More Summer Soap Classes and Workshops Added To Our Schedule!

What are you doing new and fun this summer? Whether you're in New York or Maine and looking to take a road trip, or if you're planning to visit Cape Cod this summer, take time for yourself to join a class at Back Porch Soap Company. All classes are held in our Duxbury, Massachusetts studio, located just 30 minutes south of Boston and 40 minutes from Providence, Rhode Island.

Glycerin Soap Making, July 23
Come join in the fun as we make an array of beautiful glycerin soaps! This small, personalized soap making class covers the essentials of glycerin soap making. Lots of hands-on learning. Each student will learn how to make four personalized batches, which yield at least 16 bars of soap! Your creations will make wonderful gifts!
6:00 - 9 p.m.
Course: $65 & Materials Fee: $20

Cold Process Soap Making Class, July 25
Want to learn how to make soap from scratch? Curious about the cold process process? Then this is the perfect class for you!You will learn safety guidelines and reach a level of comfort so that you can finally make soap by hand at home! We'll discuss how to properly use and store lye, mixing lye and water, oils for soap making, fragrance oils, essential oils, superfatting, additives and exfoliants, coloring, molding and curing. Students will receive soap recipes and a list of my favorite places to buy soap making supplies and equipment. We will make two batches of soap as a class. Each student will take home 10 handmade bars of soap.
9 a.m.- 1 p.m.
Course: $65 + $20 materials fee

Natural Lotions, Creams, Balms, Soaks & Scrubs, July 26
You're going to fall in love with making your own creams, lotions, balms, soaks and scrubs! In this class you'll spend the day making batch after batch of our tried and true recipes. In addition to taking home a box of products from what you make in class, you'll leave feeling confident about making these luxurious treatments at home for business or personal use.Come learn about sanitary precautions and practices, bottling and packaging ideas and options, how to price your products, the truth about preservatives, sourcing ingredients, labelling requirements and much more.
9:30 a.m.- 4 p.m.
Course: $250 + $75 materials fee

Private Consulting

Whether you have an existing bath and body company and you need assistance increasing sales or if you are a start-up, Marla is available for private consulting. Areas of expertise include establishing business focus and assisting with business plans, differentiating your business and finding your niche, marketing and sales, internet marketing, product development, as well as sourcing ingredients and exporting. Please email for further information.

All soap making classes are taught by Marla Bosworth, owner of Back Porch Soap Company and 12-year expert in the handmade bath and body industry. Since 1989 she has been providing market research and marketing for businesses of all sizes across the U.S.

In addition to group classes, Marla is available for one-on-one consulting for individuals interested in learning how to make bath and body products or for existing companies looking for market research and/or consulting.

Do you or your group want to learn how to make soap, bath and body products and how to launch your own bath and body business? Email marla@backporchsoap.com for more information. Sign up for our newsletter here to to be the first to know about our newest classes and announcements!*****************************************************************************
Maine Soap Making Classes, New Hampshire Soap Making Classes, Vermont Soap Making Classes, Rhode Island Soap Making Classes, Connecticut Soap Making Classes, New York Soap Making Classes, New York City Soap Making Classes

Summer Soap Making Classes and All-Day Creams and Lotions Class

What are you doing new and fun this summer? Whether you're in New York or Maine and looking to take a road trip, or if you're planning to visit Cape Cod this summer, take time for yourself to join a class at Back Porch Soap Company. All classes are held in our Duxbury, Massachusetts studio, located just 30 minutes south of Boston and 40 minutes from Providence, Rhode Island.

Glycerin Soap Making, June 25
Come join in the fun as we make an array of beautiful glycerin soaps! This small, personalized soap making class covers the essentials of glycerin soap making. Lots of hands-on learning. Each student will learn how to make four personalized batches, which yield at least 16 bars of soap! Your creations will make wonderful gifts!
6:00 - 9 p.m.
Course: $65 & Materials Fee: $20

Cold Process Soap Making Class, June 27
Want to learn how to make soap from scratch? Curious about the cold process process? Then this is the perfect class for you!
You will learn safety guidelines and reach a level of comfort so that you can finally make soap by hand at home! We'll discuss how to properly use and store lye, mixing lye and water, oils for soap making, fragrance oils, essential oils, superfatting, additives and exfoliants, coloring, molding and curing. Students will receive soap recipes and a list of my favorite places to buy soap making supplies and equipment.
We will make two batches of soap as a class. Each student will take home 10 handmade bars of soap.
9 a.m.- 1 p.m.
Course: $65 + $20 materials fee

