New product - Yea!

We have a winner in our blog comment contest. It's Cindy Jones, for her excellent comment about including elderberry in our first-aid kit. Thanks Cindy!

Another great announcement is the introduction of a new product. After many trials, we have a Body Glow for the Shower to unveil! It's a salt/sugar, oil exfoliant that is mostly solid, but soft enough to scoop, and the oil doesn't leak out. It feels great on the skin, and rinses off well, leaving you moisturized, but not oily. The shower won't be oily, either. It comes in our standard scents, Love My Lavender*, Gingered Orange, Spun Sugar, Rice Flower, Fresh Clean Herbs, Lilac, Black Raspberry & Vanilla, Sultry Sandalwood Vanilla, and Mint Medley*. *denotes essential oils You'll love it!

A special introductory offer to my blog readers is $2 off each jar of as many Body Glows as you like. Hurry, because the offer only lasts through Feb. 28.

For those wanting to know, our road trip to NJ was a success. Traveling was easy, with not a flake of snow on the way there, and only a little on the way back. We had such a good time with our daughter, son-in-law, and our two little grandsons, that it made for great memories.

Road Trip!

Valentine's Day is over! Between florist work and getting ready for a sale at my daughter's school, I am ready for a break. Soooo, since my girls are off of school for the week, we are heading to NJ tomorrow. One of my other daughters lives there with her hubby and two sons.

I can't wait to see them!

In thinking what to pack, I want to bring things like an herbal first aid kit. I'd put in an ointment for cuts, another for bruises and sore muscles, a sleep pillow and/or eye pillow, ginger caps, chamomile tea, and a few other items, such as elderberry syrup. For those of you who use herbs, what would you pack?

I only make herbal preparations for family, but love to make and use them.

When I return, I plan on making some salt/sugar body glow, a product that exfoliates while you shower. Finally, I have hit upon what to me is the perfect formula. It feels and smells good!

I'm including a photo of my St. Patrick's Day gift set: Get a shamrock soap and body spray in your choice of the following scents: Love My Lavender, Rochester Lilac, Gingered Orange, Groovy Patchouli, Sandalwood & Vanilla, Romantic Rose, and Black Raspberry & Vanilla Bean. It's just $10 all set to give to a special Irish, or Wish-I-Were-Irish lass.

Of course, I can't fill any orders until the end of the week when we return.

Valentine's Day

No doubt you've heard the story of St. Valentine and how the day came about. Romantic or not? Tell me what you think.

I thought we'd get photos of product uploaded, but it was not to be. The promise is for tomorrow. You'll have to order right away, of course, if you want something mailed.

It's your turn to talk to me. What plans do you have for Valentine's Day?

The sale is posted again below:

Premium Valentine's gift set: You get one full-sized soap bar, a 4 oz. bottle of luscious body lotion, 1 oz. dry body/linen spray, and rose bath fizzy. Comes in Romantic Rose, unless you request another scent. Beautifully packaged in red. All this for $20!

Petite Valentine's gift set: This lovely set includes a full-sized soap, 2 oz. luscious body lotion, and bath fizzy. This one is also beautifully packaged, ready for gift-giving, and scented in Romantic Rose, unless you request another scent. Just $12 for this set!

Conversation Heart Soap Set - This cute set includes scented soaps that look like oversized conversation hearts. They are packaged three in a row in a clear box with filler. They're adorable, and only $10!

Soap & Heart Petals: soap dipped, scented hearts and petals, nestled on colorful shred in a corsage box. Ready for gift-giving. It's a great little something for a wife, girlfriend, friend, anyone you'd like to bestow a novel, but inexpensive gift on. Romantic Rose scent. Only $5

Scents: Fragrances: Sandalwood and Vanilla, Patchouli, Gingered Orange, Romantic Rose, Blackberry Vanilla, Rochester Lilac.Valentine's Day is almost here!

February is for Lovin'

Here we are, it's February already! January flew right by, don't you think? There are a couple of things I like about February. The first is that it's a short month. The second is that soon we will notice the days getting longer. Those are great things! The best thing of all, though, may be Valentine's Day.

I'm not a terribly romantic, pink and hearts kind of person, but V-Day is a bright spot at this otherwise cold and sometimes dreary time of year. I've got some celebration tricks up my sleeve to help you with your special day.

One idea is to surprise your spouse to an overnight stay at a nice hotel. Include dinner and a spa day. Who wouldn't feel romantic?

