kidsngarden

I'm pretty sure I've never seen a coconut without vanilla in it so that would be one. Sometimes the melon scents do too. Bethany

I've decided my two lip balm bases will have to wait until the fall to be sold again as they don't hold up in the heat as well as I would like (though glorious in the cooler months!). One has beeswax, SAO, Shea, & cocoa butter. The other is Rice bran oil, beeswax, mango butter, and cocoa butter. Do you think I can freeze them until fall? I don't know if they would go rancid. They are made with oils bought in the last couple months. I'm in NW WA and it only gets to about 90 here - I don't have AC so they would just be in the darkest coolest room of the house if I don't freeze them. Thanks, Bethany

I poured CP shave soap into tins. They were the ones from SKS. I coated them all with vaseline but one to see the reactions. None. They've been done 4 weeks and there is no reaction whatsoever. I should've seen a chemical reaction in the first hours I would think, but I didn't see anything. I don't know why it worked but it did! Bethany

I think that the ingredients is pretty important to have on there, but I was just wondering why some people don't? I use Lard in all my soaps which has zero label appeal for a some people, but I still put it on there anyway. I just wonder if they are trying to hide something...Maybe it's the trans fat in the LARD LOL! That whole trans fat thing just cracks me up! Bad for the inside - good for the outside I say! Bethany

At the farmers market I sell my soaps naked. They are put in glassine bags that have a label with the ingredients on them at the time of purchase. In looking at other vendors soaps they have a sign that says what the soap is with no ingredients. and I've noticed on some websites that the full disclosure of the ingredients is not right there with the name of the soap. Do you think that it makes a difference in sales? On my site I am putting the ingredients on there in fine print and trying to squeeze it all in, but maybe I just need to have ingredients in general listed elsewhere? TIA, Bethany

been awhile since I've had to use it - I buy in huge quantities now - but I think it was not flakes. Bethany

All my soaps are GM (no added water) or GM/aloe vera juice. Micas. That's absolutely the best to use in my experience. I love micas for just about everything. For purple I have begun to use alkanet root powder which depending on the amount I use I can get anywhere from a light lavender to almost black. And soaping cool is very important unless you want really dark soap. And colors also will morph depending on FO too. Bethany

I find HP to be a little soft and rustic. There's a Hp'er at my farmers market who swears HP gets as hard as CP, but I find that when it does it doesn't look so nice. She brings logs and cuts hers to order so it's still pretty soft when she sells it. I love CP because you can make it so pretty with swirls or inbeds or whatever. I just think it looks cleaner and nicer. Also I think it's a harder bar after the cure without compromising looks. As far as feel, I've had some very lovely feeling HP, but still favor my CP after a 3-4 weeks of curing. I think it's a matter of how much patience you have. And there are ways to decrease your CP cure time if you have to. My two cents. Bethany

I avoid round labels like the plague! I've gotten to where I only use them on the bottoms of jars for ingredients. all my other jars I designed a long rectangular label that wraps around so I don't have to do round. This way too I can just by the full 8 x 10 sheet labels and cut them on my paper cutter. Everything looks better since I stopped fiddling with the rounds! Bethany

A Customer brought me St. Ive's Energizing Citrus Body wash and said, "I want this in a lotion." I said , "ME TOO!" WOWZA it's awesome! Anyone know of a straight dupe? Or something that smells like it? It's tops notes of grapefruit with a bit of tangerine, low notes of mint and eucalyptus. I've already tried googling it and looking for a dupe on WSP. Thanks, Bethany

As for the anybody can make a candle thing - what a bunch of bull! I can make tons of great bath and body. I have made and tested formulas over and over to get it right. But when I try soy candles - man I just don't have the patience! Every container, every wick, every FO. All needs to be tested and it takes much more time in my opinion to do it than with a lot of B&B products. I have given up soy candles for now until I can devote more time and cash to it! Bethany

That looks like a log mold set on a tilt to one side. I would make a batch with the white, pour with the molds on at tilt (something underneathoen edge) at a medium, to thick trace. Let is set up a bit while I made the other half, pour the other half over a spoon to gently get it in the mold without messing up the other side, and somehow do this while putting the mold flat again? This has been my theory on how to do this without a vertical mold and dividers. I have no true experience with it! It would seem like if you used a divider the line would blur (not be so clean) when you pulled it out anyway. HTH, Bethany

I'm wondering about this too. I recently had some lotion in clear containers under a skylight at home and it turned from white to yellow! I use blue jars, but am thinking of switching over to clear - but wonder how they will fare at the farmers market even under a canopy? I'm going to BB tomorrow. I will ask them about theirs. Bethany

So far the only one that accelerated on me was the pearberry. I still love it anyway. Just made some bath salts with it today. Monkey Farts is what we WISH real monkey farts smelled like. Its a banana berry vanilla kind of thing. I really like and the kids dig it too. Earthygirl got me on to it. It's one of AH best sellers! Bethany

Soaped these three months ago and they have held up fine. All from RE/AH Raspberry Mac Apple Pearberry (accelerates) Monkey farts Sorry, haven't done a straight pear or peach Bethany

Fabric too. I have found handcrafted papers at the dollar store that are beuatiful! Bethany

I second AH/RE Flannel sheets and Cucumber mint (cucumber mint is a best seller of mine - hold awesome in CP and very strong in lotions, etc.) I also love BB Seamoss - one my best sellers, but it does accelerate a bit in CP so I work cool and with a lower lye to water ratio. Bethany

My experience with HP is that the soaps do shrink significantly more over time and even get a little wierd after 6 months or so of being stored in a cardboard box. That is one of the reasons I prefer CP. Maybe I was doing something wrong though. What's funny is you'd think all the moisture would be cooked out, right? Bethany

I have used Aroma havens sweet pea and just don't like it in CP soap, though it is lovely in the other applications. Any one know of a great cp proof Sweet pea? I'll be up near Brambleberry this Friday - is theirs good? TIA, Bethany

If you make a 7 pound (of oils) batch (I'm talking CP or HP here because I don't know melt and pour) that will fill each cavity nearly to the top. so 2.33 pounds of oils per cavity. If memory serves you cut each of these into seven bars and you will have 6 + oz mega bars. These were too big for me and my martha warped in and over heated batch so I went back to my log molds. Bethany

Yes, same amount of salt as oils. I just used table salt and it worked fine. The "original" salt bar has 75% coconut oil and 25% shea butter. But IT hink a lot of people just use thier regular recipe adding the equal amount of salt. Bethany

I highly recommend the twist up tubes. The push tubes have been a pain to use I think. I use the white ones and you can get them and elements, bayousome, and MMS. Bethany

the trick I have found with making the bombs with the meatballer is this: open it and scoop enough in to get it pretty darn full. Squeeze together. Add some more through the wholes if you can get more in. Tap on counter on both sides. Stick finger in the whole and lift one top side up a smidge, put it down again (this keep it from sticking and seperating), turn mold over and do the same thing with the other side. then release from the mold. Yes, it is a pain in the rear, but once you get the hang of it it can go faster. I do want to try the big ornament. But I also like selling the smaller to give people a choice of how much/little to use. Plus it is good to have some things selling for just a couple of bucks I think. Bethany

I have WSP and am thinking I might just sell the things! I just don't seem to have a good experience with them! Bethany

Phenonip is pretty universal. I don't know about lip stuff though. also it has to be added when oils, etc are between 150-170 for proper dissolving. I have no idea if it is vegan or not. Bethany