SCHOOL STARTS!
It's that time of the year again, the kids go back to school.
I'm not ready for this at all. Three of mine start a new school and one remains in his old school.
They are all in charter schools so we have to pay a small amount to help give the school the money the state doesn't. With 4 kids it gets to be really expensive! Supplies, new clothes and 'activity fees' to the school mean we can spend up to $1500 getting them ready! We start saving as soon as school ends!
Along with the begining of school, we also have some new soaps to tell you about.
First is the Lily of the Valley that has been curing for 8 weeks. For some reason it just took a long time to get ready. Well, you know the saying 'Good things are worth the wait.' This is wonderful soap, loads of lather and scent.
Banana Kiwi has made a come back. It was loved at the begining of the summer and now it's back. It's one of those that you think it going to hate but one whiff and you must have it! It souds like a kids' soap but is loved by the 25-40 somethings. Check it out!
We are in the midst of revamping our website. It's going to be clean, crisp and easy to punch around on. Look for it at the end of August along with some great sales on new lip balms, winter lotions and soaps.
Tom and I ride in the Lance Armstrong LIVESTRONG Challange this Sunday. Wish us luck!
Until next time. . .
G
What We've Been Up To. . .
Okay so my last post was end of March and it's now the end of July. I've been busy!
EarthSpa has had a booth at the local Farmer's Market since the begining of May. Each Saturday I get up at 5:30 (on a Saturday!!) and by 8 AM I'm all set up for sales. I have my soaps, my lotions and wax scent chips. I also have aroma beads and tarts. So far it's been really fun! The market lasts 6 hours and we've had some rather hot days, triple digits at least twice.
That makes the people run for A/C but I still do well enough to pay the bills. The whole point is to get my products out there so when the market ends, people will buy from the website or by calling me direct. Hope it works! :)
On the soap front, I've made many many different soaps. We've added a line of Olive Oil soaps, Hemp soaps, and some Goat's Milk soaps. Our current best sellers are the Goat's Milk Oatmeal and Honey, Lilac Shea Soap, and Green Clover & Aloe Shea Soap. I sell out of those most every week. Need to start making two batches of those per week to stay caught up!
On others fronts, Tom and I are biking more and more. I finally got a new bike and it's even better than my husbands $1300 bike. I've had it 10 days and have 100+ miles and her. The first week we did a couple small 12-18 mile rides and a 27 mile run. This week we have done a couple 18 miles and did 36 miles last night. I'm having trouble walking today. I eye the stairs in my house and then send one of my kids up the stairs to get whatever I need. I need some pain meds, I think. Or another soak in my hot tub . . . or both.
Until next time!
EarthSpa Now Carries Reed Diffusers
Reed Diffusers!These are the hottest, newest craze in home air freshening. No heat required, can be used in homes with birds (where candles cannot go), and very long lasting are some of the benefits of these great products.
What
IS a Reed Diffuser?
A vase with a mixture of fragrance oil and a special liquid that helps the fragrace oil become thinner and speical reeds that act as straws and disperse the scent thoughout the room. Turing the reeds once a week will help the reeds to maintian their ability to draw the oil up and into the air. No real mainenance required!
Here is a photo of our Mini Reed Diffuser. This is the perfect size for small rooms like bathrooms, or your office cubicle.
Priced at $9.95 plus shipping, lasting up to 2-3 months, these are also really economical. We also have refills available in many different scents from flirty and floral to calming and spicy.
Our Voluminous Reed Diffuser is made for the whole house or for a very large area. This diffuser holds 500ml of the mix and should last up to 9 months! It will also float nicely all around the house to make the whole house (one floor, can't seem to get up those stairs) smell wonderful!!
Check out my eBay listings for some great deals!
Ginny
Been Awhile!
Hey All,
Sorry it's been a while since my last post. Loads of stuff has happened.
Flu, new soaps, new car, biodiesel.
The
Flu swept through our house. Was NOT very pretty. Hope to avoid that next season.
Some of you know that my husband and I own a small neighborhood bar outside Boulder Colorado. We have a full kitchen which means we have a fryer full of waste veggie oil twice a week. With the drive we have each day, 45 minutes and 35 miles ONE WAY, we are spending $400+ per month is gas bills. We decided to purchase a new car (an old Mercedes Benz diesel) and make our own biodiesel from the waste veggie oil. So far, so good! So, we're environmentally conscience, the oil gets a second life and we save money on the fuel. Win, win!
There's a lot of info on biodiesel on the net, the best place to learn and discuss is the infopop group on biofuels.
www.biodiesel.infopop.cc If you're interested in learning more, this is the place.
As for new soaps, I've been busy!!!
New scents include Cherry Blossom, Peach Melon Gardenia (my own blend), Gardenia (a clear soap with pink and purple chunks in it), a Gardeners Soap for getting the smells of dirt and fertilizer off your hands, and last but not least the ever popular Green Tea and Tea Tree Oil Soap, good for all kinds of skin ailments.
The Cherry Blossom is the copy of the BBW scent, but without the fillers that BBW uses in their glycerin soap. The soap is a swirl of pink and white and smells like Sprintime.
Peach Melon Gardenia is now my new favorite. I blended this scent myself and have put a small bar in my undies drawer to make them smell nice. Okay and I made a whole batch of it to bathe with. It's so nice I just love it.
Gardenia is also a really nice scented soap. I used clear glycerin soap for this as sometimes the clear is just cool looking. I used some chunks of pink and purple soap inside it to make it even cool looking. The scent is heavier than I usually do, but Gardenia is a perfumey scent so you smell good after.
