My Featured Article for Making Soap Magazine

Making Soap Magazine is an independent global magazine dedicated to providing handcrafted soap makers with the news, insights, and best practices to keep them in tune with today's industry trends. In May of every year Making Soap produces a Design Mania issue which highlights the top trending soap makers in the industry. This year I was selected to participate as a featured artist with one of my favorite designs. I am very proud and thrilled to have my work contributed to this year’s issue! You can subscribe to the magazine to see my article with photos and step-by-step instructions on how to learn “Paula’s Pirouette Swirl” and “Chaine Bouquet” at: www.makingsoapmag.art. You can also check out my YouTube channel @PaulaMonteith to view my video shorts that go along with my tutorial. Thank you for your interest in my art!

Welcome To My Website

My home.

Hi!  I am Paula and welcome to my website.  Here is a little bit about where I live and work as an artist.  The Salinas Valley is a rich agricultural region located on the Central Coast of California noted as "America’s Salad Bowl" for the production of lettuce, tomatoes, broccoli, peppers, strawberries, artichokes, celery, and wine grapes.  The climate and long growing season are also ideal for the flower industry and grape vineyards planted by world-famous vintners.  I live on the south side of Salinas where the ag fields can be seen out my windows.  During the harvest seasons, the smell of broccoli, lettuce, garlic, strawberries and onions and other vegetable crops float in the air along with the musty smell of the earth being churned as produce is uprooted.  The Salinas River flows through the valley winding its way to the Pacific Ocean located just a few miles from my home.  I have been fortunate to live in this beautiful area all of my life except for a brief ten-year stint in Southern California where I attended UC Irvine and established my dancing career. 

Soap making was introduced to me by my father in who was a chemistry teacher. Gardening I learned from my mom. Here on the Central Coast, we can grow flowers year-round. Gardening, floral arranging, dancing and living close to nature brings me joy.  All of these experiences share common characteristics of movement, color, line, shape, texture and harmony, stimulate the human senses and can be considered therapy.  Dancing in soap is what I love to do for self-care. Do you have a place where you can be free, present, and just be?  Soaping is that for me!