Art in the Park

Every year, the Omak Kiwanis hosts their Art in the Park in Omak, Washington. This year, I was a vendor at Art in the Park. We just came back from Omak a few hours ago and now resting at home, recuperating from this weekend's experience.

The weather didn't completely cooperate with us though. It rained on and off most of the first day, which is when most of the the people show up. Sunday was a BEAUTIFUL day, but being Sunday, the crowd wasn't quite as a large.

The economy has made a large impact on Art in the Park too. People are looking for basics and personal gift ideas that are also inexpensive. Many of the usual vendors that attend Art in the Park come from all over the Northwest. This year, many of the vendors didn't show because the expense required to travel.

Despite all of that, Art in the Park was still a success. I chose to come again this year because I lived in the Okanogan for over 17 years. I still have family and friends that live in the area. We live about 500 miles away though and the gas cost was atrocious. Still, we considered it a success because it allowed us to spend time with our family and we were able to recoup some of our cost of traveling.

Our customers were looking for good deals, unique gift ideas at affordable prices, and handmade product  with quality at reasonable prices.

It is becoming increasingly difficult to provide quality with affordability in this economy. I had to raise my prices and use some lesser priced oils that still that didn't impact the quality of our soaps and other handcrafted items. I also had to use packaging that didn't cost as much.

There were a few customers who complained about the "high price" of handcrafted items and were looking for an even better bargain. I simply explained that they were welcome to check out my "bargain section" which I always have at every arts and craft fair I attend. These items are often half price. Many of my soaps are $5 and more. When someone says this is too spendy, I simply state that I won't compromise the quality of the soap. Besides, people frequently purchase a $5 hamburger without blinking an eye, which they enjoy for maybe 20 minutes. For the same price, I can give them a quality soap or other handcrafted product that will last for 2 months or more.

Handcrafted artists and vendors do not "make a killing" on the price of their handcrafted items. They want to make a quality handcrafted item, they want to be able to afford to do this, and want to attend affairs like Art in the Park and other places to show their wares; which costs $ because they pay to be a part of the arts and crafts fairs, the gas it takes to travel to these affairs, the items they need in order to set up a great display, the business license and insurance, PLUS suffering through all the increased costs of producing their wares...it's a wonder that handcrafted artistry is even alive in our country anymore.

We hope to attend Art in the Park again next year and hope that all of your enjoy our soaps, handmade and re-loved treasures.

Camas Days

Camas Days is coming up next week. In case you don't know where Camas is, it is a delightful town in southwestern Washington, just east of Vancouver, and across the Columbia river from Portland, Oregon.

Camas knows how to do their celebration right. All kinds of fun things to do AND a chance to win a trip to Hawaii too? Wow!

This will be my first year as a vendor at Camas Days, selling my handcrafted soaps and other related body and bath care products. I am hoping that the weather will be cooperative, warm and sunny.

Yesterday, I had a nice little surprise when I received a phone call from the newspaper in Camas, WA. A phone interview on new vendors at Camas Days. The article comes out this coming Tuesday. How fun is that?

Hope to see you at Camas Days this coming week on Friday and Saturday, July 23-24th 2010.

Plants that Contain Natural Insect Repellent Qualities

 Summer has definitely arrived and with it has come all of the biting bugs that can ruin your hike, summer BBQ, camping and other outdoor activities.


So, what are your options? Most folks apply insect repellent with all of the odd, unpronounceable chemical names it includes on their skin, or wear one of those clip on thingys that have recently come out on the market.


There are a few other options, like knowing about plants that contain ingredients that naturally repel bugs. You can use these plants in your yard, around your garden or patio area to deter those pesky critters without using wacky sounding chemicals. 


Here are a few of those plants you can use around your garden, entryway, patio area etc.


CATNIP: Mosquitoes HATE catnip! It's also a pretty plant with pretty flowers. Cats love it too.

ROSEMARY: Now, you can grow it to repel bugs and eat it too!!! Delish on roasted chicken (my favorite use for rosemary besides natural bug repellent.)


MARIGOLDS: Gorgeous flower and it has been used for years in gardens to keep away veggie-eating bugs. Your yard will look beautiful too!


CITRONELLA GRASS: Yes, grow some of this stuff in a planter around your patio. GREAT bug repellent!


LEMONGRASS:  Another lovely grass that bugs abhor, is good for flavoring foods and for tea!!!


LAVENDER:  Beautiful plant with tons of uses, including keeping bugs away. I have one growing near the entryway of my home. 


MINT:  YES, use for tea, flavoring and bug repellent too! It grows quite easily!


Now that you have a nice little list of bug repellent plants and have covered your yard with them, you can have bug free yard and enjoy the great outdoors, right? Not so fast! What if you want to leave your yard?  Take some of those plants with you? Not always feasible. Or is it?
There are lots of ways to take it with you. Use products containing these same ingredients in a plant oil form, dried sachet form or other handy means. So you CAN take it with you when you go.


