Coffee Shoppe Line

As some of you may know I love coffee. I love the smell of coffee brewing and I even like the smell of scorched coffee that is a result of mixing it with lye to create my soaps. I started off with Almond Biscotti.

 This was a melt and pour based soap that I added cocao powder and fine coffee grounds to. It was a hit!

Then I moved on to creating my Cold Process coffee soaps and became hooked. This is my unscented Coffee Shoppe soap made earlier this year.

 This is my Chocolate Almond Biscotti. I took what I liked from the first Melt and Pour soap and tweaked it a little for my Cold Process soap and ended up with a beautiful soap with a great scent.

 This is my Coconut Crème. Slightly sweet smell. Like coffee with coconut creamer added to it.

 Raspberry Truffle is my next offering. It has a light sweet raspberry syrup smell to it. Like what is used in most coffee houses.

 And lastly my Strawberry Chocolate. I love strawberry and chocolate syrups mixed together for milk so I thought "Why not for coffee as well?" And you know what? It works!! I have had too many people wanting to take a bite out of what I was making. It smells delightfully of strawberry creamer with a slight chocolate-y note to it.

 

I am so proud to say that all of these soaps lather so well. I can easily use up a 5 ounce bar in a week. I can't help it nor do I want to. To purchase these and other bars, visit my FB page www.facebook.com/TheChandlersRose and order. Love you all much. Have a safe and Happy New Year. I will be back soon.

Fractured Faerie Tale: Schneewittchen

I am only posting one picture of Schneewittchen or Little Snow White. I love this bar. The blend of Green Apple fragrance oil with  Silver Fir Needle essential oil is amazing!! I never would have thought to put those together at any other time. It soaped very well and is on its way to becoming the #2 favorite of this round of Soap of the Month Club soaps. Now on to the history of the tale.

 

The origin of the story that I based this soap off of is German. In early drafts the wicked queen that wants her dead is her own mother because she is jealous of the beauty that Snow White is to become. In all of the early tales she is between the ages of 8 and 11 years old. Her father is alive but is an absentee father. Later tales changed her mother/queen to a step-mother/queen. The apple in the story was silver not red or white. The dwarves warn her against opening the door to strangers and on three successive occasions she disregards their warnings and does so anyway. The last time was for the silver apple offered by the strange old woman.

 

In the Italian version Snow White is poisoned by a comb, a cake or dies by a braid that suffocates her. All the pre-Grimm tales are dark and a little unnerving. I love them just the same and I love creating soaps that go along with them.

 

Next month you will see Puss's Boots for the next Fractured Faerie Tale installment.

 

On The Chandler's Rose Facebook page I have started posting photo albums of soaps that are or will be for sale. Under each soap a price is listed. Feel free to browse, comment or place an order. Right now orders are shipped as soon as your postal money order, or PayPal payment clears.

First Soap Review : Dirty Sailor Girl Soap Company

Let me start off by saying this is the most attractively wrapped soap. I was hesitant to even take them out of the wrappers. So first, a little soap porn and then I will get into my review.

 

 

I hope these pictures have whet your appetite for the rest of the blog. I will say this quickly and then I will allow Ome Sanchez to tell you about her amazing products.

 

1. I cheated. I allowed Ome to pick product to send to me. But still go to the website for more delish product, www.dirtysailorgirl.com.

 

2. I could smell the soaps before I even opened the box. That is always a plus for me.

 

 

3. The packaging is Ah-ma-ZING!!! I cannot say that enough.

 

 

4. Each bar is worth the price. And she threw in the nifty little samples. Gotta love it!!

 

 

Each bar lathers quickly with thick bubbles in lukewarm  to cool water. Always a sure sign that I am going to love the bar in the shower. The scent from each bar lingers gently on your skin. No sticky tacky residue once you have dried off. I love it. Now, I have decided to allow Ome to tell you the rest. We conduct a phone interview Monday and here it goes...

 

 

Hi!! How are you? I received your package today and I must say that I am happy that it only took 2 days to ship to me!! How long have you been making such wonderful products?

 

First let me say how thankful and humbled I am that you want to review my soaps and that you want to interview me. It is a little nerve wracking to have a fellow soaper review your product. I have been making soaps for 2 years.

 

 Your packaging is amazing. I have never seen anything like this. Tell me about it.

 

I love glitter and shiny things and wanted a way to incorporate my love of glitter without heaping mounds of glitter, hence the rhinestone bands.

