People are excited and we are too!!
By Moore family | August 17, 2010
We have been making our appearance every week at the Brandon Farmers Market for several weeks now and boy are we getting excited! Customers are returning to buy more soap because they are sold on our all-natural goat milk soap. They are buying several bars for gifts and taking it afar, spreading it across the country. So many are commenting that this is the best soap they have ever used. Some customers with skin conditions are noticing improvements to their skin after using Garland Goat Soap. We asked the Lord to bless our business, and He has blessed it abundantly. We are happy to be making a product that is wholesome, healthy, and all-natural. Thank you all for your encouragement.
Topics: Farmer's Market, Goat Milk Soap, News | No Comments »
ORANGE SCENT NOW ONLINE
By Moore family | July 25, 2010
Finally finished! We were able to get the new all-natural goat milk soap, Orange, on the website so now you can order our soap using your PayPal account! We are so delighted it is now available to our customers! We hope you take this opportunity to try our handmade soap! Please we would love your feedback! Use our Feedback form to let us know what you think! Look back to our recent posts to see what designs we carry it in!
We hope you have a great weekend,
The Moores
Topics: Goat Milk, Goat Milk Soap, Luxurious Goat Milk Soap, Natural Soap | No Comments »
A Sudsy Day!
By Moore family | July 21, 2010
We couldn’t put it off any longer. Even with the stifling heat and humidity we have been living with these past couple of weeks, our sales have been generous enough that our inventory was telling us that we had to make soap and we had to do it soon! Early Tuesday we gathered in the kitchen with our soap making supplies and began.
We use pure beeswax in our All Natural Goat Milk Soap because it gives a solidness that prolongs the life of the bar.
Sodium hydroxide is used to trigger the saponification of the ingredients. We like to say that we simply put the right ingredients together and then let them make the soap! Mom mixes the sodium hydroxide with distilled water and goat’s milk. At the same time we melt and mix a special blend of oils and beeswax together. We use olive oil, palm oil, vegetable oil, vitamin E oil, and coconut oils to insure that our soap is full of good things as well as pleasant to use. Olive oil moisturizes while providing protection against the harsh climate your skin must face every day. Vitamin E is an antioxidant and natural preservative; we use coconut oil to create firm bars that really give you a great lather.
Everything needs to be cooled before anything can be mixed together and this requires a lot of stirring!!
Here you see us mixing all of the ingredients together…..
While Mom is busy mixing the oils, wax and sodium hydroxide , Pamela is going to add the essential oil. We add these all natural, scented oils at the end to ensure that everything has been mixed well before hand.
These are our unique soap molds 
They are responsible for the delightful shapes we are able to offer to our customers. Our most popular designs are the dogs, goats and roosters!
The molds laying out on the table, ready to be filled……
Here, Nathan is carefully pouring the liquid soap into measuring cups so that we may then carefully pour it into the molds. Sometimes, no matter how careful we are, we end up pouring too much soap into the molds and then – our molds overfloweth.
Look at how carefully Pamela and Mom are filling the molds!! We are thankful for their steady hands.
After the molds are completely filled, we place them on a table in our ’soap room’. We use freezer paper between the layers and then cover the whole lot of them with an old comforter. The heavy blanket keeps the heat in while the soap begins the process of curing.
Emily is our appointed record keeper and she reported that we produced 371 bars of soap that day! What a lot of work, but we had a very good time and now our inventory is on its way to being restocked. According to Nathan’s records, we are half way to being completely stocked. We are looking forward to another soap making day in the near future.
We appreciate hearing from you. Good-bye for now,
The Moores
— We also wanted to mention our new scent, Orange. It is now able to be ordered through the website. Try a bar today!
Topics: Characteristics of Soap, Goat Milk Soap, Luxurious Goat Milk Soap, Natural Soap, News, Oils, Soap Equipment, Sodium Hydroxide | 1 Comment »
Garland Goat Soap’s New All-Natural Goat Milk Soap!!
By Moore family | July 14, 2010
The folks here at Garland Goat Soap want to introduce you to our NEW scent! Orange! It has a very gentle, soothing aroma that you will love! Our handmade soap lathers up wonderfully! It is still made with all-natural ingredients. Just buy a bar and try it yourselves! We carry it in many delightful designs such as, Goat, Lily of the Valley, Ladybug, Horse, Sunflower, and Rooster. We will also be adding more soon, a Dog, Daffodils, and Lovebirds! If you would like to place an order for the Orange scent, please use the Feedback Form under ”Contact Us” to let us know what you would like to order. We have not yet put it on our website. Please provide your name, address, and phone number along with your order. When we receive your order we will send you the total and upon receiving your check, we will promptly send your order!