Try a candle made from some of these plants, or that include eucalyptus, cedar or juniper oil. Not the fragrance oil that is chemically produced to smell like them, but the REAL essential oil. The fragrance oil doesn't work the same way. Bugs know the difference.

Use a soap daily that contains these natural essential oils. You'll smell better too!


Used a lotion, oil, or solid oil stick that contains these essential oils. Re-apply every 2 to 4 hours. You don't need a lot. Just apply them at your pulse points: your temples and neck, inside of wrists and arms, back of knees, inside ankle bone, top of your foot...those are the most common areas.


You'll smell better than everyone else around you too!


We were out one Fourth of July, watching the fireworks display. Several folks were slapping at biting bugs while we were able to enjoy the sight using our lotion stick containing many of these oils. I happened to have a lotion stick in my pocket and offered to let a few of my neighbors try it. The next day, I sold out all of my lotion sticks and had to make more! 


Do we claim that our soap and lotion sticks are bug repellents? NO! I just make them because they contain natural plant oils that are already well known to keep bugs away. I don't like bugs biting me, so I use what I know works for me. AND, they smell good!


What a concept...

And YES. There are soaps and lotion sticks in shop that contain some of these items. Click on my shop site icon if you like what you hear.

Handcrafted Soap with Salt

You have heard about them, read about them, seen advertisements about them.

SPA SOAPS

Just what is a "spa soap" anyway?

Spa soap can be a variety of different items that make it a "spa experience" when you use it.

Most spa soaps contain ingredients that exfoliate the skin, or contain clays that cleanse the pores, or certain types of oils that claim increased benefits to the skin. Usually, it is a soap that contains just a "little extra" to make you feel pampered.

Recently, I've created my own version of the SPA SOAP. One of them is pictured above. Margarita Lime at the top and Summer Fling just above this sentence. It contains a delightful lime citrus fragrance along with sea salt and some bentonite clay. The soap texture is a bit different than other soaps. Because of the amount of salt, it is a hard bar of soap. It also has a grainy texture which may be a bit harsh for your face but wonderful for your body. The clay can firm and tighten the skin but also gives the soap a unique textural quality as well. Clays give the soap a "slip" to it that folks love when they are shaving. The lather tends to be a bit more sudsy/creamy rather than overly bubbly.

And as for the salt on top...well, it is just there for the looks. After all, what's a Margarita without the salt around the rim?

All my spa soaps have been made use a cold process method. The soap barely gets above room temperature during the entire process, which allows for it to cure more slowly and retain better fragrance properties.

(pictured above is Butt Naked Spa Soap)

You will not find this soap available on my website until the end of May, 2010. So, get ready for a real "SPA EXPERIENCE"!

Coconut Milk Soap

The picture above is a simplistic looking soap. No additional color was added. There are no swirls, no funky soap chunks or anything else to enhance the looks of it.

Instead of water, coconut milk was added as the sole water based liquid.

The process in which I made this soap is a bit different than what I normally do also. Most soap processing requires the soap to go through a chemical stage that causes the soap to "gel". In this process, I attempted to prevent the soap to go through that particular phase by keeping it chilled and preventing it from heating up. There are several reasons for this: by keeping the soap cooled down and preventing gel stage, the soap slows down in its chemical reaction, causing it to cure much more slowly. If any fragrance or essential oils were added to the soap, it will help to maintain the original fragrance of the oil.  Furthermore, the soap's texture is somewhat different too. It has a translucent quality to the soap which may add to some interesting effects in how the soap appears.

The fact that I used coconut milk instead of water in my soap, I suspect I won't achieve that translucency with this batch.

Mango fragrance was added to this batch of coconut milk soap. The mango fragrance is still very evident and hasn't changed or "morphed" since I made this soap three weeks ago. Even though it has been three weeks, this soap is still curing and won't be ready for another 2-3 weeks I suspect.

I sliced a small amount for soap samples this morning and it is still quite soft with slicing. The samples are placed in a bag with a hole cut in it to allow circulation and for the customer to smell the item. I attach one of my business cards and label the name of the soap on the card, then use these little slivers of soap for samples when I send off orders in the mail and when I am a vendor at arts & crafts fairs and Saturday markets.

Although this soap doesn't have some of the bling that other handcrafted soaps have, this one has a subtle beauty, elegance and the fragrance is delightful, the lather is perfect and will be the perfect accompaniment to any bathroom and body care experience.

Guest or Sample Soaps

 

Sample, or guest soaps are made of the same stuff as my regular soaps, only a whole lot smaller. Typically what happens is that I make a batch of soap in a loaf mold. When I take out the loaf, I cut the soap into their regular sizes, usually about 3 to 4 oz in size. The end pieces is where I usually trim the very edges to make tiny samples to send with each of my orders that fit into little baggies about the size of my business card. The rest of the end pieces I cut into guest sized bar soap, about 1 oz each.