 

 

Well you did an awesome job. I am in love with your labels and packaging. I was loathe to take the bars out. How did you think to get that look. I love the dark and feminine contrast!

 

Well I was wanting to marry the love of antique and modern, masculine and edgy feminine. I designed and created my brand for women like me. Those who love luxury but are on a budget.

 

I can see that. If Steam-punk and a feminine counterpart it would be your branding. I love it. So what else do you have?

 

Currently we carry the Series 7 line. A playful take on the soft feminine with alluring heady mystery. Right now we carry body balms and body butters. Shower gels are a possibility in the future.

 

Let's take the Blush. I love this bar I cannot stop sniffing it. How do you come up with your blends and how long does it take?

 

A fragrance can take a few weeks to be complete and go into the final product. I don't shy away from fragrance oils. Essential and fragrance oils are a wonderful mix. I have the patience to ensure that whatever I come up with will be the best that I can offer to my clients.

 

I found out about you via the Cold Process Soapmaker Facebook page. Have you found these types of groups to be helpful in any kind of way?

 

Oh yes! I have found soap making forums to be a wonderful tool in discussing projects, ideas and to give and receive advice. There is a wealth of information on-line and the veterans in these groups have been a dream. It is so cool that I can ask a question at 10:45 at night and within  few minutes there are at least 20 answers. You can't buy that kind of help.

 

So, are you looking at opening a brick and mortar any time soon?

 

A store could be in the future. Right now I am focused on establishing my brand, mastering my craft and spending time with my family.

 

Okay, last question, How did you come up with your company name?

 

The name is in honor of my husband who honorably served in the U.S. Navy for 20 years. He's the Dirty Sailor and I am just the 'Girl'.

 

Ladies and Gentlemen, I have spoken with Ome and let me tell you she is anything but 'just the 'Girl''. She is passionate, focused, humble and thankful. I love her products. My daughter loves her products (darn little thief!!!). Go to her site and order!!

 

Ome Sanchez

386-566-3318

www.dirtysailorgirl.com

dirtysailorgirl@gmail.com

Update

Hello, my Lovelies!! I have been busy getting holiday orders out, preparing to shut down The Chandler's Rose website and launching a new initiative to help out other soapers. Well, the last holiday order will be delivered this week. I am shutting down The Chandler's Rose because people don't go to the site to order. Most just send me  a message on Facebook. Therefore there is no need to keep the site up. I understand that people like having a website to reference but it is a waste of time for a business owner when people refuse to use said site. So, it will go the way of the Dodo on December 31, 2013. And, lastly in the many soap making forums that I belong to one of the great laments of most of the soap company owners is that sales are down.

This is an anguish that I can understand. In my opinion, this is 10% due to economy, 10% due to the fickleness of fads, 30% due to product itself and 50% due to lack of proper marketing. Some people can't fathom paying $6.50 for a bar of soap when they can go to the $1 Tree and spend $1 for 2 -3 bars of detergent masquerading as soap. Others found purchasing homemade, from local artisans and real soap cool trendy and above all fashionable. That sadly is no longer the case and very few people have stuck with the soaps that they found so alluring and as a 'must-have'. Some soap makers feel that they have a great product but it just isn't so. Unwittingly their friends and family will not tell them some simple truths. Their soap is drying, harsh, lost its fragrance from sitting on the company's shelf too long waiting to be purchased or has additives that  the consumer is allergic to. Mainly, the soap is not noteworthy or justifiable. The body butter is too greasy. The lotion separates in heat above 80 degrees. The bath bomb fizzed out in the bathroom cupboard before the customer could use it.

This is not the case for 80% of crafters but sadly it is the 20% that gets the most internet traffic from being bashed. One bad review can taint a small community like this for months and/or years. Human nature has been conditioned to seek out the bad publicity stories rather than the praises and success stories. Sadly, the small business owner doesn't conduct random checks on their company via the internet to keep such stories off the web. Which also touches on my last point. And lastly, the soap maker doesn't have the networking skills to get the word out about their product, takes poor pictures or no pictures of their product or doesn't using every avenue available to get the word out about their product. A lot of people just starting out can't afford to have a website designed for them, a logo created for them or to attend the many craft fairs just to get their name out there.

