Shampoo bars we made in class

I subscribed to their Instagram page, and sent a private message wanting to know more about the classes.

Photo credit to alwayshungry.ph

By the time we finished going around the group for introductions, I was hella hungry. I didn't think I would last til lunch time. Good thing we were allowed to order from their kitchen and eat during the workshop. That's when I found out that Satinka Naturals was actually a restaurant. A cafe that offers healthy food.
I wasn't really keen on ordering just a salad like the other girls did, so I ordered a burger. To be fair, their food was really good. I did not have any expectations because I thought they only served food for the workshop attendees, when in fact, Satinka Naturals was actually a fully operational restaurant by day, moonlighting in natural, hand-made products.
We did about an hour of lecture. Talking about the importance of saving the environment and about why it was important to start using all-natural products.

Our teacher, Schaller, is the owner of Satinka Naturals together with his wife Satinka (where the place was named after). We discussed each ingredient thoroughly; learned where everything that we would be using is derived from and the importance of each; and what role it plays in the finished product.
Our group of 12 attendees that day were divided into 2 groups, and each group just shared a batch.

To be quite honest? I was a little bit disappointed, but that was my problem though. I thought that with the fee we paid for at least we would be doing our own personal batch of soap making and would be very hands-on. Instead, we all had to take turns measuring and sharing everything. Some of the attendees were even too shy to take a turn afraid of screwing it up for everybody.

Back in the day when I would attend other DIY workshops, we each had our own personal ingredients to use, and we could take everything home. Times have changed, I guess.
Another reason why I wanted to attend the workshop, was to get my hands on the pressing apparatus thinking there would be one.

The fee of the workshop did not include a proper bar pressing aparatus. We had to use something that was makeshift from a PVC pipe that would compress the bars manually. We did not take home the pipe thing because they had to order it from the guy who made it and it would cost PhP 100 each.
The other group opted for a more colorful shampoo bar and chose bright pink, and if I'm not mistaken, they chose pink grapefruit for their scent.
I was surprised how easy it was to make. Something that I have already watched on some of the YouTube videos I came across.

They also have recipes online that are purely oil based and I think those would be good to try as well. It's very different when you see it actually being done right in front of you.

Schaller adding essential oils to the mixture

I learned a lot from the workshop, but to be completely honest, I expected more. With a fee of PhP 4,500, you would at least think that the workshop would include proper tools. But everything was shared, and we did not even have the proper pressing tool to take home, or at least buy. Some of the scales were not working properly, and I just felt like everything could have been more.

I left even before the workshop was over. There was a bonus lesson on lip balms, but I did not stay for it anymore. I got bored to be truthful, and I just thought that I would be able to make the lip balm on my own by watching YouTube videos instead.

I guess what you were really paying for was the recipe that they give you, but I guess that was it. I attended a workshop before on soap making, and we each had to do our own batch for it to be more hands-on, and we went home with our own ingredients, soap molds and soap cutters that was included with the fee of just PhP 3,000. Each one is different I guess.

So, now that I know how to make my own shampoo and conditioner bars, I will be offering a class of my own for friends and family who would like to learn. When I do find the right pressing tool for the bars, I will start teaching this so that we can eliminate single-use plastics altogether!

If I were to give Satinka Naturals an honest rating, I would give a 3.5-star. To be quite honest, I enjoyed their food more than I did the workshop. I did learn a lot though, don't get me wrong. It was just not what I had expected, and that's my problem.