We look forward to serving you,
The Moore Family at Garland Goat Soap
Topics: Goat Milk, Goat Milk Soap, Luxurious Goat Milk Soap, Natural Soap, News | 1 Comment »
A Righteous Man Regardeth The Life of His Beast….
By Moore family | July 13, 2010
Regarding the lives of our goats:
May 5th, our very temperamental dairy goat Touche, gave birth to triplets. They were born in our pasture in the early afternoon on a gorgeous day. Touche dropped her kids with ease and the assistance of my sister-in-law, Kathryn. The first was colored like her half sister, Ellie. The second was shiny black with white spots on her ears and a pronounced overbite. The last kid was the biggest and mostly white with brown markings. We had to help them at first with nursing, but they seemed to catch on real quick!! They have all thrived in the past months, they love being in the pasture.
In fact, they love being in the pasture so much they were nearly impossible to contain while still very young. They never seemed to plan their escapes on purpose, but somehow they always managed to end up on the greener side of the fence. Straining their necks through the open boards around their pen to reach some lush looking weeds, they would innocently push right through the boards and end up in the pasture! They would climb up on the fence, looking at the sky above and -ooops!!- the slim boards would slip right out of place and they were in the pasture once again. We were never able to make the fence completely ‘kid-proof’, so we became quite used to hearing my little brothers remark, “Oh,the kids are out of the pen!” Someone would then walk out (rushing not being necessary since they were in the pasture and therefore content to stay put) and recapture the vagabond doelings.
Now, they are contained (in the pasture) within an electric fence that they dare not prove, unless of course, it’s off!
Touche continues to give milk for our all natural goat milk soap. It is the only generous thing she does, for the rest of her days are spent bossing around Ellie. We love her dearly, even though her personality can be a bit interesting at times! We know that God put it in goats to have a very firm sense of order among themselves. Touche does an excellent job living up to her calling as Queen of the goats here at Little Valley Farm!
Ellie is enjoying the sun!
Until next time,
The Moores at Garland Goat Soap of Vermont
Topics: Dairy Goat Herd, Goat Milk, Goat Milk Soap, History, Natural Soap, News | 1 Comment »
Cleaning up at Farmer’s Market….
By Moore family | July 2, 2010
Since taking over the goat soap business from Arielle, we have transported our goat soap far and wide, bringing both our soap and ourselves closer to our new customers.
This morning we traveled to the green in downtown Brandon, Vermont for their weekly Farmer’s Market. This was our fifth week at the Market and we have enjoyed getting to know all of you that have stopped by to purchase soap or just chat for a little while. Hopefully we will be able to post some pictures soon!
Nathan spends the evening before market piling all of our equipment into the back of our van. Boxes of soap, tables, signage and the canopy that shades us from the sun and rain. All gets packed and we are ready to go before the dew dries the next morning! Usually when we get to the little park that hosts the market there are several other vendors setting up their booths as well. Our ‘market neighbors’ are a kindly group of artisans who sell everything from handmade purses and homespun wool, to freshly baked bread and one of a kind jewelry. We are the only folks there with goat milk soap.
Farmer’s Market is just one of the local outlets we have found to help spread the word about the health benefits of our soap and also make the soap more available for you – the buyers! We have stands in ‘Gourmet Provence‘, right on the main road in Brandon, as well as Carr’s Floral Shop, also in Brandon, and Middlebury Natural Foods Co-op in Middlebury, Vermont.
We love being able to tell our customers- wherever we find them- all that we have learned since we started this great soap-making venture! If you should see us at one of the markets or filling one of our stands, please make sure to stop by and say, “Howdy!” and feel free to ask any questions you may have about our delightful goat milk soap!
Stay squeaky clean and until next time…..
The Moores
Topics: Farmer's Market, Goat Milk Soap, News | 1 Comment »
Introducing the Moore family
By Moore family | June 6, 2010
Now that Arielle has passed the Garland Goat Soap business on to the Moore family, it’s time we filled you in on who we are. We are a homeschool family with ten children, living in Vermont on a small farm. We have a milk cow, goats, chickens, bees, two dogs and two cats, plus we raise our own poultry and beef. We met Arielle in the spring of 2009 when she came to our home with her family to meet us and to get to know Greg. She brought along a box of her all-natural goat milk soap to share with us. That was our first introduction to her soap business. I was a little skeptical about the soap at first because I don’t like cleaning soap scum off the bath tub, however, I was pleasantly surprised to find Garland Goat Soap hardly leaves any soap scum. We have also found the soap to moisturize our skin and the tea tree soap has helped our teenager’s acne tremendously. It didn’t take us long to be sold on the soap and also we found Arielle to be the perfect girl for our son, Greg!
