Soapy Hollow

Sugar-based surfactant development gains ground, riding on the success of growing demand for APG (excerpt from Doris de Guzman’s excellent overview on the future of carbohydrate based surfactants. Read Doris de Guzman’s green chemicals blog for the latest news on green surfactants) Growing demand for alkyl polyglucoside (APG) – a non-ionic surfactant made from vegetable […]

Contributed by Ruth Esteves at Sirona Springs Handmade Soap. Soapmakers often get asked about the use of lye in their soap. The fact is that lye (sodium hydroxide) is indeed used to make soap. While in many minds, “lye soap” brings up images of grandmas and washboards and red, red hands, anyone who has used […]

The green movement continues to grow as more consumers are becoming aware of the impact that the products they use have on themselves, society and the environment. This new green consciousness is making consumers change their consumption habits and thus their purchasing criteria. In concrete terms, consumers are increasingly interested in products that contain natural ingredients and respect the environment.

Artist Danielle Julian-Norton used 20,000 amber gylcerin bar soaps to create an art installation with 7-foot high walls that ran 40 feet long and 12 feet wide in a wave-like shape. “It is the clean identity, amber color, fresh scent, bodily reference, striking surface and translucent aesthetic that inspired me to create Ambrosia,” Ms. Norton […]

Working with small batches is often trickier than doing the huge batches I often do. But doing small batches lets you get all kinds of creative. Best of all, if you make a mistake, you’re not tossing out hundreds of dollars in materials. It’s fairly easy to “rebatch” a mistake batch when it’s a small […]

Sometimes, you may have a soap idea, but can’t find a commercial mould that fits your need, or you just want to create something silly or personal.  For those times, making your own mould is your best option.  Mind you, this method does not create professional grade silicon moulds that will hold up to hundreds […]

Elizabeth Carnahan from Longcroft Soaperie in Scotland is one of the success stories of the boutique bath industry.  Elizabeth has parlayed her hard work and genius with product development into a cottage industry that has been on the pages of some of Europe’s top magazines. As well as producing, marketing and selling her soap, Elizabeth […]