I'm Soap Stamp Crazy

I have been wanting a stamp for my soaps since I started selling my own.  Back when I had my retail shop, I had one made for me.  It was metal.  In reality, the letters were too small and made it difficult to read in the soap.  So I've waited until now to get one, and I'm just not that pleased with my options.  I was going to buy from Anhoki's etsy shop, but she and her husband, John, decided not to make them anymore.  (waaaaahh)



I wrote a post way back when on personalized soap stamps, which you could read about if you wish.  I shared a number of artist's stamped soaps there which are definitely worth looking at.

Well, now, I am stumped.  I could order from Owosso or Soap Equipment, but I believe they are quite spendy .  I found Bebe's Collection, but they are in Taiwan and I wanted to have it SOON.  I really love their style, though, if I do a totally custom stamp, it won't matter what their style is because it will just be a quality issue.  Their stock stamps are really cute, though and very reasonable!  See?

Bebe's Collection

As I was searching yesterday, I found this:  Ballyhoo Bath has a DIY soap stamp tutorial, which I may try, but I don't have the steadiest hands.  Great tutorial.  Great pictures.  I think anyone who wants to try their hand at making their own should go to her blog to check out her step by step stamp-making technique.  Here are some pictures:

 

finished product of a DIY stamp.  Beautiful!! 

then the process..

As mentioned in her post, she also suggests going to Tortuga Soaps as well as Instructables for other tutorials so that you can make up your mind which way you want to go.  Every soaper/artist has their own idea of how they want to customize and what medium they want to work with.  I have admired Ballyhoo's soaps from afar since I found them on the internet a year or two ago (?...memory is going O.O)

Now, if I could find some time, I may try this, but in the meantime, I'd like to find a custom soap stamp maker that is in the US, so shipping wouldn't be outrageous.  Or take a million years to arrive.

I also found Soap Impressions.  They do alpha stamp sets and custom ones, so I shall peek into that, too.  The more I think about it, the more I HAVE to have one!

Here are some soaps I think are stunning with custom stamps and alpha stamps:

 Jenora Soaps

Inner Earth

Naiad Soap Arts

So there you have it.  My thoughts on the many ways to make a stamp and many places to get them.  What do you think?  Have you gotten one you love that I haven't mentioned?  

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Soap Cutters I Dream About

forcraftssake.com

This one is really awesome, but these are custom made, I assume... for the master soap makers.   Got this picture from MarieGale.com.  There's a whole series of soap cutting pictures I just love.

Then for the serious bulk soap makers, there are people who make enormous soap cubes.  This is a H1H hydraulic machine that can cut blocks of cold process soaps into bars, producing in excess of 1000 lbs of force to cut soap.  Here are pictures but you should got to the website for a look see.

cool, right?

I Want This For My Shop

Isn't it gorgeous?

Vinyl lettring made by Simply Stick It Designs on Etsy. Only $14.99.

Cool.

Stamping Impact

I have this soap blog and have been sent soaps to try from all over the place. Some of the soaps have been wrapped with great care and some........ well... not so much. Let's just say, soaps wrapped loosely, then mailed, sometimes do not always stay married to their fellow wrapper. I wish I could say that my house is full of closets with shelves that I could store all these gorgeous soaps I receive, but, I do not. I live in a modest house with little storage other than the hot garage and unfortunately my garage gets to about 200 degrees in the Summer.I'd have to say that's right out for safe soap storage.

So, I keep the batches of soaps together on spare shelves, in large bowls and in drawers all in my nice, cool bedroom. Two of the soaps (out of all the ones I've received) have lost their wrappers. This makes me extremely sad today, especially because I am pretty much in LOVE with a soap I opened and started using this morning. I have come to realize that stamping your company name or logo into each soap bar is super critical and has two important outcomes for you and your soap company and for me as a reviewer and for the customer without a doubt. Everyone wins because what is accomplished? Company recognition.

1. If the wrapper becomes lost, the soap is still represented by you.
2. If the soap is taken into the shower, no matter who uses the shower for the next few days, the soap is recognizable to everyone bathing. Hey, silent advertising is awesome!


