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I would like to show you some options for finding locally grown or created items, but don’t forget that in many towns and cities there may be several markets that you could visit. I just did a quick search around my area and I have come up with several places to visit all summer long.
Downtown Farmers Market that opens Saturday, June – Oct This is only the beginning so check out your local areas and see when and where your Farmers Market opens and get out early and enjoy this event all summer long. Today blueberry is my inspiration and I would like to make some Melt and Pour soap with Red Grape and Blueberry Fragrance Oil. I will also be adding in Ground Luffa and doing a swirl of color in the soap. Collect needed items:
After opening the bucket of Glycerin Soap Base/Melt and Pour Soap, I have cut up several smaller chunks and weighed out 2 pounds of soap. The mold that I’m using is called Rectangle Bar Tray Mold needs two pounds of product to fill. Since I will be doing a swirl in my soap I have measured 4 oz of soap and 28 oz of soap into separate mixing bowls. Now that it is all melted I will add in the fragrance to each of the soaps, mix well then I will pour the 28 oz amount of the melted soap into the tray. When that is completed I will add into the 4 oz melt and pour soap about a tablespoon of the Luffa and color until I reach my desired color. Then I will pour in the colored soap into the clear soap in the tray until it is all poured. This last part can be done in a few pours allowing the soap to cool a bit and create the swirling effect. Allow the finished soap in the tray to completely cool before taking out of the mold and cutting. Doesn’t that soap look great? Feeling inspired yet? What will you be making? Share your ideas and thoughts. Even send in photos of your area market! I’m choosing from photos and comments to do a giveaway this week!!!! |  Cutting the soap  Weigh.  Melt. |
This past weekend, we went to a
Healthy Living Fair that was located
alongside our local farmers market.
The market is on the banks of the
Mississippi river and full of great people.
To my surprise, there were no arnica,
calendula, lavender, etc products.
Perhaps due to the medicial claims issue.
Anyway, I went home and picked daisys
for a salve.
I did meet a pair of nice llamas at the fair
and brought home a skein of celery green
lace weight yarn for a scarf!
I LOVE farmer’s market season! I’m in south NJ, so we have a lot of them, practically 1 every mile no matter what road you go on! We’re also in blueberry land, once those precious berries start rolling in I plan to make a few batches of CP with blueberry puree! I’m sure I will have a million other ideas too, but my brain can’t get past eating all of those yummy fresh veggies right now!
I love farmers markets, all the fresh fruits and vegetables, baked goods all of it. Having just moved back to Southern Utah I don’t know where or when the farmers markets are around here.
I just love the many local Farmer’s Markets in my area! I am continually inspired to try new recipes and indulge in the tastes of the season.
So much fun this week with your market inspired gifts! We love our Farmer’s Market — great people and fabulous, fresh, LOCAL products 🙂 Thanks for these great ideas.
You absolutely nailed the color of blueberry juice!
Did the swirl turn dark and blend in? I can’t see it in the finished bar.
The soap is beautiful, the swirl is dark and it did not blend into the clear soap. If you want more clear soap and less color swirl then change the color to plain soap ratio. This is a fun one to experiment with. Have fun and take notes.
I love using local ingredients for my soaps and scrubs when I can. Love local beeswax! Last year, towards the end of the market season, I had 3 different men ask me if I make Sage soap, and that they had gotten some but couldn’t remember where. It was too late in the season, so I asked them to come back this April, when our market would be open again. A produce vendor overheard the conversation, and came over to me with a very large bunch of sage and just gave it to me. He said “I’d like to see you make soap out of THAT!” So I dried it, and then infused it into olive oil. I used a sage fo from MMS, and pieces of the dried sage, and made the sage soap! 2 of the 3 did come back this year, and have gotten soap from me several times, they just love it!!