Why Handmade?

The definition of handmade, according to the MSN encarta dictionary, is “made by hand, not by machine”.  The word handmade is an adjective.  An adjective in grammar is a word that describes which, what kind of, or how many.  But for me, the word handmade means so much more.

Anyone who crafts knows what I mean, I think.  Before I started making my handmade soap, I only knew this by intuition.  I fumbled at anything craft related and I could not even color with crayons very well.  One day, I bought some handmade soap at a craft show and just knew.  But I really did not know the scope of this endeavor, not yet.    

Many years later, I have learned bunches.  One thing I have learned is that making handmade soap has also been described as an art, once almost lost, but in recent years, it has made quite a comeback.  Soap is soap-the result of a chemical reaction and it can be very fancy with colors and designs, but the true art form is in the making of it.  That is why is also gives the owner of it the sense of something valuable and worthy of respect.

This came home to me one day when I sat at an outdoor show a few years into my business, hoping to sell my soap on a day that was so hot it was hard to breathe.  The man next to me made beautiful wooden Christmas ornaments.  He traded one with me for a bar of soap.  To him, my soap was just as valuable as his handmade ornaments.  And that was a surprise to me. 

I have always cherished that ornament and the serindipity of that moment because of what it represented and the lesson it taught me-the person who made that handmade ornament truly wanted to make it and it was valuable because he made it with his hands, not a machine.  I thought it was beautiful and I still do.

I have never lost the passion or desire for making handmade soap, even though from a business aspect, there are headahes that come with it.  Just ask my webmaster!  Also, it is very hard to convince some people that the store bought soap they purchased for .98 is really a detergent and he is not being kind to his skin and that handmade is best!