There's probably a story behind all our bars of soap, but this newest one is worth sharing.
As some of you may know this is our first year owning an intact buck on our farm. His name is Buckles, and he's the sweetest little Nigerian Dwarf Goat. Between his prancing around trying to look like a fierce mountain goat (for the ladies) and his silly hopping about when I bring him a treat, he's working on enhancing his smell-appeal. I will spare you the details. Just know that while he looks adorable, you can smell him at a considerable distance.
In order to keep him and his buddy Duke well fed and loved, I have to go into their pen, actually into their little barn daily. We, of course, have to play a bit. I'm training him to gently play head-butt with my open palm - kind of like our own Karate Kid moment (or Cobra Kai to the youngsters and my 40+ yr old husband...). This way he doesn't play head-butt with my knees.
Needless to say, I end up petting his fuzzy little head, and even when I'm wearing gloves, his stinkiness lingers. At first, when he was little, it wasn't that bad and our regular goat milk soap worked fine. But as the seasons changed and he got older, I'd come in from the barn and wash my hands three times and still smelled goaty.
I needed an intense clean for an intense smell! AND, I wanted a cute barn-themed design. The idea was to create a plaid-like soap design and utilize the exfoliating properties of oats, smell neutralizing properties of activated charcoal, and the moisturizing benefits from our goat milk to make the perfect bar. Fight goat with more goat! Sounds like my kind of answer!!
Well... on the plus side, I did manage to make a bar that works great on the stink! That was most important, but wow did I miss the mark on the plaid design. I cut into the bar and showed it hesitantly to my family. I knew I couldn't call it plaid, so I asked them for name ideas. My husband, looking at the new bar, promptly replied, "how about Old Hotel"...
While Old Hotel is fitting, ha, we're going with Fire Grate Goat Milk Soap. It's still perhaps not the most appealing name, but it fits the look and even the scent (sort of - if fire grates smell good). This bar has a little bit of a smokey scent mixed with cinnamon, suede, cedarwood, sandalwood, and amber.
Do not fear, I haven't given up on the plaid design yet. Hopefully, I can update this post someday with a new photo of something that looks less Old Hotel and more Woodsy Flannel.
For now, definitely "Nailed it!"
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