It’s craft market season! Check out the lovely soaps  from the material conscious vendor and customer of the re, Diana Ford! Diana, who recently moved to Philadelphia from California, has been frequenting our store and incorporating reuse into her entire soap making operation!

“I recently moved here from California and have been coming by regularly to collect materials. I am a soap maker and was thrilled to discover your organization,  as I have been frequenting the East Bay Depot for Creative Reuse in Oakland for years, and never hoped to find a similar resource here! 

I had my first local event here, today, and as promised to the staff I’ve spoken with, wanted to share my pictures.

I used your interior design sample fabric squares for the soap wrappers, paper and scrapbook tags for labels and signs, pinecones, Christmas floral and artificial pine tree pieces for decoration and some of the display baskets (some are from thrift stores). I used tissue paper from your scrapbooking section to line gift baskets. I am using your $1 plastic bins to store and transport supplies and products.

I am a strong believer in repurposing materials to divert them from landfill. It also allows me to enhance my products and customer satisfaction while minimizing the cost, thereby keeping my profit margins healthy. Since I just moved here, and am “bootstrapping ” my operation while I start over, that is important. Beyond that, though, it has always been a core part of my mission and values, and I’m incredibly grateful that your organization is allowing me to continue realizing these aspects of my business.

For my next event, I have even more ideas for ways to use things I’ve picked up from you and will continue to visit.”

Be sure to check out Diana’s Etsy Shop page UrbanCreekStudio!