The art of soap

'Soap making is not a craft'
Scent Cosmetics was recently denied entry to a summer craft promotion due to an organisations stance on soap making. You can read the full story on their blog post and on this forum thread.
You'll also see great pictures of their amazing soaps being made.

It's a very involved story and there are many details you'll find on their blog.

'soap making IS an art ' by PetraShae

Peach Fruit Soap. Hand soap.... Scentcosmetics $4.5	Peach Fruit Soap by Carla fo... Scentcosmetics $4.5
Gothic Black/purple Soap, gl... Scentcosmetics $4.25	Sports Ball in Soap - Soap A... Scentcosmetics $4.5
Organic Paw Children's S... Scentcosmetics $5.5	Titanic boat iceberg soap - ... Scentcosmetics $4.5
Teddy Bear Soap - brown, gly... Scentcosmetics $3.5	Apple, soap, Red, fruit, Gly... Scentcosmetics $5.5
Spring Lamb Irish Sheep soap... Scentcosmetics $4.75	Soap, fruit, kiwi - green, w... Scentcosmetics $4.25
Pear Fruit Soap green, brown... Scentcosmetics $6.5	Soap Passionfruit & Orange, ... Scentcosmetics $4.25
Herbal (organic oils only) P... Scentcosmetics $4	Organic Building block Soap.... Scentcosmetics $5

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I want to tackle 'soap making is not a craft' - I beg to differ. I do not make soap but I do know that like any craft it takes skill, know-how, experimenting and an understanding of how the ingredients react with each other, what our skin needs and... the list goes on. It's no less a craft than what I make, knitting or baking etc. It is all taking raw ingredients to create something.

Dictionary definition of craft from dictionary.reference.com

an art, trade, or occupation requiring special skill, especially manual skill: the craft of a mason.

Carla from Scent Cosmetics also creates mini pieces of soap art. She paints, crafts and lovingly designs each piece. I have met Garreth and Carla and seen their work in person so I can attest to the artistry of their gorgeous soaps. 

It is up to an organisation who they support but comments like 'soap making is not a craft' is a slap in the face and I feel pretty certain that many other crafters would feel that slap too.