NEW WEBSITE LIVE MONDAY 27TH FEBRUARY 2012

Finally its finished, all bar a couple of tweaks, and the new website Puro Soaps will go live.

We are very excited and cant wait to hear what you all think of it.  Please remember you will no longer be able to view the Naturally Made Soaps website or contact us on the old email.  We will be keeping this blog however and renaming it.

The new email address is info@purosoaps.com

Please join us on our Puro Soaps facebook page, and if you click to join our email list you will receive regular (but not too often!) newsletters and information about special offers and new products.

So can I just thank you all for your support, Naturally Made Soaps would never have got here if it was not for you guys.  Please, please continue supporting us and add us to your links page if you can.  Oh and let us know what you think of the new site and the new products.

THANK YOU XXX

Its getting very close now

Puro soaps is now officially taking over!  The new website is coming on well, I am hopeful that I will meet my deadline of Friday 24th Feb. Still quite a bit to do but I am keen to show you some of the new images.

These are our fabulous new signature soaps, Puro Citrino, Puro Verde and Puro Rosa.  The best in natural, olive oil rich soaps, better than any other soap you might have tried.

Our totally amazing soap cupcakes and soapcakes that are proving real winners across the UK and Europe

and, just to let you know, although we are bringing in a fabulous new range of soaps, some of the old favorites will still be available - Dirty Dog Soap, The Bridge Inn Beer Bar and Baby Lolas Bar will all still be available on the website.

So keep watching, as soon as the new site is live, you will be the first to know.

Like us?  the go to the Purosoaps facebook site and let us know, link on the right hand side of this site - and can I just thank all those of you who have done this, spread the word please.  We are working so hard to make the best natural soap ever......

Do NOT believe everything you read

I am gobsmacked!  I mean totally speechless.  I have just read the most unbelievable article ever.  Where, oh where, did this guy get his information from.  He is arguing the case that wonderful, natural soaps are better for you than the harsher commercially made detergents that call themselves soaps, we all know this and its a message that I have sent out many, many times but to say that natural soap is made from gas??  also that there is such a thing as 'all natural water soap'??  and even that commercial soapmakers add petrol to their soap??  (far be it from me to defend their products but I am sure that even they are not using actual gasoline to make soap with)

This is frightening and very miss leading, I have left a comment for the writer, do have a read and leave one too if you can.

kevinakinforcongress.com

Kevin Akin is the former Californian State Chair of The Peace and Freedom Party, now Riverside County Officer.

Please note, I have no affiliation with this or any other political party either in the US or the UK.

Beginners Soap Courses are so much fun!

This is when I get to say how much I LOVE my job.......

I really, really do.  I did two courses very close together last week so I thought you might like to see some pictures.  The first was at The Old Kennels, Dunkeswell, Devon I have taught there before and really love the venue.  Tracey Bell the organiser is also great, very efficient, friendly and so welcoming. This was a particularly fun class.  I had 8 folks on the course from all over the place, a couple had been on Kennels courses before but none had made soap so it meant they all had a lot of information to take in, in just one day - a huge ask!

It really is a beautiful location and a wonderful light, airy studio

Everyone turned up on time and after introductions and basic information (I always do a really comprehensive set of course notes to refer to) we got working measuring oils, lye and water.

They all made some beautiful soaps, really varied and pretty and we even had time to make some lovely fizzy bath melts.  It was a very busy day.

Then only a few days later I was lucky enough to go to The Yarner Trust, North Devon.  It was funny really, it felt a little like going home.  Many years ago I was a pupil doing my A'levels at Dartington Hall School, Nr Totnes in Devon.  A co-educational school which was started by the Elmhursts and attached to Dartington College and The Great Hall.  In 1978 The Yarner Trust was formed and two small farms were set up, designed to show how a small farm could support a family in a self sufficient and ecological way.  Unfortunately Yarner Farm in Dartington is no longer operational but Welcome Barton in Welcome, between Bude and Bideford on the North Devon coast is still going, offering wonderful courses and events.
Because it was a long way for me to travel they very kindly offered me B&B for the night before.  I turned up after a long, dark and rainy drive to find an absolute gem, what a fabulous house.  600 years old with amazing character, beautifully restored without damaging any of the features, and obviously much loved.

A beautiful cozy living room with a huge wood burner

An incredible kitchen, the archway goes right through to the fireplace, see the photo above

In the kitchen was a Saxon window - can you imagine how old that is?  somewhere between 450ad to 1066ad

I felt so welcome, when I went upstairs to find my room for the night I had a lovely surprise

My bedroom door!

The course was wonderful, it took place in the beautiful old converted barn across the yard from the house, a huge woodburner fire chucked out heat and we had a superb time.  We used the large camp kitchen to do the melting, mixing lye and washing up and absolutely everyone mucked in.

Again, they made some lovely and amazingly different soaps - well done everyone

A really beautiful venue and a fantastic group of soapmakers

Steamy washing up, bless them, still wearing their goggles and gloves

I am booked to return to The Old Kennels on 15th March 2012 and the 27th September 2012 to teach new, improvers/intermediate courses, available to those who have already done a beginners course and Welcome Barton and The Yarner Trust have indicated that they would like to do the same as well.  I can't wait!  When our new website goes live there will be full details of the courses.  In the mean time you can always go to the websites of The Old Kennels and of The Yarner Trust.

Have you ever done a soap making course?  was it a good experience?  I would love to know.

PURO Soaps signature soap bars

Yes!  The first time that PURO soaps have been made here in the UK, using the same lovely ingredients of course.  Shelley and I have had to syncronise soap moulds as well as our recipes, where we get our ingredients, in fact everything to ensure that wherever in the world PURO soaps are ordered they will be exactly the same.

So here we go, a pictorial journey into the first three batches of 'Puro' - our signature range of Olive oil rich, natural soaps.

Unmoulded loaves of Citrino (in the background) and Rosa - ready for cutting into bars

Citrino cut up and stamped with our new 'Puro' stamp - They look so creamy and smell fantastic

I have also cut up the sensational 'Bolo de Chocolate' or Chocolate and Strawberry Gateaux.  Its a sumptuously rich, creamy soap with a beautiful strawberry shape suspended inside the bar.  The top is finished off with lifelike soap strawberries, white soap chocolate curls and glitter.  Now I am proud to say that this firm favorite of Naturally Made Soaps is sporting a 'Puro' stamp!

First slices cut of the Bolo de Chocolate, looking great, the suspended strawberries are perfect.  This soap with darken lots while curing, it will finish off quite brown, chocolate coloured which makes the white swirls and soap curls really stand out.

So there they are.  I am very happy with the first PURO soaps made in the UK, watch this space for many, many more.  I am currently working on photos for the new PURO website which will mean the Naturally Made Soaps site will be temporarily closed down.  This is due to take place later on today and the site should be down for just one week.  Follow our progress on this blog as well as our PURO Facebook page

So here they all are and don't they look lovely? All ready for the curing shelves.  I can tell you that my hands are already really soft and my workshop smells really wonderful.

Remember, we can make any special soap you might like for your shop/website/business.  We LOVE coming up with new and exciting soaps.

I'm really excited to hear what you think about the new soaps, please do leave a comment for us.  Thanks for reading.  If you are reading this blog for the first time do sign up for more, we have so much great news to share with you all.