Each guest size bar is wrapped in an organza bag, labeled and tied; a cute little gift idea or fun bridal or baby shower idea. 

 

 

Not all of my soaps are available in these cute little guest sizes, but I currently have several that are.  The above pictures are soaps that are currently available.

Coming up are some more listings of guest size soaps. It is a great way to try out some handmade soap at an economical price!

Get ready for an increased variety of guest size soaps in my shop at

Soapy Blessings 

Frankincense and Myrrh Me!

Well, Christmas is now officially over.

I still had some soaps and fragrance balms that are (sort've) related to this holiday...like frankincense and myrrh. It is always my hope that I will sell these items out by Christmas because chances are they will languish on my shelf if I don't. Sometimes, I'll put on a great sale and get them sold, or find other ways to clear out my holiday inventory.

What I like about frankincense and myrrh is that it is a wonderful year-round fragrance, but many associate it with Christmas. I find that I can sell frankincense and myrrh products throughout the year, but sales are best for it right before Christmas.

Well, this year, I came very close to selling all of my F&M scented product, but found myself with 7 F&M soaps and 5 F&M fragrance balms left over by Christmas Eve.  No worries. They will sell sometime after the season...I hope.

A close friend called me around midday on December 24th stating that she would be in town to visit the day after Christmas! Hurray! I had some frankincense and myrrh items and that happens to be one of her favorite fragrances. I told her I would set a soap and fragrance balm aside for her. She was thrilled! Then, she asked me how many I had left, and I told her.

"I'll take them all," she said. "I want to buy the rest from you because I'm having a special party and want to give them away as gifts! I need seven soap and seven balms though."

"Well," I replied, "I can make a couple extra balms for you, not a problem."

"On such short notice?"

"Certainly!"

I love Frankincense and Myrrh fragrance balm so much, I made of couple of extra, just because I want some too.

Maybe I should've made more....

Frankincense and Myrrh....

Frankincense and myrrh is just one of those fragrance combos that remind us of  Christmas because both of those are mentioned repeatedly in the Bible. These were expensive back in biblical times, used for many things. In the scriptures, it is included with gold as gifts to Jesus by the wise men, showing their importance.

"On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of frankincense and of myrrh." 

Matthew 2:11

Frankincense is a resin from a deciduous tree  that is a low twisted, thorny shrub without a central branch. Today, almost all frankincense comes from Somalia, where the trees grow along the coastline, without soil, growing out of rocks. Frankincense is harvested by a deep cut made into the bark and a 4 to 6 inch strip is peeled off. A milk-like juice exudes from the plant hardens when exposed to air into "yellowish tears". These tears are then scraped off and harvested. When burned, frankincense is very fragrant and was used in worship as an offering to God.

Myrrh is a resin also, pale yellow in color. It eventually dries to a brown/black and comes a large shrub or tree found in East Africa, Yemen and the Red Sea countries. There are ducts in the bark, which fill with a granular secretion that drips when the bark is wounded or has natural fissures. The myrrh drips from the bark, forming irregularly shaped grains of resin. Dried myrrh is hard and brittle with a bitter taste.

Myrrh was one of the ingredients of the holy anointing oil and also of incense. Myrrh was valued as a perfume as well as for its medicinal properties. It served as local anesthetic and was given to both mother and child for postnatal care, perhaps one reason the Wise Men brought it to Jesus. Jesus was also offered myrrh while being crucified on the cross.

The Wise Men brought items that had great worth. Although we don't consider these two resins as valuable in this day and age, they still have symbolic worth and smell delightful, which is one of the reasons I've included these two fragrances in one of my latest soaps.

Each soap is a generous 4 oz plus size with just a small dusting of copper and gold cosmetic mica for added elegance.

"Who is this, coming up from the desert like a column of smoke, perfumed with myrrh and frankincense..."
Song of Solomon 3:6

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Pie Spice Soap... This Year's Sexy Fragrance

This is one of my recent listings that I've placed on etsy and will be placing at some of my other shop sites shortly.

Published studies have shown that Pumpkin Pie is the number 1 fragrance that gets a man's attention.

I always knew there was something more to that old saying, "A way to a man's heart is through his stomach."

Go figure.

This delightful soap really does smell like pumpkin pie. This listing is for one soap, approximately 4.25-4.75 oz each, a nice generous sized bar of soap.

Stock up on this one...it will go fast!

"While the king was at his table, my perfume spread its fragrance." Song of Solomon 1:12

Dragon's Blood!

We are talking about a plant, not the blood of a real dragon, OK?

