Both myself and my husband have ‘working hands’. For years we both had trouble with dry and broken skin as a result of repeated hand washing with commercially produced soap. I slowly came around to the idea of making soap myself, using only natural ingredients, at home in my kitchen. With the discovery that I could make use of the properties derived from the flowers and herbs that grow in our garden, I quickly became fascinated with the world of soapmaking.

Falling back on my scientific training and time spent working in laboratories, I gradually built up an understanding of how various natural ingredients interact to influence the properties of soap. Over time I came up with a few products that I thought really worked and decided to see if other people loved using them as much as we did.

With a strong personal interest in packaging I started researching how best to present my soap to the world and fell in love with the idea of wrapping the soap in fabric, a material that people could reuse to make other things with, themselves. This zero-waste ethos carried forward into homemade wooden moulds and cutters, the aluminium tins, glass jars and organza gift bags that you will find with the rest of my range today and the handmade, upcycled stands used to display them.

Living within a few minutes of the Cliffs of Moher in County Clare and referencing my husband’s love of surfing below these otherworldly cliffs at Aileen’s, I chose to call my project ‘The Moher Soap Co.’

I hope you enjoy using my products as much as I enjoy crafting them!

Raquel