Not in your budget? Choose one of the above and you'll still be a hero--or heroine. Perhaps you're on a budget this year, or your situation doesn't allow you to go out. Don't let that dampen your enthusiasm! Some of our best Valentine's memories were in years when we didn't have extra dollars for mini-vacations.

Here is an idea that you can alter to fit your preferences: Fix your favorite meal. Set the table with a nice tablecloth and napkins, candles, flowers, whatever sets the mood. One year, hubby and I dined in the dining room while the kids dined in the kitchen. We ate shrimp cocktail, and other favorite dishes, and chocolate dipped strawberries for dessert. I don't remember what the kids ate, but it was easy to make, and something they all liked. They watched a movie afterward, while hubby and I had nice conversation by ourselves. Everybody was happy, and thought the day was very special. It was actually quite romantic.

The point is, really, to make Valentine's Day special and romantic, whether expensive or inexpensive, elaborate or simple.

If you have some great ideas, please comment. We'd love to hear them.


Make someone's Valentine's Day with special bath and body gifts. As you might imagine, I've got a whole line for you. Descriptions follow and pictures will be posted tomorrow:

Premium Valentine's gift set: You get one full-sized soap bar, a 4 oz. bottle of luscious body lotion, 1 oz. dry body/linen spray, and rose bath fizzy. Comes in Romantic Rose, unless you request another scent. Beautifully packaged in red. All this for $20!

Petite Valentine's gift set: This lovely set includes a full-sized soap, 2 oz. luscious body lotion, and bath fizzy. This one is also beautifully packaged, ready for gift-giving, and scented in Romantic Rose, unless you request another scent. Just $12 for this set!

Conversation Heart Soap Set - This cute set includes scented soaps that look like oversized conversation hearts. They are packaged three in a row in a clear box with filler. They're adorable, and only $10!

Soap & Heart Petals: soap dipped, scented hearts and petals, nestled on colorful shred in a corsage box. Ready for gift-giving. It's a great little something for a wife, girlfriend, friend, anyone you'd like to bestow a novel, but inexpensive gift on. Romantic Rose scent. Only $5

Scents: Fragrances: Sandalwood and Vanilla, Patchouli, Gingered Orange, Romantic Rose, Blackberry Vanilla, Rochester Lilac. Special requests possible. Essential oil: Lavender, Lavender Patch (lavender & patchouli), or Romantic Herbal Blend (notes of Palmarosa, lavender, and Clary Sage marry to create a provocative blend), or anything on my site,
www.soapandgarden.com

I couldn't resist posting a photo of my Midnight Merlot soap. It's at the top of the page. :-)

Winter Musings and Haiti

I'm feeling almost guilty these days with the weather we've been having in the Finger Lakes region of NY. We haven't had that much snow, and except for about a week, where the weather was frigid, it's been deceptively warm. In fact, it was rainy today. It's been strange for the whole country, for sure.

The weather certainly calls for nice, warm, relaxing baths and showers, does it not? Remember your beauty prescription of one bath per week! Just a fifteen minute soak, followed by a slathering of body butter, lotion bar, or lotion, will keep your skin in tip-top shape. At the bottom of this post, you'll see our inventory reduction sale that will make it even more tempting.

It's been almost two weeks since the earthquake in Haiti ravaged the already suffering nation. The poorest in the Western Hemisphere, without a government for ten years, Haiti is wallowing in its own poverty and hopelessness. The death toll continues to rise as aid from other nations rush in to help. Mobilizing virtually an army of medical, food, recovery, and other personnel is no quick or easy feat. Traveling around on impassible roads is a difficult challenge. The images we see are staggering--people, including children, who are injured, have lost their families, and are just plain hungry, even some gangs and looters getting what they can. It's so hard to watch.

We might ask ourselves, what possible good could come out of such a situation? I see the goodness of many countries who sent people to help; I see record donations to organizations who are in a position to help Haitians. I see people singing to the Lord, in spite of losing all that they have, especially family and friends.

Perhaps, in the future, with the sudden international attention to Haiti, they will get help in forming a viable, stable government. Perhaps the infrastructure that may come will put citizens in a place to make some inroads into the desperate poverty that has existed. Most importantly, perhaps this tragedy will cause people to seek God and follow Him. Maybe. . . we can pray.

As for me, we as a family have donated funds, as have so many others. My business, Soap and Garden, is donating soaps through Mission Flights International, which will fly in much-needed supplies to the Haitian people. I will, on an ongoing basis, donate soap to Clean the World.org, a charity determined to save the lives of people in 3rd world countries, simply by supplying them with soap!

