Our Story

Hello!

I am Evelyn, the founder of SoapPlay SG. I am a mother to 2 lovely teenage girls and wife to a talented husband. 

Why I do what I do?

I grew up using commercial soaps/shower gel/liquid handwash/facial foam/liquid detergent. When I shopped, I would keep a lookout for the latest products in the nicest packaging with the best prices. Anything that claimed to be extra moisturizing or came with added properties like brightening, anti-aging, purifying, long lasting fragrance, I would think that was a good product. In fact, the more features it came with, the better value for money. Looking back, I was a typical shopper who didn't know what I was paying for. I was born with healthy skin so whatever I piled on my skin, it remained fine and I believed the products were harmless. 

Then I became a mother. The younger gal isn't blessed with the best skin. Eczema is her friend. I started to look into the food she ate, and the shampoo and bath gel that she used. I tried to figure out what she was allergic to. I started poring over the ingredient list of the products she used and I realised I did not understand what I was reading! Such long alien sounding chemical names. 

To manage her eczema, I started looking for hypoallergenic/soap-free soap. There are in fact many options in local pharmacies. However, they are expensive and not great to use as they are usually scentless and do not lather (if any) well. Most importantly, they are still not totally natural as they often contain artificial preservatives such as sodium benzoate. Why do you think they have such long shelf lives? 

So I began researching to see if I could DIY soap. If I could cook healthy meals with raw clean ingredients I was sure I could make soap from scratch. 

My 1st soap loaf

I couldn't believe it when I made my 1st loaf of cold process soap bar. I was pleasantly surprised that I could make soap using simple natural ingredients (and they are food grade ingredients). How amazing!! Honestly, I wasn't expecting much from the soap bars. I mean, natural products are usually not advertised to be as effective as commercial products. I was willing to compromise on the quality as long as my gal has 100% pure soap to use. 

The soap bars were finally cured after 6 long weeks. Oh... what beautiful lather! The soap was also subtly scented by essential oil (not fragrance oil, which contains countless synthetic ingredients). The soap was effective in cleansing, and most importantly, my gal did not leave the bathroom with red itchy patches! Woah...I'm sold!

The birth of SoapPlay SG

I started playing with different soap recipes. I just kept making soap. There is a sense of satisfaction when I can transform simple ingredients into a work of (useful) art. Successes and failures aside but it was simply fun and challenging. There are so many recipes to try and so many ingredients to experiment with. I gave away the soap bars I made to my sisters, parents, and friends but my shelves were still brimming with soap bars. Since I have always received positive feedback on my soap, I decided to start selling them and soon, SoapPlay SG was born.

I started with an online store on Etsy in 2020 and, 1 year later, I have decided to start a physical studio. Besides giving myself a more conducive space to make more soap, I also want to create a cosy and inviting space for like-minded soapers and crafters to collaborate. It will be a communal space for crafters/young business owners to experiment, support each other and get creative together and oh....it's starting to sound fun already. :)

Video 

Watch a short video about us here!