Welcome to the forum, hopefully this first experience wont dissuade you from continuing to post. There is a wonderful wealth of information here and willingness to share.
As you can see, making the leap to selling soap is not taken lightly around here! Most recommend perfecting your recipes over the course of
a year before selling. Lots of things can go wrong with soap - it can develop DOS (dreaded orange spots - a sign of rancidity), the scent can disappear or morph into something unpleasant, the soap can become crumbly, etc. Some of these things don't happen right away - they can happen months later.
The main worry is that when one person sells a bad bar of soap, it effects everyone else. That one customer could say "Yikes, I don't like handmade soap!" and never buy it from anyone again. And this hurts the rest of us who sell wonderful, carefully tested soap.
Then of course, there's the aspect of following rules, regulations and protecting yourself as a seller. Registering as a business, making sure you're following your country's laws on selling soap, properly following labeling rules, making sure you're insured in case something goes wrong.
It's a much longer process than most new soapmakers realize, which is why we often let out a collective groan when a newbie joins the forum and immediately wants to sell.
I hope you understand and don't take it personally. We're watching out for YOU, and trying to protect the handcrafted soapmaking industry as a whole.
