News

HOLIDAY SALE 2023 November 27 2023, 0 Comments

All Signature Soap Bars are $5 and all Exfoliating Soap Bars are $6 on our online store starting now through 12/31/23 only while supplies last! Use discount code HOLIDAYS23 at checkout.

February News - Suscriptions/Autoship Available, New Products and more! February 04 2019, 0 Comments

Announcing our new subscription/autoship capability, gift cards, and new products coming in 2019!

What’s in a Name? Where we came from and where we’re going in 2019… January 11 2019, 0 Comments

Happy New Year! It’s hard to believe that 6 years ago this month, I applied for my business license to launch what has become Inky Quills LLC. As I said in my last blog, I had just moved into my new home which would become Crow’s Croft Farm and was working full time. The house I had just bought was going to need a lot of work and my then boyfriend/now husband was in his second year of a 2 year contract overseas. My hands were full to say the least so why in the world would I start a business? Well, there’s a few parts to the answer of that question.

First, and most importantly, I started making my own soap a few years before for my own personal reasons. I was battling eczema and severe reactions to other soaps and I was dissatisfied with how quickly other handmade soaps rapidly melted away. I had always wanted to make my own soap and so I decided to stop talking about it, planning it, and start actually doing it. I had been making my own soap for over a year when I applied for my business license. I had started giving my soaps away as gifts and, as a result, people had started asking to buy it.

Second, I had a lot of encouragement, particularly from a very dear friend of mine who had temporarily (and bravely) moved in with me at the new house. Jessica is not only a wonderful friend, but also very business savvy. She pushed me to see that I had something here…something worth pursuing and she had a logical response to every argument I produced to the contrary. So, I applied for the business license, the LLC, and Jessica helped me setup the blog account, the website, my gmail account, and even helped me create scents and write clever descriptions for each new scent. She took initial pictures of my process for me to use for promotional materials and helped me wrap and tag the first batches. To this day, she is still one of my greatest cheerleaders and dearest friends and I am so grateful to her for pushing me into taking that first step.

The hardest part of the entire process was deciding on what to call the company and designing my logo. I had decided on what I would call my business if I ever started one, but knew that it was not a name that immediately brought soap to mind. It hearkened to one of my favorite works of literature, incorporated two things I love, and was, I thought, a clever idea. The story is “Alice and Wonderland” and its riddle “Why is a raven like a writing desk?” I love ravens, I find them clever and beautiful birds and their cousin, the American Crow is the inspiration for the name of my farm. I also love writing and am a published poet and short fiction author. The beauty of the written word is one of my greatest passions and so it seemed to fit.  The riddle is never answered in the book and there have been many, many times over the past 6 years where someone has stood for a few moments looking at my business sign pondering that riddle before coming up to me and asking, “what’s the answer?”

The answer is that both have Inky Quills, and there you have it. 

The third reason for starting this business is clearly stated in the mission statement for Inky Quills. I wanted to provide a good product for those who, like me, deal with skin sensitivity and its many complications, but make it last and make it affordable. All of the ingredients in Inky Quills’ products are eco-friendly and sustainably harvested and any fragrance oils used are reviewed and scrutinized before being put into production.

Over the last 6 years, its been a journey and a wonderful learning experience. Inky Quills continues to grow and, this year in particular, has some exciting items in store.

Our subscription service will be launching shortly and there are a few new scents and new products in the works. I am in awe as to how far Inky Quills has come over the past 6 years and am so incredibly grateful for all the support, encouragement, and inspiration. I’m so excited for what’s coming and I can’t wait to share it with you all. Thank you all for making my little dream of a soap business a reality that just keeps getting more and more exciting.

 

Thank you!

Chris Parkinson

Owner

Inky Quills LLC


Happy Holidays and an Announcement! November 25 2018, 0 Comments

There's something new brewing at Inky Quills! Coming in 2019, a soap subscription service. Read all about it!