The market is saturated with people who learn to make body butters, soaps, 'whathaveyou' on Sunday, give them away to family and friends on Monday, open a business on Tuesday, do enough damage to the niche market due to substandard product on Wednesday, bitch about it on Thursday and Friday and then close up shop on Saturday. So having said all of this. I decided to start purchasing from these companies to evaluate: 1. The ease of navigation on their website. 2. The speed of receiving the product post-order (I'm talking pulling product and dropping it into the mail.) 3. The packaging. 4. Quality of product. I am by no means an expert. I know what I like and what will cause a miser like me to part with a penny. My promise is to only post positives. Any negatives will be brought to their attention via PM on Facebook or e-mail. I hope that you all will join me on this journey because I absolutely am excited to get my products from them.

** Up Next **
Fractured Faerie Tales: Schneewittchen
Coffee Shoppe: Coconut Cream
Coffee Shoppe: Raspberry Truffle
Caramel Apple Dip

Blueberry Fragrance Oil from TheChemistryStore.com
Chocolate Espresso Fragrance Oil from BrambleBerry.com
Turkish Mocha Fragrance Oil from BrambleBerry.com
Dragon's Blood Fragrance Oil from BrambleBerry.com
Arabian Spice Fragrance Oil from BrambleBerry.com

Rumplestiltskin

Yes. I am posting this after Rumplestiltskin has already gone out this month. The story of Rumplestiltskin is simple and a ridiculous disaster. A greedy king, plus a father that pimps his beautiful daughter, who turns out to be a liar are actually the villains in this tale. The farmer lies to the king and says that his daughter can spin straw into gold. She goes along with the lie but knows that she can't spin gold out of straw. The king threatens to kill her if the rooms of straw aren't spun into gold. A wizened odd fellow offers to help her as long as she pays him. Okay, she does this 3 times. The first two times she tricks the king and pays what she promises. Now she could have told the king that she can't do it but she doesn't. The 3rd and final time she promises her first born child. Once payment is due she schemes and plots to renege on her promise thus cheating Rumplestiltskin out of his earned, yet strange, wage. He even gives her a reprieve in order to guess his name. And she still screws him. The true tragic figure in this tale is Rumplestiltskin. He delivers on his promise and it costs him his life eventually.

 This is actually 2 shades of green. One natural and one man made. I wanted to get the green of the forest where the namesake lived plus have what amounted to green flames and smoke running throughout the soap. Mission accomplished. I love how the lather is so creamy and the fragrance lingers gently on the skin.

 I wanted a picture that would match the story and the soap and I think that I have accomplished that here.

 

 These are the soaps that have gone out so far. Next month will be Schneewittchen or Little Snow White

 

 

Due to some fellow soapers lifting ideas and pictures not only from myself but other very creative and talented artisans I will no longer post my scent blends. However, I hope that you will continue to read my blog, visit my web page and purchase from my on-line store. Don't forget The Chandler's Rose website will close for 2014 on December 31st. If you want to join the  Soap and/or Body Butter of the Month Clubs you will need to do it by 11:00 P.M. December 31st EST.

Playing Catch Up

Good Afternoon!

I sincerely apologize for taking so long to post. I have had some changes going on here. But enough of that.

Fractured Faerie Tale: Little Red Cap

There are at least 4 different versions to this tale. Some dark and sensual (Little Red performs a strip tease in the forest to get the wolf riled up enough for her to effect an escape) and others just dark. For instance, when we read the modern versions of the tales we get the idea that the child is anywhere from 7 years of age to 12. But in my research the average age of the young girl was 13 - 16 years of age. In all of them one of the common themes was the burgeoning of sexual awareness on the part of the girl and the danger it posed, embodied in the wolf.

I chose the French tale where Little Red Cap is sent to her grandmother's house to check on her. Along the way she is stalked by the wolf who observes her but doesn't engage in any type of contact. Mysteriously the wolf beats her to her grandmother's house which can only suggest that the wolf had been watching her for a while. Once at the grandmother's house he proceeds dress up as the grandmother and wait for Little Red Cap. Unfortunately for our leading lady once she arrives she doesn't leave. Hence, she has succumbed to the sexual tension that was building.


Not quite the way Warner Bros. has portrayed it, huh? Anyhoo, this is the Soap of the Month for October. The scents to go along with this tale are Jasmine, Ylang Ylang, Vanilla, Vetiver and Sandalwood. All essential oils associated with France.

November will see Rumplestiltskin.

Part of restructuring my company and how I operate is slimming down on product. I now offer the chance to join the Soap and Body Butter of the Month Clubs in order to get product. By doing so I can put more attention to the details of my offerings. With the holiday season coming up I am offering a chance to join both with the purchase of $400 or more in product. This is a true savings because for the next 12 months you will receive a monthly package at no additional cost to you.

