Etta + Billie Soaps

Alana, the founder of Etta + Billie, has a true passion for natural bath + body products. Wanting to make a difference, she combined her passion of natural products and creativity and developed Etta + Billie. After developing her product, her branding soon followed. Her approach was to communicate simplicity and elegance while still showcasing the qualities of each hand-made soap. Because each soap is hand-made, small batch numbers are added to each package, which shows the customer the work placed in each of her batches.  

Alana is also a member of SFMade (www.sfmade.org), which is a movement promoting emerging small businesses. Her soap collection is growing and her packaging really showcases the care and thought behind her product. 

"Born from a love for her two grandmothers, Etta and Billie, one an accomplished gardener and the other a cook, Alana’s slowly but steadily growing business embodies her values of sustainability, craftsmanship, and community.  Recently opened and already a certified San Francisco Green Business, Etta + Billie offers over 25 natural products, including the popular Earl Grey Tea Soap, Lavender Body Scrub, and Grapefruit Cardamom Lotion. 

Alana and her designer Molly talk about the brand and visual design behind it. 

“When we started working on the rebranded visual identity for Etta + Billie we knew that we had to be clear about how and what each product is made from. The core of the business is based around all natural, sustainable products - each different product line relies heavily on the properties and effects that natural herbs have on the body and mind. We are so please that the packaging now reflects this,” says Molly.

“We took a simple, elegant and scientific approach. Each package shows off the unique qualities of the product and what the customer will gain from it. We chose to go black and white to further enhance the natural qualities of the product and always added a batch number to instill the fact that each bar of soap is hand made,” she says. Veritable works of minimalist art, each soap, scrub, and lotion is handmade in small batches in Alana’s workshop nestled in San Francisco’s up-and-coming Bayview district. The entire collection is available at www.ettaandbillie.com and in select boutiques nationwide.

"Simple, attractive typographic packaging from Etta & Billie who produce sustainable bath and body products using organic and natural ingredients."

"Inspired by a love of traditional soap making coupled with a passion for the natural power of herbs, Alana Rivera is a formally trained herbalist driven to innovate from a genuine desire to share how healing botanicals can be. The same devotion to craftsmanship was channeled into Etta + Billie’s recent rebranding by designer Molly Della Bellar.  Simply beautiful black and white packaging evokes the centuries-old craft of small batch soap making."

"Alana is a member of SFMade (www.sfmade.org), the city’s association promoting emerging businesses that proudly manufacture in San Francisco. Her coveted creations were featured in the highly successful SFMade pop-up shop in Banana Republic’s flagship.   “Handmade body care products versus commercial? The choice seems pretty simple to me.  Commercial soaps are generally made with potentially irritating synthetic detergents, stabilizers, and fragrances.  Handcrafted soaps are healing. They’re created with natural emollient oils, botanicals, and let’s not forget heart-felt care,” says Alana."

Alana Rivera - Founder of Etta + BillieDesigned by Molly Della Wintroub

City: San FranciscoState: CaliforniaCountry: United States