Here are 3 examples of beautiful soaps with stamps:

Intentions on Etsy

Magic Hands on Etsy (logo stamped)

Hello Bath + Body

Do you stamp your soaps? If you do, will you share your beauty with us??

The Glamour Of It All

Gabriele (aka macsoapy) of That Soap Site and Einfachseife made a funny. She is a very talented soaper and business woman in Germany who I admire and respect. She liked the soap necklace I highlighted the other day and she thought it would be nice to come up with her own soap jewelry concept.

I am LOVING the glamour, the style, the glossy magazine coutoure look. Perhaps soap will be the next cool thing to wear.

VERY NICE, GABI!

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(Gabi's blog is in German, so the following is translated through Google)

Soap Necklace

Joanna yesterday again purest soap Porn in her blog THE BAR SOAP published.

Among other things, is a topping of Mrs macsoapy to see. But even a sexy chain of perfect little soap balls.

That is why today I show my interpretation of a soap chain.

Joanna, this picture is for you.

photo - courtesy of Gabriele Kappes of Einfachseife blog/ That Soap Site

Mr. Do Right

I have been struggling with what soap molds to use since I started soaping. And I know you all have, too, in your own way. There are so many to choose from! Brad made me one that is awesome, but lining has been a challenge. Then I found that incredible instructional video that saved me from losing my mind, because the step by step instructions were so easy to follow, I actually could take freezer paper and line any mold without creases! Every time. So when lining wasn't an issue, shape became my focus. I bought some molds from someone and they produced very square bars, which is lovely, but I want to also make rectangular bars that is easier to hold in the shower.

There are silicone molds, wooden molds, wooden molds with silicone liners (Elizabeth of Longcroft Soap uses those and makes such AMAZING soaps!) and hdpd molds. You can use old food containers as Anne Marie of The Soap Queen blog wrote about just the other day, pvc pipes, tupperware.... there are so many vessels to pour soap into its fantastic. Well, I found some great soaps out there perusing the soap world as I do and asked the soap makers who made them what mold they used, and sure enough, BOTH of them said, "Mr. Do Right on Ebay. Wouldn't pour into anything else."
REALLY? So what did I do? I bought the 3 lb molds (set of 2 with a cutter mold and soap slicer). See the pictures.

The Ebay listing photgraph

My patio photos

Tonight I made Pumpkin Pie soap in one of the molds and I will reveal pictures tomorrow. I am so happy. Rick, the guy I dealt with is really great. He is a good business man and I'd deal with him again and again and I'll be buying from him again! Very soon. Like tomorrow. ;)



update:  You must line these molds.  :(

Soap Dishes That Make A Statement

Nice dishes to think about for displaying all of those great soaps you will be buying or selling for the upcoming holiday season. I would be proud to have any one of these dishes in my home with any number of gorgeous soaps I have resting so comfortably on top.


soap dish made with recycled orange record album by RetiredRecords on Etsy

bottle soap dishes by the squashed bottle company
(I have seen these "melted" down bottles at lots of craft fairs. I never have bought one, but they are very cool and the clear ones look very nice with a wrapped soap bar)

handcrafted soap dishes from Idaho by treeworks

handmade stoneware by albaverde handmade soap

bamboo soap dish made in Brazil and available at nest

What's your favorite dish that you use for your daily soap??

Industrial Soap Dish

Truck step used as a soap dish.  Brilliance!  I found this great blog: KK Cool Tools which featured this soap dish as on of their cool tool finds.  The dish can be purchased from AW Direct for $35.

Here is what they say: Also used by many as a convenient built-in soap dish! Here's what they're saying on the Net about this product: "This is by far the best-designed soap dish I've ever used. The open front allows water to drain away easily, while the diamond-plate surface secures and elevates the soap so that it dries without creating a lot of yucky soap-gunk. And of course, the aluminium doesn't rust or corrode."

