Staff: You tried making herb soap this time! How was it?

Taeyeon: It was really fun! It was very enjoyable as there were many scents and colorful materials that I liked. I was able to bring Zero as well so it was even more fun (laughs).

Staff: Do you usually fragrance your room, wear perfume, or have a preference on how you enjoy scents? 

Taeyeon: I’m actually an aroma enthusiast (laughs). It’s not that I’m sensitive to smells, but I’m really interested in things related to scents. So I love perfumes and aroma oils! I usually mix massage oils with aroma oils and do home care, and also add aroma oils when I take half body baths.

At home, I add a few drops of aroma oil to a hot towel and warm my face with it. It’s good for removing keratin. And above all, it’s the best for relaxing!

Staff: It seems you really like fragrances, but have you ever given them as presents?

Taeyeon: Scents can be separated into likes and dislikes. A scent that I like might not be liked by the other person, so I don’t really choose them as presents. However, the soaps I made today might be good gifts! They look cute and I think people would be very happy to receive them!

Staff: Do you have a preference when it comes to perfumes?

Taeyeon: For perfumes that I received as presents, scents that I don’t really like, or when choosing scents for their effect, I mix them with other scents!

Staff: What fragrances do you not like?

Taeyeon: I don’t really like ylang-ylang. It’s effect can calm you down and it is a great herb, but the scent is very peculiar and I don’t feel good if I breathe in a lot of it. So if I receive a fragrance that has ylang-ylang, I use it by mixing in a lot of another scent. I decide the ratio of the mixture each time! 

Staff: You carefully smelled each fragrance while making the soaps.

Taeyeon: When I do that, I pretty much know how to proportion the scents. Of course, that’s just my intuition (laughs).

Staff: What scents do you like?

Taeyeon: I like peppermint. I like herb aromas that are good for reducing stress and are relaxing like peppermint. When I want to relax, I add peppermint oil to the bathtub and take a bath. It’s too bad there was no peppermint in today’s materials (laughs). However, I believe scents that will go well with soaps are different from the scents that I like.

Staff: On what occasions do you want to smell fragrances? 

Taeyeon: Aroma scents have different effects, so I use aroma oils based on what would suit my condition, the effect, and for day or night. For nighttime, I like peppermint and orange scents to relax, and also tea tree and rosemary. Rosemary especially seems good for ladies. It seems like it’s good for feminine symptoms! I know a lot of miscellaneous knowledge (laughs). Personally, I’m interested in and really like aroma herbs so I usually look up various information online and listen to therapists’ talks. Ah, and lemon is good for the daytime! It has a refreshing effect!

Staff: Does Zero also like scents?

Taeyeon: Apparently, aroma oils also have a good effect for dogs. So when I give Zero a massage, I lightly add some aroma oils and massage his neck. I really recommend it! His neck is always stiff so I usually massage it with lavender oil, which relaxes muscles. Some dogs don’t like fragrances, but Zero loves it and is very obedient during massages (laughs).

Staff: You made herb soap this time, but do you usually use them?

Taeyeon: I’ve used commercial herb soaps before, but this is the first time I tried using homemade ones. I don’t usually use solid soap and instead often use liquid soap, but the point of choosing a soap is the scent! A nice scent that remains after rinsing is great.

The types of soaps I have at home are balsamic? There’s a lot that are woody but refreshing, like a pinecone for example (laughs). When I smell those scents, I feel clean and purified, and I feel really good!

Staff: What are your thoughts on making herb soap?

Taeyeon: It was easier than I thought! It was easy, interesting, and fun… You can enjoy making them even if it is your first time!

Staff: Was there any part that was especially difficult?

Taeyeon: Probably the weight measurements? I had to make fine adjustments. The measurements were in units of 0.1, so I couldn’t boldly add a lot in. When making the first soap, I did not grasp that feeling at all and added all the oil and coloring at once, so I overloaded the scale (laughs).

Staff: What was the most enjoyable step?

Taeyeon: It was fun to add the various toppings, but pouring the soap base into the mold was the most fun! How can I say it… there was a kind of soft feeling how the mold slowly filled in? It’s probably a strange feeling of accomplishment (laughs). What am I, feeling a sense of achievement at a step where the soap isn’t even finished yet. (laughs)

Staff: You made several types of soap today, but please share the concept for the soap being given to SONE JAPAN.

Taeyeon: I wanted to make it different from other transparent soaps, so I added a milky color! So it has a slightly mild image for the design. Also, I wanted it to have a clean and calm scent, so I added rosemary aroma oil. Since it is a present for SONE, I had to make it pink! The toppings were to complement the pink so I chose purple and blues! Honestly, I think I made it pretty cute♪

Staff: For the toppings, what was your overall preference?

Taeyeon: That would be making a visual point. I wanted to always have a point one way or another. Have one thing be a different color, or on the other hand, have everything be the same color as the point… I decorated them with that kind of thinking.

Also, I topped them off with things that would suit each scent! For example, for the orange oil soap, I placed yellow and red toppings, for the tea tree oil soap, I used herb leaves!

Staff: Which soap are you the most pleased with? Please also share why.

