When I set up at Farmer Markets I am frequently asked about how to store handmade soaps. Here are my suggestions!
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1. Cold processes soap is cured for a minimum of 4-6 weeks to allow the water or liquids that are used in the soap to evaporate. The longer the cure, the harder the bar. The cured soap will have a firm texture. The soap recipe also plays a part in how hard the soap will be in the end result. This is why most soap makers use hard oils and butters like coconut, cocoa butter and shea butter. It is the combination of the various oils that contribute to its hardness. A 100% olive oil soap, called castile, is a very soft soap and can take six months or more to harden.

2. Homemade soaps should be stored where they can get air flow in a well ventilated area. A linen closet is a good place. There is no direct sunlight and can be kept dry and cool which is good for storing soap. There is the added advantage of your linens and towels smelling awesome. A cardboard box, similar to a shoebox, is a better option than a plastic tote. If you store your soap in plastic be sure to add ventilation holes. The point is to keep the soap dry and not allow moisture to accumulate. Storing soap in the bathroom isn’t always the best option due to the constant moisture.

3. The scent of the soap will fade over time unfortunately. Some scents tend to fade sooner than others. Citrus is one of those that tend to fade. Proper storage will help maintain the scent too. If you purchase several bars at a time you may want to use different boxes. Peppermint, for example, is known to take over the softer scents like citrus. 

4. Use a soap dish that will allow the soap to drain and dry between uses. There are some great slotted handcrafted soap dishes in a variety of materials from wood to ceramic. In the shower you could also use a plastic slotted dish with the suction cups as an inexpensive option. Setting this type of dish up higher helps the soap dry easier too. Turning the soap on his edge standing up will help too as more air can circulate around the soap to help it dry. 

5. Some people like to use soap saver pouches or bags. These are usually made of cotton yarn, ramie or even plastic mesh. They work great for all those small pieces or slivers of soaps and make a good place to store all those bits. Just put the soaps in the bags and use it as a wash cloth. Hang it up to dry between showers. 

​6. If you purchase a large bar of soap you can cut them in half and store the other half until needed. 

​This soap is named for Mischa from Michigan Search and Rescue. Mischa, a female yellow labrador, has been with the team since 2009. She started her training in the area of Air Scent also known as Wilderness work and is certified in that area with the team. Mischa is a detailer and showed ability for Human Remains Detection work beyond what is required for the air scent dogs. Mischa has progressed really well and will certify in HRD shortly. Mischa and her handler Angie have worked hard for this! 

You may ask why is the soap named Mischa's bling? That is due to her handler who loves bling and the color purple, from her eye make-up to her scrap booking hobby so of course it carries over to Mischa!.

This soap is lightly scented in a lilac flower fragrance in a base of olive, coconut, palm, sunflower and cocoa butter oils. This is a limited edition soap. There are currently 6 - 5.5 oz bars at $7 and 3 - 6 oz bars at $7.50 each. These bars are larger than my regular bars of soap. 

​Photography credits:
​Members of Michigan Search and Rescue 
Sarah Gentry Photography 
Rebecca Houlihan Photography

For more information:

To follow Mischa and her SAR team go to the Michigan Search and Rescue's facebook page at  www.facebook.com/Michigan-Search-and-Rescue-128305365879/

It has been a while since I did a soap challenge and of course I decided to get back to business during Michigan's heat wave and high humidity. Soaping in a hot kitchen (no air in this old farmhouse!) proved to be a challenge all by itself. 

First day of trying out the Thorns & Roses challenge my friend Judy came out to help. A big thank you to her husband who cut some pvc pipe pieces for me out of his scrap pile. Judy even sanded the edges so they would be smooth! 

I know that the heat and humidity can be a problem when soaping. The lye takes forever to cool down for one thing. And of course the soap set up much quicker than anticipated. Then as I am mathematically challenged I did a visual for figuring how much colored soap I would need for the pipes. Hmmm they filled much quicker than I expected - right to the top of the 3 inch column. Ooops. 