Actually, we are talking about several types of plants that has been called "Dragon's Blood" over the centuries. A more common one that has been naturalized here in the U.S. is Dracena Draco, also known as the dragon tree, is a vulnerable plant endemic to the arid, rocky mountain ranges of the Canary Islands, Madeira, and Cape Verde. This is the plant shown in the picture above. It is commonly cultivated as a houseplant and garden specimen, but there are very few naturally-occurring plants remaining in its narrow ecological range. The dark red sap of Dracaena draco was regarded for centuries in European legends as “the blood of dragons”, and was often used for its supposed magical and medicinal qualities. This resin is still used today to produce incense and varnishes used to stain and polish wood.

Much confusion existed in ancient times regarding the source and identity of dragon's blood. The resin of Dracaena species, "true" dragon's blood, and the very poisonous mineral cinnabar (mercury sulfide) were often confused by the Romans. Apparently, they had a tendency to call anything that was bright red "dragon's blood". In ancient China, very little distinction was made among the types of dragon's blood from the different species. Even today, both Dracaena and Daemonorops resins are still marketed today as dragon's blood.

Dragon's Blood was obtained as dried garnet-red drops from Dracaena draco, a tree native to the Canary Islands and Morocco by traders in the 15th century. a resin came from its wounded trunk or branches. Dragon's blood is also obtained by the same method from D. cinnabari, which grows on the island of Socotra. This resin was traded to ancient Europe via the Incense Road.

Dragon's blood resin is also produced from rattan palms in the Indonesian islands and is known there as jerang or djerang. It is harvested by breaking off the layer of red resin that surrounds the unripe fruit of the rattan. It is then rolled into solid balls before being sold.

Dragon's blood was used as a dye and in medicine for respiratory and gastrointestinal problems in the Mediterranean area. Many considered the resin as a sort of cure-all, using it for such things as general wound healing, a coagulant, diarrhea, fevers, dysentery, ulcers in the mouth, throat, intestines and stomach, as well as an antiviral for respiratory and stomach viruses, and eczema. It was also used in medieval ritual magic and alchemy.

The species of Dracaena draco and Dracaena cinnabari were also used as a source of varnish for 18th century Italian violinmakers and has been included in an 18th century recipe for toothpaste! Even today, it is still used as a varnish for violins, in photoengraving, as an incense resin, and as a body oil. It is still used for ceremonies in India. The Chinese use it to make red varnish for wooden furniture, coloring the surface of writing paper for banners and posters, for weddings and Chinese New Year.

In American Hoodoo, African-American folk magic, and New Orleans voodoo, it is used in mojo hands for money-drawing or love-drawing, and is used as incense to cleanse a space of negative entities or influences. It is also added to red ink to make "Dragon's Blood Ink", which is used to inscribe magical seals and talismans.

In folk medicine, dragon's blood is used externally as a wash to promote healing of wounds and to stop bleeding. It is used internally for chest pains, post-partum bleeding, internal traumas and menstrual irregularities. Many of the modern day plants that are harvested as Dragon's blood, however, contain anticoagulant properties and using it for stopping bleeding is not recommended.

In neo-pagan witchcraft and new age shamanism, it is used to increase the potency of spells for protection, love, banishing and sexuality.

It is also commonly distributed as "red rock opium" to unsuspecting would-be opium buyers, though it contains no opiates and has only been shown to have mildly intoxicating effects.

Now that you know a little history and current uses for Dragon's Blood.

Dragon's blood also comes as a fragrance oil, not really made from the dragon's blood plant but a nice facsimile of the incense that the resin produces. I use this dragon's blood fragrance oil in my soap and bath products for a unique, fragrant change of pace. Recently, I've made a batch of dragon's blood soap that will be ready for sale in the first half of October.



It smells great, no spells have been cast over it for protection, love, banishing, sexuality or any other neo-pagan/shaman spells. It doesn't contain any of the medicinal properties previously mentioned. It DOES contain what all my other soaps contain...soapy blessings. It's a great bar of great smelling handmade soap that doesn't dry out your skin too.

Interested in placing a reserve order of Dragon's Blood soap? Contact me at one of my shop sites! :)

Pink Champagne Soap

Yes, it's made with real California pink champagne. The fragrance is berry champagne with swirls of pink and a sprinkling of sparkly "pinky dust" on top.

This soap is 3oz of luscious oils that include products that California is known for, such as avocado and almond oils.

OK, OK, I admit, I'm a California native and love the state's diversity of product and creativity. I wanted to create a soap that celebrates my roots.

Delightful, fun and great for you skin too!

I made this soap earlier this summer, but didn't list it on etsy. Instead, I listed it on my sites on silkfair.com and 1000 Markets. Also it went with me to several farmer's markets and a festival.

Now, it's on etsy too!

Now, here's a deal for you! The first person to order this soap from ANY of my shops, receives a second soap of their choice for FREE! Make your order, then comment me here on my blog site and let me know which site you ordered from.

