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By John Darling For the Tidings December 04. 2014 8:56PM The sweet smell of soap-selling success Emily Whitlock, owner of Emz Blendz Soap Co. in Ashland, started up her company in 1998 in their family's kitchen. Daily Tidings / Jamie Lusch Nearly-native Ashlander Emily Whitlock got her start in the soap business while stressing out for years as a teaching assistant. She was studying business and art at Southern Oregon University and found she handled her stress by doing something she loved — making soaps and lotions from natural, organic ingredients.  “I started selling them at the Lithia Artisans Market when I was 21 and it just took off from there,” says Whitlock.  “We love it. Andy (husband) and I make the soaps every day at our studio in Talent. It’s a very bonding family time. Everyone tells me I smell good, like all the fragrances we use and when I make a deposit they tell me my money smells good.”  For the last 10 years, the couple has been selling their soaps, lotions, lip balms and other comforting items as Emz Blendz at 93 Oak St., by Standing Stone. They sell about a third of their wares at www.emzblendz.com.  It’s billed as a natural soap company, using all natural oils. It’s all organic and biodegradable, she notes, and “all super good for your skin and good for the environment.”  The various goodies come in 30-plus “flavors,” she adds, with a smile.  The tiny, charming shop is lush with a cascade of smells and, as you walk around it, you discover many applications you may never have thought of, such as “tub truffles.” They’re like bath bombs that foam and fizz, bringing fragrance and effervescence and moisturizing, says Em.  A tiny, alluring forest of lip balms come in 11 flavors and are made from shea butter, cocoa butter, aloe vera, vitamin E and bees wax. There’s castile soap with olive oil. Sugar scrub with olive oil, she explains, exfoliates and polishes skin as it buffs off dead cells. A sizeable part of the business is supplying bed and breakfasts with soap and other guest amenities. Tourists are fond of their products and spread the word, so they get many B&B orders from around the nation.  One regular customer, Galina LeBlanc, bought some "Baby Bum Cream" for her infant, noting it was full of healthful-sounding stuff  — olive oil, bees' wax and other all natural oils. She also likes the pet shampoo, she said.  “I love what I do and I think that helps you have a happy life,” she says. Her husband nods agreement, noting he handles all the photography, website and heavy lifting for the business, while daughter Jaden, 17, a senior at Ashland High School, does the art on their packaging.  “Making the soap is a very family bonding experience,” says Andy, describing how they mix soaps and other potions in vats, and let soaps set, cure and mellow for a month. Their wares make great gifts, says Em, and business triples during the Yule season.  “They are awesome presents because they’re personal. Each one is a piece of art. They smell good and,” she jokes, “they disappear, so you have to come back and buy more.”  Whitlock, 37, was born in Cottage Grove and brought here as a child by her parents. She started making soap in her kitchen in 1998 and gifting it to friends and family.  “I discovered the art and magic of soap-making as an artist who lives through my senses and am inspired by my love of nature’s scents, my native Oregonian upbringing, my creative spirit and my intuitive sense of comfort.” http://www.dailytidings.com/article/20141204/NEWS/141209897 © 2015 Copyright © 1995-2011 Crain Communications Inc. All Rights Reserved. Terms of Use Privacy Statement -->