Time To Get Glossy!

Now that the weather is starting to chill ever-so-slightly, I wanted to make something delicious and nourishing for our skins-a liquid sponge so to speak, and I think I've hit the jackpot! Meet my new bath and body oils called Gloss. I am in love with Gloss-not because I made it, okay, maybe a little bit, but they've re-introduced me to the art of bathing! I don't like taking baths, but now that I work out in the evenings, my aching bod looks forward to a warm tub full of skin-softening oils. The cool thing about Gloss is the oils do not just float on top of the water like the Gulf spill, but it transforms your bath water into a scented and silky private spa escape. Here's what's in it:

• Sweet Almond Oil: skin-softening and rich in proteins, minerals, and fatty acids
• Golden Jojoba Oil (hence the color)-Rich in vitamin E and known for its healing properties and leaving a silky, satiny barrier on the skin
• Apricot Kernel Oil-Rich in vitamins A&E, and penetrates deep into the skin without leaving a heavy, oily residue. It's also known to help skin retain elasticity and suppleness
• Avocado Oil-Superb skin hydrator absorbing deep into skin tissues.  It also helps to relieve the dryness and itchiness of psoriasis and eczema.
• Fractionated Coconut Oil-straight carrier oil that helps the more therapeutic oils (see above) absorb more readily into the skin.
• Tocopherol-anti-oxidant so the oils don't go apesh*t on you.

So there you have it! On their own, these oils are pretty powerful, but when combined together, they're the Justice League of skin moisturizers, and they're now available here in 3 fabulous scents:

Raspberry Hooray!

 Raspberry Hooray

Meet my second official holiday soap: Raspberry Hooray. This time I stayed kind of true to what we expect in a holiday scent: something sweet, edible-smelling, and fun, and this one does not disappoint! Last year, I made this soap, Lardy For the Party in the same scent, and it was a hit. I really didn't know what the reception would be, but i had one customer buy 4 of them at once, and I only made 9 bars, so yeah, I was pretty pleased, lol. Unlike Lardy, however, Raspberry Hooray is totally vegan.

 Lardy For The Party

 Raspberry Hooray contains top notes of raspberry, pear, and apple, with middle notes of Madagascar Vanilla, sugarcane, butter, and maple, and bottomed out with a shot of vanilla extract. Okay, that's the official scent description, but I gotta tell ya: All I smell is pure raspberry and cream. That was all I needed to convince me to use this fragrance! Raspberry Hooray will make its offficial day-bew in the coming weeks....

Do Not Eat This Soap!

Pepper jumped up on my work table the other day after I un-molded this baby and was sniffing hard-to the point where I swear her grubby, little tongue was going to start flickering in and out at any minute. You would have had to call the Human Society on me if she did because it took me forever to make this soap!

I adapted it from this WSP recipe, and I'm pretty please with the results. Apple Pie is my most favorite pie in the world (with sweet potato and lemon meringue running a very close second), and I had planned on making a cold processed version of it, but I wasn't sure if the scent would hold up and I was still toying with a design for it. Thank goodness, I found this one because that cp version would have probably never gotten made.

Without going into a lot of detail (visit the link for all that fun stuff), this soap took me about 3 hours to completely make. I already had mold to make apple/peach slices, so I cheated on that part. The longest and most annoying part of making layered melt and pour soaps for me is the setting up between layers. If you don't let each layer set up firmly enough, your next layer could just seep all the way through and ruin the batch. If you let each layer set up too long, then you'll have an obvious line of demarcation like my last layer. I didn't intend to do that but the finished soap would have been very squat-looking-like a half bar, and I wanted the apple slices to stick out on top so I created a new layer. Anyway, here they are: Pretty Brown Apples: apple pie-scented-with-a-hint-of-snicker doodle topped with brown sugar soap! And yep, they're available now.

Naughty or Nice? How About Nicety!

I’m not waiting til the last minute like I always do to start crafting my holiday offerings. I will have 3 official holiday soaps this year. I usually only do one, but these soaps will carry you into the Hanukkah, Christmas, and Kwanzaa season and beyond! For this one, I deviated from the traditional holiday scents like sugar cookie or frankincense and myrrh, or basically anything with vanilla in it and decided to go darker.