Next time I will review some soaps that were mailed to me. And pictures, pictures and more pictures.

Pics and Stuff

Good Morning! I am mainly going to post pictures today. I am still working on my Fractured Faerie Tale line. All soaps have been loaded to my website www.sites.google.com/site/thechandlersrose

 This one will be my only holiday soap this year. It will be given away as a free gift with purchase of $25 or more before taxes and shipping. It smells like an oatmeal sugar cookie with a touch of cinnamon.

 September 15th's first Soap of the Month mailing. A cool and fresh blend of Cool Water and Dancing Waters. Not really unisex but if a man did bathe with this it would not be a turn off.

 I have a lot more men purchasing from me now and the demand has been more fragrances for them. So, I bring you my Men's 3 pack. Far left is Earth Man a heady combination of Musk, Lemongrass, Spearmint and Kentish Rain. The feedback from this one has been most satisfying. In the middle is Kentish Rain which has been a part of my line up since last year. And on the right is Fire Me Up! This one has a more smoky scent to it that is lightened up with orange essential oil and sweetened with Bonfire Bliss.

 The melon colored soap is my inspiration from Little Red Cap or Little Red Riding Hood. This is a wonderful blend of Jasmine, Patchouli, Ylang Ylang and Vanilla essential oils,  Currant, Acai and Iced Cranberry fragrance oils.

Fractured Faerie Tales

For this go 'round for the Soap of the Month Club I decided to create my interpretation of fairy tales and other dark stories. My resources are: The Annotated Classic Fairy Tales by Mara Tatar, Giovan Franceso Straparola, and Hans Christian Andersen. I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the pre-Grimm and pre-Disney tales. I am saddened to see how much each entity changed the stories. However, on to the soap.

First up  is The Little Mermaid. This story hails from Denmark. She doesn't have a name and is curious about the surface world. In this particular tale the merpeople are allowed to go to the surface once a year starting in their teen years and are only give a small space of time to  be on the surface. Our particular mermaid goes and falls in love with a human boy from a distance. When she goes back home she decided to turn human. The stipulation is she has to wed him before the 3rd day or she would die. Her meraunt and mersisters find out the plot and daily for those 3 days go to the surface and attempt to convince her to return home. She doesn't and her young man chooses a different female to marry. The little mermaid then dies, becomes seafoam and then ultimately become part of the conscious nebula.

Not quite as action packed as Disney's version but still a good tale. I highly recommend reading it.
Now, there have been some changes to my website. Firstly, all soaps are now sold as  a 3-pack unless it is part of the Soap of the Month Club. Secondly, lotions are making a comeback but only for the holiday season. Thirdly, I am only making 1 holiday scented soap and that is Christmas Cookie. It is a yummy cinnamon and sugar confection. I love bathing in that one!!

I purchased Blueberry Surprise and Honeysuckle fragrance oils from The Chemistry Store. They smell wonderful!! I fully plan on making lotions with them. Speaking of lotions I am currently working on offering a dessert line of lotions. I will be sending out testers with paid orders of $25 or more during the last half of the year. The ones that receive the most positive feedback will be the ones that make it onto the website for 2014. Hopefully I will soon be able to get back to making regular posts.

Up next, Fractured Faerie Tale: Little Red Riding Hood and Rumplestiltskin. Love you very much.

Fractured Faerie Tales

Good Early Morning,

Earlier this year as my Pirates of the Caribbean inspired soaps were coming to an end I was thinking about my next line for my Soap of the Month Club. Fairy Tales came to mind. Then, struck down and now resurrected. My intention was not to create Disney inspired soaps but to go as far back to the originals as I could to get what I wanted. The original stories were darker and more sensual. So, this month I will begin creating the soaps and then they will be offered starting October of this year.

Each month I will blog about a particular soap, giving the origin(s), what inspired my design and what to expect next. I used to publish a newsletter but that was a waste because people would come right back and ask me about the same information that was in the newsletter. Ugh! Reading is fundamental, people!!! Ahem ... so the blog was born. I still post mainly on my Facebook page but that is more of a sneak peak while my blog is the in depth interview, if you will.

So, for the next 7 months I will be presenting; Red Riding Hood, Sneewittchen or Little Snow White, Cindered-Ella, Little Briar Rose, The Little Mermaid, Rumpstiltzskin, and Puss in Boots. As I am sure many of you who follow my posts realize that true faerie tales have to do with the Fey but hey, give me a break. I will get more into that later on. Thanks so much for reading and please feel free to stop by my Facebook page and purchase.

