Sex On The Beach...

Yeah, I WISH! Actually-on second thought-I'd probably rather not have sand where sand wasn't meant to be. LOL!

No, my SOTB is in a bottle! A lotion bottle. I mixed up some lotion a week or two ago with SOTB fragrance oil. I have to tell you, I wanted to lick my arm. Oh man, it was coconut and something sweet. But not too sweet. I've never been a coconut person; no cocoa butter on my stretch marks, even. Just couldn't take the smell somehow. But my SOTB and also my Pina Colada lotion is really ringing my bell. Sometimes I just walk by and sniff the bottles of fragrance oil.

Mango is also yummy. I saw a pineapple fragrance oil somewhere too, and it's calling my name. I can barely wait until fall (it's my favorite season) and all I can think about is tropical scents. Is that weird?

The best thing about making soaps and lotions is the way my house smells. Every day I have a new scent floating about. Yesterday it was peppermint essential oil. Today it was a really snappy cranberry. Tonight I have a batch of Monkey Farts. Go ahead and snicker; it is a funny name. I'm probably going to get it into bars tomorrow morning. So what will be wafting through the air tomorrow? Well, tomorrow has yet to be determined. I'm open to suggestions, though. Feel free to post your comments here and we'll see what we can do!

Hello!...Anybody home???

Yuppers, I have been completely off the grid lately. I've been getting my dd into K-5, helping her adjust to public school, and somehow trying to get Swanky Suds moving. WHEW!!!

One good thing about my dd going to school (besides the obvious quieter house) is the wait in the car rider line. No matter what timeI get there, I wait about 20-30 minutes before she actually gets into the vehicle. I've been spending the time with my notebook and vendor lists planning my GRAND OPENING which is slated for September 1.

I'm really excited about the plans for Swanky Suds. We're not just your everyday bath and body company, we're working on some really unique product lines. I have our Happy Hour line in the works: all of your favorite cocktails in toiletries form. Of course, we have our Everything Chocolate line, and I'm working on a really fun line of candy scented products (like Banana Taffy and Jolly Ranchers!). I coined a phrase this afternoon: Olfactory Dessert. That's what we are at Swanky Suds. So, you can start your day with dessert--because life is short, right?

My 5 Year-Old Entrepreneur

My daughter is so funny. She's helping me with my biz. Last night she screwed caps on lotions for me. She "chooses" the colors and scents for me too.

She is almost as obsessed with business as I am. Right now she's making books to sell. She wants to make money, money, money! I'm trying to find a way to get her involved in the biz because it's a perfect time for her to learn. She's so enthusiastic!

Her K-5 teacher has informed her class about a selling contest. Camille (my dd) says her teacher told her they have to "Sell! Sell! Sell!" punctuated with a fist pounding her palm. *sigh* I really hate how they use kids to sell--pardon my french--crap. But there's really no way to explain this to Camille, because she throws her whole heart into everything she does. What to do with a sweet earnest little one? I guess I have to bite my tongue and encourage her.

And, get her involved selling something real (like our stuff!).

And now it begins...

I just got my first gift basket out a couple of days ago, and today I mailed out a box of samples that will be given out at a scrapbooking crop. I think I'm planning a grand opening launch of my website for Sept. 1. I'm hoping that will give me enough time to get the website up and going.

In the meantime, sign up for my newsletter to be the first to know about specials and to receive subscribers'-only coupons. You can click on the subscribe button right here on my blog!

And now, I'm off to get my website up and running...

Wish me luck!

Working on my first sale!

I'm working on a gift basket for a fantastic lady. She's sending it to a customer of hers; her customer is celebrating her first anniversary in business. Isn't that so sweet? If you want to see for yourself how great she is, pop over to her website: http://www.onecreativebug.com . She sells some really unique scrap supplies and has a summer shipping special going on now.

So now is a really busy time for me. I've got the ladies at Scrapbiz volunteering to be my R&D department, so I have to get samples out to them. I have to get the basket finalized and mailed out. I also need to get some samples sent out to Christy's crop next weekend. There will be 30 potential customers there! AND, since I'll have customers coming to the site, I have to get it up and going.

