Soap making, especially when made at home, is quite a tedious task. Yet, looking at the pretty swirls and patterns you’ve created, just by using your own hand is rewarding in its own way. After much practice, soap making is a skill that Rishada Fausz has mastered to perfection and is now creator and owner of Suds & Co., a small business offering handmade soap and skincare. She loves the art of soap making, and noted it as one of her favourite hobbies along with photography, drawing, and gardening. Her brand name “Suds & Co.” was derived from the fact that she finds soap bubbles to be the most fun thing about soap!
We at Brunch had a conversation with Rishada about the art of soap making and more. Here’s what she had to say.
How long have you been making your products for and how did you get started?
The soap making journey started as a DIY project mid-2019 after I realised that a lot of plastic waste came from hygiene products. The growth of synthetic and harmful products in plastic bottles was something I wanted to move away from and soap seemed a great place to start. My initial bars turned into gifts for friends and family, who came back for more and this eventually made me start making soap for sale.
What interested you in the art of making skincare? 
I initially started only with soap, but it was upon the request from my customers to try to create various products for them that led me to research and study more on skincare. And now I am hooked!
What would you say are the benefits of using homemade skincare products?
It’s largely the power to decide; this way, you know exactly what you are putting on your skin. It is nearly impossible for the average person to pronounce let alone understand the ingredients in commercial products, yet so many people habitually put them on their skin – the largest organ in our body!
All your products are handmade, how do you do that and what’s the process of making it?
The handmade soaps are made using the age-old cold process method. I haven’t experimented much with other processes because I love the room I have for creativity with this technique, and also the challenges that come along with this technique. There are no wasted by-products this way, and it relies on good old-fashioned elbow grease. Every bar is poured, cut, and packed by hand.
How long does the process take?
Soap itself takes only a few hours to make, but it needs about six week to complete the entire process of production. Soaps, once made, need to cure a minimum of three, ideally six, weeks in order to make a bar that is that hard and long-lasting.
What is your product range like?
Soaps are the main product. I have a wide range of soaps using wonderful skin-loving ingredients such as turmeric, goat milk, and various clays. I make my soaps into various shapes and sizes and I also make pretty soaps with rosettes. Besides that, we have natural deodorants, body scrubs, foot soaks, lip balms, etc.
Which is your personal favourite product from your range?
I absolutely love everything I make! Although, since you are forcing me to pick, I’ll go with the goat milk bars, cinnamon and Moroccan clay, and the turmeric and orange soap. I also like my range of natural deodorants.
Do you have anything coming up for 2021? New products?
I’m working on a range of body butters, various balms, and of course lots of new soaps.
Instagram: @sudsnco
Website: www.sudsnco.com
