Summer's End

That might be wishful thinking...we've certainly been in the middle of the dog days of summer around here. But here at the Parsonage we're getting ready for our first craft show of the Fall season, and that always feels like the end of summer to me.

Dick and I will be at the Lucketts Fair this weekend. Please stop by and say hello if you're in the area.


We've also added a couple of new shows to the schedule this year. We're going to be back at Broad Run High School on November 7, and back to Lake Braddock High School on October 20. I'll be adding them to our online show calendar soon.

This Week's Show: June 12, 2008

Just a reminder that we will be at Mountain Heritage outside of Harper's Ferry this weekend. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from 10 to 6 (5 on Sunday). Stop by and say hello! Highlights of the show will include Dick's trail stories (he's taking a break from walking due to injuries). And please keep your fingers crossed for nice weather...this show seems to attract thunderstorms.

New Beginnings

This is a very special time for us here at the Parsonage.

Seventeen years ago, Dick and I met making decorations for our daughters' preschool graduation. The girls became best friends, so did we, and our families have been close ever since.

This weekend we celebrated another type of graduation:

Molly Darr received a degree in
Wildlife Science from Virginia Tech

Beth Pieper earned a BFA from
the Maryland Institute College of Art

Dick started his own adventure, hiking the Appalachian Trail with his son from Pennsylvania to Maine. Don't worry, we expect him back in time for the Lucketts Fair.

Here's to safe journeys for all!

Rainy Days and Mondays

We've had what seems to be an unending run of rainy days lately. It's been great for the flowers in the garden, as you can see by this shot of my wisteria, taken during a break between storms. It's also been good for our productivity. It's much easier to spend your days inside wrapping soap when there's no incentive to be outdoors. There's something cozy about the sound of rain on the metal barn roof.

We've needed to do a lot of wrapping lately, since this weekend has us doubled up on shows. Dick is going to be in Westminster, MD for the Flower and Jazz Festival on Saturday. This is a fun one--good music, lots of plants, and of course soap. I'm going to be in Crozet, VA at the Crozet Arts and Crafts Spring Festival. This is a new one for us, and I'm really looking forward to it. Please stop by and say hello if you're in the area!

It's Spring! Let the Shows Begin

Honestly, I should probably call this blog This Month at the Parsonage, or even This Year given how often I post. Sorry about that--we have been making soap like crazy, around 1200 bars a week. Dick's taking off for a few months this summer and I'm trying to get a bit ahead of the game. Don't want to have to make a batch without the Master Soapmaker, now do I?

The weather has finally turned here in Virginia and I think spring is here to stay. The bluebells are blooming along the Potomac, the peepers have been frozen out their third time, and the lilacs are starting to bud. Oliver loves to camp out under the lilac bushes and watch the road. You just never know when a bicycle might go by!

This weekend we will be at our first show of the year, the Leesburg VA Flower and Garden Show. It runs Saturday and Sunday (April 18 and 19). If you're in the area, please stop by and say hello. There should be plenty of gorgeous plants to look at, as well as crafts, landscape displays, and much more. Keep your fingers crossed for sun!

Getting Closer

Dick's still hard at work, trying to create the perfect batch of liquid soap. It's always fun watching him wrap his mind around a new challenge, and challenge is a good word to describe the process so far.

Liquid soapmaking differs from the way we make our bar soap in several ways. Not only are the ingredients different, but the soap is created using a hot process method--in other words, it's cooked. The oils and potassium hydroxide are stirred together in a crock pot for about five hours (the only thing Dick trusts me with so far!) until it looks like vaseline:





At that point, this soap "paste" is dissolved in water and voila! you have liquid soap. Sounds pretty simple, no? Well, for our first batch we followed a recipe we found online (after Dick had studied just about everything you could possibly learn about liquid soap). Everything looked pretty good, and we got a beautiful, clear soap with only one problem:



Not really the consistency we were going for (although there just might be a huge, untapped market for jello soap out there). It does work very well on dishes, though.

Batches two and three are still in the testing stages, but we modified the same oil blend we use for our bar soaps and are much happier with the results. Keep your fingers crossed.

Back to Business

Both Dick and I took a few days off this past week but we've been making up for lost time in the shop. Now that we're caught up with everything, we've been able to add a few new varieties to the lineup. We had a huge essential oil delivery arrive before we left, so there were plenty of scents to play with. Still working on the name thing, as usual.

First off we have a cocoa butter soap scented with a Lemongrass blend. There have been a lot of requests for lemongrass, and this one is very rich.

Another essential oil blend is a Lavender Spice. Lots of lavender and clove, plus a few rose notes from palmarosa and rosewood.

Still more lemongrass! This one is blended with coconut for a light, summery scent. I love anything that lets me pretend I'm on the beach.

Dick came up with a mix of vanilla, orange, cinnamon, and some cedar for depth (he's nothing if not deep). Kind of like a spicy creamsicle, but better.

Finally, I decided we needed a new blend for Heaven. This one is still light but more floral than our old soap. There have to be flowers in heaven, don't you agree?

All these soaps will make their debut at the Leesburg Flower and Garden show. And we're still soaping away, so any fragrance suggestions would be greatly appreciated!