
I have never once been mistaken as someone for whom less is more.
It doesn't even make sense mathematically.
So it wasn't that much of a surprise when Amy said my Easter-inspired soaps weren't exactly rustic enough for this month's Rustic Soap challenge.
I had been thinking: it's an egg. Like on a farm. Farms are rustic, right?
And I'd shaped these by hand, like without a mold. Isn't that rustic? Hmmmm.
I tried a few more in what I thought were earth tones, but my family took one look and declared... Nope. Still not rustic.
What was I missing???
Apparently sparkly mica isn't rustic. Who knew? Sigh...
So, I put them aside and made the next batch using only clays and tea powders for colorants. Sadly, they don't sparkle one bit.
See? Not even a little.
This challenge included some sort of packaging, and again, I was stumped.
I consider shimmery organza bags and velvet ribbons to be sort of a baseline, so what was I to do?
Apparently, very little.
Don't get me wrong, as it still took me forever to come up with this. Striped cotton ticking in tan and black, and a custom, home-made label printed on simple kraft paper.

The background printed too light to tell, but it's intended to look like an old fence. The fonts are Janda Apple Cobbler and Bernard MT Condensed.
In case you're wondering, I made these from cooled hot-process soap dough, using this recipe:
- 30% Lard
- 25% Coconut Oil
- 20% Costco Mediterranean Blend Oil
(50% canola, 40% olive, 10% grapeseed) - 12% Castor Oil
- 10% Shea Butter
- 3% White Beeswax
I skipped my usual sodium lactate and used 40% water, which is almost twice as much as I normally do, so they take much longer to harden than I'm used to!
I like to make up a big batch and keep it in a gallon ziplock for when I (or my daughter) need some soap dough to make something with. I usually scent it with Cucumber-Melon (from Nurture Soap), as everyone loves that one, but I did this batch using Indian Sandalwood (from Nature's Garden) as it's more exotic and the scent lasts forever. Like years, even unwrapped.
To make these two bars, I:
- Measured out 9 oz of dough, and broke it into little pieces with my fingers
- Spritzed the pieces with water
- Tossed them in green tea, yellow Brazilian clay and Australian black clay
- Started squishing them together, working out a design as I went
- Plopped the whole mass onto a silpat mat
- Shaped it into one long bar
- Let it sit for a while to harden up, and then cut into two
FWIW, I did try making a fluid hot process bar, with mixed results. It turned out pretty complex for hot process (i.e., you really can do swirls!), but keeping everything hot was a pain, and the tops were so ugly! Here's what I made, scented with Wholesales Supply's Sweet Pumpkin Pie fragrance:
Claudia, I love the Marbled look! It looks rustic to me! Interesting that you did it with soap dough ~ I look forward to learning this in the next challenge :)
ReplyDeleteThanks, Eva! Yes, soap dough to me is just a bag of soft, squishy soap. I've been experimenting with recipes to get it to behave more like polymer clay, but it just won't cooperate!
DeleteI had to LOL at "Sadly, they don't sparkle one bit." You did a great job at moving out of your comfort zone to create something more bland, but no less beautiful!! And you're already borrowing the technique from next month to make it happen! I love the granite/stone look - truly sensational work, Claudia!!
ReplyDeleteJust can't seem to get the timing right. :) Now I'm going to have come up with something fantastic to make!
DeleteThese are beautiful! Seriously, loved all of them, but the granite look of these seriously appeals. Awesome job!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Nathicana!
DeleteThat soap is amazing! It is totally rustic too. I'm looking forward to learning more so that I can create something as beautiful. Inspiring :)
ReplyDeleteThank you, Moira. I'll try to make some more jeweled-tone ones and post those, too.
DeleteBreathtaking, so love these !!!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Ms Chic!
DeleteSo very cool!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Toni! They are really fun to make, too.
Delete«Rustic» found you!! Your soap is perfect and I love how you made it! It is so creative!! Great, great work !
