About the Founder
Hi! I'm Aliya (pronounced A-Lee-Ya); an Australian soap artist and the owner and creator of Soap Cult Australia.
How it all begun
I first began making soap in 2009 after breaking my leg in a roller derby accident.
Once I was back on my feet, I headed to my local library, eager to do some gardening after being cooped up inside for six weeks.
As luck would have it, a book on soap making had been misfiled in the exact place my gardening book should have been.
I took that as a sign (I'm very openly woo-woo) and I haven't looked back since.
Why I LOVE what I do
What I love most about soap making as an artistic process is the melding of function and art. I'm a practical person at heart but aesthetics and sensuality are also hugely important to me. How a soap looks, feels, smells, lathers...it's all part of the experience.
We've been a secret cult since the beginning
Soap Cult handcrafts each bar of soap to look beautiful and perform well.
In fact many of my customers tell me that sometimes they keep a favourite soap on display for, get this, YEARS before they use it because they love how it looks and smells. I'm flattered of course but life's too short - use the good soap!
My inspiration
My inspiration typically comes from art, music, mythology, the occult, witchcraft, cults and secret societies, true crime, baking, floristry, herbalism and spooky things like ghost stories, aliens and horror movies.
Me, in a nutshell
I live in the outskirts of Brisbane with my partner in crime of nearly 20 years. Together we have a one child, a parrot named Basil, tropical fish and a black Cobberdog named Midnight.
In my down time, I enjoy being a plant mamma, watching horror and thriller movies and rocking out goth, punk and industrial/electronic music.
My guilty pleasure is weet-bix cereal with sulantas and lashings of vegemite on toast. I could eat that everday.
Press
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