First up is Nicety. It’s part naughty and part nice. There was also a song back in the day called Nicety. Whatever happened to Michel’le? Oh well, I digress (when don’t I digress…) I wanted Nicety to be “sooty” not entirely black, but I had a heavy hand with the black oxide. I should have only used a pinch instead of 3! You can barely see the poppy seeds in the body of the soap, so I compensated by sprinkling little sooty balls on top. The soap is scented in a blend of sweet orange and patchouli (love this combo-the ultimate naughty meets nice) with a little hint of fir needle to give it an unexpected “Hmmmm” factor. No, this soap doesn’t smell like a fir tree. It smells like a nice romp in the woods with someone you don’t mind getting naughty with..

Soap Diversion: Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies

I am a cookie fiend-particularly a chocolate chip cookie fiend. I'm the type of gal who believes in a good, sinful cookie, meaning I don't want applesauce substituted for oil, and whole wheat flour in lieu of the regular variety. Cookies are supposed to be bad, and I've rarely met a chocolate chip cookie I didn't like.  I'm always on the prowl for easy and tasty recipes. I found one that sounded really good (from allrecipes.com), but I'm not a fan of cranberries, so I substituted those with dried cherries. Dried cherries are the bomb! They are soft and chewy, and don't get all hard and icky like raisins tend to be. Anyway, let's get to the recipe, shall we?


Ingredients:
2 cups of all purpose white flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup of unsalted butter, melted
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup dried cherries

Instructions:

   1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.
   2. Sift together the flour, baking soda and salt; set aside.
   3. In a medium bowl, cream together the melted butter, brown sugar and white sugar until well blended.       Beat in the vanilla, egg, and egg yolk until light and creamy. Mix in the sifted ingredients until just blended. Stir in the chocolate chips & cherries by hand using a wooden spoon. Drop cookie dough 1/4 cup at a time onto the prepared cookie sheets. Cookies should be about 3 inches apart.
   4. Bake for 15 to 17 minutes in the preheated oven, or until the edges are lightly toasted. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes before transferring to wire racks to cool completely.

Okay, if you're not a baker like myself, here is my #1 tip to remember:

1. Don't just dump the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Truly sift them to break up any clumps. I used my good ole metal colander to do this. My first time making these, my cookies were a disaster-but an edible, nonetheless. I found that by sifting the dry ingredients, the dough made for a puffier, more filling cookie. 

Now, all you health nuts, go ahead and make your substitutions. I'll still love you for ruining a perfectly good recipe:D

Lube Jobs-Not Just For Cars and Sex Anymore!

I thought that would grab your attention! I'm so proud of my new emulsions. I've finally learned to make them, and I've been tweaking my recipe until I discovered a consistency and texture that I can live with because I'd never sell anything I would not personally use myself!

My formula is pretty simplistic. I use a combination of apricot kernel, sweet almond oil (which are both light and quick-absorbing), and unrefined shea butter which I am in love with. It's my favorite, go-to butter for all things wonderful and skin-quenching. The shea butter provides the oomph needed to take this lube to the next level. It compliments the sweet almond oil wonderfully. I like my shea raw and unrefined. we read so much about shea butter but what does it really do? The question should be what doesn't it do? It too is quick-absorbing yet ultra-moisturizing and is ideal for dry, weather-beaten skin, eczema, psoriasis, hair...


These babies are packaged in 4 oz jars. A little goes a long way, and they're available in both my ArtFire and Etsy shops now. Like my new labels?

Goodies From CR Nest!

I have met some wonderful people online-people I'm ashamed to say I probably would not be friends with if I didn't make soap. It's not because of who they are or where they are, but it's because I am notoriously shy. Yes, I am. The web allows me to be anonymous in a sense, but it also allows my true personality to shine. If we were all in a group setting, I would hardly say 2 words other than Hello and Good-bye. But I digress...