ReplyDeleteThanks, Helene! Isn't amazing what we all keep managing to do with soap? I swear, it's endless!
DeleteYes ! Isn't it! Many congrats!! :-)
DeleteClaudia:
ReplyDeleteSuch Beautiful soaps - all of them. (Lovely packaging too!)
I love the way you write your blog and really enjoyed reading about your soap journey.
Keep soaping on!!
Sly
Thank you, Sly. I pretty much assume no one reads it, so I try to tell a little story just to entertain myself. :)
DeleteI love the color and texture of these. They make me want to try the soap dough (oh, wait, that's next month, yikes!) Anyway, I like your rustic label. The Janda Apple Cobbler font is perfect!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Leilani! Soap Dough is really fun, if a little frustrating, because it doesn't act like dough. I'm glad we're doing a challenge on it, as I'm sure one of us will figure out how to make it even better!
DeleteLOVE!
ReplyDeleteAh, thank you!
DeleteYour soap is beautiful, I love the colors. Quick question, the Costco Mediterranean blend, where did you locate the sap value. P
ReplyDeleteThanks, Vanessa.
DeleteYou can just use Canola (133) in SoapCalc as a stand-in for Mediterranean blend.
ReplyDeleteYour soap with mica is stunningly beautiful !!! And let it does not fit the terms of the contest, but it's great !!! Soap with clay is a great solution !!! I like the inscription on the package, it's in such a rural style! Good luck!!!
Thank you, Maria. Yes, the sparkly ones are much prettier, IMO, but I can see how they didn't fit the guidelines. And even though the clays and tea were so drab, it was a fun challenge to see if I could make them work.
DeleteOh oh oh! 😍You've an amazing imagination and technique! Great job! Love this soap!Eklektika Sapo
ReplyDeleteThank you! Yes, my imagination often gets ahead of my ability, though. :)
DeleteYou nailed it, dearest Claudia! Even though you had to tone down the sparkle (and such a shame, since sparkles are just the cat's pajamas, IMO) the rusted granite look of the design perfectly captures an earthy, weathered tone. Adding the brilliant design of the label truly cements the entire design. Another fabulous job!
ReplyDeleteP.S. Love the new site :D
I know, right? Sparkles are just everything! Thanks, Debi!
DeleteAh, how to make sparkle-less rustic soap. I feel your pain. I had to sneak some shiny polka dots into my last layer of ribbon, I couldn't bring myself to use the plain black! That being said, just pretend you are channelling the impeccable Coco Chanel- "Before you leave the house, look in the mirror and take one thing off." Sometimes it's ok to give the sparkle a day off (but only one LOL). Beautiful soap, I was glad to see your name back in the Challenges!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Sara -- it's great to be able to come play again! I will probably feel compelled to make up for my lack of sparkles in the next challenge. Hmmmm. How to combine glitter and soap dough...? :)
DeleteYour soaps turned out so well, Claudia! I absolutely love the colours and texture. I enjoyed reading your post too. Your packaging turned out really well too; I actually like how it came out lighter, it just adds to the rustic look. Thanks so much for sharing your creative journey and process, and all the best in the challenge!
ReplyDelete– Belinda
Thanks, Belinda! I can now claim that label is more rustic that way. :)
DeleteThese are fantastic!! I love the stone look and you hit it bang on. Congrats!!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Natalie!
DeleteBravo!!! :)
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteThank you for making this soap, Claudia! I really love how it turned out, and it does look rustic to me!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Jelena! Every soap you make is amazing, so that means a lot to me!
DeleteOh I'm so glad I came across your blog once again. A link from pinterest! Claudia I love the rustic Easter egg in pinks and gold and the other easter bar in lavenders and green! Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteWonderful work! That is the type of info that should be shared across the internet. Shame on the search engines for no longer positioning this publish higher! Come on over and seek advice from my website . Thanks =) all of craigslist
ReplyDelete