By Vanessa Whiteside on May 16, 2025
The Artisanal Charm of Kansas Soaperies
Take a deep breath. The perfumed air of a soap maker’s space smells of lavender, fruit essence and sandalwood. Rows of roughly cut soap bars sit upon shelves, each one a testament to the maker's unique vision, no two alike in color or texture.
Part creativity, part chemistry, Kansas retailers handcraft soap using a labor-intensive process from sourcing ingredients to curing each batch. Shopping at a Kansas soapery is a sensory experience.
SageHouse Bath & Body
Garden City
SageHouse Bath & Body retails bar soaps, loofah soaps and liquid hand soaps for men and women. Using locally sourced goat milk, the bath-time luxuries are blended with essential oils to nourish even the most sensitive skin. Bar soap, like popular Kansas Sunset or Black Raspberry Vanilla, combined with a bottled lotion or body butter, creates the ultimate gift.
Fans of SageHouse's creations can join the Quarterly Soap Club to receive four boxes a year delivered by mail every three months. Each shipment contains four 3.5-ounce soaps made exclusively for members.
SageHouse Bath & Body
312 N. Main Street, Garden City
(620) 277-7474
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Summit Hill Gardens
Chanute
The aroma of patchouli lingers in the air inside the soap shop at Summit Hill Gardens. Glass shelves and rustic wood bins display more than 50 types of soap, some rough cut and others prepared from artistic molds.
Known for creating hand-poured soaps that appear almost edible, soap recipes include natural ingredients such as coconut, clay, spices, herbs and exfoliating salt. For example, Heavenly Honey is made with pure Kansas honey and sweet almond oil and is ideal for all skin types.
The owner hosts occasional soap-making workshops for small groups. Shoppers can purchase body and shampoo bar soaps in-store, online and at The Merc Co+op in Lawrence.
Summit Hill Gardens
2605 160th Road, Chanute
(620) 212-3878
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Grimm Girls Farm
Morrill
At Grimm Girls Farm, visitors get an immersive experience walking past the goats’ barn en route to the retail shop. The family-owned operation makes milk soap from the farm’s Nubian and Nigerian Dwarf goats to create scents like Frosted Eucalyptus and Orange Cream Vanilla. The farm also specializes in personal care items, including shower steamers, lotion, natural deodorant and lip balm.
Visitors should call in advance to schedule a private farm tour with access to the retail store, or they can buy products online for shipment or from the Grimm Girls Farm booth at regional vendor markets.
Grimm Girls Farm
2722 Dewberry Road, Morrill
(785) 285-2970
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