I'm sorry if I'm one of the newbies that you all are talking about... I honestly don't mean any harm and speaking for other newbies I think it's only out of ignorance that we jump in over our heads often times
I personally think the girl in question jumped into business way to quickly... 3 days isn't even enough time to get it batched/popped outta the mold/cut/etc. But if I am being lumped into this newbie group I would like to say that it is out of humility that I declare myself a newbie, and out of respect that I have asked for the opinions of people who I feel are MUCH more experienced than I. I seriously find the advice given on this forum to be incredibly valuable as I slowly increase my soapmaking skills.
I just felt the need to clarify again that while I am "new" to cold process soaping, I have been researching soap and doing M&P etc. for the past 9+ months... and yet only now have I decided to really start a business. Mine has been "under wraps" and in the works for the past 9 months, as I made lip balms, salves, creams, etc. for myself because I suffer from contact dermatitis and multiple allergies. I have sold locally to friends during this time, mainly in the form of lip balm and M&P soap concoctions. But I felt so limited by M&P (and annoyed that I could not remove ingredients I wasn't so fond of) that when I discovered CP soaping I nearly died of happiness...
It is my current joy and passion to make soap that has--in my opinion--miraculously cleared up my excema and diminished razor bumps because I'm not allergic to it for once in my life! And the fact that my sister--who is vegetarian--said to me the other day that I make the best soap she has ever used... soaping seriously is an emotional thing for me now.
I simply wanted to clarify that soap is not the ONLY thing I am planning to sell and it is not the only reason I've decided to form a business... this truly is my passion and my life, and I hope that no one looks down on me because of my youth and apparent inexperience.
I promise you that I check everything I do three times over to ensure that my products are safe and of the highest quality possible. If they aren't, I rebatch them and/or use them on myself.
I hope that this clears up some things if there have been any suspicions about me... and that it possibly provides another side to us newbies. You can't read a book by its cover, and I just don't think every newbie should be stereotyped like the 3-day girl.
On a similar note, I took piano for 10 years when I was younger--performed at numerous recitals and the yearly guild, even submitted a composition for judging--yet, when I handed out hundreds of flyers to people after deciding to offer piano lessons, not a single person called me. I was 19 at the time and couldn't understand it. I had all of the qualifications, but all people saw was my age, and all they thought was: inexperienced. Since then I have learned to let no one look down on me because of how they see me, but rather to prove myself to them by my work and actions.