Did you know that soap is an unaffordable luxury in poor countries? We throw away thousands of pounds of soap each week from hotel bathrooms, and many of us throw away our soap ends when the bar gets too small to use at home. As a soapmaker, I have an abundance of soap--ends, trims, oops! bars, and leftovers that I can donate to this cause. I have to say that it feels good to make something that is of so much use to those who need it. We tend to take soap for granted, but it is in actuality, a necessity, and I am so glad to help.


Maybe we can help you, too! The ad for this week follows:

We're marching from January to February. These are the months for a warm, relaxing bath or shower! To help, this is the last week of our Inventory Reduction Sale: Anything in stock is on sale!

10% any sale up to $25
20% any sale from $26 - $50
First come, first served!
Not on my site are: Cinnamon Stick Bundles: A bundle of cinnamon sticks with true cinnamon scent, wrapped in ribbon.
$5.00 each Herbal Bath Teas:
Oatmeal, Milk, & Honey, Purely Herbal Blend, Four Milk Blend, and Relaxation Blend - $2/ea. Liquid shower gel: All natural. 2 oz. for $4; 4 oz.
$6.00 Lotion: Hand and body lotion - 4 oz,
$7 Foaming Soap:
Comes in the seasonal Apple Pie, plus Gingered Orange, Summer Tropical, and Lavender. Just $7/bottle for 6 fl. oz.

http:www.soapandgarden.com

Thanks for reading, and have a wonderful, blessed week!

Pictures above: playing around with bath whip. This batch was Roseberry with strawberry seeds for exfoliation. Yummy!
My crew headed for the Bills game in early January. Brrr. . .
Puppy Beau wishing he'd been invited to partake in our Christmas brunch.

Some pics and my friend, Rita

Here are a couple of pictures of my booth at my November show.

Since Christmas, I've been working on Valentine's Day products and liquid soap. I'll post pics asap.

Many of us in the soap/toiletry world have lost a good friend today in Rita Scheu. She fought a long and courageous battle with breast cancer. Now, however, I rest in the thought that she is pain free, her tears are wiped away, and she is with Jesus forever. She left a family, however, that has the task of picking up the pieces and moving forward without Rita. My prayers go forth for them.

It's been a long time!

I can't believe it's been so long since I last posted! Shame on me. I'm hoping all had a happy holiday season. We did. Nothing was terribly exciting once our dd's and families left in early December, but it was all warm and happy. :-) Now, here we are in cold, bleak January. What good is there to day about it? If you like cold and snow, you're loving it. If not, you're probably ready for spring. I am! Even so, I would be remiss not to admit that the snowfall we received this even was beautiful--that light, gently falling snow that sparkled like diamonds. Everyone should experience this once in his lifetime, I think. To hold a single snowflake in your hand is a wondrous thing. I've posted a couple of photos of deer in our neighborhood this fall and winter. What do you do in January? Take down Christmas or other holiday decorations and give the house a good cleaning? Do you make resolutions and goals for the new year? What makes January tolerable for you? I start it out with a bang since my birthday is on the 1st. Sorry about the tax thing, Dad and Mom.

In my business, I realize how much easier accounting will be if I reduce my inventory. Hence my Inventory Reduction Sale, which is in full swing! To get it, you'll just have to contact me with your order, email addy, and "IRS" code. Clever, isn't it?

Here's the sale:

We've survived the holiday season. Celebrate with a nourishing bath or shower and wonderful smelling products that will help you look your best!

Inventory Reduction Sale:

Anything in stock is on sale!

10% any sale up to $25
20% any sale from $26 - $50

First come, first served!

Not on my site are:

Cinnamon Stick Bundles: A bundle of cinnamon sticks with true cinnamon scent, wrapped in ribbon. $5.00 each

Herbal Bath Teas: Oatmeal, Milk, & Honey, Purely Herbal Blend, Four Milk Blend, and Relaxation Blend - $2/ea.
Liquid shower gel: All natural. 2 oz. for $4; 4 oz. $6.00
Lotion: Hand and body lotion - 4 oz, $7
Foaming Soap: Comes in the seasonal Apple Pie, plus Gingered Orange, Summer Tropical, and Lavender, as well as any scent listed on my site. Just $7/bottle for 6 fl. oz.

Thanks for reading, and have a blessed New Year!