If you’ve ever ventured into HeidisHandmades you know that Heidi Prices products don’t just look good — they ARE good.

With items such as body butters, frostings, soaps and sprays Heidi has found her niche in the massive soap world of Etsy - creating products that are true to her sweet self.

As a military spouse Heidi is a proud member of Homefront, a place she came to find comfort and commaradere with others who understand her situation of running a business and family.

As a mother of three, she finds inspiration in her children, creating fun whimsical products for them to test and enjoy. She takes pride in her work and it shows.

Q. How long have you been making soaps?   

A.I have been making soaps since 2000 when I took a small soapmaking class that just taught the basics.  My husband and I have had 3 children since then and I’ve been making soaps with them to play with in the tub.  

Q.What inspires you to create your items? 

A.I am inspired by the seasons mostly, for instance when I think of summer I think of fresh oranges, lemonade and watermelons so I try make creations along those lines.  And for Fall I choose pumkin spice types scents etc…and winter are Christmas scents and Spring are blossom floral scents.

Q.Do you have any  major influences? 

A.Not really, I just enjoy doing it for myself, and making others happy with my creations.

Q.When did you decide to start your own business and what prompted you to do so?   

A.I was selling Avon for a few years and enjoyed it, but was sort of bored with just sellling.   I wanted to get my hands into it, making the creations!  Then my husband went on a deployment and I had all kinds of free time in the evenings to experiment with different recipes and formulas for making my own bath & body creations.   I loved doing it, it really helped me get through the deployment!  I especially fell in love with lavender the most, very calming and a natural antidepressant.

Q.Has being a military spouse had an impact on your business ? 

A.I don’t think so.  Except that we live in base housing and I could use a little more space!  Ha!  Also moving a lot is tricky, but luckily etsy is a good marketplace for that type of thing.

Q.How so? 

A.Because with etsy I can close my shop whenever I need to, it’s not like a 9 - 5 job or a B & M store.

Q.How did you find ETSY? Has it been beneficial for your business – good /bad? 

A.Someone mentioned it in a soap forum.  Heck yeah, it’s been awesome for me!  Most of my sales have been from etsy!

Q.How did you come up with the name of your store? 

A.Well, I like to make all sorts of things, jewelry, sock monkeys etc… and most of all soaps.  So, I tried to think of something that I could incorporate everything, and came up with HeidisHandmades.  But, I got so busy with the bath & body part of it, that I have not been able to make the other things. 

Q.Do you sell outside of ETSY? If so,  where? 

A.I sell at a local gift shop, All Season’s Curio Shoppe located in downtown Milton, FL, also at the Farmers Market when it’s not too hot for my things to melt!

Q.Is your work outside of your business? 

A.My work is Mommy to 3 little ones.

Q.How do you juggle being a military spouse and running your own business? 

A.I feel blessed to be a military spouse, because it allows me the freedom to be able to stay home with my kids, and do what I love with my soapmaking, and provides us with a nice place to live in a wonderful military community, and great healthcare (especially since one of our children has a heart condition).

Q.How did your spouse/family react to you starting your own business? 

A.My Mom, Dad and siblings were totally happy for me.  My husband and kids not so much….it was taking me away from them for a long time when I started getting busy.   My husband was actually quite jealous of etsy for awhile, but we have since worked through that.  Now I give them 100% of me on weekends, and only prepare and ship orders twice a week instead of every single day.

Q.What are your hobbies? 

A. I love to swim, make bath & body stuff (of course!) and I like to make jewelry, crafts, cookies and artwork.

Q.What is the best and worst thing that has happened after starting your business? 

A.When my husband and I had a very serious dissagreement over my etsy business.

Q.Is there anything you would change? 

A.Wish there were more hours in the day for more family time and creation time!

Q.If you had one wish what would it be? 

A.I would LOVE to get big and be sort of famous, like Burt’s Bees, but I would need to hire a good accountant and business manager, so all I have to do is create. 

Q.What is your goal for the next 6 months? 

A.No goals really, just to continue doing what I love