I love soap. All kinds of soap. Which is why it completely bummed me out that I had to stop using it on
my skin. Even the completely natural soaps would leave me with an itchy rash or large patches of dry,
flaky skin that made me crazy. So, when I ended up with a sample of soap tucked in with a fantastic
candle that I had ordered, I wasn't terribly excited.
Then, fate stepped in. We happened to be out of soap and my husband, who works outside all day,
sweating and tromping through the mud, forest and any other dirty patch of ground he can find, was
beginning to panic as he stood in the shower and realized his dilemma. My eyes fell on the that little ball
of soap.
My husband was never more grateful. And, he loved the soap. The scent. The lather. The texture.
Fate wasn't finished, yet, though! We spent the next day in a cave that is hidden deep in the woods and
rolling hills of the Ozark foothills. Chiggers are as thick as the clay-like mud and the ticks and by the end
of the day, I knew I was gonna have to risk a soap-rash when I finally got to shower.
It never happened. Not a single dry patch. Not a single bump. Nothing. It was like a sign from the
gods! We've stayed stocked up on these soaps ever since.
Whose soap was it? Dragon's Den soap, of course!
Amanda, who opened up her shop, Dragon06 on Etsy.com in 2006, does more than make great hot-
processed soaps, though. She also makes pet treats, massage oils and some fantastic candles from a
parafin/beeswax blend that burn very clean and don't leave behind any extra wax. As a user of both her
scented and unscented candles, I can honestly say that I love them! The unscented ones are perfect to
add my favorite essential oil blends to. Just 2 or 3 drops last for several hours, then burn off and
disappear so that I can use a different blend the next time! Her scented candles are highly fragrant
without being overpowering and come in so many different scents that it is hard to choose just one.
One of my personal favorites is 'Witches Brew”.
When I asked Amanda how she got into making candles and soaps, she replied, “Years ago, I started
feeling the need to make things for myself instead of buying everything mass produced. I wanted to feel
a little more self sufficient. I wanted the pride of being able to say 'Yes, I made that'.
“I was drawn to regular day-to-day items like candles, but especially soaps and lotions, that I could make
for myself and my family. I wanted to make high quality products that I could be proud of and I wanted to
pass on that quality and care to friends, family and customers who used my products. Later when I was
doing some craft-related searching on-line I stumbled on Etsy.com and realized it was perfect for me.”
Amanda's shop is doing well, if sales are any indication, but, like the rest of us, she has to find a way to
balance her creative job with her 'other' job. It can get a bit overwhelming, but Amanda says, “Balance?
What's that? Seriously, I sometimes get carried away working on creative projects, and the mundane
household chores can get forgotten for days at a time. But usually for time management I strictly
schedule the household and my part-time freelance work and then the rest of my time can go to my
crafting.
“I love to cook! Unfortunately I don't leave myself enough time these days to enjoy cooking as much as I
used to. But I love playing with recipes to make them my own, and I love baking breads and pies.”
One thing that I really love about Amanda's soaps are that they use natural ingredients and scents.
When I asked where she got the inspiration for her soaps and candles she replied, “I get a lot of
inspiration from nature. As much as possible, I use all natural products and apply some aromatherapy to
my soaps and lotions. I also am drawn to nature-based symbols and pictures/designs for my painted
pillar candles. I love the seemingly endless possibilities for creativity - considering the multitude of
possible combinations of ingredients and scents ... and that's before looking at the options for shapes
and sizes and colors ...There is so much more that I want to explore!”
She says of her plans for the future, “In 1 year I expect to be more organized and efficient in my crafting,
and I hope to have a regular table in at least one local market. Although I love sharing my products with
others, I'm not crazy about the marketing/advertising part of it.
“In 5 years I hope to be able to do this full time, and have a website outside of Etsy, and be able to quit
my part time job. I don't have my own website yet, but I do have a blog. I don't sell in any B&M stores. I
prefer to keep this business at the level where I'm always selling directly to my customers. I love having
that connection to the people using my products.”
I always like to ask other artists about their view of the world and how they would change it if they
could. Maybe it is because their answer always goes beyond the simple, “I would bring about world
peace”. While that's a lofty goal, I hate that answer. I want to know how they think this elusive 'world
peace' might be realized.
Amanda didn't disappoint. “I would love if those with the most power and influence in the world
could be more responsible. When your actions and decisions influence so much in this world then you
need to take responsibility - take the time and effort to make informed, fair, and intelligent choices.
Greed for wealth, power, or status shouldn't come into decision-making on so large a scale, and yet it
does.”
And, no interview would be complete without the Random Question! I asked Amanda, “If you were
having a dinner party and could invite three famous people, who would they be?”
