Behind the Scents: August Edition

For those that might be new to my monthly newsletter, welcome! For those who are subscribed to our newsletter and have gotten these in the past, hey guess what, welcome, too!

This is my Behind the Scents: Monthly Edition newsletter in which I give a detailed update on what I'm working on, what I'm obsessed with, Soap Distillery happenings, product updates, dogs I've petted, and literally anything on my mind. This monthly update has always been a great way for you all to get to know me a little better, and because I'd love to get to know you a little better, I decided to move this particular newsletter to the blog because your comments are often more relatable than you'd think; so many of you have so much in common!

If you haven't subscribed to the general newsletter and want to be notified when I release these, be sure to do so here. Ok, now that we all know why we're here, let's dive in :)

 Managing the Stress of Life

I knew at 11:59pm cst on December 31st, 2023 that 2024 was indeed to be an incredibly stressful year. Outside of the challenges of running a small business in today's climate, it was also going to be an election year. Anyone even remotely following this knows that this might be the most important election in recent history, and the combination of all this has my anxiety at an all time high. To combat this the best way I can, I've been leaning pretty hard into my hobbies because being outside is free (but LOL because buying seeds, tools, soil, etc is NOT. haha)

I've been lucky because our garden has been very fruitful this year, and I've produced what feels like a million tons of Lemon Boy Yellow Tomatoes. They are slightly sour sliced, but if you make them into a sauce, they will taste SUPER sour. As a red tomato lover, I am not used to a tomato being this tangy, so I've come up with a few ways to use these: chutney, jam, salsa, and ceviche. Don't ask me for a recipe because I don't have one yet but soon will! lol

Along with these heavy producers, I've also had great luck with basils, thyme, oregano and other herbs so OF COURSE you know what that means...I've got a Distiller's Series bar soap brewing that I think a ton of you will love, especially you gardeners out there. If you love the current Shiso + Lemonade Bar Soap, you're gonna love this one. 

For those who've been following Soap Distillery for a while, you'll also catch that this means the return of our Distiller's Series which I've been planning to do as a fun monthly addition all year long! It's been taking a while because there are some really amazing things happening behind the scenes and I am but one person, so I tend to move at a "one person pace".

Coming Soon: Product Improvements

In addition to the Distiller's Series, I've also been working on some product improvements across a couple of product lines. One line that I've wanted to improve since last year are the candles. Don't worry candle lovers...I am not dropping any scents!

But, I am currently on the hunt for some new jars that look a little cooler than the ones we're currently using. Soap Distillery prides itself on it's aesthetics, and the art school gurl inside of me is like, "hey, these are super basic. You can do better! Let us pray to the candle gods that the current style continues to do well in testing because squeeeeeeeeeee....I'M IN LOVE. 

There are a couple other packaging improvements coming too. Not a rebrand or anything like that because I just did that and did the design solo so I have no plans to rebrand any time soon, but some easier opening bottles are at the top of the pipeline :)

My Current Obsession: What the Rainforest Smells Like. A Guessing Game.

Do you know what petrichor is? Petrichor is that wet, earthy smell that accompanies a heavy rain. Even more specific, it is the Geosmin that I am drawn to. Geosmin is produced by blue-green algae, actinomycetes, and other bacteria and fungi. It's found in soil and fresh water all over the world, and is associated with the breakdown of algae and other microorganisms in raw water sources. It is a smell that humans are naturally drawn to because well before GPS, we used our noses to find things and the smell of geosmin was our clue to a nearby water source. Agave + Salted Peel as a small amount of it inside that gives a slight watery note. Combine that with tropical flowers, moss, wet bark, ferns and more, and that's what I imagine the Amazon Rainforest smells like. Can't you just smell it? I'm truly obsessed with the idea of it. Maybe a second round of forest bathing scents are needed to bring this obsession to life...