Natural Lotions, Creams, Balms, Soaks & Scrubs, June 28
You're going to fall in love with making your own creams, lotions, balms, soaks and scrubs! In this class you'll spend the day making batch after batch of our tried and true recipes. In addition to taking home a box of products from what you make in class, you'll leave feeling confident about making these luxurious treatments at home for business or personal use.
Come learn about sanitary precautions and practices, bottling and packaging ideas and options, how to price your products, the truth about preservatives, sourcing ingredients, labelling requirements and much more.
9:30 a.m.- 4 p.m.
Course: $250 + $75 materials fee

All soap making classes are taught by Marla Bosworth, owner of Back Porch Soap Company and 12-year expert in the handmade bath and body industry. In addition to group classes, Marla is available for one-on-one consulting for individuals interested in learning how to make bath and body products or for existing companies looking for market research and/or consulting.

Do you or your group want to learn how to make soap, bath and body products and how to launch your own bath and body business? Email marla@backporchsoap.com for more information.

Sign up for our newsletter here to to be the first to know about our newest classes and announcements!
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Ideal for those looking for Maine Soap Making Classes, New Hampshire Soap Making Classes, Vermont Soap Making Classes, Rhode Island Soap Making Classes, Connecticut Soap Making Classes, New York Soap Making Classes, New York City Soap Making Classes

Teaching Aspiring Students at Newton Green Bodycare and Soap Making Classes

Recently I taught a Green Bodycare and Soap Making classes through Newton Adult Community Education at Newton South High School. These students were fantastic! They embraced the creation of natural bodycare and soap with ease!

This class of 20 students (some of them pictured above) made organic sugar scrubs, organic sea salt soaks, organic glycerin soap, and all-natural body balms. Students came from all over the Boston area. Newton Adult Community Education offers an in-depth course catalog quarterly, and classes are well-attended.

I also taught a Glycerin Handmade Soap. It was completely full, with 15 students!

Want to join me for a fabulous fun time? You can sign up for my summer classes in Newton here. Sign up with a friend and enjoy a wonderful evening with other inspiring creatives! You'll take home lots of products that you make yourself in both classes:

July 9, 6-9 p.m. Totally Green Organic Bodycare
Learn how to make natural and organic body-care products. You'll create and take home a dozen items: two exfoliating body scrubs, two luxurious body balms, four moisturizing soap bars, and four sea-salt bath soaks. These make great birthday gifts—or keep them for yourself (we won't tell). We'll cover the art of aromatherapy, how to blend essential oils, and which ingredients to use on your body and which to avoid. You'll also take home recipes, so you can make these fragrant and healthful products on your own. The class is $49 with a $25 materials fee payable the night of the class.

July 16, 6-9 p.m. Handmade Glycerin Soap
Make an array of beautiful, moisturizing soaps. We'll cover the essentials of glycerin soapmaking, with lots of hands-on learning, including how to use molds and add fragrance, color, shea butter and other moisturizing oils, herbs, and exfoliants. Each student will make three personalized batches of soap to take home. If you have sensitive skin, you'll learn how to make unscented soaps. This class is a great gift for a friend—or yourself. The class is $49 with an $18 materials fee is payable the night of the class.

Here are some of the beautiful soaps that students made in class:

Newton South offers great classrooms. In both spring classes, we made ourselves at home in one of the science labs. It was perfect because students grouped together at one of the six lab stations.

Can't make it to one of these classes? Then check out my other classes taught in our Duxbury studio here. Be sure to sign up for my newsletter to stay up-to-date with where I'll be teaching next!
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Ideal for those looking for Maine Soap Making Classes, New Hampshire Soap Making Classes, Vermont Soap Making Classes, Rhode Island Soap Making Classes, Connecticut Soap Making Classes, New York Soap Making Classes, New York City Soap Making Classes

Cold Process Soap Making Class; Memorable & Clean Memorial Day Weekend!