She replied, “Oh that's tough ... I'd love to meet Noam Chomsky, Starhawk, and Sting. I have a feeling any
conversation among them would go way over my head ...but maybe if I recorded it I could puzzle it out
after.”
my skin. Even the completely natural soaps would leave me with an itchy rash or large patches of dry,
flaky skin that made me crazy. So, when I ended up with a sample of soap tucked in with a fantastic
candle that I had ordered, I wasn't terribly excited.
Then, fate stepped in. We happened to be out of soap and my husband, who works outside all day,
sweating and tromping through the mud, forest and any other dirty patch of ground he can find, was
beginning to panic as he stood in the shower and realized his dilemma. My eyes fell on the that little ball
of soap.
My husband was never more grateful. And, he loved the soap. The scent. The lather. The texture.
Fate wasn't finished, yet, though! We spent the next day in a cave that is hidden deep in the woods and
rolling hills of the Ozark foothills. Chiggers are as thick as the clay-like mud and the ticks and by the end
of the day, I knew I was gonna have to risk a soap-rash when I finally got to shower.
It never happened. Not a single dry patch. Not a single bump. Nothing. It was like a sign from the
gods! We've stayed stocked up on these soaps ever since.
Whose soap was it? Dragon's Den soap, of course!
Amanda, who opened up her shop, Dragon06 on Etsy.com in 2006, does more than make great hot-
processed soaps, though. She also makes pet treats, massage oils and some fantastic candles from a
parafin/beeswax blend that burn very clean and don't leave behind any extra wax. As a user of both her
scented and unscented candles, I can honestly say that I love them! The unscented ones are perfect to
add my favorite essential oil blends to. Just 2 or 3 drops last for several hours, then burn off and
disappear so that I can use a different blend the next time! Her scented candles are highly fragrant
without being overpowering and come in so many different scents that it is hard to choose just one.
One of my personal favorites is 'Witches Brew”.
When I asked Amanda how she got into making candles and soaps, she replied, “Years ago, I started
feeling the need to make things for myself instead of buying everything mass produced. I wanted to feel
a little more self sufficient. I wanted the pride of being able to say 'Yes, I made that'.
“I was drawn to regular day-to-day items like candles, but especially soaps and lotions, that I could make
for myself and my family. I wanted to make high quality products that I could be proud of and I wanted to
pass on that quality and care to friends, family and customers who used my products. Later when I was
doing some craft-related searching on-line I stumbled on Etsy.com and realized it was perfect for me.”
Amanda's shop is doing well, if sales are any indication, but, like the rest of us, she has to find a way to
balance her creative job with her 'other' job. It can get a bit overwhelming, but Amanda says, “Balance?
What's that? Seriously, I sometimes get carried away working on creative projects, and the mundane
household chores can get forgotten for days at a time. But usually for time management I strictly
schedule the household and my part-time freelance work and then the rest of my time can go to my
crafting.
“I love to cook! Unfortunately I don't leave myself enough time these days to enjoy cooking as much as I
used to. But I love playing with recipes to make them my own, and I love baking breads and pies.”
One thing that I really love about Amanda's soaps are that they use natural ingredients and scents.
When I asked where she got the inspiration for her soaps and candles she replied, “I get a lot of
inspiration from nature. As much as possible, I use all natural products and apply some aromatherapy to
my soaps and lotions. I also am drawn to nature-based symbols and pictures/designs for my painted
pillar candles. I love the seemingly endless possibilities for creativity - considering the multitude of
possible combinations of ingredients and scents ... and that's before looking at the options for shapes
and sizes and colors ...There is so much more that I want to explore!”
She says of her plans for the future, “In 1 year I expect to be more organized and efficient in my crafting,
and I hope to have a regular table in at least one local market. Although I love sharing my products with
others, I'm not crazy about the marketing/advertising part of it.
“In 5 years I hope to be able to do this full time, and have a website outside of Etsy, and be able to quit
my part time job. I don't have my own website yet, but I do have a blog. I don't sell in any B&M stores. I
prefer to keep this business at the level where I'm always selling directly to my customers. I love having
that connection to the people using my products.”
I always like to ask other artists about their view of the world and how they would change it if they
could. Maybe it is because their answer always goes beyond the simple, “I would bring about world
peace”. While that's a lofty goal, I hate that answer. I want to know how they think this elusive 'world
peace' might be realized.
Amanda didn't disappoint. “I would love if those with the most power and influence in the world
could be more responsible. When your actions and decisions influence so much in this world then you
need to take responsibility - take the time and effort to make informed, fair, and intelligent choices.
Greed for wealth, power, or status shouldn't come into decision-making on so large a scale, and yet it
does.”
And, no interview would be complete without the Random Question! I asked Amanda, “If you were
having a dinner party and could invite three famous people, who would they be?”
She replied, “Oh that's tough ... I'd love to meet Noam Chomsky, Starhawk, and Sting. I have a feeling any
conversation among them would go way over my head ...but maybe if I recorded it I could puzzle it out
after.”
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