Create Your Own Products at Honor Your Body's Apothecary Lab
By Lois Thompson
When you walk through the door of the Honor Your Body shop, you will be surrounded by displays of colorful products and fragrances that delight the senses. And the best part is, you will be able to create some of those products on your own.
Carrie Shaley and her mother, Carol, founded Honor Your Body – an LGBTQIA+ small business – seven years ago in Dormont as a massage therapy venture that also sold a variety of products such as soaps, lotions, candles, and essential oils. Carol has sensitive skin and makes all of the products sold in the shop. But now, after enjoying years of success, the two women have decided to expand by opening an Apothecary Lab, where people will be able to come in and make their own wax melts, candles, or soaps.
In a room separate from the product and massage area, Carrie and Carol have set up a workshop where individuals or groups can participate in a class. Carrie said customers first choose whether they want to make a candle, soap, or wax melt. Carol explained, "For wax melts and soap, they will be able to choose molds, and for candles, they will get to choose a tin or a candle jar in one of two sizes."
“It’s a very hands-on activity. We started it right after we came back from COVID, and we had a lot of kids come in; they loved the idea of hands-on and being able to mix the products. We even had people with special needs who came in, and it was a great activity for them to be able to touch and feel.”
The guests then select the color and fragrance they want to mix into their product. An assortment of bottles is on display, with a range of fragrances and colors to choose from. The fragrances run the gamut from sweet to pungent, among them fresh cotton, sun-ripened raspberry, plum nectar spice, blue velvet honeyberry, English garden, French lilac, snickerdoodle, coconut lime, and sweet tobacco.
After the selection, Carol said, "They will mix the fragrance with the soap or wax. The soap they will be able to melt in the microwave themselves. For candles, they will get to wick the container as well. They will pour the mixture into the mold or container."
As for the molds, Carrie said, "Anything you can imagine, we probably have," and she is probably right. The molds resemble vinyl ice cube trays, and include designs that would appeal to just about anyone: hearts, animals, flowers, footballs, soccer balls, basketballs, unicorns, dinosaurs, paw prints, a Celtic knot, honeycombs/bees, different types of fish, and cactus, to name a few. And they come in different sizes as well.
Carrie said the lab can support "any size group," from individuals to ones as large as 15. People can book online to reserve a spot.
For more information, call 412-212-0231 or visit honoryourbodywellness.com