The Gardener's Soap is a nicely lightly scented blend of Lavender, Lime and Peppermint. Strange sounding I know, but it's really a nice blend. It's also got whole Oatmeal and ground Rosemary inside it. These help get rid of dirt and oil and smells that you get while diggin' in the dirt. I originally made this soap for my son and I. We're making a veggie garden this year as a mom and son project. My neighbor smelled the soap and decided that she needed a few so another big batch was born. This glycerin soap is clear but colored a medium orange so you can see the oatmeal and rosemary inside. A great looking as well as functional soap.
Green Tea and Tea Tree Oil soap is my most popular. It's great for excema and psoriasis and really dry skin. It's got ground green tea leaves in the clear soap, colored green, as well as Tea Tree Essentail Oil. My husbands side of the family suffers from Psoriasis and my 6 year old daughter also has it on her legs. We use this on her legs to help combat it. I did not overdue the tea tree. I've smelled some soap that is so overpwering that it's hard to use. This soap is scented enough to smell it and to be beneficial but not so eye watering that you don't want to use it.
I've also got a nice liquid soap, 100% Castille (olive oil) soap that comes in a foam pump. Unscented but I can add scent to it if you like. It's 8 ounces that can be used for both body and hair. Wonderful soap.
So, that's what I've been doing for the past month.
If you see anything you want/need feel free to email me!
Thanks so much,
Ginny
imagesinthewind@interfold.comimagesinthewind on eBay
My Favorite Supplier
Normally I create my soap using the 'scratch' way, with veggie or olive oils and lye to create my handmade soaps. Right now, I've got three cats and kids that are just not in the mood to allow me the time and alone-ness that is needed when working with lye.
I decided to see what glycerin soap base can do. I've used what some call Melt and Pour soap before for cute bath soaps for my kids, and some art soaps, but never really did any 'adult' soaping with it. I don't like the words 'Melt and Pour' because it takes away from what this stuff is. It's real soap, made with lye and veggie oil, just not made by me. I can take this soap, heat it up and add goodies that make it extra moisturizing, exfoliating and acne fighting. I use the same molds that I do when I make lye soap, I cut it the same way and wrap it nicely. It's great to work with and I don't have to worry about inhaling lye fumes. BTW, lye fumes are toxic and smell like lilacs. I know this because I have inhaled the fumes and then spent 20 minutes coughing them back up. I've also spilled it on my hardwood floors and it's a very difficult job trying to clean up what would eat your skin if you touch it. Sometimes a pre-made soap base is just what the doctor ordered.
So, I went on a hunt to find the best base I could. I bought 2 pound chunks from 8 different suppliers. I found two that I like a lot. I've decided to get my base from one company. I chose this company because they also have some of the nicest fragrance oils (I use BOTH essential oils and fragrance oils in my bath products) that I've found. The service is outstanding, and the people are ultra friendly.
The company is called Gelluminations. They sell mostly soy candle supplies (which are also excellent) but also have skin safe fragrances and soap base, colorants and other bath/body manufacturing supplies. The company is owned by Terry and Lisa, if you visit, tell them Ginny said 'hi'.
Find them at their website:
www.creativeilluminations.comToday's soap batches were Cherry Blossom, a BBW scent. It's a pretty pinky color and smells like Heaven! The second batch is a big favorite, Chocolate and Vanilla Twist. Made with Ghirardelli Chocolate and Vanilla Bean fragrance, this one is swirled chocolate and white. It's also a heavenly scent. And no, the chocolate doesn't make you feel sticky, but beware going near a chocolate lover. They may just eat you up!
Have a good night, visit again soon!
What a weekend!
I live in Denver. This weekend is huge for Denver with the Bronco playing for the AFC Championship. Everywhere you look: ORANGE and BLUE.
Here are some pictures of the newest and coolest stuff from EarthSpa.
Here is the magic kitchen. I make all the stuff for EarthSpa right here.
This is what our packaging looks like:
Our newest scents are Heather and Hyacinth, Black Raspberry Vanilla, and Vanilla Bean.
We're also working hard on our new line of Bath Salts made with Sea Salt, Dendritic Salt, and Epsom Salt. Some will include Buttermilk, Goats Milk or Whole Milk for a more creamy bath.
Essential Oils are the only fragrance that will be used to keep the salts as natural as possible.
I should have them ready for sale by the end of the week. I'll get pictures up soon.
Go Broncos!!
Thanks for Stopping by,
Ginny
Our First Blog Day! Jan 8, 2006
Happy New Year and Welcome to our Blog!
Hopefully I will be around every few days to update you on our products, show the new products before they get to the website or our eBay auctions.
EarthSpa will open it's kitchen this year to those who want to see and learn how to make wonderful all-natural body and bath products. If you're in the Denver area, drop us a note and we'll help you in anyway we can. Classes in your home are fun and fragrant (your home will smell wonderful for days!) and we only charge for ingredients we use.
Email me for more info.
We at
EarthSpa Bath and Body are:
Ginny Newman (Queen of BB products, formulator and tester)
Angel Newman (daughter, Princess 1, helper and tester)
Tom Newman (son, Prince 1, occasional helper and tester)
Journey Newman (daughter, Princess 2, helper and tester)
Roam Newman (son, Prince 2, helper and tester)
Check back for photos, recipes, and new product info.
I also knit, so you might happen upon an occassional knitting pattern for washcloths or mittens. Or maybe a nice warm mobius scarf!
Thanks for stopping by,
Ginny
