Most of the soap makers I have spoken to say their journey started with purchasing a cold process soap at a craft fair, mine didn’t. My journey started with a bath bomb. I recall Easter 2010, my daughter made everyone handmade bath bombs and I was amazed. I wanted to make these things too, but I had to learn. This started my new interest and I read everything I could about the benefits of the many oils and butters available. l watched videos, subscribed to soap and cosmetic guilds and talked to others about the world of handcrafted soaps and cosmetics. Today, I have a good understanding of the commercial world of mass-produced soap and cosmetics and the many benefits of handcrafted soap and yes; I make the occasional bath bomb.
In my previous life as a manager working between food manufacturing and healthcare, I studied hard learning about food safety, hazard analysis, risk assessment, best practices and developing written procedures. Little did I know then, that everything I studied was going to give me a foundation that helped me to develop premium soaps. Oh, and of course my love for baking helped too as did my interest in the health benefits of essential oils. All of this combined with my tenacity and research into the world of soap and cosmetics it was hard not to launch Mrs Bowes Bubbles.
My challenges along the way were to learn about labeling my soaps and the cosmetic labeling regulations l had to follow also, developing cosmetic notification sheets that have to be submitted to Canada Health for their approval. And yes my labels and soaps meet the required regulations.
I haven’t purchased a bar of soap for years and each of my family has their own favorite soap from Blackjack and Tuxedo salt soap to Peppermint cream and Bastille but of course there’s always new ones coming out of my work shop.
My customers say many things like, “I no longer use moisturizer after my shower” and “finally, my skin is no longer itchy”. I have had many customers tell me they don’t want to use my soaps because they’re too pretty and instead like to put them on a nice soap dish on display.
My hope is to continue to create beautiful bars of soap and other handcrafted cosmetics and bring them to you so you can experience benefits for yourself. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.
Mrs Bowes Bubbles