Meet The Soapmaker

In addition to showing you our fine products I’d also like to take you on a visual trip of my old New England farmhouse and the beautiful state of New Hampshire. With each quarterly update of “News from the Farmhouse” I’ll introduce you to some of our friends and our cats too. But first, let me give you a little background and share events and experiences that brought me to this wonderful place.

I was born in Pennsylvania and grew up there and in southern New Jersey. I inherited my love of nature and my curiosity about herbs from my mother, a German war bride who came to America in 1948. Her blend of German, Russian & Polish blood meant there was always something interesting “brewing” in the kitchen. I made mental notes of the herbal remedies but wished I had written down the strange tales of Russian gypsies and the events she recalled as a child growing up in Germany. I began my own study of herbal remedies when very young, making herbal teas in mom’s kitchen, mixing wild salad greens in the back yard, and beginning what would eventually be a vast collection of herbal literature. Dad’s people were Italian immigrants and they too had their own herbal remedies and special foods. My Sicilian grandfather loved his dandelion fritters! Dad was also a great cook and at different times in his life was in the restaurant business. His recipes were based largely on the foods of Napoli, the home of my grandmother.

As a teenager my love for herbs took a back seat for awhile as my love for music began to flourish. After years of playing an electric organ my sister and I taught ourselves to play guitar…for me it was the bass. We worked together in bands as early as 1967 playing at the Electric Factory club in Philadelphia in 1968-69. Then in 1972, I traveled to England, eventually settling there in 1973. The bass stayed in a closet for 4 years, but I was teaching myself new skills….wine and bread making and cooking! Living in the beautiful Lake District I learned many things about rural English life from the locals and learned to love and appreciate the traditional folk music of the region. In 1975, I flew home for six weeks while dad recovered from surgery, to help him with the house and his business, then in 1976 I returned home again for what was to be only a month’s visit. However, I stayed 8 months and beyond and am so glad now I had that time with him. After his death in 1977, I ran his business for a while and began working once again in a band. I made one last trip to England in 1978, staying only 2 weeks, and then I flew home for good. I met my husband Phil, also a musician, and we moved to New Hampshire in 1979, settling into this fine old farmhouse in April of 1980.

I have always believed in natural remedies and wanted others to benefit from my knowledge. One day I submitted an article to The Herb Quarterly and it was accepted. I soon found myself writing regularly for them and for the Herb Companion magazine. I was also being asked by local herb groups to give talks and demonstrations on the medicinal use of herbs and wild food foraging. During these years, I worked as a veterinary technician for the local clinic. It was a good learning experience as we found ourselves with an ever-growing number of stray cats. The neighborhood seemed over-run with them at that time. Some were taking shelter in our barn, and I found myself feeding them all. We had 2 dogs, (a Scotty & a Beagle) and one house cat, but soon I was bringing strays to the clinic to be spayed and neutered so we could bring them inside too! Phil and I formed the band “Bittersweet” in 1981 as a means to help support the cats but also because we really missed playing music. In addition to the band, I still wrote and lectured on herbs & sold plants I was raising at the farmhouse, but eventually I had to leave my job at the vet clinic.

Then one cold day in February 1991 I made my first batch of soap. Using soap making books from the 1800’s as my guide, I reworked some of the recipes, formulated my own, and started creating my own packaging and labels. Soon a sales rep approached me about selling my products to local shops. Cats in the Cradle was born. It was a logical way to generate income for the upkeep of so many pets and allow me to stay home to look after them. But I also love “formulating” things and like my dad, I enjoy working for myself. I still work alone and do everything myself, from mixing the soaps to packaging them. I no longer give talks or write for magazines. Phil keeps busy as an activities director in a local nursing home, and he plays drums and sings with the band. I still have the wonderful old Fender Mustang bass I bought in Phila. in 1968, and he still has an old set of Ludwig drums from the same year! When I am not making soap or gardening, I love photographing the beautiful places around New England. Talk radio or music is often on in the house and workshop, and of course, we’re both film buffs with a huge collection of silent comedies and other vintage films. We never watch TV and have not in many years. On cold winter nights I might be sitting by the woodstove reading up on how to use this computer…..something I fought having and still wish I didn’t need. If I could go back in time to the late 1800’s that would suit me just fine! I’m not a high-tech person and never will be! I still wear the vintage clothing I love to collect and our old house is filled with everything “vintage!” Give me the days of hand written letters and romance!

That is a brief history of Cats in the Cradle. Moreover, after studying the area and deciding that New Hampshire is one of the most wholesome places to live, we are now entering our 26th year here and our 25th in this old 1830’s farmhouse. New Hampshire folk are generally much more independent and self reliant than anywhere else, and that is one reason we like it so much. I hope you will enjoy this beautiful state and our home through our website photos.