Taeyeon: I really liked the orange soap, which I actually tried washing my hands with, and the mint soap that I made last! The reason why I like the mint soap is simply because the level of completion was the highest (laughs). Ah~ It’s perfect (laughs). The topping placement is also perfect, and it’s great that the flowers are neatly placed. So I want to bring the mint soap back home with me! I got better and better from the first soap that I made, so the mint soap that I made last was the best!

So the reason why I like the orange soap is because I personally like the design. Dried oranges were included as the focal point, it is transparent, and feels pure… I tried washing my hands with it a little while ago and the orange scent is still lingering. It’s very refreshing and feels good! It lathers well so it has great cleaning power (laughs).

Staff: What kind of image did you have for the wrapping?

Taeyeon: It was fun and my first time using this kind of wrapping! I wrapped the red soap with a pink paper cushion. Then for the pink soap, I wanted to have a simple wrapping, but it was actually difficult. Tying the ribbon also kind of felt like a puzzle (laughs).

Staff: If you were to give one as a present, who would you give it to? Please share why.

Taeyeon: I want to give the lavender soap to my parents as it has a stress reducing effect and is good for relaxation. Also, I want to give the refreshing citrus and orange soap, and the energy giving lemon soap to the members! 

Staff: Among the members, who would be the happiest to receive soap?

Taeyeon: Everyone uses only liquid soap… I wonder if they’d be happy. (laughs). Ah, but I feel like Yoona would be very happy to receive a mixed soap of peppermint and rosemary!  I don’t know what scents she usually likes, but this is my intuition (laughs).

Staff: If you had the chance to make herbal soaps with one of the members, who would you make them with? Please share the reason why as well.

Taeyeon: I guess Hyoyeon? She is very original and I feel like she can make them well! I also think she would not use dried flowers as toppings, but instead something very unique. Something like Lego blocks? (laughs) I believe she will make something cute and original. While making the soaps, I also thought of using something more interesting than dried flowers. Using nail parts for toppings would definitely be interesting! Also, it might be hard to use, but a plastic bear would absolutely be cute as a topping (laughs)

Staff: Besides making soap, is there something you want to try with the members?

Taeyeon: Baking! I want to bake! It requires time, but it is the best for feeling that sense of accomplishment. I haven’t done it in a while, so I want to try it again ^^

Staff: You have announced your solo album in Korea, and you were also the official cover artist for singing the Korean version of “Into the Unknown” for the movie “Frozen 2”, but please share your recent activities. 

Taeyeon: I felt that this song was harder than the previous song, “Let it go”. I just thought of Elsa while singing it. The lyrics are very positive and about going to a new, unknown world, so I sang it while imagining Elsa’s feelings of determination. 

Also, I had last year’s hall tour in Japan, solo fan meetings in Osaka and Yokohama, and before that I was always working on my album… I feel like I just kept singing in 2019!

Staff: How was the fan meeting you had in Japan in November last year? Were there any memorable episodes?

Taeyeon: Actually, I really wanted to talk to everyone a lot, but I concentrated too much on making the herbariums and Christmas cards (laughs) I thought that I didn’t really express my feelings well to everyone… I think next time it’d be great if I could have an event to get even closer to everyone!

Staff: This SONE NOTE LIVE will be released in February. Winter will soon end, but please share if you have a favorite way of spending the winter, or winter memories or episodes. 

Taeyeon: First, I spread an electric blanket in my bed and turn it ON. Then I wear light clothing, turn the heater off and let the room get cold. It feels so nice to get into bed when only the bed is warm! That is the most enjoyable thing about winter. I watch movies and eat mandarin oranges like that. The bed is an area only for me. The inside of the bed is too comfortable that there’s a saying in Korean of “it’s dangerous outside of the bed!”, and that’s exactly what happens (laughs). This is my only way to spend winter comfortably and warmly!

Also, I always have a Christmas tree in my home 365 days out of the year. I love the tree and have it out even though it’s not related to summer, but once I turn on the cute mood lamp I enjoy it all year round! Even now the tree’s lamp is on at home (laughs). Speaking of which, I received a Frozen ornament as a present, so I will decorate and update my home’s tree after a year. (laughs) It is very cute♪

Staff: Please share what you would like to try in the next SONE NOTE LIVE.

Taeyeon: What haven’t I tried yet… Driving? (laughs) Or a part time job?

Staff: A part time job??

Taeyeon: Yes. I want to work part time at an ice cream stand (laughs). Actually, I always admired part time jobs since I’ve never had one. Of course, I think those actually working on site have a very tough job, but it’s a world that I don’t know so I have a yearning for it. I want to try it out once. I want to scoop up ice cream and give it to customers, and secretly try out the flavors… (laughs) I’d like to try a part time job at a cafe, too. I want to try a lot of different jobs! Ah, a manager experience might be good as well! (laughs)

Staff: Finally, a message for SONE JAPAN please!

Taeyeon: When this interview is released it’ll already be 2020. I hope that everyone does even better than last year! Also, it’d be great to see you all more frequently! I love you~♥

Source: SONE JAPAN website