The freezer purge revealed a cache of shelled edamame, veg and pork tamales, forgotten/unopened gluten-free grains, and a Ziploc of frozen raw milk cubes. Resolving to finally give millet a try (maybe) while mentally earmarking the tamales for a "meal assembly vs cook" night, and tossing the edamame (freezer burn) I gleefully regarded the frozen milk.
The nice folks @Acres of Opportunity Ranch (a fascinating organization - read about it here) had given me a small supply for a test batch. I had forgotten about the extra in the back of the freezer.
But the leftovers from that experiment offered a chance to further dive into my #useitchallenge. I'd been contemplating an updated version of a favorite Grapefruit/Star Anise soap and hadn't made a milk soap in ages.
We've had over a month of frigid temps and continually activating forced-air heat - coupled with Colorado's arid climate: my skin was crying out for extra moisture. Perfect timing for a milk-based soap. Plus the mini-drop swirl technique, currently trending in soaping circles, looked really fun.
YouTube research led to many useful tutorials, and a very talented Taiwanese Soaper (her company name roughly translated to "Oh My Double Cow Baby" - both impressive and confusing) provided a basic guide that I adapted to fit my supplies and concept. Even after filling a 10" log mold, I had enough soap left to fill a six cavity heart mold - and decided to have some fun with Micas and swirling, resulting in this:
One challenge with the original Grapefruit Star Anise soap was its lazy moniker -
so friends, this soap needs a real name and you probably need a bar of luxurious, moisturizing soap. Want to win one? Here's the scoop:
Post your suggestion(s) in the comments either in this post, on the Courageous Soap FaceBook page or on Instagram@couageous_soap (you can see some videos of "the making of" on there as well). Please "like" the post for your entry to count. If you want to "like" the page as well, go for it (but not required)
No limit on entries, but make them separate comments, please, to help my page's reach. Contest ends 2/28/19 @11:59 PM MST.
Soap facts: The base oils include olive, sweet almond, coconut, sustainable palm and Shea butter. The scent is a blend of pure essential oils of Pink Gapefruit/Star Anise/Litsea Cubeba. The natural colors include turmeric, activated charcoal, and Titanium white (with gold cosmetic mica detailing on the heart-shaped bars).
I'm the judge - if your suggestion resonates the most, you WIN and will get your soap in early March (after cure). Free shipping for a winner in the continental USA. Located out of the country? We'll work out something.
So grab yourself a tamale and side of millet (oh wait - that's what's in MY freezer) and kick back, zen out and come up with the winner! This blog post explains what I look for in a name. Or check out some of my other products to get inspired.
Want one of these beauties whether you win or not? Here's the product page.
Don't forget to comment with your suggestion(s)!
Thanks, pals - now get to it!
- L.
UPDATE, 3/6/19:
Kathleen Brewer has won the contest with the name Gustav's Dream - see the story on this here. (Kathleen - I'll be in touch and we'll get you your soap!)
Thanks to everyone who had participated - it was a really hard choice...
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