The Hard Truth Mentor

Welcome to the Product Alchemist Blog and Newsletter! Welcome to The Hard Truth Mentor I'm Cheryl Mitchell — And I'm Just Getting Started By Cheryl Mitchell | The Hard Truth Mentor | Blog Post #1 Let me tell you something most people in this industry would never admit out loud. I walked away from everything I built. After two decades of teaching makers, writing books, running communities, and building brands, I closed it all down. Packed it up. Got quiet. And honestly? I needed to. My family...

How to Make Marshmallow Root Extract for Your Lotions (And Why It’s Worth It) By Cheryl Mitchell | The Hard Truth Mentor | Blog Post #3.25 | Lotion Foundations Series How to Make Marshmallow Root Extract for Your Lotions (And Why It's Worth It) Most lotion makers reach for distilled water as their water phase base and never think twice about it. That works. But when you start swapping that distilled water for an herbal extract — specifically marshmallow root extract — something interesting...

The Water Phase Is Not Just Water — And That Changes Everything By Cheryl Mitchell | The Hard Truth Mentor | Blog Post #3 | Lotion Foundations Series In Post #2, I told you the water phase is where some of the most powerful customization in lotion making happens. I meant that. And now I'm going to prove it. Most beginners treat water like filler. Like it is just the thing you pour in to take up space while the "real" ingredients do the work. That is one of the most expensive misunderstandings...

Why 7 Ingredients Is All You Need — And Your First Upgrade By Cheryl Mitchell | The Hard Truth Mentor | Blog Post #2 | Lotion Foundations Series If you grabbed the free PDF and made the foundational lotion — good. You now have a working emulsion in your hands. (If you still haven't grabbed the free lotion recipe, make sure you sign up for our emails, and it will be delivered right into your inbox.) But I don’t want you to just make it and move on. I want you to understand why this particular...