Bamboo Paraphernalia by Feito Fibra

These are all bamboo and steel and made in Brazil and designed by by Feito Fibra.  Wish I had the soap dish  So elegant!  You can find these at Nest.

As shown:  Bamboo Hook, Wall Soap Dish, Double Hook, Utility Cup and Soap Dish.

purdy

My New Soap Box Mold

Guess what my hubby did while I was away for the day on Sunday? I was looking all around the web for the perfect mold and explaining to him the difference between cardboard boxes, plastic, and silicone, not really believing he was actually listening to my box woes. Well, lookie here...

The wax paper and electrical tape are holding my soap inside

Wasn't that so nice of him??

Thanks, baby!

Artful Soap Dishes

Now that I review soap and only have three bathrooms, how can I sample all of the soaps simultaneously without soap dishes? I think I am in need of two or three soap dishes in each bathroom so I can choose a soap depending on what mood I am in. So, in my search for the ultimate soap dish that will eliminate the soggy bottom goo which is inevitably left on my sink that I must scrape up with my fingernails or credit card, I found these lovely and unique dishes.

I think soap dishes are underrated.

Bamboo and Terra Cotta Soap Dish, Measures 5" x 5" - amazon.com $12.95.

Stone dish, by dekco. Price... Rp.110,000.00 (?)

Ceramic dish, shown on the Magpie newsletter (cute stuff).

Felted Soap

Etsy Seller AmeliaMakesArt

I have been avoiding this topic for as long as I could.  Why, you ask? I'm not entirely sure.  Felted soaps have only become noticeable to me personally within the last few months or so, but it is an ancient craft.  

I love to exfoliate....with scrubs, washcloths, seed filled soaps, etc.  Makes me feel extra clean and refreshed.  My nerve ending all feel alive and my skin feels revived.  So why the puss when I look at felted bars?  Well, there is something about the idea of wet wool that makes me physically uncomfortable.  Gives me that "fingernails on a blackboard" shiver.

Since I started writing this soap blog, I feel it is my duty to explore and share all things soap; Trends, styles, techniques, recipes (although for some strange reason, no one has shared their tutorials), so felted soap feels like the next natural topic.  

What I know about felted soap:

1.  It can be very pretty.

2.  It is exfoliating, like a built-in washcloth.

3.  It's not felt, it is wool (apparently Merino wool works best).

4.  Anyone with hands can do it.

Etsy seller lanadeflor

Mike's Fiber Arts has a great looking tutorial with step by step instructions and photos.

A video tutorial below made it feel easier to tackle this project.   I'm big on visual aids, so here is one featuring SuZanna Anna:

If you have felted soaps I would love to see photos!

Silicone Soap Holder

These are Sumo Holders available at Wrapables. And they are made out of silicone rubber and stick anywhere. I just love them! $10.95. Another thing to keep in mind when gifting your soaps....

Magnetic Soap Holder

Noveletti has designed sleek and useful soap holders. Useful? Well, the soaps don't sit in their own mess and get gloppy and it looks beautiful. I can't really imagine using one, though. It is a bit too fancy, I think. It's something you'd see in a fancy hotel, or a famous person's powder room - with soap untouched, like the bowl of pastel colored seashell soaps I'd see at my grandmother's house.

Did every senior citizen have a dish of untouched seashell soaps in their powder room in the 70's?

So I report on these because they are unique and graceful and yet another way to display the almighty bar. They should sell magnets for one to insert into one's own soaps. Yeah?

Soap Dishes at Brambleberry

I bought one of these nice sized ceramic soap dishes from Brambleberry last month and now I think I'll have to get one for every sink in the house. Black, sleek, Asian style ceramic soap dishes for sale for $1.00 each! 36 for $12.00 - okay, if you plan on giving soaps away for presents or want to give a more upscale presentation to your soap giving, this is totally the way to do it. One can embellish with cute ribbon or raffia or cloth - whatever floats your boat. The dimensions are 6" long x 3" wide x 1" tall. Nice size for a good thick bar of soap.

Hurry up and order them before they run out for the holidays!