New Blog Look & The Story Behind the Name Yamali Naturals

As you can see, I have changed the look of the blog. It's not that I didn't like the other look, I just needed my blog to match my new packaging. (It's just apart of my new branding scheme.)
After 2 years of blogging...I have finally gotten around to telling you where the name Yamali Naturals came from. I apoligize for not doing this sooner, but now I think you might be interested in knowing the story behind the name. 

When I first started making soap in January of 2010, my supportive mother helped me come up with a business name, a basic start at product branding and soap packaging.

Why Yamali Naturals?
About a month after I started making soap in January of 2010, I still had no idea what I wanted to name my business. I HAD NO IDEA WHATSOEVER!!! My mom would give me some ideas, but none of them felt right. Then one day, my mom was doodling on a piece of paper, writing down the names of everyone in my family, backwards. (Try it! It's actually pretty neat!) She then came up with Yamali. It is my sister's name (Q.O.E.) spelled backwards! Her name is Ila May and she would have been around 14 months old at the time. The name stuck. We added 'Naturals' to Yamali, and well, that's how the name came into being. My sister, Ila May has been my inspiration since the very start of my entrepreneurial endeavor. I am glad that my soap business has been named after her, well, sort of. She knows that Emma makes 'Ila May' soap, and I can't wait until the day when she asks me what Yamali means. I love you girl! Here's some more posts Ila May (Q.O.E.) stars in.

  
  

How did I get the bright yellow flower?After giving me the idea of the name YAMALI, my mother hand-sketched a golden yellow calendula flower on a piece of notebook paper, and by doing this, she gave me a vision of what I wanted Yamali to be. I decide then that I wanted my business and my handmade products to reflect nature, simplicity and creativity. To this day, I work toward maintaining that goal. I am constantly altering and improving things in my business. From business branding to soap making, cutting and packaging, I am always working towards my goal.

This is the original notebook paper sketch my mom made, but I added the Yamali Naturals watermark. PLEASE do not copy my flower, it means a lot to me. :)

I scanned it to my computer, touched it up with a computer Paint tool, and now use it as my new logo/symbol. It is on the new packaging and, obviously, can be seen all over the blog now.

I am excited to finally have a logo/symbol to build my branding off of. I really liked the old calendula flower, but ...
#1. It is a photo, and does not come out clearly on paper.
#2. My awesome mom did not draw it by hand.
#3. It wasn't really mine to begin with; I only borrowed it from some website, for 2 years. 
#4. It did not, in my opinion, reflect simplicity or creativity when compared to the new one.  

VS 

Packaging: Then & Now
My packaging from 2010 to 2011 was basically the same in appearance, but I was always altering the label. It was a very involved way of packaging. First, I wrapped it in a brown paper wrap. Next, I placed a business card, printed out front and back as a label on top the bar. Then, I wrapped the whole soap and label with raffia and tied a bow. It looked nice as soon as you were finished wrapping it, but it never stayed nice. The raffia got twisted and untied, the brown paper collected moisture due to the natural soap 'sweating' in humidity or warm weather, and the pure white label stained easily. Plus...it took hours to wrap just a batch of soap, and there was a lot of paper waste involved with that.
 

Yamali OATMEAL soap in original paper packaging.
Photo from the first soap photo shoot in the history
of (Yamali) soapmaking. Taken around February 2010.

When I switched to the new packaging, I had less time involved wrapping and a lot less paper waste. It also looks quite attractive, and...it reflects nature (natural-colored paper) and creativity (Yamali branding and flower), but mostly, simplicity (not involved, with much less waste). I also feel like I can produce more soap at once or more freely, because I am not dreading a long time spent wrapping soap.

Anyways, I hope you are as excited about the new branding as much as I am.  

Remember, my goal when it comes to business branding is simply this:

I want my business and my handmade products to reflect nature, simplicity and creativity.

Enjoy the ride and thanks for reading!

Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments section. Thanks!