Inside Indie: Two Rivers Soaps

Welcome to this weeks Inside Indie interview. Today I'm featuring an interview with Jennifer Thompson of Two Rivers Soaps. I discovered Two Rivers Soaps via a Crafty Cube I bought last year. The sample we got was of her Energy scent and my husband, yes my husband loved it. So I started buying him his soaps from Two Rivers. So without further ado..here's all you need to know about Two Rivers Soaps.

Tell me a little bit about the mind behind Two Rivers Soaps.

My name is Jennifer Thompson and I live in Des Moines, Iowa. I founded my company in 1999 and work out of my home. I also
work full-time as an academic librarian. When not working, or soaping, I love to read, work on mosaic projects, watch movies & just hang out with my boys.

Do you remember the first bar of soap you ever made? Tell me about it.

Oh yes, very well! After months of research, I created my own recipe made with Olive, Coconut, Palm & Castor oils, along with lots of Shea & Cocoa butters. It took hours to get to the point where I added the colorant and fragrance. I had decided to scent it with a Huckleberry fragrance (of all things) and color it purple. I didn't know then that purple was a difficult color to get in soap and that this fragrance discolored the soap as well. When the soap got thick enough I added my fragrance, then the colorants. The soap turned gray, so I panicked and added more colorants, then more! I eventually gave up and ended up with a brownish gray soap with red & blue streaks. It worked great but could've won an ugly soap contest! The next day I made a very pretty peach colored & scented soap though!

What inspires you when you're creating your soaps?

Lately it's been from wondering around our local gourmet food markets and farmer's market. I recently found a Honey Pear salad dressing that's inspired a fantastic soap scent.

Ok, you're stuck on a desert island and you can only have one of your products with you..what is it, what scent and why?

I'd definitely bring soap! Specifically my Garden Mint soap. It's made with Peppermint & Tea Tree Essential oils. It's vry refreshing and feels cooling on the skin.

What can we expect from Two Rivers Soaps in the future?

I'm working on a line of liquid hand soap as well as coming up with fun,new bar soap scents.

What is your absolutely can't live without product that you don't make (doesn't have to be bath and body)?

I'm addicted to some locally made salsa- http://www.juanosullivans.com/and put it on nearly everything!