After the second one set up too quick I began to wonder if maybe there was more going on than just the heat and humidity. Both were recipes I have used several times for swirling or designs. Then I wondered if it was the palm oil as I was down to the last 3/4 pounds in my big giant 5 gallon bucket. Next batch would be a simpler recipe with lard replacing the palm oil. 

Below are the first two batches we tried and after the cut. As you can see they set up way too fast to get any photos of the process with the pvc tubes! Judy came up with the name of "Detour" for the first batch since it definitely was a detour off the original route! The second batch follows the same construction zone. Both are scented with orange, lemongrass and clary sage essential oils.

 So the next day I tried again using a simpler recipe of just four ingredients (olive, coconut, lard and rice bran oil). I set up the mold with the pvc pipes while my granddaughter hovered over to watch the process. 

Well this recipe set up just as quick! So it must be the high degree temps and humidity playing a game with me. Batch number 3 is below with the best that I got for photos along the way. Once soap starts to move it's not the best time to be grabbing the camera for some scenery shots! Even my green and white colors didn't want to swirl by the time I had finished pouring. I had one ounce of the WSP's Farmer's Market Vine Ripened Tomato fragrance which wasn't quite enough for the batch. I blended in a bit of sweet basil, holy basil and black pepper essentials oils to bring out that herbal garden scent. The tops have been planed to bring out the color and smooth them out from setting up quick.

Time has run out for this challenge. We will go with the last batch for an entry. It's not even close to what I had hoped for but all three batches will be fun to add to the fall soap line. 

Since Pam was the dog handler to suggest this new line of soaps her dog will be the first one to be featured. Pam has been a SAR handler for many years and is a wonderful mentor. I personally have known three of her SAR dogs, Copper, Andor and Trace, all working Dobermans. 

Rebholzer Rocky Mountain Trace of the Blood Moon, CGC, aka Trace, is a two year old happy doberman with an awesome nose and an independent spirit which is perfect for a SAR dog. Trace is a certified Human Remains Detection dog. This tough boy can work wilderness, buried, buildings, water and shoreline. 

Trace of the Moon soap is scented with a combination of anise and orange essential oils in a base of olive oil, coconut oil, palm oil, sunflower oil, cocoa butter and castor oil with goat milk. Colorants used are activated charcoal, ultramarine blue and titanium dioxide. There are currently seven 4.5 oz bars available at $6 each.  

​Photography credits:

Rebecca Houlihan Photography, Lansing, Michigan www.rebeccahoulihanphotography.com/
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Sarah Gentry Photography, West Salem, Ohio
sarahgentryphotography.zenfolio.com/

​Members of Michigan Search and Rescue including Cindy Coffman

For more information:

If you would like to read more about Trace and the many dobermans used in search and rescue download the Spring 2016 digital edition of the United Doberman Club's Focus Magazine which features "Focus on Search and Rescue Dogs". The digital edition is $2.40. A printed version is also available.
www.magcloud.com/browse/issue/1087805

To follow Trace and his SAR team go to the Michigan Search and Rescue's facebook page at  www.facebook.com/Michigan-Search-and-Rescue-128305365879/

For more photos of Trace and the Alpha Challenge (along with three other handlers/dogs from MISAR) check out this photo album!  www.facebook.com/Michigan-Search-and-Rescue-128305365879/photos/?tab=album&album_id=10153483272470880

A few months back a friend suggested that I make a new line of soaps to honor some of our team's search and rescue dogs. You may know that I member of a K-9 search team, Michigan Search and Rescue. We are a 24/7, all volunteer team that searches for missing persons. The dogs are trained by their handler and it takes about two years to certify for deployments after many, many hours of training.

I thought her suggestion was a grand idea and got to work on a recipe, a design style and trying to pair up fragrances that would suit each dog or handler. I got to work this past spring and have soaps completed and cured for six of the dogs. More will be coming soon now that I have the cast of my wrist and can get back to soaping. These soaps will be a limited collection of eleven bars each. 
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You can follow MISAR on their facebook page! 
www.facebook.com/Michigan-Search-and-Rescue-128305365879/

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Over the next few weeks we will begin to highlight a special SAR K-9 and the soap they inspired..... stay tuned!