Ridiculed for having an interest in making soap....

[CherryGardenGirl]

There's a lot of mean people in this world . . . just ignore them and let them wallow in their mean-ness

I talk to my brother-in-law, a mechanic, about making soap. He actually makes his own bio-diesel, and minus the methane, its almost the same ingredients involved! He didn't realize it, but he was actually making soap in a weird way

So don't feel bad . . . keep soaping!

 

[Overthemoon]

I was asked why I make soap not that long ago. My answer was pretty simple. Because I can. Because I want to. Take your pick.

 

[Alexandra]

Soaping has nothing to do with gender. So just ignore such remarks.

Some prejudices people have about soap and cosmetic making I felt on my skin.

When I started making facial creams five years ago my colegues were surprised by the level to asking me am I going to leave my profession :roll: . How stupid...

Few days ago I made a soap gifts packages for my colegs, and they are excited now. They used me to have a "wiered hobby" and - they liked the soaps as well.

Some of my family members reacted negatively, but all rumors stopped after they tried my creams and lotions. They are calling now on regular basis to find is there any new cream. They like my new soaps too...

It seems that most of people just are afraid of unknown and unusual things.

 

[BDF92]

17 year old boy here Still in high school and my friends give me a looot of crap for it xD

 

[whisks]

17 year old boy here Still in high school and my friends give me a looot of crap for it xD

i'm sure they give you a lot of crap about a lot of things...lol....i bet they won't give you crap when saponification comes up in your exam and you blitz it....but then again they might - it's because they like you that they tease you.

 

[ChrissyB]

Since both male and female alike must use soap, I dont see where it matters who makes it and the days of any job being gender specific are fast fading into history. My two bob's worth. Steve.

This is perfect!!

 

[Half Caper Farm]

17 year old boy here Still in high school and my friends give me a looot of crap for it xD

Wait until you start getting points with the girls for giving them fancy soap - all the boys will be jealous then!

 

[Pantseatflyer]

I made my first batch of CP last week (WalMart Recipe) and was kidded a little by the family when they saw me looking like a chemist in a lab with my scale measuring oils, lye, etc...

That was until I unwrapped the log and sliced up the bars, the questions starting flowing.. "Are those bars scented?" "Can I try one out?" "Hey, maybe with the next batch, you could add some scent". "I wonder if the Natural Food store has some FO's or EO's?"

Needless to say, they want to get in on the act. The more, the merrier!

So far, no more snide comments from the peanut gallery for this 47-year-old male.

 

[ironbrewer]

Have a degree in Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology. I made beer commercially for 12 years. I left the business though. The restaurant business just isn't stable enough for me. I only worked for small companies mostly brewpubs. I loved making new recipes whenever I wanted. I also do most of the cooking in my house. I love cooking Thai, Indian, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian, Cajun, some French and Italian, and a little bit of American. Oh yeah and my son says I make the best Hot Chocolate!! I just recently started shaving with an old school Double edged safety razor and thought why not make my own shaving cream, and soap.

44 year old guy. Oh by the way my wife thinks its cool, but she is used to my odd ways.

 

[MorpheusPA]

Another one here, 41 and male. Some family members were a little surprised at first, until I gave out Christmas gifts of boxes of soap.

The surprise stopped, the questions started, and people now ask me what I'm making. The comments "You should sell this" started about the same time they actually tried the soap--most of them have only ever used a store-bought brand and think itchy dry skin in Northern winters is normal.

 

[tblack32002]

Talk about having to hide a hobby... try being a male in the military who enjoys making soap. Too many individuals automatically assume somethings wrong when you can substitute convienence and low cost from time and effort.

Love soapin' and don't plan on stopping anytime soon.

 

[Jaaret]

Guys make soap.

Greetings from a fellow soap maker who happens to be male. Soap making is both an art an a science. Every batch is an experiment and a learning experience. When I have been questioned about my soap making habit it is not ever about why a man would engage in this hobby, it's a question on how and why anyone would engage in an alchemy that is, to them, mysterious and esoteric.

 

[Sunny]

I think that's a funny question - why.

Why do we make soap?

well, why does anyone do anything .. ever ..

'CAUSE

 

[MorpheusPA]

I think that's a funny question - why.

Why do we make soap?

well, why does anyone do anything .. ever ..

'CAUSE

'Cause indeed!

There's only a few reasons to do anything, really:

Expense: It's too expensive to have it done. For soap making, that doesn't apply. For high-quality beauty bars, it sure does...those things are expensive and CP soapers can do as well or better at home.

Quality: I can do it better myself. Heck, even my MP soap kicks the shins of the commercial soap (but I do add small amounts of extra oils).

Time: It's faster to do it myself. For soap making, that really doesn't apply. Even with MP, I could drive to the store and pick up a 10 pack of soap faster than I can melt, color, scent, pour a simple bar, and wait for it to set up.

Enjoyment: I enjoy doing it myself, regardless of expense, quality, or time. That one pretty much defines a hobby, which soap making definitely is!

If you can manage Enjoyment, you need say nothing more. If you can manage at least 1 more of the above, perfect!