A’marie’s Bath Flower Shop in Brandon creates beautiful, handcrafted soap blooms and bouquets. Their craftsmanship is unmatched, and the ingredients of their products are natural and made up of coconut oil, shea butter, vegetable glycerin, and goat’s milk.
The owner of A’marie’s, Amber Earles, came up with the idea of the “bathing petal soap flowers” several years ago. She shared, “I had been making bar soap for years, and then my Mother-in-law was admitted to the hospital, and I wanted to make something beautiful for her that was useful but also a visual that she could look at while she was there.”
Earles said she used an orchid mold that she still has today to remind her of how far she’s come. “I made three orchids and put them on skewers like an arrangement. Later I asked her if she used the orchid soaps, and she said no because it was so beautiful, and she didn’t want to mess it up.”
“This got me thinking, how could I create this so it was functional but still visually pleasing? Finally, it came to me, and I consider it a blessing…flowers have multiple petals; this is how it will work.”
A’marie’s pieces every petal together one by one. One petal of soap equals an entire body cleanse or ten hand washes. Customers use the handcrafted soap by starting outside the petal and working their way in. Once they get through all the petals, a soap bar is underneath.
The shop’s popular soaps are replicas of a variety of gorgeous flowers, including Mississippi’s grand Magnolia and stunning ephemeral roses, much like the blooms at Eudora Welty’s House & Garden.
Many people ask, how big are the flowers? Each unique flower has at least 35 petals. Some of the flowers have a few more petals. When A’marie’s blooms the flowers, they are about 5 inches wide and stand about 3 inches high. As they are placed in a decorative packaging box, the petals fold in just a bit. This means that when a flower is received, it will be just under 5 inches wide.
Each flower is decoratively packaged for bridal gifts, birthdays, special occasions, and have been a popular choice as a Mother’s Day gift as well. A’marie’s beautiful, blooming soaps can be purchased at their storefront in Brandon, or online.
Buying a handcrafted soap from A’marie’s is like buying a piece of functional art that can be experienced daily. Since each soap is handmade and may look different from the others, customers can be assured that their soap is unique.
“Everyone is unique, just like a flower; we hope our customers find a soap that speaks to them.”
All photos courtesy of A’marie’s Bath Flower Shop
