KristysLovelyLathers.etsy.com

Just looking around on Etsy and I spotted these pretty soaps. I would really like to get a slab mold to try out some of cool designs like these. Right now I just have loaf molds and some other shaped molds. Anyways, I think these are really pretty. I love the artistry some people put into their soaps. Check them out: KristysLovelyLathers

Business Cards

I ordered some business cards from vistaprint.com yesterday. Hope you all like the design I came up with. :)

Felted Soap

My felted soap came out okay. I think I still need to work on the technique. I had trouble getting about a 1 inch section where there was roving overlap to blend with itself. So, it sticks out a little. I think as I use it in the shower it will get better. Next time I will try with a little bit less roving. I think it would probably be much quicker if I had a wash board, but I really just don't want to spend the money on one. I tried out the soap in the shower this morning and it was not as sudsy as when I was making the soap. I wonder if every time I use it if it will take that long to get really sudsy? Or maybe it just took so long because I had fully dried the soap after I felted it.

So cute!

I just came across this AMAZING description of saponification. You must check it out. It will certainly put a smile on your face!

Hope you all had a nice Easter and were able to spend some time with your loved ones!

Felting soap

I just received two packages of roving that I purchased from Maine Woods Yarn & Fiber on etsy. They are absolutely beautiful. I can't wait to see how they look on soap. I am going to try out felting some of my soap tomorrow. I will let you know how it turns out. I will be following the instruction that are posted at Mielke's Fiber Arts they have a great tutorial with lots of photos. have any of you tried out felting soap? If so how do you like it?

I am official!

Well, I took the plunge and sent in my application to become a registered business. This means that starting April 1 I will have to charge a 6% sales and use tax for products sold in Connecticut. I am quite excited to become "official". I have spent about 2 weeks pouring over books and the Connecticut government website. I found two books to be really useful for this transition: Soapmaking for Fun & Profit by Maria Nerius and Handmade for Profit by Barbara Brabec.

I also received my water resistant labels today! I purchased them from Brown Kraft Labels just 2 days ago! It is always exciting to receive a package in the mail. :) I will be spending tomorrow trying to make some pretty designs for deodorant, scrubs and lip balm.

Peppermint Massage Bar

I just made two peppermint massage bars. It is probably best used on your feet, but could be used all over. I just tried it on my feet and it really feels nice. I put it on about an hour ago and my feet still feel nice and tingly. I used a peppermint essential oil in it which can help smooth and relax muscles when applied to the skin. I think this will be really great to use are a hard workout or after standing on your feet all day. I am going to use Dylan as my guinea pig for this product. He just had a black belt test on Friday for Kempo and has been complaining all weekend that he is sooo sore. Let's see if this massage bar help to relieve the pain!