Get to Know... Rachel Wiandt

OOAK:  What are you bringing to this year's Holiday Show?

Rachel:  In addition to our regular line of soaps, sugar scrubs, bath bombs and other delights, we will have a limited number of special Christmas tree soap cupcakes just for One of a Kind.

OOAK:  How did you get started?

Rachel:  I'm allergic to many synthetic lathering agents and they leave my hands cracked and painful.  I decided to try formulating my own natural soaps and added my own artistic flair with swirls, colors and patterns.  Very soon friends and family were begging for more and insisting on paying for my creations!

OOAK:  What inspires you/your work?

Rachel:  I love baking and find inspiration in candy, cake and food trends.  If I see a design on a cake, I love to try it with soap.  ColorSeeds, Apartment Therapy and DesignSponge are some of my favorite blogs.

OOAK:  If you're weren't an artist what would you be?

Rachel:  I also work full-time in web design and development.  I love coding and bringing ideas to life on the web.

OOAK:  What makes you happy?

Rachel:  Spending time with family and friends, traveling, a hot cup of coffee and a good book on a cool fall morning, and vegetable gardening.

OOAK:  What's your favorite holiday tradition?

Rachel:  Watching animated Christmas favorites like Rudolph and Frosty the Snowman.  It always makes me feel like a kid again.

OOAK:  Favorite holiday food?

Rachel:  Gingerbread and stollen.  My family is of German ancestry and these were some of our annual favorites.

OOAK:  Favorite Holiday song?

Rachel:  War is over by John Lennon or Last Christmas by Wham!

OOAK:  And the best gift you've ever received?

Rachel:  My parents allowed me to bring home a rescued puppy, Duchess, for my 16th birthday.  She was our constant companion for the rest of her life.