Summer School That You WANT To Attend

The Nova Studio has just posted its new schedule of classes for the summer (and into September)! Lori Nova owns and runs this inviting space where both students and teachers are encouraged to get creative and share their artistic passions. This is the place to BE for learning to make lotions, herbal extracts, soap, facial masks, jewelry, soap, bath bombs, prints and transfers, soap, body butters...(did I mention soap? I'm a little biased.) But instead of reading all the classes here, just go to the class calendars yourself and marvel at the variety listed there!

I'm particularly biased about soap because I will start teaching soapmaking there myself this summer! For the beginner, there is Cold Process Soap 101. Whether you have never made soap using the cold process, or you have a few batches under your belt, this class will help you get organized, get outfitted with everything you need, and get SOAPING!

The other class that I will be teaching is Advanced Cold Process Soap Design with Loaf Molds, a foray into the various ways in which you can make your soap unique and eye-catching! We'll cover layers, swirls, embedding shapes and more.

So learn and create something new this summer, whether at The Nova Studio, or your local adult school, community college or public library. Keep the creative juices flowing and express your artistic passions!

Everything I Needed to Know

So I've blogged before about learning lessons from soapmaking, besides how to make soap. It occurs to me that there are a lot of other lessons to learn (some of us have more to learn than others, I guess). Obviously these are things that I've known all along (I'm not a total social misfit), but slamming face-first into some of these mistakes learning opportunities has a way of making everything so clear. So I've decided to make it an ongoing series (with apologies to Robert Fulghum): "Everything I Needed to Know I Have Finally Learned While Making Soap".

Today's lesson: Share What You Have
The main reason that I ever started making soap was so that I could make gifts for my family and friends. I wanted to share some of my time and effort with them. It's satisfying to give away something that you feel proud to have made yourself.

But as I set out to learn more about soapmaking, I was surprised to find a community so willing to share an enormous amount of accumulated knowledge. Soapmakers love to talk about soapmaking! So they are always willing to help troubleshoot a problem, offer a tip or gently suggest that selling the very first batch of soap you ever made might not be a good idea.

Much of the sharing that has helped me has been in the virtual world of internet forums and mailing lists. Many large soaping supply companies have mailing lists where customers and proprietors can exchange ideas about specific ingredients or products.

But for a broader view of many soapmaking topics, nothing beats an online forum. These are message boards, where a member posts a question or comment, and then other members can chime in and post replies. It still amazes me the amount of time and information that some soapmakers on these forums are willing to share with others. There is no ulterior motive here: it is purely a "pay-it-forward" kind of mentality. I would not know half of what I do now, without the advice, suggestions and (let's face it) soaping disaster stories that I have read on online forums. And now it feels so good to be able to be the one answering questions and giving suggestions, instead of just seeking advice all the time.

If you are looking for some help with your own soapmaking (or you feel inspired to join in the share-fest), these are some sites that I suggest: The Dish Forum, The Soap Making Forum and Teach Soap Forum.

And so, to bring my lesson full-circle, I will soon be sharing what I know with students at The Nova Studio, as I begin teaching soapmaking classes there this summer. I am really looking forward to meeting some new people who also love talking about making soap!