Lots of Love,

Rosetta!

Product Lines and Such

Good Evening my Lovelies!!!

I want to give you an update on what is going on at The Chandler's Rose. I want to streamline my process a little more and be able to spend money, time and effort bringing you quality lines rather than a bunch of cool stuff that is hit or miss.

 Now with that being said, I am now going to start offering more masculine fragrances. However, I am going to offer them in 3-packs. Kentish Rain is normally a soap that I offer from February to August of each year. It is popular with men and women. You know, that is something that I don't get. Women love the men's fragrances and men love the women's fragrances. Anyhoo ... So that being said, rolling out at the end of August will be Earth Man, a heady musky scent that will remind you of grass, cigar smoke and spicy aftershave, Fire Me Up!, a lighter amber musk and reminscient of whiskey, and the ever popular Kentish Rain. I am really looking forward to packaging these and having them ready for the Autumn line.

The next 3-pack is from the Coffee Shoppe line: Almond Biscotti, Chocolate Almond Biscotti and Chai. Or Orange Almond Biscotti Bite, Strawberry Chocolate and Green Tea. The last upcoming 3 pack for Coffee Shoppe: Coconut Creame, Rapsberry Truffle and Raspberry White Chocolate Mocha.

I am taking holiday orders as early as October. The last day that I will ship out orders is December 12th.

Please be sure to visit www.facebook.com/TheChandlersRose to see all upcoming products.

Until next time.

I'm Baaack!

Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the blogosphere ... I have missed you very much. I was in Kentucky for training. Now I am home and am slowly getting my soap room together. I left off with 3 more soaps to blog about and for the life of me I can only remember one. My Bamboo and Sugar Cane is the only one that comes to mind.

 This is what is called a wet soap pic. Aroma Haven's Bamboo and Sugar Cane soaped so well!! There was no acceleration and did not discolor any of my colorants. I cannot begin to extol the virtues of this fragrance oil.

 This is a cut photo of the soap 2 days later. It has an instant lather and the scent sticks to the skin very well. Hands down this is my new favorite FO. This one will be a part of my Soap of the Month club mailings.

 

Later on this week I will begin to make my Fractured Faerie soaps. First up will be Little Red Riding Hood. With each post I will show wet soap and cut soap pics as well as give you some of the backgrounds of the stories, ie pre Grimm brothers edits. I am really excited about this!!

 

Now on to some other news: I will only be taking future orders via Facebook. When there are new soaps, butters, lotions and scrubs they will be photographed and posted on Facebook. Also, I will be putting videos on my channel on YouTube. This is a means for me to be able to explain to you the process of the soaps and share some tidbits about the soap, butter and the scents.

 

Future posts will be about some of the scents that I have crafted. Please be sure to hit me up on Facebook, www.facebook.com/TheChandlersRose. Love you all much. Please feel free to comment here as well.



Playing Catch Up

Good Afternoon,

I haven't posted since April about my own products mainly because I have been attending a bi-monthly market in my area. I have been soaping and such. Now I know that I have previously stated that I am more of a body butter gal but when the soap itch starts you have to just keep scratching until it is gone. That is what I have been doing. I also have started a channel on YouTube where I will post videos of my cut soaps and when I am in the middle of making a soap loaf and want to just share my process. These will be sporadic but I will post.

 

I have also been purchasing some fragrance oils and swapping soap making materials with fellow soapers. I started making notes at the bottom of some of my posts about fragrance and essential oils. Well, right now I am in the middle of packing up my townhouse and moving into a 3 bedroom house so I cannot go through my oils on the shelf and give you a play by play but what I can do it show you some pics and review the soaps.

 

Up first is Very Cherry Kamikaze. My original plan was to have a Neon Orange and Black domino look to it. Didn't work out that way. So then I decided to revisit it and this time just add Orange, Blue and White. Well, the soap batter didn't like that idea. Japanese Cherry Blossom from thechemistrystore.com has to be soaped cool. (Will do next time.) And it will accelerate trace so be prepared to work quickly.

 

Yeah, these were supposed to have been 7 oz bars but by the time I cut down all that was wrong with them most ended up being only 4 oz. Ugh!! So. not. happy!! But I am consoled by the fact that alot of people love this soap so ...

