Post written by Elisabeth of Aronadesigns

Hi everyone! Give a big welcome to Kelli Oakleaf, this weeks featured artist. She has kindly offered a giveaway for this occasion. To enter to win the soap in the picture below, go to either of her shops (here or here) and pick a favorite item and comment to let us know! The winner will be picked using random.org.
Pink Grapefruit Soap

Tell us a little bit about yourself Kelli!

-Your shop name(s)
l have desertsoapstone for soap and Exfoliate in the works for scrubs.

-Introduction on you
When I got married to my husband he was prepping for his architectural certification exam and I was assisting him doing renderings of homes his boss had designed. It was artistic, but technical and definitely only a temporary job (in my mind). Then my husband started his own architectural company once he became a certified architect and began using computerized renderings for his clients. I was no longer needed and decided to enjoy some of my free time. Then after the birth of our first child, I decided I needed an artistic release. I found soap making by watching an episode of “Crafters Coast to Coast” on HGTV and Desert Soapstone was born.

-How did you get your start on Etsy?
l was just getting started and feeling comfortable with selling my wares to friends and family and then my friend, Maryanne from Holland (MissTiddels), told me to try Etsy. As soon as l signed up, l could tell by the interface that l had found my platform of choice.

-How did you choose your shop name?
l live in the desert and wanted a name that would reflect that. Living in Arizona poses certain skin problems due to lack of moisture in the air. l wanted something to reflect that need, but also to appeal to tourists and the next thing l knew l started making soap that actually resembled stone so l just combined the two ideas.


-What does a typical day look like for you?
Coffee. Daily studies. Check shop messages and sales. Work on blogging and PR for about an hour and then off to hang out with my young kids. We'll be starting home school soon so we are currently working out the scheduling. When nap time comes for the kids and after they go to bed at night is when l get the most done, whether l am making up orders, shipping, creating or working on PR.
-If you could be anywhere in the world for one day, where would it be?
l would have to say Paris. l have French blood so l would really like to experience their way of living for at least one day.

-What is your favorite Bible verse?
1 Thessalonians 5:21, "Prove all things; hold fast that which is good."

-What is your favorite Etsy item listing to feature?
lt's either the Sandalwood soap or the Pink Grapefruit. Not only do they look great, but they smell amazing.


-URLs to where else we can find you on the internet (Facebook fan page, Twitter, your own dot.com, your blog, etc)
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/pages/Desert-Soapstone/60275213527
Twitter:
twitter.com/DesertSoapstone

Thank you so much for participating in our featured artist post Kelli! Everyone please go check her out in cyberspace and give her some shops some lovin'.

And the winner from last week's featured artist is http://marinebiochic07.blogspot.com/. Congrats!

Comments (17)

On September 21, 2011 at 12:55 PM , Zuda Gay Pease said...

Nice to meet Kelli! Great shops! I like the Orange Spice soap...so pretty and I bet it smells wonderful!

 
On September 21, 2011 at 12:56 PM , Crafty Mommas said...

your soaps look good enough to eat! I think the mojito looks awesome as do the sugar scrubs!

 
On September 21, 2011 at 1:24 PM , Anonymous said...

Nice to meet you :) The Ylang Ylang Shea butter scrub looks fantastic!!

 
On September 21, 2011 at 2:15 PM , MYSAVIOR said...

Your soaps are so pretty. Here are my two favorites from both shops.

http://www.etsy.com/listing/81158482/handcrafted-soap-vanilla-wood-scent

http://www.etsy.com/listing/67779600/exfoliate-with-lemongrass-whipped-sugar

Wonderful to meet you!

♥♥♥
Sue

 
On September 21, 2011 at 6:37 PM , marinebio_chic07 said...

I love buying homemade soaps and yours are so beautifully crafted!

It's so hard to choose a favorite but my go to scents are definitely:

http://www.etsy.com/listing/79824333/handmade-soap-pink-grapefruit-glycerin

http://www.etsy.com/listing/76458010/hand-crafted-soap-hawaiian-coconut

 
On September 21, 2011 at 7:33 PM , Julia Badgley said...

Mmmm, Pumpkin pie sounds like it would smell delicious! I love your pictures. They make your soap look so enticing:)

 
On September 21, 2011 at 7:51 PM , Sue Runyon said...

Wonderful to meet you Kelli. Such amazing looking soaps. The photos are so nice you can almost smell them :-)

 
On September 21, 2011 at 9:19 PM , Unknown said...

I enjoyed reading about you and your shops - here is my favorite:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/79824333/handmade-soap-pink-grapefruit-glycerin

 
On September 21, 2011 at 11:58 PM , LittleElf said...

Hi Kelli, so great to meet you! I have always thought it would be fun to make soap. So happy you are doing what you love.

So hard to decide what my favorite would be. I think the almond poppy seed, pumpkin pie and mango all sound wonderful! Beautiful shop!

Hugs,
Elfie

 
On September 22, 2011 at 1:02 AM , Unknown said...

Lovely to meet Kelly! Her soaps look amazing!!! I can almost smell them through my screen!

 
On September 22, 2011 at 6:43 AM , luvncrafts said...

Nice to meet you Kelly! I love handmade soaps!

The plumeria soap sounds nice:
http://www.etsy.com/listing/80634422/handmade-soap-plumeria-glycerin-soap-bar

 
On September 22, 2011 at 6:49 AM , Sonja said...

I love meeting the people behind the Etsy shops. Nice to meet you Kelly. My favorite item from her shop is the party favor soaps. http://www.etsy.com/listing/79929354/handcrafted-soap-party-favors-bath I think my Christianna would love to share these with her friends on her next birthday.

 
On September 22, 2011 at 1:03 PM , sammysgrammy said...

hi Kelly, it's nice to meet you.

i miss "crafters coast to coast" and all the other wonder craft shows that were on HGTV.

 
On September 23, 2011 at 5:43 AM , Deb (Two Cheeky Monkeys) said...

Hello Kelli! Your soaps look so beautiful and delicious, LOL. It was nice to find out a bit about you. :)

 
On September 23, 2011 at 5:44 AM , Deb (Two Cheeky Monkeys) said...

Oh no, forgot to say that the Sweet Pea Scented looked amazing!

 
On September 23, 2011 at 4:22 PM , The REAL EverSewSweet said...

Nice to meet you, Kelli! Such pretty, swirly soaps! My favorite would be http://www.etsy.com/listing/74745267/sandalwood-soap-handcrafted-soap-vegan?ga_search_query=sandalwood&ga_search_type=user_shop_ttt_id_5393166

 
On September 25, 2011 at 6:46 PM , Desert Soapstone said...

Hi Everyone!
Its so nice to "meet" you all too...Cyberspace wise that is! Thanks for all the love and comments. Thank you Cast for the post! I can't wait to find out who wins! -Kelli