And did I mention that I have a 5 year old (home from school until the 20th) and an 8 month-old (who wants me to pick him up every time I pass by)?

It'll work out. It always does. I'm just excited that things are taking off so quickly!

My life is over...

And I'm totally psyched!

It's my beadmaking life that I just packed up. I'm selling all of my equipment: torch, tools, glass, and everything else to a great beadmaker in Atlanta. It has been what I did and who I was for-goodness!-almost 10 years! My daughter is a little upset. She has watched me make beads "to get money" all her life. Of course, I "got money" to take her to McDonalds and Toys R Us, at least in her world. Isn't the preschool mind awesome?

I've struggled for years to find out what my true "passion" is. I thought it was beads, but making them was always a "chore." I got into it so I could work from home, be my own boss, and stay home with my children. Beads gave me everything that I wanted. I just want more now.

It has been said that your passion is what you'd do for free. In my case, I realized that it was what I was already doing for free. I love making soap, reading about soap recipes, lotions, creams, butters-if you can smear it on your body, then I'm into it!

The money I made from my beadmaking equipment I'm pumping right into Swanky Suds. I couldn't be happier. I already have a customer requesting a custom gift basket. It's Swanky Suds' first sale. WOO HOO!!

What's In Your Shower?

What kind of personal care products are your favorites? Do you go for all the bells and whistles (or in this case scrubs and creams) or are you keep it simple?

Me, I'm a simple kinda gal. I buy a 2 in 1 shampoo. I lather once and don't repeat. I use my peppermint soap. It's a strong soap that can kinda heat up sensitive areas. My husband doesn't really like it so strong, but I'm no softie when it comes to peppermint soap.

I do like a yummy smelling lotion, though, after I get out of the shower. Makes me feel like a woman, LOL! I know my lotion is good when my clothes smell good going into the washing machine after I've worn them.

Have you ever noticed how much scent changes mood and even brings back memories? There's a shower gel I took with me on my honeymoon. Whenever I use it now, it takes me right back to that time--the excitement and wonder of what will be. It has been eleven years, and I can still go right back to that little cabin in July, with the window open and a soft breeze floating in.

It will be interesting to see what scents take me back to this time in my life. Will peppermint soap make me think of a time when my children, ages 6 years and 8 months, were young? Will the lotion my mom brought me while I was in the hospital with my newborn son make me think of that time?

It's easy to see why we love scent in our homes, our soaps, our lotions, and perfumes. It's woven into our lives with threads that elevate our mood and make our days just a little better. It's a little luxury we can enjoy in the midst of our hectic lives. So put a little something in your shower that makes you smile. You spend your days making others around you smile; it's time you did the same for yourself!

Why Shea Is All The Rage

Have you ever wondered what makes shea so great? Now you find shea everywhere--heck, they're putting it in baby wipes!

While I'm not really sure that the Shea in baby wipes is all that effective, Shea, be it in butter or oil, is fabulous in personal care products. I have a Shea glycerin soap base that tempts me to like it better than my own recipe (but my vanity won't let me!).

Take a look at the following list of oils we commonly use in our soaps. Each oil lends its own magic to each bar:

• Shea Butter/oil: The majority of skin-nourishing ingredients Shea lends to a bar of soap remain after reacting with lye in the saponification process. Shea soothes and moisturizes, protecting irritated skin.
• Coconut oil: This is where the magic begins. Coconut produces a delicious lather. We're talking big explosions of bubbles. Not even hard water or salt water affects its lathering abilities.
• Sunflower oil: Sunflower is a favorite of ours. This oil is high in essential fatty acids and vitamin E. It's good for moisturizing and regenerating skin.
• Palm oil: Palm is a very mild oil that helps soap saponify quicker. It makes a hard, longer lasting bar.
• Olive oil: Olive prevents skin from losing its natural moisture and attracts additional external moisture to your skin. Olive makes an exceptionally mild bar.
• Cocoa butter: Cocoa butter lays down a protective layer that holds moisture in the skin. It also assists in producing a harder, longer lasting bar of soap.