I'm going to make real easy for you and list my sites where this soap is listed, OK?

SoapyBlessings.etsy.com

SoapyBlessings.silkfair.com

1000markets.com/soapyblessings

Please click on the links listed on my blog to get to my shop sites!

Happy shopping!

Soap Vendor at Festivals and Such

This has been the first year that I branched out into displaying my soaps at Festivals, markets, bazaars etc. Each experience has given me valuable ideas and great new friends!

Prior to this year, most of my soapy sales have been online only and through word of mouth. Like many other crafters, I work outside the home at a full time job too, many of which are weekends. So, my weekend time is limited. I chose mostly local festivals this year and local markets, which is easier on my time and finances.

How did I find the festivals? I looked up online local town chamber of commerce sites. If there is a yearly festival in that town, they often have vendor entry forms right there online, OR you can call and ask they send you one.

How did I choose the festival? For me, it has been mostly regional. Somewhere where I can come home easily every evening and sleep in my own bed! I also looked at the type of venue and concept of the festival to see if it would fit well with what I sell. I've also had some feedback from other vendors that I know too.

I'm BIG on asking questions, so I ask lots and lots of questions when I talk with the chamber of commerce.

Booth set up: Well, first off, have a sturdy canopy, weighted in case of overly blowing breezes. Very helpful. Have a "wall" around you canopy where the sun and wind can be better managed. A tarp isn't pretty but works. If you see other vendors, you notice all kinds of fun ideas. Lattice fences, bamboo shades etc (I like the bamboo shade concept). I haven't gotten them myself yet, but hey, I'm new at this. Workin' on it. Set your tables in an inviting way. I like more than one table. Having the table set out flat in front shows your wares well, but I always feel this "blockage" between me and my customer when it is like that. So I like to set a smaller table out front for customers to see (flashy eye-candy stuff), then another table that "invites them in" with the meat of my product, that is placed inside my canopy. Once they're "inside" they've usually become more than just a casual onlooker and more the purchaser.

Samples, samples, samples! I have LOTS and LOTS of samples. One lady was so excited about one product she took the sample instead of the full size product and I didn't realize it until after she left! I kept hoping she would come back, but she didn't. Amazingly, when I went for a little break about an hour later, I found her at the festival and she came back for her full size product and traded the sample back. Then, she bought something else while she was there too!

Which brings me to another subject. DO visit as many of the other booths as possible, compliment and get to know your "vendor neighbors". Some are more friendly than others. I have found some great folk and we plan to keep in contact. One fella came without a canopy and it was going to be a miserable hot day. My hubby and I offered to go back home and get our other other canopy for him to use. Hubby was home and had it all packed up, when our vendor neighbor's family called saying they found a canopy for him and were bringing it. Always be neighborly to your vendor neighbors! You may make some great friends.

DON'T just sit there and read a book or engage in private conversation with your family and friends in front of customers. It tells your customers, "Don't bother me" and you WANT your customers to feel welcome. I smile all day long (till my "smiler" hurts!), ask how my customers are doing and get them to talk a little about themselves. That way, I can point them to one of my products that may be of more interest to them. AND, I'm one of those of people that is truly interested in what my customers have to say. I don't pretend interest. People can see through that. If I compliment them on a piece of jewelry they are wearing, it's because I really DO like it.

Now, here is a fun little trick that gets people to stick around, but I need the cooperation of my son. He's a teenager and loves playing the guitar (acoustic and electric) and he's quite good at it. Mostly, he enjoys classic rock pieces and some folk rock. He comes with me to help out, but gets a bit bored at times, so brings his guitar with him and plays. People stop to hear him play! I told him he should leave his guitar case open, maybe he'll get some money for his playing! But, it brings and keeps potential customers to my booth, hence increases sales.

Bring food, bring water, bring towels for any spills or clean-ups. Bring a change of clothes, bring deodorant, bring a mirror and gals, wear make-up and dress nice but casually comfortable. Wear comfy shoes, bring comfy chairs, bring an ice chest! Bring a water spritzer, bring sunblock! Bring pen, paper, calculator, scissors, bags, tissue paper, a small first aid kit and basic OTC medicine, including your prescription meds if you have any. Bring a jacket in case the weather changes!

If your product is good and you are genuine and respectful of others, the rest is gravy! Just enjoy your time and don't think of it as work or money-making. Enjoy!

And while your at it, I'm at Harvest Days in Battleground this weekend (July 17, 18, 19th). Stop by and visit if you are local in the Portland metro/SW Washington area!

Supplies and Loofah Soaps

Loofah soaps are one of my best selling soaps over all. It's a fun soap with a slice of loofah drenched in glycerin soap, scented, sometimes adding an herb or two on top (like you see in the picture).