With Arielle helping Greg with his piano business, plus growing a baby, she found she was overwhelmed and asked us if we would consider taking over this business. After prayerful consideration, we felt the Lord leading us to take on Garland Goat Soap. We’ve changed the name to Garland Goat Soap of Vermont, LLC but have kept the same wonderful ingredients that make the soap wholesome and natural. We will continue to use only essential oils and over time will include some of our own honey in the soap!
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Topics: Goat Milk Soap, History, Luxurious Goat Milk Soap, Natural Soap, News | No Comments »
Big News From Garland Goat Soap!
By Moore family | April 27, 2010
How time flies! It’s been over a year now since the beginning of this blog. It’s been well over six months since the last blog posting. Any of you reading the blog probably wondered what has happened in that time span!
Many BIG changes have directly impacted Garland Goat Soap!
The first inkling of change began in May of last year. At that time, a fine young man by the name of Greg Moore, and I began a courtship, desiring to get to know each other with the intention of marriage. We had met two months earlier at a friends’ wedding. Greg’s family resided in a lovely rural Vermont setting, while I and my family lived a seven hour trek away in Maine’s country-side. Greg and I both made that trip multiple times as we visited back and forth and our relationship deepened. Change in both of our lives was slowly but surely marching on…
In-between our visits and lengthy phone conversations, I continued to run my business, Garland Goat Soap of Maine, while Greg worked at his own business, Little Valley Piano Service. Greg, an RPT (Registered Piano Technician), started his own piano technician service just out of high school, and built up a steady clientele over the intervening years. Amongst the many subjects we discussed, we sometimes enjoyed “business talk,” sharing our ideas and experiences with our businesses.
Greg helped me sell Garland Goat Soap at the Common Ground Fair in Maine.
August 18th, 2009, marked another wonderful change for us! Greg asked me to become his wife; my reply was a delighted “YES!!!!” We began planning for an October 31st, 2009 wedding.
Delighted to be ENGAGED!
Time flew rapidly by, and October 31st arrived, bringing with it another huge change in our lives…the commencement of our lives as husband and wife!!! With great joy and thanksgiving to the Lord, Who has lead us change by change, we embarked on our married life.
Mr. and Mrs. Greg Moore
We settled comfortably in our cozy apartment in a quaint Vermont town. Greg’s business proved quite busy with the additional work from the purchase of a retiring piano technician’s business. Garland Goat Soap had not been getting much attention; my time no longer was poured into that business, but into my wonderful husband! I wanted to be available to work together with him in Little Valley Piano Service.
More change was just around the corner for us. We discovered, with delight, that we were expecting our first child! With this blessing on the way, we realized it was time to think about passing Garland Goat Soap on, freeing me up for other responsibilities.
The perfect solution came up when Greg’s family expressed interest in taking over Garland Goat Soap. Greg and Linda Moore, and their eight children still at home, were eager and apt at learning how to produce, package, and ship Garland Goat Soap’s all natural goat milk soap. I was so delighted with their enthusiasm as I transferred more and more of the business responsibilities over to them! Under their work, Garland Goat Soap of Maine has beome Garland Goat Soap of Vermont.
It’s been a pleasure to provide gentle, completely all-natural handcrafted goat milk soap to all of my customers. I am so thankful for the years of opportunity I had to research soapmaking, create thousands of bars of soap, ship orders, run my business, keep in touch with customers, and much more. However, much as I enjoyed the years of running Garland Goat Soap, I am equally glad to pass it on now, and move into another stage of my life as wife and helper to the most wonderful man in the world, and soon mother to our little one. I am eager to see how Garland Goat Soap of Vermont will blossom under the diligent, hard work of the Moores, and am confident that they will do a wonderful job with it!
And now may I introduce the new OWNERS and MANAGERS of GARLAND GOAT SOAP OF VERMONT:
Greg & Linda Moore
Pamela, Nathaniel, Emily, Caleb, Hannah, Joshua, Matthew, and Daniel
Topics: Goat Milk Soap, History, News | 2 Comments »
Special Goat Milk Soap might “BEE” your favorite!
