Who are the people behind
Delaware City Soap Company?
My name is Rebecca Keifer and I am the owner of Delaware City Soap Company. I started making soap when my first child was born in 1994. Like every mom, I wanted the best for my child, and when I looked around at baby soaps, shampoos, and such I was not happy with the chemical-laden commercial products on the market. I have always been a do-it-yourselfer, and interested in the historic and old-fashioned ways of doing things, so I did extensive research on soapmaking, past and present. My very first soap was a plain unscented Olive Oil Soap for my son, and it was a big hit with family and friends. From that point on soapmaking quickly grew into a business venture for me. Much has changed for me and my family in the years since I made that first soap (including two more children), but I still always use my "Tiny Angel Castile", during bath time with my kids.
Why do we bother to make soap from scratch?
Everyone wants to have the best for themselves and their families, and one of my goals with Delaware City Soap Company is to help people to do just that. Soapmaking was once a nearly lost art, but now it is enjoying a revival as people all over the country discover how wonderful handcrafted soap can be. People are taking the time to read the labels on the "commercial" products they use and are finding that they don’t like what goes into them. People are discovering that many of the "advancements" in body care industry came about to benefit the manufacturers, not the consumers. Synthetic ingredients are cheaper, more predictable and easier to work with, and allow mass-production on a huge scale. This is great for manufacturers...but not so great for consumers. We think genuine natural ingredients are better for your body and are very much worth the extra cost and effort, and our many happy customers have told us they agree! I love making soap, everything from the research into old methods to the mixing the special scent blends to washing up the pot and tools when I’m through making a batch. It is a genuine pleasure to make something so beautiful, fragrant, and so useful from such mundane raw materials.
Vintage
Soaps from a Vintage Location
Delaware City Soap Company is located in the beautiful and historic riverfront town of Delaware City, where we also make our home. It is a great place to live and have a business. Our town is quite small and we do not have home mail delivery, so almost every day we walk down the street to check the post office box. It is a great excuse to get out for some fresh air, visit with other folks out getting their mail, and catch up on what’s going on in town. Delaware City has a rich history and when I make soap, I feel a real connection to the past. I am certain that there must have been other women making soap in my home at various points in its 150 year history. Every step of the soapmaking process happens right in our workshop. We hand-stir our batches, hand-cut the bars, and hand-wrap the packaging, we are a sort of "village industry". Every day I feel thankful to have the opportunity to do something I love and that brings pleasure to others. I hope that you enjoy our soap as much as we enjoyed creating it for you!