Vendor Spotlight: The Gritty Sisters Soapery
When sisters Shannon, Lauren and Erin came together with an idea of creating a soap company, it took more than just grit to make it happen. The business started only a year-and-a-half ago, but according to owner Lauren Brown, they’ve grown faster than they expected thanks to a presence at farmers markets like ours.
Variety, Ingredients and Nostalgia
In an effort to make small changes toward an all-natural lifestyle, Lauren had been making soap at home for several years when Shannon came to her with an idea to open a soap-making business. Now all three sisters work together to create the soaps, moisturizing body “frosting,” scrubs and deodorants their customers have grown to know and love.
With their signature “gritties” (exfoliating bar soap with natural exfoliants) and “pretties” (smooth bar soap made to look as beautiful as it feels), The Gritty Sisters Soapery creates a shopping experience that not only titillates the senses with varieties like Bergamot Balance, Lake Eerie Summer (containing water collected from Lake Eerie), and even Green Beer, but offers a variety of ingredients and objectives. Shannon, Erin and Lauren’s jam is using different vegan ingredients (from different types of moisturizing oils to add-ins like coffee beans or beer) to create all-natural, beautiful and effective products. Their line currently includes a wide variety of soaps, moisturizing “frosting,” body scrubs and deodorant.
An all-natural beginning for The Gritty Sisters Soapery
Lauren was always the creative sister, and always loved arts and crafts and making things from scratch. When a friend made her own batch of soap out of the blue, Lauren thought she would try her hand at it, too. The first batch was a game-changer, and her family never looked back.
“Once we started using it, we just couldn’t go back to the chemical-filled stuff that you purchase at the store,” she said.
At first, Lauren was using traditional animal tallow for her soap, but when her daughter became vegan, she began experimenting with different blends of oil. The business later benefited from this experimentation, and has only ever made vegan products. Their signature base oil is a blend of coconut, olive and palm oils, although different varieties contain custom blends of different all-natural oils, too.
In fact, experimenting with different ingredients is one of The Sisters’ signature moves. Instead of using goat’s milk, the vegan brand created an oat milk bar that is just as moisturizing. They love add-ins and color, and work to create nostalgic varieties that use ingredients from some of their favorite places to visit (like Lake Eerie) to seasonal ingredients perfect for autumn, the winter holidays, and even St. Patrick’s Day or Cinco de Mayo.
Other ingredients include all-natural exfoliants for their “gritties” line. This includes everything from orange or avocado peels, cinnamon sticks, and pomegranate seeds.
In addition to soap, they also make moisturizing body “frosting” (like a body butter, but smooth and creamy like frosting), scrubs and deodorant.
Stink No Moore: A Deodorant Game Changer
The deodorant was a reluctant entry to the product line, but an important one that reflected Lauren and her daughter’s desire to have an all-natural option, one that they eventually shared with others through the business.
Although Stinks No Moore (the sisters maiden name being Moore) works just as well, if not better, than store-brand deodorants, don’t expect the Sisters’ version to look and smell like what you get at your local store. First of all, it’s often brightly colored thanks to the addition of food-grade antioxidant powders that add benefit to the skin while making the self-care product fun (colors don’t transfer upon application!).
Since they’re all-natural, the consistency of the deodorant has a tendency to fluctuate depending on the temperature. Therefore, they don’t package it in standard deodorant tubes. Instead, the scoopable mixture comes in a wide mouth jar. In the summer months, Lauren said it’s generally soft enough to scoop by hand, but in the colder winter months, customers may like to use the piece of Lake Eerie sea glass under the lid as an applicator.
A complete experience
The act of exploring the different colors, scents and variety, peppered with plenty of joking and laughter from the sisters themselves, makes stopping at The Gritty Sisters’ booth more than just an errand run, but a full experience. Since the sisters work together to man the booth, they’re always available to answer any question you might have about their products and how they’re made and work.
“We like to create soaps that remind us, and possibly other people, of certain things, and we like to be fun when we are selling and interacting with the customers,” Lauren said. “We feel like we are selling ourselves, and… we want people to have fun when they come to our booth.”
Want to learn more? Come visit us at market each week and get to know The Gritty Sisters and their products. Or visit them online to see what they’re about and to make your purchase there!
