Hi, I’m Petra and I am Old School Soap.
I plan, thoroughly research, and make all the soap and other skincare products offered by Old School Soap. I have been making skincare for myself, family and friends for over 25 years and started my soap making journey in 2013. In 2015 I launched Old School Soap. I am pictured here with my daughter, who can be found helping me out at some of the bigger markets.
Old School Soap is an Eco-Friendly brand with a strong reduce, reuse, recycle ethos. Our labels and packaging are plastic-free, some packaging is home compostable and we also offer a store credit for bottles and tins returned in good clean condition for us to refill.
A bit more about me
I have always been interested in natural medicine and healing and have been researching, learning and enriching my knowledge of Herbalism, Essential Oils and Natural Heathcare throughout my adult life, and have been making skincare preparations for personal use for well over two decades.
As someone who suffers from chronic psoriasis and having extremely sensitive skin myself, I am familiar with the struggles that others have in finding body products that don’t irritate any issues that they may have.
Several years ago I attended a workshop on soap making run by a trained chemist with an interest in self sufficiency. My objective at the time was to make enough natural soap for my household and possibly for gifts for extended family and friends.
Soaping however had other ideas. Our household quickly became overrun with soap and I took a short break from making to establish whether there would be a market for my surpluses.
I attended a business course, completed a business plan, cemented my ideas, ethos and ethics and developed a brand. Phew! Throughout this time I was also continuing to research and learn about soap, ingredients, and methods. I tested and tweaked recipes, getting better results each time until I was fully satisfied with the soaps that I was making.
I also attended a course on natural skincare run by a well regarded Herbalist, this formalized my knowledge. This has given me the confidence to add some of the skincare preparations that I have been making for years to the Old School Soap range. These include the popular Bath Salts, Lip Balms, Simple Balms and Salves, Body Butters and Creams. I also researched and developed a natural deodorant that actually works!
