It Started With a Bar of Soap
In 2008, my husband was struggling with soap that irritated his skin, and the alternatives on store shelves weren't much better. So I did what I was taught to do: I went to the library.
A couple of books became more books, magazines, testing, note-taking and a lot of trial and error. I started with tallow soap and kept working until I had a formula I was comfortable making for his very sensitive diabetic skin.
Then friends started asking for soap. I started designing bars because plain wasn't really my thing. Soap dough, detailed designs and increasingly ambitious ideas followed. Eventually, the greenhouse workshop with an air conditioner, a dehumidifier and some very hardworking Costco shelves became the beginning of VKD Artisan.
The Librarian's Granddaughter
I'm the granddaughter of a librarian, and if I learned anything from her, it was to research, read and keep learning. That habit has followed me everywhere—including directly into VKD Artisan.
A collection idea can send me down a rabbit hole researching a city, a historical figure, an ingredient or an entirely different time period. I plan collections as much as two years in advance, sketch soap designs by hand, and keep working binders with recipes, cost sheets and plans for every soap I make.
It also means I order an unreasonable number of fragrances to test, because apparently I believe every beautifully written fragrance description on a supplier's website deserves an investigation. Some become soaps immediately. Some wait years for the right collection. Some are simply evidence that I should not be left unsupervised on fragrance websites.
Research first. Plan it. Test it. Make it right.
From Soap to Something Bigger
Somewhere along the way, soapmaking became a business. VKD Artisan grew from making bars for friends into creating products for individual customers, bridal parties, baby showers, farmers markets and more.
In 2013, I returned to college to study cosmetics, cosmetic chemistry and product formulation. What I learned expanded VKD beyond soap into bath and body products—and made me even more particular about what goes into them.
I still formulate from scratch, measure every ounce and refuse to shortcut ingredients for cost or convenience. Products are made in small batches, and neither a bar of soap nor an entire collection gets rushed simply to meet a sales date.