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 for the most part, and when they aren’t, it’s not because I didn’t try. 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 passionate about natural medicine and healing, and have spent my adult life researching and deepening my knowledge of herbalism, essential oils, and natural healthcare. I 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, so I took a short break from making to explore whether there might be a market for my surplus.
I attended a business course, completed a business plan, and cemented my ideas, ethos, and ethics into a developing brand. Phew! Throughout this time, I continued researching and learning about soap, ingredients, and methods — testing and tweaking recipes, getting better results each time, until I was fully satisfied with the soaps I was making.
I also attended a natural skincare course run by a well-regarded herbalist, which helped formalise my knowledge. This gave me the confidence to add some of the skincare preparations I had been making for years to the Old School Soap range — including the popular Bath Salts, Lip Balms, Balms and Salves, Body Butters, and Creams. I also researched and developed a natural deodorant that actually works!