Brings me to the point of where I get my loofah sponges to begin with. Typically, I order them online. Occasionally, I find a special on them in a local store. But it is usually ordering them from the same supplier because I want continuity in my product.

Last time I ordered though, the loofah had changed significantly! It was shipped flat, which is fine with me, all I have to do is soak it to plump it back to its original form. What was different was that when the loofah plumped up, it was MUCH larger than they were before. So large that it could not be held comfortably in your hand in the shower. This is extremely important! You don't want to be fumbling around with a larger than life soap in the shower! I pondered this for awhile, trying to figure out the best way to make these monstrosities work for my needs. I ended up cutting these things in half! It is much easier to handle now, but they just don't look quite as nice as the completely round ones, in my opinion. Who knows? Maybe you folks out there might like them even better! See the picture below...



So for now, the loofahs will be in half. Still a great item, just looks different. In the meantime, I will be hunting down some loofahs that better fit my needs!

The loofah soaps are not listed yet on any of my sites, but if you mention that you noticed this blog entry and purchase one of my half loofahs, I'll give you 50% off (yes, half off) the original purchase price through September 30th, 2009.

Enjoy!

Soap and Solid Fragrance Safety

Wow! I must be one of the lucky ones! Until I started making soaps and solid fragrances, it never occurred to me that there was so much concern over whether you could get a reaction by applying something to the skin. The only time I ever had a skin reaction was years ago when I purchased a bottle of liquid Ivory soap just prior to taking a test in college. I attributed the reaction on my skin as "nerves" over the test, since it was on a subject that I had a tough time with. Come to find out that I had the same reaction when I used the liquid soap again after the test was over. Needless to say I've never purchased Ivory liquid soap again. Other folks love it, swear by it. Just doesn't work for me.

When I started making soap several years ago, a close friend of mine refused to even touch it, stating she was allergic to "every soap ever made, even the commercial soaps made for sensitive skin"! I won't tell you what she used to wash up with either. NOT Dr. recommended. I finally convinced her to at least give my soap a "patch test", washing a small area of her skin, usually inside of wrist or forearm. Guess what? NO reaction at all! She is a faithful user of all my soaps now! She has even tried my solid fragrances and Bug Be Gone products without a reaction.

So much for commercially made soaps for sensitive skin.

My recommendation for everyone applying ANYTHING on their skin is to give yourself a patch test before applying everywhere. Could save you a lot of grief in the end. Apply any skin product on the inside of your wrist or forearm and wait 24 hrs before applying anywhere else. If you have any itching, burning, redness, swelling or break into a rash, wash off immediately and don't use anymore. Call your MD if the reaction persists or worsens.

Even my own family has some skin sensitivities that we've discovered since I started making soap products. My hubby has numerous skin sensitivities, for instance. In one instance,I wanted to make a great smelling shaving soap for him, so created a "lemon tea" shaving soap for him, using real tea that included lemongrass. He loved the smell until he started using it. His skin began to burn the moment he applied the soap to his face, so I chose to use that soap for my legs instead. Not long afterward, I made a great smelling soap using lemongrass oil which he wanted to try. Once again, his skin began to burn the moment he put it on. The rest of the family has not had a problem with that delicious smelling lemongrass soap...only him. We concluded that he must have a sensitivity to lemongrass and he now knows to avoid using it on his skin.

Bunches of folk have asked me if my soap and lotion sticks are safe for children. All I can say is that all my products were intended for use on humans, child and adult alike. I do realize that children often have more sensitive skin, so always recommend that people use products that contain less fragrance or essential oil. Everyone's skin reacts differently to different substances and there are no guarantees that you will never have a reaction to ANY soap or lotion stick product that anyone makes, commercial or handmade. Once again, for your own peace of mind and safety, ALWAYS perform a patch test prior to slathering anything all over your skin.

As for animals? Like I said before, my items were intended for human use, but if you purchase something for your pet's use intended for human use, always research it first or ask your vet prior to purchase and application. I had one great customer who wanted to use my Bug Be Gone Lotion stick on her horses to keep away those nasty, biting flies. Since I don't hide what ingredients are contained in my products, she was equipped with that info and determined that it is safe for horses. She made the following comment on its performance: "So far, I really like it! It does a nice job of keeping the flies away for most of the day actually, and it seems to be very gentle on the skin as well." She bought 2 sticks for use on at least 8 horses! I made one 3oz stick for one human to basically last for one summer if used daily on pulse points of the body. She quickly realized that 2 sticks wasn't going to go far for 8 horses.

And dogs? Well, finding that there are no adverse problems related to the use of any of these oils on the general dog population, I've chosen to use the Bug Be Gone soap for bathing my furry friends. I was delighted by the way it works for them too. I only use the stick when they are out of their own personal environment (dog parks and other outings). That has been my own personal decision, however. I still state that I am not in the business of making products for dogs, horses or other animals at this time.

Maybe in the future? Who knows?

