01/04/2026
HAPPY 9th BIRTHDAY to my little biz. 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
April 2017 - THE ROAD TO KRIEITIVITI HANDMADE SOAP
The first ten years of my life were like most other kids of the 70’s and 80’s. I grew up on a big ¼ acre block in the suburbs of Perth, with my Mum, Dad, sister, cat, chickens and duck. We had a big lemon tree, a vegetable garden and a swimming pool. The neighbourhood kids were friends and we played tennis on the street and rode our bikes. As long as our mums knew whose house we were at, all was ok.
At age ten, I was diagnosed with Asthma and I spent a good portion of my 6th year of school at home on a nebuliser. It is also when I really began to swim for my health. To this day, you will still find me in and around the water. I love swimming so much I have also been a swim teacher and coach for over 30 years.
Life went on and as I grew into my late teenage years I began to look more closely at what I was eating, products I was using and how it affected my health. This was the late 1980’s before it was ever ‘cool’ to be environmentally conscious or aware of the toxicity of commercial products for ourselves and our planet.
I had come across a local Soap Maker operating out of Fremantle. I adored the natural ingredients in her soaps and at every opportunity, I had them well stocked in my bathroom.
I was continuing to battle brittle Asthma, with no relief from the Cortisone medication the doctor continually prescribed. I had adjusted my diet many times. Gluten Free, Vegetarian, Vegan, Dairy Free. I had also begun to eliminate almost all chemicals from my home to reduce symptoms.
Fast forward ten years ago and I had more control of my asthma. But the wheel of fate had one last nasty turn in the form of excema. I had never suffered from excema. But when I met my now husband, Alex, I broke out all over my body and to this day, need to carefully manage my food and product exposure (and stressors) to keep it under control.
A few years ago, while continuing my swimming coaching career at a small, local swimming club, I was looking for a hobby to keep me occupied between the early morning starts, the evening coaching shift and the travel demands that came with the job. One day, I came across a Soap Making Kit. I purchased it there and then, thinking that maybe I can make beautiful natural soap so I didn’t have to spend so much money buying soap.
After all, I knew whatever I did, it needed to be kind to my skin and kind to the earth. I made my first batch of soap over the Easter of 2017.
It turned out better than I expected. From that day, I was hooked. I did every bit of research I could. I decided that I would make soap for my family and friends. BUT, other people wanted to buy my soap and Christmas sales kept me busy, allowing me to buy more equipment and ingredients.
My little business now has a full all natural range of 14 soaps, 4 shampoo bars, lip/beard/belly and ni**le balms, shower steamers and many other products as I continue to expand. My niche is teaching and educating on natural additives. This has become my focal point in an industry that promotes pretty-smelling toxic products!
Today, swimming coaching is my main jam once again but you will still find me teaching soap making workshops and heading to Freo Farmers Market each month.
HAPPY 9th BIZ Birthday to me and Kri:ei'tiviti.
