Category: Recipes

1. New Start and some Recipes for you

   Posted on 12:00pm Sunday 14th Apr 2024

   

   To start our Blog off here is a lovely free Sugar Scrub recipe on my Studio Blog

   Welcome to my Sunday musings!

   Happy Sunday….and today it is actually sunny which makes such a difference.  I don't know about you but the sunshine seems to make all things better.  The tough economic climate in which I see so many amazing small businesses & families like ours struggling on a daily basis,  the tough environmental climate in which I battle to rationalise my role as a consumer business and my desire to save the planet and challenge the worlds financial equalities whilst also being a child of the 80's that loves to shop and enjoys lifes little luxuries.  These days my idea of luxury is a bath and some skincare,  some time in my garden on my new Yoga platform (made from pallets) and peace and quiet.  The Newsletter has always been a dream of mine, to produce something that people stop and read for a few minutes each week and not the vehicle it has become which is to simply announce sales or discounts.  While those are useful it doesn't give me much satisfaction.  I would love to know what you want from a newsletter? I want to share recipes that allow you to make your own little bit of eco luxury or save some pennies as well as some plastic waste (like this weeks sugar scrub recipe). I also want to share details of workshops that we offer via my studio Rowan Tree Studio Some feedback would be amazing if you have some time. In the meantime for anyone still reading I thought some informaton on us and what we do would be helpful if you didn't already know. We are a small family run business with an amazing team that makes Soap, Candles, Skincare and so much more from our HQ at the old Clovelly School.  We have a cute shop in Clovelly Village, sell online and wholesale as well as creating private label soaps and skincare and developing products for other amazing small brands. My other passion is teaching people how to make soaps, candles and skincare as well as Sewing and Patchwork and other fibre arts from Our Studio in Higher Clovelly.  Well after that long post I am heading off for a late brunch of gluten free pancakes and making a lot of bath bombs!

   Makes Lots!

   400g Self Raising Gluten Free Flour 2 Tsp Baking Powder 1 Teaspoon Cinnamon 2 Ripe Bananas 2 Tsb Vanilla 2 Tbs Melted butter or dairy free alternative 2 Large eggs  475ml Almond or normal milk (I am milk intolerant)   1) Put all dry ingredients in a bowl and combine 2) Melt butter in the pan you will be using 3) Combine Banana, Vanila eggs and melted butter 4)  Add Milk and whisk 5) Combine with the dry ingredients and whisk well Fry in a small amount of oil or butter ENJOY!

   

2. All Soap Dishes are not created equal

   Posted on 12:00pm Friday 20th Aug 2021

   When it comes to handmade soap one of the biggest issues we find from our customers is the soap not drying our properly and becoming soft and squidgy and frankly not lasting as long as it should.  To give you small amount of technical information soap is made from a magical combination of Oils, Water and Sodium Hydroxide in a mysterious process called Saponification!

    

   

   This process turns simple ingredients into Soap and Glycerin which is an amazing skin product that moisturises whilst drawing moisture to it.  Glycerin carries on attracting moisture so when a bar of soap is sat in a pretty but inpractical soap dish with no ridges and no drainage it soon sucks up water and turns to a fragrant but mushy mess (hardly cost effective!)

   A few tweaks to your sink apparel can solve this problem and ensure long lasting soap.  If you love a pretty china or pottery soap dish then a quick solution is a slice of Loofah on top to place the soap dish raising it up from the water and ensuring good air circulation.  Not to mention a fabulous soap impregnated scouring pad to clean the sink with.

   

   One of our best selling soap dishes is a wooden Hemu soap dish with wide slats and raised sides to keep the soap away from water and drain it well between uses

   

   If you fancy a bit of 80's Nostalgia then a fantastic new (see reworked for the 21st Century) product is our magnetic soap holder which is ones of my absolute favourites and guaranteed to ensure long lasting soap.  Simply pop the bottle top shaped metal part into a bar of soap and stick the sucker on the tiles or the side of the sink ensuring super dry soap all the time

    

   

   And last but by no means least Soap on A rope, the 80's Classic (can you tell I am a child of the 80's?) hangs in the shower allowing air to circulate round the bar ensuring is stays dry between uses and has a handy strap to hold onto preventing soap slipping in to the bath!

   

   So don't fret if you have wet soap, help is here for all budgets and if you fancy a go at The Good Life you can grow your own Loofah so you never run out of soap dishes or kitchen scourers ever again!

   Take Care Sarah