So, recap, for those who ask the question if my products are safe for children, dogs, horses etc, always do a patch test if human and stop using if a reaction occurs and consult your doctor. My products were not originally intended for use on animals. If you choose to do so anyway, consult with your veterinarian first.

Wine Soap

Soaps can be made from a variety of ingredients besides coconut oil. Water is also a main ingredient, but often in place of water, folk add other liquids. Some include milk, coffee, tea, beer...and wine.

Wine contains lots of fun ingredients that give you some benefits of using it...I won't go into great details at this time. Another post will suffice for that. Only to introduce you the idea of wine in your soap. I chose to use wine in one of my latest trial batches of soaps, just to see how it works. Very different from my usual batches, there were definitely some added precautions I needed to take due to wine's sugar content, which heated up my mixture greatly. But, that's soap talk. Unless you make soap, you will be scratching your head over the ins and outs of what happened.

Just for fun, I tried a lovely California Pink Champagne for my first test batch. Because I have to let my champagne go flat before I can use it in soap, it was extremely important for me to take a wine taste test before allowing a good champagne to flatten. It was good! I gave it 48 hrs to flatten up, then dropped it in my soap mixture.

Because of its different reaction than what I'm used to, I learned some important details about making soap using wine, which I will improve upon in my next batch.

The next batch will also include pink champagne from California. In fact, it will also include some other California type ingredients...avocado oil and almond oil. It seemed fitting if I'm using a California wine, right? P.S. I'm a California native, but haven't actually lived there for over 30 years. I visit often though. You can take the girl out of California, but can't take California out of the girl, I'm afraid.

Looking Forward to Summer Already?

Didn't it just become Spring? Oh well...the life a soap maker! Must look forward a season or two ahead.

Almost everyone looks forward to summer anyway, right? There's a lot to look forward to; such as warm days, soaking in the sun, swimming, gardening, hiking, boating, camping and just generally getting out of doors. I love summer. Everyone and everything gets out and gets productive in one sense or another. EVERYONE...including BUGS.

They are a part of the summer season, whether we like it or not. We have to put up with them.

Or, do we?

I'm bringing back, by popular demand a soap that I made last year with just a little change in its looks just for those who aren't fond of little creatures landing on your body and biting you.

Bug Be Gone Soap; a soap that contains essential oils found in many plants known to repel buggy little critters. I'm not the only soap maker that has this, but I think mine is the prettiest and most fashionable looking.



Only natural plant oils are used in this soap that are known to repel bugs, including catnip oil. Catnip oil is known to be one of the most effective natural ways to repel bugs. These oils combined also have a fresh, minty fragrance...an added bonus and change to the commercial bug repellent crowd.

Most of the commercial bug repellents out there are chemically enhanced to keep bugs away. Most of them work quite well, but there are some drawbacks...the spray-ons getting into your eyes and down your lungs, the less than attractive smells, and all the strange-sounding, unpronounceable chemical words that you're are slathering on your body. All the while you are trusting they won't make you grow a third eye!

Bug Be Gone soap certainly smells much nicer than any of those chemically enhanced bug repellent products out there and you are getting a natural product that doesn't make you grow a third eye either.

What a concept!

Getting Down to the Nitty Gritty of Finances

On the days that I make soap, I admit that I get very excited in anticipation of the day. Because I work full time at a secular job, I don't devote my time entirely to soaping, but have to set aside a time in the week for it. The time I set aside is a real treat for me and I look forward to that day that I have set aside immensely.

So, at this point at least, making soap is not my method of making ends meet, not even close. It IS a desire of mine to make that a goal, however. With that thought in mind, I chose to review what my costs are to make my soap, and how much I am making as profit on my soap...or am I making a profit?

As with most new little start up businesses, and this is a business for me, they don't always make money intitially. In the first few years of opening my little soap business, I showed a loss because of buying equipment and getting enough supply to make it viable. Then, it was drawing customers to my soaps and building a customer base. It all takes time. Now, I am at a point where I am breaking even (whoo hooo!) I am learning to make the most of my soaping methods. Still, I would certainly like to do much better than "break even".

It was time for me to review how much it is costing me to make my soap. Am I charging enough for this amazing stuff? Am I counting in all my cost factors? So, I began to break it all down...the results were just a bit eye-opening for me. I already know basically how much soap I will make this year based on customer purchases and trends from the previous year, so base my cost per estimated bars I will make.

Here is how I broke it down:
I added up the cost of the supplies I use most often in my soap per batch, such as oils, sodium hydroxide; the basic stuff.
I added up the cost of the "extra" supplies that I most often use per batch, accessory stuff like, calendula blossoms, rose petals, fragrance or essential oils, oxides, micas and other fun little additions to the basic soap formula.
I added my basic cost of packaging each bar of soap.
I averaged the yearly cost of supplies that I use regularly, such as soap molds, wax paper, bowls, scales etc and broke it down per bar.
I added basic prep and production time per bar of soap (like paying myself wages for making them)...about 1/2 the amount per hour that I make on my "usual" secular job.
I added Paypal fees, etsy fees, and average per year craft showings fees per bar of soap.

