Partly cloudy. Low 51F. Winds light and variable..

Partly cloudy. Low 51F. Winds light and variable.

Heather Magner, owner of Nature’s Mercantile, works to cut a block of Skittlishious vegan designer soap, inside her new studio to the north of her shop at 309 S. Main St., in Auburn.

Heather Magner, owner of Nature’s Mercantile, works to cut a block of Skittlishious vegan designer soap, inside her new studio to the north of her shop at 309 S. Main St., in Auburn.

AUBURN — Peek in the front window of Nature’s Mercantile on any given day and you quite possibly see owner Heather Magner hard at work on her latest natural soap or candle creation at a table stationed in front of the window.

Magner encourages visitors to stop and watch the process or even stop in to learn more about the process.

Magner, who opened her business at 309 S. Main St., recently expanded to the storefront to the north of her boutique, which offers a wide variety of natural and handmade specialties. Magner started making soap out of her garage in 2012 and opened the storefront in March 2019.

The expansion in July not only gave Magner room to create her soap products on site, it also has given her to opportunity to offer classes in soap and candle making. She is also considering venturing out into offering classes on homemade lotions.

She said the classes, offered on the weekend, have been a hit with local residents. She said over the past three years, she has had several inquiries about classes.

“The community has been very welcoming,” she said.

Magner’s homemade soaps and bath products are marketed under the name Soaps & Such Apothecary. She specializes in small-batch bar and liquid soaps, bath products and essential oils. She offers over 130 varieties of essential oils.

She said over the past several years, more and more people are turning to natural soaps for their skin health benefits.

Soaps can be made with a variety of products, depending on skin allergies and other factors. Among those varieties are goat’s milk, vegan milk, pine tar, her own “master batch” and more.

Magner’s candles are made from 100% organic Indiana soy and feature organic hemp wicks. Vegan scents are used as a fragrance and botanicals are placed on top.

With Labor Day fast approaching, she said things have been crazy as she attempts to build her inventory for the Auburn Cord Duesenberg Festival weekend.

Current classes being offered are cold process basic soapmaking and goat’s milk soap. She also offers an intermediate class, which offers more advanced techniques, open to those who have taken the entry-level class. Class schedules are available online at MyNaturesOline.com.

The store also offers a wide variety of other items including local honey from an Auburn resident. A collection of zodiac art, altar candles, journals, smudges and crystals are also available.

For more information, visit the website MyNaturesOnline.com, Facebook Natures Mercantile or call 582-9802.

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

Your comment has been submitted.

There was a problem reporting this.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on!

Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles.