Everyone loves good soap, and Sara Turnbull of Chicory Farm soap knows this. Chicory Farm makes their soaps with fresh goat milk and other sustainable ingredients, with equally sustainable practices! These soaps are good for the environment, and your body! Read on for more of Sara's thoughts on soap making, and her budding knowledge of aromatherapy!

1. As a returning vendor to our Alternative Fair, what do you enjoy about the Alternative Fair?

Two years ago I visited the Alternative Fair for the first time, and couldn’t wait to participate in it the next year. I love the variety of gifts you can find at the fair, but my favorite part is that there are so many educational toys, sustainable goodies, and fair trade gifts. If you’re conscientious about your gift giving, then the first place you should hit is the Alternative Fair! As for being a vendor, I enjoy the Alternative Fair because many of the visitors share my concerns and interests. People will regularly check to make sure that our soap is made with essential oils, without palm oil, and that it’s all hand-crafted by me on our goat farm in Bloomfield.

2. What is your soap making process?

I make our soap in a big bread mixer with a modified cold-process method. It’s made with a combination of hard and soft fats: coconut oil and organic raw shea butter are hard, and olive oil and goat milk are soft. The bread mixer helps me multitask by stirring the oils and lye while I prepare the next batch. When the ingredients are fully combined and the soap starts to thicken (saponify), It’s ready for the essential oils and to be poured into the mold. It hardens there for a day, then gets cut into bars that harden for at least 4 weeks before I wrap them up, tie on bows, and box them up to take to the shows!

3. I saw your blog post about learning aromatherapy, how is that coming along?

Well, learning about aromatherapy is going very well, though keeping up with the blog isn’t as promising! About a month ago I signed up for a distance-learning course taught by Jeanne Rose to become a Certified Aromatherapist. A lot of our customers are interested in essential oils, and often ask which blend is best for different skin types, skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis, or to help with feelings of anxiety or insomnia. I’ve learned a lot already, and I can’t wait to complete the course so I can start helping people in a more meaningful (and knowledgeable) way!

You can visit Chicory Farm's website and look at Sara's full line of products here: http://www.chicoryfarmsoap.com/

You can visit Sara at our Alternative Fair December 5th and 6th. RSVP on our Facebook page! https://www.facebook.com/events/1521840118059601/