I did not add cost of electricity, sewer, water, phone, internet access, although I should if I were to be more accurate.

The end result?

At my current charges per bar of soap, I only make about $1.62 per average size (4 to 4.5 oz) bar over and above what it takes to make it!

At that rate, it will be years before I get a vacation! The good thing is that I'm not totally losing out this year if I sell what I make...which is better than last year and better than the few years before.

Could I cut more corners and make more? Absolutely! It would take some additional sacrifices of freshness of the oils I purchase and quality of my product to do it though. If I bought more bulk product, it would certainly be much less expensive. The down side is that I don't make enough product right now to ensure freshness of my oils if I bought bulk, so resort to making smaller batches at this time. There are a lot of other small ways I could cut costs and am still in the process of streamlining and revamping some of the things I do.

If you run a shop of your own and have never broken things down this way, it may open your eyes a bit too. I have come to realize that many soapers and other shop owners on etsy may not be making money on their product that they think they are...in fact may be LOSING money. (The big giveaway.com thing) They may be doing this to establish a customer base too. Perhaps. Perhaps they just don't know they are on a losing end either.

Doing this was a great reality check for me even though I already knew based on keeping decent records that I wasn't making the thousands that I always envision.

It won't keep me from continuing to make soap. This is wayy too much fun!

ARTWALK at Jantzen Beach

Starting February 6th, 2009 there will be an artwalk being held monthly at Jantzen Beach Mall in Portland, Oregon. I am proud to be a part of this artwalk will you find me there the first Friday of every month except during the months of June-September.

The artwalk will be indoors in the mall featuring artists and crafters of all sorts. From 4pm-9pm our tables will be set out.

Remember, come visit us at Jantzen Beach on the first Friday of every month from 4-9pm and see what some local handcrafted artists have to offer.

The artwalk is every month except during the summer months of June through September.

Hibernation until February

I don't know about the rest of the blogging world, but after Christmas, I'm just plain tired and need a rest...more like a short hibernation. I have no desire to do ANYTHING except sit and veg out.

But, I need to look forward into the next season, which is Spring and begin to prepare to make soaps for this time. Being a soapmaker who makes cold process soaps, Spring comes up wayyy too fast if I want to get some Spring time soaps ready. You see, cold process soaps have to go through a curing period of 4-6 weeks before they are ready...4 weeks being the bare minimum in my opinion. So, if today is February 15th, (which it is), then I am way too late in deciding what kind of Valentine Day cold process soaps I should make...it's already too late! However, this is the perfect time to start doing Spring soaps.

Back to Valentine's Day though, I did manage to make some soaps for it that are cold process; Chocolate Ecstasy, Cinnamon Oatmeal and Sweet Lavender. All the rest of my soaps will be melt and pour types.

Oh and by the way, if you are seeing this post and want to check some of those soaps out, visit my shop at SoapyBlessings.etsy.com

If you buy something and want a 20% discount, comment on this blog and mention the discount offer in the comments section at checkout! I will adjust the price for you! This particular offer is good through February 20th, 2009.

Get ready for August! Upcoming Soaps.

Pictured above are two soaps that I've recently made. The top soap is called "Solar Energy" and the bottom picture is "Jasmine Dreams".

Solar Energy was not made using solar energy, OK? It is more of a color and fragrance thing. I wanted to emulate the colors of sunsets or fiery colors...sun related somehow and the fragrance oil I added to it is called "Energy" which is a fresh, citrusy...BAM! type fragrance. A waker-upper. Not overwhelming, but makes its presence known all at the same time. The picture was taken less than 24 hours after making the soap. I had just cut them into bars so they are still a bit rough around the edges.

The second soap is a gentle, tropical floral fragrance with just a hint of green tea in the background. Jasmine dreams has pink and white swirls throughout the entire bar. I love jasmine as a fragrance so these are a favorite of mine. Like the Solar Energy, I had just cut them into bars shortly before taking the picture.

Both of these soaps will be curing into a gentle, lathery soap over the next six weeks and will not be ready until August 27th.

An announcement will be made when they are ready and an immediate 20% discount to anyone who purchases one of these soaps in the first week they are on sale. This discount is ONLY good for those who have read this blog and mention this blog at the time of sale.

Anyone interested in reserving any or both of these soaps in advance, please let me know at either of my shop sites.


www.SoapyBlessings.etsy.com
www.SoapyBlessings.silkfair.com

Each soap is 3 1/2 oz. each and are $3.75 regular price

With 20% discount, you receive each bar for $3.00 (not including shipping of course)