Today’s featured crafter on inspiration:
My Grandmother, Santa Lucia Murari Borba, was a farmer’s daughter born in Italy 1904. She moved to Brazil in 1917 from her home in Toscany where she had to learn to make soap from scratch and essential oils from the plants out of necessity.
From that necessity beautiful, handcrafted and all-natural soaps have been born. Thank goodness for family tradition!
Elis
1-Born In Brazil (Sao Paulo) daughter of a Italian father and a Brazilian-Portuguese mother
2-Learn to cooking and make soaps with my Italian -Grandmother
3-Create Natural Hand Crafted Soap and use my soaps every day
4- Brazil-Italy and live for 12 years in USA
What got you started crafting?
Ever since I was a kid , my grandmother’s Santa Lucia soaps recipe was passed on by generations in her family. In my youth, I never realized the time I spent in my grandmother’s kitchen watching her, ultimately making soap would change my life and keep me connected to my Grandma Lucia.
What is your source of inspiration?
My Grandmother ,
Santa Lucia Murari Borba was a farmer's daughter from Murari's Borba, born in Italy 1904. She moved to Brazil in 1917 from her home in Toscany where she had to learn to make soap from scratch and essential oils from the plants out of necessity.
What have you made recently?
I have recently made Rain Forest Copaiba with Cocoa Butter and Tree Leaves Soap.
Copaiba Oil is actually an oleoresin tapped from the Amazon Rain Forest Copaiba tree. This resinous oil is rich in beta-carophylene which promotes germ-free action and is an excellent anti-acne, skin-clearing agent.
Copaiba, on the other hand, is soapless and gentle on dry, oily, and combination skin. It has been used for years by Brazilian women to enhance their exotic, tropical beauty, and in recent years American woman are discovering these secrets can help them look young and fresh.
Where do you sell your crafts presently?
Online and Stores
Why are handmade crafts important to you?
Let me answer this question with a question. Why should I buy handmade soap when I can get more soap for less money at the grocery store?
Generally, the commercial soaps carried at most chain stores, etc. are full of chemical additives, additives that not only dry out your skin but can lead to rashes and other irritations.This is not only because of the synthetic additives in the soap but also because most soap companies take the glycerin out of their soap. The commercial soap bars that line most grocery stores’ shelves are actually synthetic detergents. While that's great for your dishes, it's not very good for your skin.
Handmade Soap is soap in its true, pure form. It gently cleanses away excess oils and bacteria, but doesn't strip your skin of its natural oils.
IF the commercial soap company does put in some natural ingredients along with its synthetic ones, they do so in such small quantities as for it to be inconspicuous in the soap. Its main purpose is to catch the eye of the consumer and give them the illusion that this soap is more natural. If you read the ingredient labels though, the soap is still primarily made with synthetic ingredients.
Using commercial soaps over time leave your skin dried out, or way to oily ,and feeling like its never clean. Natural handmade soap, that only uses natural ingredients, can restore the moisture to your skin, while still getting you clean. You will be amazed at the difference!
Handmade soap is a cleanser made with simple ingredients that are good for your skin. In the handcrafted soap making process, oils and fats are combined with lye to produce soap and glycerin.Some people may question the use of lye in handmade soap. The fact is that all soap is made with lye. What needs to be made clear is that once the process of saponification is complete, the lye and oil molecules have combined and chemically changed into soap and glycerin. ALL bar soaps are made with lye, however, when made correctly, there is NO LYE remaining in the final bar of soap. Whether your soap is manufactured by large corporations, or smaller handcrafted soap makers, the above rings true, regardless. Lye must be used to make the soap, but there should never be any remaining lye in the final bar to hurt the skin. Saponification is the chemical reaction created by combining these oils or fats with lye and water.
Soap is made by adding water, oil and butters together, along with something to form them into soap (an alkali). That ingredient is Sodium Hydroxide which is lye. For liquid soaps, it is Potassium Hydroxide. The chemical reaction is called saponification. The soap maker must calculate the correct amount of lye for the specific oils used in each recipe. If too much lye is used, the bar may be hard and crumbly. If too little, the bar becomes soft and will become rancid faster, due to the natural oils & butters that are used in handmade soap.
Saponification is a chemical reaction that takes place when oil is mixed with an alkali solution, such as sodium hydroxide (lye), water & oils or butters. In other words, the oil and lye combine to make soap. When the proper amounts are used at the proper temperatures, all of the lye and oil are consumed by the reaction and only the soap remains. Generally, slightly more oil is used resulting in a soap that is more moisturizing for the skin and ensuring that all of the lye is used up in the curing process.
The resulting reaction creates soap and glycerin. Soap cleanses the skin while glycerin moisturizes it. Many of our handmade soaps also contain butters and other oils to increase the moisturizing effect of the soap and herbs and other natural items for an exfoliant.
Glycerin is naturally produced during the soap making process. In fact, pound for pound, glycerin costs more than soap, which is why most soap companies remove the glycerin from the soap and sell it to manufacturers of lotion. We do not remove the glycerin from our handcrafted soap, so when you purchase soap made by us, it contains all of the naturally occurring glycerin. With our handcrafted soap you get a fabulous cleanser and a moisturizer all in one, which was created for top moisturizing ability.
Find Me
LocationRaleigh NC
Email Address
Elis
Personal Website
http://naturalhandcraftedsoap.com
Store Website
http://naturalhandcraftedsoap.com
@hand_crafted