Also, Japanse Cherry Blossom super heats your batch so be sure to pop it in the cooler after you have spritzed your top your you will end up with cooked soap.

 

Up next is from my Coffee Shoppe Line. This is another revisioning gone south. My first 2 designs for Coffee Shoppe: Chocolate Almond Biscotti had people wanting to nibble on the bars. So I decided to make them look more like soap than what biscotti normally looks like. Yeah, Almond Biscotti will accelerate trace so soap cool and be ready to use it as a bottom layer. Oh, and you can forget about getting a decent swirl to it.

 My other Coffee Shoppe scent is Strawberry Chocolate. This was such a hit as a Melt and Pour soap that I decided that I wanted to make a CP soap with it. So I foolishly trusted the word of the seller over what the actual FO review said and used it in CP. Seller: "You can CP with it and it will  be okay." Manufacturer says, "For M&P only!" So what do I do? I attempt to use it in CP.

 

 You can see for yourself that the Strawberry FO (MP only) looks more like blood splatter at the bottom of this soap. The Strawberry FO not only causes the CP batter to decelerate, it will also cause all of the other FOs to go wonky. So, Lebermuth I will believe your next FO review when you say to NOT use it in CP soap.

 However I did find this in one of the bars I cut. I don't know about you but I always feel a sunrise in every cup of coffee that I drink. I am so glad that my Coffee Shoppe soap bears that out. :) :)

 My newest addition to the Coffee Shoppe line is Chai. Now, I know that I did a review of another Chai soap last month but I promise you that I was already planning on adding this one when I received the other soap in a swap. This Chai FO is also from thechemistrystore.com. I love this fragrance!!

For the lye water solution I made Black Tea at 3x strength because traditional Chai is made with Black Tea, Star Anise, Cinnamon, Clove, Allspice, White Peppercorn, Cardamom, Whole Milk and Sugar. I soaped cool with it and it behaved beautifully. In fact, I had to stick blend it a little more than I normally would in order to get it to thicken up on me. I only made a 2 lb batch with this FO since I didn't know how it would discolor and such. Well, I can tell you that this one will find a permanent home in my Coffee Shoppe line. I don't like the brown so much because I already have 2 brown soaps in the CS line. I am thinking that I will make it green next time. But I am planning on making a Green Tea soap as well so we will have to see what inspiration hits me.

Plain Jayne soaps are a hit amongst the older gentlemen that purchase my soaps. I have been told that they smell like Octagon. Have no idea what that smells like but, okay if you say so. I call them Plain Jayne because I don't add in an fragrance or colorants. Just Olive, Coconut, Palm and Grapeseed Oils and sometimes Shea and Mango Butters for extra nourishing qualities for the skin.

 

Speaking of men, I can't leave them out of my soaping portfolio so I created a soap just for men: Kentish Rain for Men. I have to say that I love this FO. I was first introduced to it by Bramble Berry in one of their masculine fragrance sniffy bottles. Oh whoa!!! I sold out of shower gels and MP soaps with this one. So then I said to myself, "Hey, make a CP bar with this FO.!!!!" I was hesitant to do so but I did. Now the FO that I used also came from thechemistrystore.com. It is a wonderful FO to soap with. I have soaped at 120 degrees F and I have soaped cool and either way they come out great!!!

 One complaint about TCS's gel lab colors is that those suckers will morph on you and stay wonky unless you force gel.

 This a re visioning of what I had previously made. The colors were supposed to have been Aqua and Bright Blue but Bright Blue turned Pink and then Purple. Not happy because I wanted 2 shades of blue! UGH! And I was going for the raindrop look from last year and it didn't happen. Not happy about that but what can ya do, right?

 Kentish Rain for Men, the original.

 

Cucumber Melon

 

What inspired me to attempt Cucumber Melon is the fact that my significant other absolutely loves this fragrance. So as a surprise to him I purchased this Bath and Body Works dupe from TCS and made him a soap. I will say that I soaped cool with this one and had about 20 minutes of play time with it. I also used 2 oz of Coconut Milk. I was concerned that the sugars in the coconut milk would cause the soap to super heat but, nope!! Not at all!! I used Lime and Canary Yellow gel lab colors and Titanium Dioxide from TCS and the colors didn't morph on me at all. The lather is creamy, lush and criminal. The scent sticks to the skin oh-so nicely.

 This is an inside pic. Can you see the face?

 This is an outdoor pic with

white poster board hiding my shed and grill.