By Moore family | August 3, 2009
I recently recieved a large wholesale order from one of my wholesalers for my Milk and Honey Goat Milk Soap. For several years now, I have been supplying this company with this specially formulated bar of natural goat milk soap. Along with the rich, moisturizing qualities of the goat milk, raw honey, propolis, pollen, and beeswax add their nutrients to make a truly luxious soap treat.
As I mixed up several batches of this Milk and Honey soap, I was considering the different ingredients I was adding and what they contributed to the soap. Honey lays down a clear, protective film that helps skin maintain moisture. It hydrates and soothes the skin and is thought to be slightly antiseptic and bacteriostatic. It does all of this without being greasy, even contributing astringint value. Propolis is antibacterial, reduces inflammation, and stimulates the immune system.
To quote one description: “Two natural treasures in one bar of soap help repair sores, fight acne, soothe chapping, and balance uneven or oily skin.
Bee products—honey, propolis, pollen and wax—meet goat milk to clean up the toughest skin problems you can muster.
Honey cleanses dirt and impurities while smoothing wrinkles by increasing your skin’s elasticity. Propolis—a mixture of the essential oils, pollen, and wax bees harvest from plants—nourishes dry, itchy skin. Pollen, rich in enzymes and vitamins, contains the complete family of amino acids. It promotes new skin cell growth while scrubbing away built-up dead cells without stripping the skin of its natural protection.
Milk & Honey’s beeswax base is the all-natural “carrier” for other ingredients that leaves your skin feeling soft and clean.
Raw goat milk is rich in enzymes beneficial to your skin, and five natural, skin-replenishing oils balance and moisturize. This abundance of revitalizing components is topped off with a touch of sweet orange essential oil for an agreeable, bright aroma.”
Our Milk and Honey Soap has proved to work great for our customers, as noted by what these customers had to say:
This is the best facial soap bar I have tried. I use it at night time to wash off the days dirt and make up (with no moisturizer afterward since I have somewhat oily skin), and by morning time my face is smooth and clean. I love how it lathers up, and the sweet smell makes is so pleasant to use. I have stopped using the expensive clinique and estee lauder products completely since this has worked out much better in every way. It does last a long time, too. I recommend it to friends whenever I get the chance.
This soap is great. I have problem skin and have never used a soap. Actually I’ve used the same cleanser on my skin for years and just didn’t like how my skin was looking lately (lifeless and dry). I tried this soap thinking it wouldn’t make much of a difference and WOW! I was able to stop using the medication on my skin that I had used for years. My skin looks great and glowing.
Try it out for yourself! To find it, click HERE.
Topics: Goat Milk, Goat Milk Soap, Luxurious Goat Milk Soap, Natural Soap | No Comments »
Beautiful Goat Milk Soap comes from detailed molds!
By Moore family | July 24, 2009
I spent the majority of this afternoon washing many of the soap molds that I use in the production of our goat milk soap. With hands in soapy warm water, equipped with scrubber and plenty of elbow grease, I hummed and sang my way through the stacks of soap molds, from the lighthouse mold to the lily blossom mold, from the horse mold to the hummingbird mold.
Some soap molds stacked to dry.
With over two hundred soap molds in my stock, it can be a lengthy process to clean all of them. In fact, many facets of the soapmaking process are made more complicated by the use of these detailed soap molds. It takes longer to set out all the molds for the pouring process of the soapmaking. It takes longer, and is trickier, to pour the soap into the molds, since each individual soap mold cavity must be carefully filled.
Pouring Soap
This limits the amount of soap I can make at one time, since it is necessary for me to be able to get all the goat milk soap poured into the molds before the soap becomes too thick. The molds take up a singnificant amount of storage place. They are relativiely expensive to invest in. With these factors in mind, most soapmakers deem it too much work to produce soap for sale using these molds. I, however, think that the beautiful goat milk soap resulting from these molds is well worth the extra work! I can get a bar of plain old square, retangular, round, or oval soap anyday — maybe even natural soap. But how often can I find an all-natural, goat milk soap bar that is as beautiful to look at as it is nourishing to use? I want to be able to offer such a product to my customers, even it if means a bit more work and time for me, and these molds are the perfect tool to help me do that.
Molds such as this one produce the beautiful, detailed designs of Garland Goat Soap of Maine!
By the way, do you have a particular design you’d like to see in our goat milk soaps? Please offer your suggestions…I’m delighted to hear what you’d like so that I may be able to suppply it for you!
Topics: Characteristics of Soap, Goat Milk, Goat Milk Soap, Soap Equipment | No Comments »