Memorial Day weekend for most people means barbeques, outdoor parties and parades. But for seven students who came from all parts of Massachusetts - including Nantucket - it meant learning how to make cold process soap.

After introducing themselves and their aspirations for wanting to learn to make soap (for some a new hobby, for others a new business), we discussed the nitty gritty of precautions and procedures. This particular class was full of questions, which kept me on my toes!

We discussed soap making for the first hour, then spent the next three hours making soap. Students measured oils, water and lye. Then they combined lye and water, then melted the oils (we used palm oil, coconut oil and olive oil). When the temperatures were just right, we slowly poured the lye/water solution into the oils and made two 13 lb. batches of lemongrass essential oil/ground oatmeal and Bulgarian lavender essential oil soap.

Soap was divided among the new soapmakers and everyone took home two molds which held at least five bars. After 24 hours students sliced up their soaps at home and put them in a safe spot to cure. Now comes the hardest part - waiting 4-6 weeks for a complete cure!

Want to learn how to make soap? Join me for the next Cold Process Soap Making Class on June 27. Or take Advanced Cold Process Soap Making on June 13. Or check out all my classes here.
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Ideal for those looking for Maine Soap Making Classes, New Hampshire Soap Making Classes, Vermont Soap Making Classes, Rhode Island Soap Making Classes, Connecticut Soap Making Classes, New York Soap Making Classes, New York City Soap Making Classes

Summer 2009: Soap Making Classes, Soap Business Workshops and More

Summer is such a great time to learn to make soap: whether you're open to a new hobby, side business or launching a full-scale bath and body company. It all takes planning and proper execution, of course. Whether you live near or far, I hope you'll come join me for a class or two!

All workshops take place at Back Porch Soap Company in Duxbury, Massachusetts. We are located 30 minutes from Boston, and only 45 minutes from Providence, Rhode Island. Travelling from out of state? Simply email me at marla@backporchsoap.com and I will gladly assist you with travel plans, including accommodations and local areas of interest. With beautiful Duxbury Beach, Cape Cod and Plymouth (Plymouth Rock and Plimoth Plantation) only minutes away, this is a perfect family destination! Your family will have plenty to enjoy in the area while you take soap making class or two.

Advanced Cold Process Soap Making Class - June 13, 2009
This class is for soapmakers who have the basic knowledge of how to make cold process soap. We'll cover hands-on advanced coloring techniques, superfatting, exfoliants, oil infusions, packaging ideas and much more.Students will receive soap recipes and a list of my favorite places to buy soap making supplies and equipment.We will make several batches of soap as a class. Students will take home finished products.

Cold Process Soap Making Class - June 27, 2009
Want to learn how to make soap from scratch? Curious about the cold process process? Then Cold Process Soap Making is the perfect class for you! You will learn safety guidelines and reach a level of comfort so that you can finally make soap by hand at home! We'll discuss how to properly use and store lye, mixing lye and water, oils for soap making, fragrance oils, essential oils, superfatting, additives and exfoliants, coloring, molding and curing. Students will receive soap recipes and a list of my favorite places to buy soap making supplies and equipment. We will make two batches of soap as a class. Each student will take home 10 handmade bars of soap.

Glycerin Soap Making Bootcamp - July 11, 2009
Want to learn all the tips and secrets of glycerin soap making? Our full-day glycerin soap making class has been a huge hit the past 12 years, and June is no exception! Join me for a day of making all the beautiful, glycerin soaps you can create. All classes are completely hands-on, so dress for mess and be prepared to take home lots of soap.

Go at your own pace, I'll be there to assist you throughout the day. We'll learn the basics: adding various exfoliants, herbs, herbal and oil fusions, superfatting with shea butter and other moisturizing oils.

We'll cover techniques such as embedding, swirling, layering, simultaneous double-pours, and other special effects. Some students take this class with a friend, and then swap creations at the end of the day. This is the perfect class to jump in and learn everything you wanted to know about soap making in one day. It is also a great class to take if you are making wedding favors or stocking up on gifts to give.

Glycerin Soap Making - June 25, 2009
Only have time for a half-day glycerin soap making class? We have one for you here. You'll make four batches of personalized soap. Students will learn how to measure their own batches, color, scent and pour the soap into molds.