 



 Last but not least is Baby Rose. Now I know that Bramble Berry has a Baby Rose FO that is a mix of Rose and Baby Powder FOs. This is my own personal blend using White Grapefruit, Rosemary Essential Oils and a few floral fragrance oils. The scent is so delicate. I love it!!! I have seen soapers post about not liking a blend but soaping with it because others love it but not me. There is only one FO that I hate with a passion but only soap with it because my best friend loves it and that is Vanilla. I have the smell of vanilla. I hate the taste of vanilla and I hate vanilla because it will discolor any soap to brown. UGH!!!

 I posted this pic on the Soapers Anonymous page and have had some interesting opinions of what people see in the picture. I love it.

 This another bar from the same log. I was even able to swirl the top of the log in two different manners.

 

 

 

So, I have 3 other soaps to blog about but not today. I think that I have inundated you enough.

 

 

Swapped Soaps Part 4!!!

Yay, me!! I absolutely love blogging about other people's soaps. So much so that I have a hard time getting out of the shower to actually blog about the soap. Oopsies!! Without further ado ...

 Extra Virgin Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Sustainable Palm Oil, Castor Oil

 Sodium Lactate, Distilled Water, Cream, Silk, Fragrance and Colorants

 

 

This hunk of chocolate-y goodness is Vanilla Chocolate Mint from Moe's Natural Products. It looks like fudge, is feels like fudge and it tastes like ... I don't know because I didn't eat any of it BUT if I could have ... *dramatic pause* I would have. I love the scent combo. I never would have thought to put all 3 scents together. I am glad that Moriam Akeju did.

 

The lather is instant, tight and creamy. The fun part is the lather. The more you lather the more bubbles you get. My skin isn't tight or sticky after exiting the shower, on the occasions that I do. The scent lingers on and has excellent throw. I know that candle makers speak in terms of scent throw and such but this one here! let me tell you, it throws and in a very good way. My daughter can always tell when I have showered with this particular bar. My skin isn't dry after I get out of the shower and that is saying something!! It does however smell like a bakery. Yum!!!

This is just a smattering of what all is available from Moe. For more delicious bars (Yes, Moriam I will be getting more bars from you.) contact: Moriam Akeju @    moesnaturalproducts@gmail.com

                                                                                               www.facebook.com/MoesNaturalProducts

 

 Olive, Rice and  Coconut Oils, Water, Cocoa Butter

 

 Sodium Hydroxide, Stearic Acid, Fragrance and Rose Clay

 

Thank you to Kate Boisoneau of Key Alchemy Soap Co.  for creating this dreamy bar of soap. I have many times said, in Soaper's Retreat, "Oh, that soap looks sexy" now I can say that I KNOW what sexy soap smells like. My heart faces a little and I feel a little flushed every time I smell this particular bar. Wowzas!!! There is a delicate play of Rose and Baby Powder, perhaps? Puts me in the mind of a soft wedding bouquet each time I smell it. No, I didn't share this bar with anyone. The fragrance is heady!! ***Attention Single Women*** Using this bar may actually cause you to attract a single man!!!! Bathe frequently and with great caution. :) :)

 

The lather works into the skin oh-so nicely!! I have been using this bar for over 2 weeks now and I can't get enough. I use this bar and Moe's bar and love the combination on my skin. Can we say "Fragrance Junkie"? I bet we can!!! It smells delicate. It looks creamy and delicious and I have to say that it delivers. For more goodies, contact Kate @ 509.392.3437

                                                                                 https://www.etsy.com/shop/KeyAlchemy

                                                                                 www.facebook.com/KeyAlchemySoapCo

 

I have enjoyed these soaps tremendously. I hope that everyone has an opportunity to shop with these lovely ladies.

Swapped Soaps Part 3

Hello Everyone!!

I am so sorry to have taken so long to post my next round of soap reviews. I have been using and reusing all of my the previously tested soaps. I was sunburned Thursday from the Rosewood Market. I went home and washed my face with Luxuriously Natural Soaps goat milk bar. I really soothed by face. So first up is ...

 Coconut, Olive and Castor Oils, Shea Butter and Vitamin E.

 

 

Sonya Black is the soaping diva who is the owner/operator of Luxuriously Natural Soaps. The particular bar that I had the pleasure of trying out is Festive Goat Milk soap. The smell is gentle and sweetly floral. The reds, purples and greens reminds me of Mardi Gras. The lather is tight and plentiful. Well, let me restart my saying this was a huge bar. I really appreciate it. Now back to the virtues of the bar. Now, the scent lingers after you get out of the shower. It is not overpowering. At first I couldn't detect it but when I did, oh buddy!!!! I am very impressed.