One on my newest friends is Courtney from Courtney Robyn's "Nest." I love her! She's such a sweetheart and truly supportive of her online friends:) Well, I didn't know Court had a FB Fan Page ) because I sometimes read my favorite blogs with blinders on). I can't even remember how the whole thing played out, but I notices she only had 99 fans, and I like even numbers, so I decided to become her 100th fan (I would have fanned her regardless). So I went on FB to brag about it, and I won some goodies! Now isn't that lovely? Yack, yack, yack...Here's the lowdown on the loot:

1. A full-sized lip balm called Honey Bee-and it's made with emu oil. Me likey! It smells like fresh honey. This will go in my office desk drawer because I'm eating salty peanuts all day so my lips are constantly dried out...
2. Brown Sugar Scrub Balls. Now that's original! And oh-my-gosh, they smell like cinnamon donut holes. I wanna eat them-seriously!
3. Lily of the Valley CP soap slice. Okay, I'm not a floral lover, but lily of the valley gets a pass! This one's made with lard, shea butter, and avocado oils-loves it! I've liked this scent for a couple of years now after getting a sample from another soap maker. I even bought the fragrance with the intention of making a soap, but it never materialized. Now, I must revisit that idea...
4. Green Clover and Aloe Castile Soap slice. Fresh and delicious! This is an old throwback Bath & Body Works scent, and I love it! 

Thanks Courtney! It was a wonderful, delightful, and inspiring surprise:)

My New Cupcake Soaps!

I'm officially stating for the record: I aint never making cupcake soaps with a glycerin base again! (Okay, that was a double negative which cancels itself, so technically I have given myself a window of opportunity...) My newest cupcakes are CPOP soaps, and while it's a messy, yucky process, the outcome is well worth it in my biased opinion.

 The Big Damn Lemon Cupcake Lust

 Smashing Pumpkin Cupcake Lust

 
Here we have The Big Damn Lemon Cupcake Lust and Smashing Pumpkin Cupcake Lust. If you know my lemon well, you know why it's called "The Big Damn Lemon". Smashing Pumpkin was a beautiful, deep orange, but the color straight faded-the vanilla stabilizer perhaps? Anyway, it's a blend of straight pumpkin, a minute amount of cassia essential oil  for added scent, brown sugar, with a generous dash of ground cinnamon and gold soap sparkle. They'll make their debuts in my new online shop around the 15th-ish.

7 of the Weirdest Soaps You Have Ever Seen

While I'm busy working on my website, I've solicited a little help from my friends to keep you entertained. Enjoy!

 
“This guest post was contributed by You Are Art”

Bacon Soap

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When we think of a typical morning at home, we normally think of certain smells wafting through the air. The smell of bacon is one of those scents. However, we usually think of the smell coming from the kitchen and that's not necessarily the case nowadays. Bacon Soap is an amazing, cleansing soap with the aroma of freshly cooked bacon. And, honestly, who doesn't like to smell like bacon?

Soapsicles

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Soapsicles are a great way to feel fresh and summery in the shower. They look almost good enough to eat with flavours and scents ranging from rich chocolate to tart lemon. The adorable ribbon on the stick of each adds a touch of cuteness to the bar of soap. Just don't pop these goodies into the freezer or someone might be tempted to take a bite.

Sushi Soap

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If you love oriental cuisine and enjoy nothing more than fine dining: sushi style, then you are in for a treat when you realize that you can also bathe with sushi. Sushi Soap is a great way to bring your favourite cuisine into the bathtub. The fantastic to-go tray makes this soap an instant eye-catching display.

Poop Soap

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Playing practical jokes on loved ones can be such a joyous experience. And what better way to prank a friend or relative than by putting a bar of soapy poop on the kitchen sink? Poop Soap is a fantastic way to add a touch of humour to your life. I hope that this soap is just for ‘pranking’ and doesn't also have the aroma of poop.

Heart Soap

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Not your traditional Valentine's Day hearts, these Heart Soaps are a sure fire way of saying "I Love You" to that special someone in your life. Alternatively, this soap makes a fantastic gift to any heart surgeon or Goth. This could also make a fantastic Halloween prop for those boring, everyday bathrooms.

Gaming Soaps

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Cleansing with ordinary soap can be boring and tedious for those who would rather be playing games. However, there are several soaps out there that will even catch the attention of avid game players. Tetris Soap is a fun way to put together puzzles while taking a bath, allowing thinking skills to develop even while washing up.

Xbox Controller Soap

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Alternatively, Xbox lovers will enjoy the thrill of washing with their favourite console game controller.