The Handmade Soap Company was set up by myself in 2009. I am a Thatcher by trade but due to the economic downturn my thatching business was struggling and I had to come up with something new. While on holiday in Australia with my wife Gemma, we came across the most amazing handmade soap, In a place called Karumba in the Atherton Tablelands. I have always suffered from dry skin and so moisturising was this soap that I decided to learn how to make soap and so The Handmade Soap Company was born….

In the first year alone in Ireland we had great success, becoming stocked in over 150 shops with fantastic sales. So buoyed were we by our initial success that we decided to launch our range of more “medicinal” type soaps. Included in this range were a Carbolic soap, a Witchhazel soap and a shaving soap for Him and one for Her. The Carbolic Soap and the Shaving Soap for Him proved to be the best sellers and the “Medicinal” range was working out just fine. Then one day I came across a rather unflattering review of our Shaving Soap for Him. This was the first bad review we had ever received for any of our products. After the initial hurt pride I sat down and had a good think about it. I then started to do some research and quickly realized that I didn’t know much about wet shaving with a safety razor at all. So I bought myself a leading brand safety razor and some well known soaps and set to work. I found that while the lather was great these soaps were slightly drying on my skin. I knew I could make a much more moisturising soap but that I had to really improve my lather quality. So I needed to delve alot deeper into the chemistry of Shaving Soap. So I did. After months of research, hard work and trial and error, I have produced a soap that I am very proud of. It is a magnificent 100% natural handmade shaving soap that is particularly suited for sensitive skin. While its sweet spot comes a bit later than some mass produced commercial soaps, once the lather is produced it is as good as any on the market, BUT THE REAL STRENGTH OF THIS SOAP IS HOW IT LEAVES THE SKIN FEELING. It moisturises and nourishes and is an artisan handmade product made only from the finest natural ingredients.

ENJOY
Donagh Quigley