March Is National Crafting Month!

Throughout March, Soaps & Scents has been celebrating National Crafting Month, an event that throws a spotlight on all sorts of crafting, whether it’s making beautiful notecards, decoupaging a small box for mementoes or making your own soap products. Whatever types of crafting you enjoy, March is the month to set aside some time to practice them. Crafting is a fun way to boost your own creativity and relieve stress all at the same time.

Another way to celebrate National Crafting Month is to purchase handmade items from local crafters, like handmade soaps in El Cajon, CA. Soap-making is an ancient practice that has developed a lot over the years, and purchasing beautiful handmade soaps allows your body to enjoy a special treat.

History of Soap-Making

Soap is historically made from a combination of fats (usually from animals) and ashes. Humans have been making soap since ancient Babylonia, around 2800 B.C. Though Babylonians were the first group of people to master soap-making, many other cultures also followed suit with their own versions, including the ancient Egyptians, the Phoenicians and the Romans.

The Romans are in fact credited with giving soap its name, which apparently comes from stories about Mount Sapo in Rome. The story goes that when animals were sacrificed on Mount Sapo and a rain followed, the rain would push animal fat and ash down to the Tiber River. Women washing clothing in the river noticed the clothes became cleaner following one of those heavy rains.

The method of combining animal fats and ash lasted for thousands of years, until around the 1800s in France, when a man named LeBlanc found a way to chemically produce soaps that cut down on its cost. Today you can still buy soap made from that chemical process, as well as soaps made in a more traditional way.

Handmade Soaps

With so many soaps on the market, it can be tough to know what to choose. However, it’s often beneficial for your skin to purchase something gentle and natural, and lots of companies have jumped on this bandwagon and advertised “natural” products without many natural ingredients.

The best way to purchase natural soaps is to head to a business that is dedicated to the true craft of soap-making. Luckily, Soaps & Scents has offered this exact model for over 20 years! At Soaps & Scents, we handmake all of our soaps in small batches, which allows us to focus on each ingredient and ensure that our customers have the best possible health experience while using our products. We can also consult with you about your skin’s needs to find gentler or fragrance-free soaps to suit your individual needs.

Since 1994, Soaps & Scents has brought the local community a variety of handcrafted items, including body lotions, bath bombs and handmade soap in El Cajon, CA. You can even pick up a beautiful soap shaped like a cupcake or a ducky, which makes the perfect gift to celebrate the hard work of crafters during National Crafting Month. Stop by and see us today!