure water and ground coffee at trace for exfoliation. The soap is scented with cinnamon and vanilla essential oils which is absolutely DELICIOUS....i was hoping for a more cinnamon scent however it is more sweet but non the less YUM!!

GOATS MILK HONEY

A super lovely soap with goats milk and honey added at trace.  The soap is scented with orange and a hint of petuli to act as a scent fixative.

October 2011 Soaps (part 1)

Orange & Frankincense Soap

I wanted to create a 'Marmalade' type soap, sweet, citrusy and bright.

This is a cocoa butter based soap with sweet orange, Mandarin, petuli and frankincense essential oils. I added 1 tsp carrot powder for colour but i think next time i would definitely add a lot more for a more vibrant colour.  I have also added a little orange peel for exfoliation and dried orange slices purely for decorative effect.  

I had an intention of adding brown sugar to the recipe which would probably give a caramelyness to the colour but i forgot to prepare the syrup and when i realised i had already poured (gutted!!!!)

Goats Milk, Lemongrass & Calendula

Goats milk soaps really are super for skin and  i love using them especially for my face in the winter months. During winter i find it somewhat more difficult to wake up at 5.30am so i thought i would scent it with lemongrass and litsea cuba, a real zingy fragrance which will hopefully help me wake up.  I have added calendula petals throughout the mixture and also topped the soap with it.