I started a category on my blog awhile ago called ‘Meet Inspiring Peeps.’ It’s about time to add to that category, don’t cha think?

 I met Christelle at the Eugene Saturday Market at the end of last summer. She entered our booth and I immediately liked her bright smile and easy going attitude. She was full of inspiration and enthusiasm for life. I know people are excited about life when they are doing what they love and this seemed like a gal I’d end up being friends with. We clicked right away and did some trades with each other. She picked out some wood buttons and a necklace from our booth and we picked out some soap and aromatic mists from hers. What fun! (You all know how much I love trades!)

Jeff’s handmade buttons on her hand-knit sweater and yes, that’s a Mystic Orb necklace as well!

She put our wood buttons on two hand-knit sweaters she made and they were a match made in heaven! (Yes, she knits sweaters!) Have I mentioned that Christelle is my knitting idol? (My knitting skills include hats, scarves and once a pair of socks with a lot of help. But someday I will knit myself a wool sweater with some of Jeff’s buttons down the front! Seeing her creations keeps me inspired.)

Walking into Christelle’s booth, Moon Root Soaps, is a sensory delight! Now, all of you who enjoy eating as much as I do, will love her booth because so many of the soaps you will want to eat and devour! (Okay, maybe it had something to do with me being pregnant at the time… or is the picture of cake on the packaging?) I love her scent combos and it’s so hard to pick which ones I want. She uses essential oils so the scents are pure, which are the kind I like! I don’t want something that smells ‘like’ lavender, I want lavender! And artificial smells give me a headache. To me, it’s important to remember not only to be conscious of what I’m putting into my body, but also what I’m putting on my body. The skin absorbs what you put on it, so it’s great to find products with pure ingredients like Christelle’s. I LOVE her felted soaps and have loved every scent I’ve smelled so far (I’m currently enjoying cedarwood grapefruit.) I gave some of her aromatic mists as gifts and they were a huge hit! 

Christelle is so funny and is constantly cracking me up. She brings humor, laughter, and fun with her wherever she goes and I’m pleased to introduce you to her and her inspired business from home.

Meet Christelle!

Rain forest in Peru

How did your business start and what got you interested in making soap?

I’ve always been pretty crafty, and grew up at Arts and Crafts shows as a child since my mother is an artist. I learned to knit at a very young age, and was always drawing or painting. As I became older, I realized I wanted to follow in my mother’s path as an artist, and I really wanted to have my own business. I thought about my strengths, and decided on knitting. I started knitting like crazy. So much in fact that I gave myself Carpal Tunnel and had to stop! (Don’t worry, I still knit, just not as much!) I thought about other things I liked or was good at… I love to garden and making things from plants. I already had several bottles of essential oils that I used for various things. And I loved buying handmade soap at the local farmers market. I picked up a soap making book at my public library, and the rest is history. I’ve taught myself almost everything I know about soapmaking through books. This will be my third year in business.

Tell us about your business and what sets it apart from others with similar products?

My business tag line is “soaps from the earth.” I chose this because I wanted to highlight the importance of natural and organic ingredients. At this point, I’m excited to say that 95% of my ingredients are organic! Most of my soaps have dried plant matter in them, many of which I grow and dry myself in my garden. I use only 100% pure essential oils- never chemical fragrance oils. I strive to make my business as sustainable as possible, through growing my own herbs, delivering by bicycle whenever possible, and sourcing my materials through companies I believe in- my favorite is Mountain Rose Herbs. I also try to have different, more creative scent combinations (which I’ll talk about in the next question…)

What products do you offer? What scents do you offer? What are your favorites?

I make soap, body butter, aromatic mists, and massage oils. I also just recently started felting my soap, which is amazing. If you’ve never tried felted soap before, I highly recommend that you do! It acts as a washrag around the soap, and the wool shrinks to the bar as the bar gets used up. Wool is anti-fungal, so it never gets funky in the shower between uses.
I have about 24 different soap flavors, which always seem to be changing. My creative spirit always nags at me to innovate, and it’s hard for me to do the same thing over and over. There are some flavors that I’ve had since the beginning, though. They include orange cocoa swirl, patchouli lemongrass, oatmeal sage, and tangerine poppy. My newest ones are cedarwood grapefruit, anise seed, bergamot spice, and lavender mint. I think my favorite and most unique bar is the carrot cake bar, which I make by juicing organic carrots. The carrot juice gives the bar a rich, orange color. I’ve also started a new “root line,” making root brews with roots like alkanet, comfrey and burdock. I just made an alkanet root soap scented with ginger, lavender and lime. As for the body butters, my favorites are orange cocoa, lavender mint, and chocolate (coming soon is a chocolate ginger!) My favorite oils/mists are Lavender Groves (lavender and citrus) and Fresh Herbs (lavender and rosemary)

 What do you love about what you do?

I LOVE LOVE LOVE creating. I love that I was able to teach myself something, and I love being able to offer a high quality product to people who really appreciate it. I love being able to work from home. I love selling at the Eugene Saturday Market and meeting all the great people who are there. I love making soap, it so so much fun!

 What do you enjoy doing besides your home business? Tell us a little about your life.

My parents seem to worry that I am too busy, and say that I should cut back on some things. The problem is, there are so many things I love to do, I can’t possibly say good-bye to some of my hobbies! I absolutely love to cook healthy meals that make me feel great. (I just made these date bars that were to die for!) I have a big organic garden where I grow lots of vegetables. I preserve as much as possible to sustain me throughout the winter. I’m also planning a dye garden, where I am going to plant all sorts of beautiful flowers to use to dye my wool for my felted soap! I love wool, spinning, natural dyeing, and knitting. I brew beer and make my own bread. I love being outdoors, whether it be hiking, gardening, backpacking, or camping. I love to travel, and have explored Peru, Ecuador, India, Spain, Italy, England, and France. Hmm, what else? I have 2 dogs and 2 chickens, and am trying to get a law changed in Eugene so that I can have 2 goats (goat milk soap? YUM!). I’m sure there’s more but I think that gives you a pretty good idea…

 Christelle at a school she visited in India. I love her beaming face shining out from the center!

 Hiking Lost Coast California

Machu Picchu in Peru

What are your future dreams for your business?

I dream that my business will grow to the point that it can support myself and my family. At the moment, I am a first grade teacher. Times are tough in Eugene, though, and many new teachers, including myself, just recently became laid off. I am trying to be as positive as I can about it, viewing it as a sign that my business is ready for me to give it 100%. If I throw myself completely into my business, I think wonderful things will happen. I have visions of living in the country, with my sheep, goats, chickens, dogs, and cat, with my studio in a big, beautiful barn. And of course my partner Robin, who supports my entrepreneurialism (is that a word?) 100%. He does all of my graphics, labels, website design, etc. Moon Root wouldn’t be where it is today without him. So, we’ll just have to wait and see what the future holds….and I have a feeling it will be, fantastic. Thanks for reading!! 🙂

Thanks for sharing that with us Christelle!

Where can you find Christelle’s awesome products?

Online at her Etsy Shop and on her Website.

In Eugene, Oregon at:  

Eugene Saturday Market. (you can meet her in person!)

Imagine Gallery.

Natural food stores: Sundance, Capella’s, Kiva, Friendly St. Market.