Natural Lotions, Creams, Balms, Soaks & Scrubs - June 28
This is one jam-packed class! You're going to fall in love with making your own creams, lotions, balms, soaks and scrubs! In this full-day workshop you'll spend the day making batch after batch of our tried and true recipes. In addition to taking home a box full of products from what you make in class, you'll leave feeling confident about making these luxurious treatments at home for business or personal use. Come learn about sanitary precautions and practices, bottling and packaging ideas and options, how to price your products, the truth about preservatives, sourcing ingredients, labelling requirements and much more.

About Your Instructor
My name is Marla Bosworth, and I'm the founder and owner of Back Porch Soap Company. I've been making soaps and teaching soapmaking for 12 years. My wholesale clients include Whole Foods and upscale boutiques around the world. I teach classes because I love sharing my passion for soap making, bath and body products, and entrepreneurialship.

Stay in the loop by subscribing to my newsletter. Do you or your group want to learn how to make soap, bath and body products and how to launch your own bath and body business? I am currently booking into July 2009.
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Ideal for those looking for Maine Soap Making Classes, New Hampshire Soap Making Classes, Vermont Soap Making Classes, Rhode Island Soap Making Classes, Connecticut Soap Making Classes, New York Soap Making Classes, New York City Soap Making Classes

2009 Handmade Soapmakers Guild Conference: Beautiful Location, Great New Friends and Valuable Info!

I’m returning from an amazing five-day trip to Palm Springs, California where the Handcrafted Soapmakers Guild (HMSG) held their 2009 conference. The Handcrafted Soap Makers Guild is an international non-profit professional trade association whose mission is to promote the handcrafted soap industry; to act as a center of communication among soap makers, and to circulate information beneficial to soap makers.

My mask and counterparts above were courtesy of Dennis and Kayla Fioravanti of Essential Wholesale. They provided attendees with a keynote from Erin Brockovich, then a wonderful evening of dining including an ice sculpture flowing with mango martinis (!), entertainment from comedians John Reep and Wendy Liebman, as well as very generous goodie bags.

Have you ever been to Palm Springs? It’s where desert meets mountains meets palm trees. The temperatures were in the 90s and 100s, but with the low humidity I was rarely hot. The Miramonte Spa and Resort in Indian Wells was a great place to hold a conference. From outdoor patios to hottubs, there were many places to network with soapmakers and industry experts from around the U.S.

Although the temperatures would soar, there were cool fine mist sprays that in the heat of the afternoon would cool the air around the patio and bar dining areas. The mist was so fine that it didn’t feel wet – it would evaporate and cool the dry heat. Just like an Evian mist!

It was fabulous – especially the creative and inspiring entrepreneurial soapmakers I met. The synergy between soapers was supportive and encouraging - we were all there for the same reason - to network, learn from each other, and grow our businesses. Many of them are rocking out their businesses despite the economy. The list is long and over the next few weeks I am going to be spotlighting them here on my blog.

Last fall I was asked to speak at this year's conference. I presented findings from my market research company to assist business owners find their niche, differentiate their business and ultimately increase sales. I really enjoy helping entrepreneurs grow their business. I'll be sharing some of my findings here on my blog over the upcoming month.

I also enjoyed meeting so many industry experts that I have talked with over the years, but hadn’t met in person. I took home so much valuable information by attending conference sessions from cold process soap making demos with Kelly Bloom of Southern Soapers, E-commerce with Jamila White from Ecommerce Diva, The Media is You by Donna Maria Coles at Indie Beauty, Profit Margin Killers by Linda Stevens of Upland Soap Factory and many more.

Next year's conference is slated for Denver, Colorado (Englewood) at the Inverness Hotel. If you are in the bath and body business, join us! Dennis and Kayla have promised the entertainment and surprises are going to be even better. Hard to believe, but I can hardly wait!

Dovetales Features Our Line of Monogrammed & Personalized Soaps

Dovetales Magazine just featured our personalized and monogrammed soaps in its latest issue! The article makes mention of the resurgence of the personalization and monogram trend that made its first appearance back in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

Personalization is forecast to continue its popularity through 2015, as consumers continue to demand more specialized retail products. If you are a retailer or manufacturer, what are you offering to your customers to meet this need? If you are a consumer, what are some of your favorite products?