 

I must also state that I love the Berry lip balm. I can put this on in the morning, have 2 cups of coffee, eat breakfast and also chat for hours and my lips don't dry out. This one my daughter will NOT swipe from me. Sonya thank you so much for the great gift of this bar. If you want to obtain more goodies please contact Sonya: www.luxuriouslynatural.com

                                                          natproducts2@gmail.com

                                                          www.facebook.com/luxnatsoap

                                                          910.378.9064

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                                                     

 Olive, Coconut and Soy Oils

 

Paige Bowser is the owner/operator of Breezy Quarters. Let me first say that I love Peppermint scented ANYTHING!!! However, too much of it will create a lasting cooling sensation in the nether regions, if you get my drift. Paige has made sure that we wouldn't have to be concerned with that. It has a very light peppermint fragrance. A very cleansing hard bar. I love a hard bar that way I don't have to worry about it melting in the shower. Love it. Love it. Love it!! I even shared a sliver with my daughter. I have to say that I have been very blessed to have participated in this swap because of all the great soaps that I have received from everyone. If you want to feel just as blessed then be sure to look up Paige for more: www.BreezyQuarters.com





                                          
Thank you everyone for reading. Please be sure to comment as well as seek out these talented ladies for more of their wares. Until next time.

More on Swapped Soaps

*** This is to correct my previous post where I erroneously attributed The Purple Sage to Lillian Lane but is owned and ran by Sandy Worsham Engels. ***


Good Morning!!

I have been having great mornings and nights since I received my soaps last Thursday. I absolutely love soap swaps. Call me a swap whore if you want (and you couldn't be more accurate ;) ). I have been showering for 2 days with Green Chai Tea and Cactus Flower. Heaven!

 Olive, Palm, Coconut, Palm Kernel, Avocado, Apricot Kernel and Castor Oils

 Cocoa Butter, Cocoa Powder, Fragrance, French Green Clay and Titanium Dioxide

 Love this packaging!!

 

Green Chai Tea is brought to you by Brenna McMahill of Spokane, WA. I love this soap! I feel that I am showering in a cup of chai rather than just bathing with a bar of scented soap. Yummm!! Great for me but bad for my water bill. (tee, hee). The lather is instant, creamy and thick. There is a subtle warmth from the cinnamon and star anise of the Chai. Cocoa Butter, Avocado Oil and Apricot Kernel Oil add depth to the already present skin nourishing goodness of Coconut and Palm Oils.

 

 When I sniff the bar I can taste the warm milky chai at the back of my throat. This bar lovely. I had thought to add Chai to my Coffee Shoppe line but after bathing with this bar I don't feel that I have anything to offer. LOL It is okay though. I don't mind because I can just purchase more of Brenna's bars. (tee, hee)  If I was a cafe owner I would definitely have this item on my counter for sale! Well done, Brenna! You can contact Brenna for more goodies at blmcmahill@gmail.com

 

 

Next up is Cactus Flower by The Purple Sage .

 

 Olive, Coconut, Palm Kernel, Rice Bran and Avocado Oils

 Unrefined Shea and Cocoa Butters, Tussah Silk, Fragrance and Mineral Color



Sandy Worsham Engels is the genius behind this intriguing soap. I can smell the soft sweet fragrance through the paper. It reminds me of the Cactus Candy I once purchased in Arizona. (Road trip, don't ask. No, seriously, don't. ask.) Very soft aroma reminds me of late Spring in South Carolina. First, thing in the morning when the birds are chirping, a slight chill from the late night is still in the air but the flowers have begun to open up and there is a gentle wafting of florals greeting you as you walk out to your car. Reminiscent of promises of fun and gardening. There is something elusive about this fragrance.

This bar lathers oh so softly and at first the scent is undetectable until you start to rinse and then it gently tickles your nose but you don't become desensitized to it. No! As you lather again the scent becomes stronger and yet stays gentle. I don't know how Lillian achieved this but her technique with fragrance crafting is admirable. I love it. I love how understated the design is because it matches your first whiff of the bar. It also suckers you because once you start using the bar there is no turning back. Thank you, The Purple Sage!!! For more goodies please contact Lillian at www.thepurplesage.com
                                                                                                                       225.244.5076

Please continue to tune in for more of my soap reviews from this current swap. Love you much!!