I was that annoying soaper at the stand!

Well, actually it was The Admirable Lady..............

So this weekend I went to a market with my wife and there was a soap seller there. The first I have seen in Austria, actually. I have seen their soaps before, just not actually them in person.

So I was chatting with them, looking at their lovely but crushingly expensive soaps - it's all "bio" and all that jazz, lots of things like beeswax and propolis and so on, but still outrageous prices. Then came the tipping point:

They asked about oils and I said the ones I usually use. Then they said something that I didn't quite understand (this was in German) so The Admirable Lady translated it and it was something about "precious oils" as the superfat. They had already explained that they only do CP, so when they start to talk about putting in "precious" oils at trace (hopefully talking like Gollum as they do so) I start to think about getting out of Dodge.

But my wife has other ideas and starts telling them that it just doesn't work that way, that the only way to selectively superfat is with HP. I was so proud of her, especially how she was saying it in a way that really showed that she thought these people were insane or charlatans.

What a woman!

Forgot to mention, they had a loaf for cutting that was so soft and squidgy, I don't it would have lasted 3 uses with me in the shower Not bad for almost 10€ per 100 grams! :Kitten Love:

That's pretty pricey.

When i first started soaping, 10+ years ago, some soapers actually added their oils in order of "specialness" - aka, you'd add the soybean, lard, canola, palm, etc first, and then the olive oil, so more of the olive oil would be unsaponified, and very last you added your "special" oil - sweet almond, apricot kernel, etc.

Although possibly the "precious" oils were EOs?

Potentially - was still an eye opening experience.

Thankfully, when I finally start to sell, I'll be coming from a different angle so it's not really competition.

haha. good for the Lady! I can never confront people like that....I always come off as witchy.

and btw - I was at a show and saw a vendor with ALL their soaps in loaves and "made fresh". they said I would have to buy the soap and leave it for 6 weeks before using. i didn't like that way of selling, but that's just me. and yowzas! that's pricey for soap!!!

It appears that it is not for nothing that you refer to your wife as The Admirable Lady! Good for her!

Wow- that is some expensive soap!

IrishLass

Expensive stuff. You should be so proud of the wife. I've been tempted to say something to others but usually just bite my tongue and walk away. I don't think I would be so nice.

I would have bought that soap only if the hands of Jesus were the ones that made it. I'm finding that the "precious oils" I use are better left as sprays or air diffusers.

neeners said:

I was at a show and saw a vendor with ALL their soaps in loaves and "made fresh". they said I would have to buy the soap and leave it for 6 weeks before using. i didn't like that way of selling, but that's just me.

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I have to respect the soaper who lets the customers know that the soaps are not ready yet. I would hate to see "fresh" soap being sold as though they are ready to use (even if it is HP).

LunaSkye said:

I have to respect the soaper who lets the customers know that the soaps are not ready yet. I would hate to see "fresh" soap being sold as though they are ready to use (even if it is HP).

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I did respect that, but the soaps weren't very finished looking, not quite rustic either. it just looked kind of messy just piles of soap that just came out of the mold piled super high. didn't look very inviting.....

neeners said:

I did respect that, but the soaps weren't very finished looking, not quite rustic either. it just looked kind of messy just piles of soap that just came out of the mold piled super high. didn't look very inviting.....

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You're right, presentation is key! It would have been better if they cut a small piece of each soap and kept the rest out the sun (it sounds like they were melting).

it was an indoor show. I'm kind of OCD though..... I like a really well organized booth with well thought out packaging. doesn't have to be expensive, but it makes the seller seem like they put a lot of thought into their product. not saying this particular vendor didn't, it just didn't LOOK that way, you know? maybe they were going with the Lush way of doing things - cutting for weight? I don't know. just didn't look great.....

LunaSkye said:

I have to respect the soaper who lets the customers know that the soaps are not ready yet. I would hate to see "fresh" soap being sold as though they are ready to use (even if it is HP).

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That annoys me too. I know a girl in my town who mainly makes lotions and pretty much dabbles in soap. She makes HP soap and will literally sell it the next day.

jenfrat said:

That annoys me too. I know a girl in my town who mainly makes lotions and pretty much dabbles in soap. She makes HP soap and will literally sell it the next day.

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I often wonder if people who do that price their soap by the ounce. If so, then the person buying the soap is paying for the excess water that will eventually evaporate out.


IrishLass

neeners said:

haha. good for the Lady! I can never confront people like that....I always come off as witchy.

and btw - I was at a show and saw a vendor with ALL their soaps in loaves and "made fresh". they said I would have to buy the soap and leave it for 6 weeks before using. i didn't like that way of selling, but that's just me. and yowzas! that's pricey for soap!!!

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I am another one that usually comes off as witchy. Anymore I do my very best to just walk on by and bite my tongue. :-D Something I am not very good at...

jenfrat said:

That annoys me too. I know a girl in my town who mainly makes lotions and pretty much dabbles in soap. She makes HP soap and will literally sell it the next day.

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While I can't fault anyone with thinking that HP is ready to use (that was me in the beginning), I can fault for the lack of research.

IrishLass said:

I often wonder if people who do that price their soap by the ounce. If so, then the person buying the soap is paying for the excess water that will eventually evaporate out.

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That is a horror story in the making... :neutral:

cmzaha said:

I am another one that usually comes off as witchy. Anymore I do my very best to just walk on by and bite my tongue. :-D Something I am not very good at...

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oh, I know i'll end up coming off witchy! I may or may not have that tendency...... esp if I know I'm right (and I'm usually right ). I just ask a few questions, put the soaps down, and walk away while muttering to the bf (or myself...in my head). that's as nice as I can get with shady vendors.....

Do most soap sellers know what a Salt Bar is? I came across a seller that had no clue and said, "all soap has salt in it". I think some sellers are just friends/family manning the booth and know just enough to answer the usual easy questions.

The Efficacious Gentleman said:

) so when they start to talk about putting in "precious" oils at trace (hopefully talking like Gollum as they do so)

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Ok, now I'm going to be doing this everytime I use a pricey FO...rubbing my hands together and muttering "Precious, my precious. roblem:

neeners said:

I was at a show and saw a vendor with ALL their soaps in loaves and "made fresh". they said I would have to buy the soap and leave it for 6 weeks before using. i didn't like that way of selling, but that's just me.

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I have seen this also... and not just at Lush.

I wonder to myself (and to the Hubby as well) - how do they cut if/when it is fully cured? without mangling their bars? I might be in the minority, but often I cut while soap is still warm - super clean edges, and easy because I do it by hand. Just under 24 hours. And I super insulate.

Anytime I've cut fully cured bars in half, sometimes they are hard as rocks and I almost lost a finger! Sometimes they're almost hard as rocks - and I still almost lose a finger... So.... I wonder about that.

I mean if you sell out your loafs at every show - great - you can cut them while they're fresh, your bars will look marvelous and people can pick how big of bar they want....

but sometimes I don't think that's the case and you'd be lugging your loafs back home. Ready for the next show.

And yes...selling when they're fresh like that - not fully cured - by weight...the consumer is paying for water....

The Efficacious Gentleman said:

(hopefully talking like Gollum as they do so)

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^^^ exactly!

"What's this? Shea butter crumbs on his jacketses!"