A Legacy of Soap

Sometimes our greatest passions are woven into our lives long before we understand why.

More than eleven years ago, while living in Washington State, I made my very first bars of soap using a simple melt-and-pour base. My family loved them, and what began as a creative hobby soon became a lifelong passion. Before long, I was learning the traditional art of cold process soap making, wanting to understand the craft from the ground up.

Only after making my first cold process loaves did my mother tell me something, I had never known, my great-grandmother, Nepomucena Trujillo, later Nepomucena Vigil, had also been a soap maker.

She lived in the small Northern New Mexico village of Cundiyo, where families relied on one another and bartering was simply a way of life. Soap was an everyday necessity, handcrafted from rendered tallow and homemade lye. It was often traded for fresh vegetables, fruit from local orchards, meat, and other essentials. Her hands helped provide for her family and community through the timeless craft of soap making.

As a child, I remember visiting the family property in Cundiyo with my mother. Although my great-grandmother had already passed away, many of her descendants still lived there. The land had been in our family for generations through a historic land grant on my mother's father's side, and those visits left me with a deep appreciation for where my family came from.

My mother preserved my great-grandmother's original wooden soap mold, now more than 125 years old. I treasured that heirloom for over a decade before having the incredible honor of making one final loaf of soap in it on January 1, 2026. Time had weathered the wood, so I carefully lined it with parchment paper, but knowing my soap rested where hers once had was one of the most meaningful moments of my life.

Looking back, I realize soap making has always been in my blood. Long before I knew my family's history, I felt drawn to this craft. 

Discovering that I was simply continuing a tradition that began generations before me gave my work an even deeper purpose.

Today, as I return to simpler, more natural recipes inspired by traditional soap making, I do so with gratitude and humility. Every loaf I create is a tribute to my great-grandmother and the generations before me who believed in honest work, handcrafted goods, and caring for their community. It is my privilege to carry that tradition forward, one bar of soap at a time.