New Products for a New Year

I really can't believe it's March and this is my first post of the year! The Khandala Soap kitchen has been busy with plenty of new soaps and a couple of new balms.

My favourite new soap has to be the Rosehip Seed Oil soap which is a lovely vegetable soap and the rosehip oil lends special properties especially for older skin and it's also good for stretch marks.

On the rose theme I've also made a rather old fashioned English Rose soap and tried out some vintage labelling to go with it.

The soap making process and use of essential oils has inevitably led me to research the therapeutic value of essential oils. This is an area that interests me greatly as I'm a firm believer in making use of natural products where possible. So perhaps it's no surprise that I've turned my attentions to balms and salves and my first experiment in this direction has been sleep balm. I have made several different versions of this but the main ingredients have been the same - lavender, camomile and bergamot. These oils all contain properties to soothe, calm and relax and thus promote better natural sleep. In addition to these staples I have also added bay, rosemary and frankincense.

Perchance Sleep Balm

In the same vein I've also created Andante, a stress relief balm.

Andante Stress-relief Balm

March 7th

My first experiments with making creams has begun and I'm really excited! 

Making creams and lotions has its own challenges but one great advantage of creams is that the use of essential oils will provide definite benefits unlike soap-making where the saponification process can sometimes eliminate the therapeutic properties - although not the fragrance.

Despite what the cosmetics industry would have us believe, there are really only two types of creams - heavy and light and to these you can make no end of variations but the underlying principles of manufacture remain pretty much the same.

So far I have made a heavy cream - designed for softening and soothing feet. This is delicately scented with tea tree and rosemary essential oils...

...and an ultra-light, almost whipped, moisturiser incorporating aloe vera, jojoba and rosehip seed oil. 

I'll be testing these out over the next month together with my trusted gang of guinea pigs so I'll let you know how they go!

How it all began....

I have my grand-daughter Kara to thank for this new challenge. After a year of making soaps, wrapping them lovingly and placing them on shelves, she began to think my study resembled a shop. "Why can't we sell these soaps Granny" she asked. I have to admit that I gave little attention to this request but looking back I now realise that here is a girl who can spot an opportunity.

When I decided to take the plunge and admittedly with her interests at heart as much as mine she was ecstatic. At this stage she was just seven and could hardly wait to get behind a stall and sell soap!

So in May this year we took a stall at The Arc in Caterham and put together a rather amateurish display which, at the time, we thought was wonderful!

The Arc, Caterham.

And so, our dream was born.....

After the initial euphoria of our venture wore off I decided that this was not so much a bit of fun as a real prospect of doing something that I really liked and making money as well - although not very much at this stage I have to say!

This led me to try the Banstead Village Market, one Saturday in September; a small indoor market in the village church hall selling all manner of things in a really friendly environment with heaps of passing trade. By this stage I was starting to try my hand with different packaging and had decided on a much bolder display, changing the chintzy gingham for a dramatic black cloth and a more regimented display of the soaps.

Banstead Village Market

This display seemed a marked improvement on the previous haphazard arrangement and seemed to go down pretty well. I tried selling 'soap bundles' at £3 for three small soaps. These seemed to attract the buyers but took the emphasis away from the individual soaps.

By the time Autumn came I had found the confidence to arrange three further sales, all within a month. First came The NSPCC Table Top sale in Harestone Valley Road in Caterham;  off the beaten track but a nice friendly Fair in a church hall with some nice stalls.

NSPCC Craft Fair Sept 2012

The display was now starting to take shape and at each Fair I made improvements to packaging and layout.

Next came the RSPB Fair in Sanderstead...

RSPB, Sanderstead, Nov 2012

...again with my little helper!

Normally a well-established craft fair, this year's event was blighted by bad organisation leading to a paucity of quality stalls. This meant that I did well but it was sad for the buyers who had come to look upon this as a good Christmas Fair.

A week later, on 10th November (just a day before Kara's 8th birthday and also the day of her party) we set up at Warlingham High School for the Annual Craft Fair of Croydon South Rotary Club. This was the best fair yet in many ways not least the wonderful quality of the stalls and crafts people.

Croydon South Rotary, Nov 2012

Things have been pretty busy in the Khandala Soap Kitchen since the Rotary Fair. In the curing room now you'll find Lavender & Lemongrass, a new batch of the ever-popular Rhassoul Clay, Purity, Vanilla & Sandalwood (second batch as I was so pleased with this fragrance combination), White Tea & Ginger with rose soap shavings, Rosewood and Bay Laurel and la piece de resistance - Siberian Fir Needle with Lavender!! Wow! I think that will do for 2012.

Off to The Arc in Caterham for their Christmas Craft Fair tomorrow. Kara is to be my assistant once again!

Oxted Village Market at the end of November, a small community market which takes place weekly on Mondays.

And finally, our last Fair of 2012, once again at The Arc in Caterham. Kara was on hand to help me once again and thoroughly enjoyed the day. Nice venue and the rose and neroli soap completely sold out! Must make some more!