Do you ever have a vision... an idea that comes to you and grabs hold? It stays with you for days, perhaps months, but it's persistent nonetheless. I had one such vision and it's with immense joy that I share it with you today.
I've long felt like a woman out of time... a frequenter of ren fairs and an imaginer of days gone by. One of my favorite past times is to visit historical buildings and wonder what it was like to live a day in the life of their previous occupants. Not long ago... a few years, perhaps... I was wandering the halls of the Roberson Mansion (Binghamton, NY) and an idea came to me: "Wouldn't it be neat to create a custom bar that's like a piece of history, which visitors can take home with them?"
The idea simmered until it was about to boil over and I finally took action--I pitched my idea via a cold email to the museum. (Eep! Talk about scary...) Perhaps you can imagine my pleasant surprise and, yes, glee when I not only received a response. but it was favorable. Yes, they were interested in my idea... in fact, they had been looking for something truly unique to add to their gift shop lineup and perhaps this would fit the bill. In their response they asked, "This may sound odd but since Alonzo Roberson owned a lumber company is there any way we could incorporate wood scent or something similar?"
Well, I totally took this idea an ran with it! I embarked on imagining a blend that would meet this need... and a companion blend to represent Alonzo's wife. I went through a few iterations and finally settled on the end results--Alonzo's Blend and Margaret's Blend. But the fun didn't stop there!
While the raw soap saponified and cured, I embarked on the second phase--making a good first impression. I knew that the packaging needed to convey the spirit of the early 1900s, perhaps even more than the soaps themselves. In full disclosure, I'm no art historian, so I hope the scholars among you will understand that I aimed to convey a feeling, not a historically-accurate replica. All in all, I am exceedingly proud of the end result!
My heart overflows with gratitude to have been granted this opportunity, which is the result of both determination on my part and a generous helping of serendipity. Thank you to everyone who played a part in bringing this dream to life... you know who you are!