kidsngarden

That link didn't work - is it correct? Thanks, Bethany

These are my Aunt and Uncles stores - but they wouldn't hesitate to rip me off. What I don't want to do is say "I'll wholesale for "X" - and have them sell it for three times as much. What I want to say is, "The suggested retail is $12.00, I will wholesale for $6" and put the suggested retail on the label so that snags them there. Right now I don't offer this to anyone buy my local customers which are far away from this store (2 hours) and they would NEVER shop there - $1000 dresses! OUCH! I do worry about people coming to my website and seeing the body butter for cheaper ($8) there though. But then again on the web they have to pay shipping. Maybe I will talk an exclusive label with them, they asked initially if I would do it for them. I said only if I reformulated my product a bit so it was different from what I normally sell..."made exclusively for _________ by Capellas Garden soap Co. Without my website, etc. I am still getting my name out and really wanted the advertising, but the pricing is what's getting me... Bethany

Where do you do the testing for your lotions and butters? About how much does it cost? Bethany

Isn't the general rule that your wholesale price should be half the suggested retail? I'll be selling it in an upscale store that is in a completely different demographic. Bethany

I have an opportunity to put my body butter on the counter of a very high end store - provided I have high end packaging. So far they really like a cobalt blue jar with a silver lid. Or maybe clear with a black lid. The white waterproof labels won't do... If I buy clear labels, print in a lighter gray (for the colbalt - black for the clear) with a laser printer, will the ink smear with lotioned hands? My other alternative was to do a round label for the bottom with the boring stuff and a hang tag with the product name and fun stuff. Any tips? Thanks, Bethany

I have a lotion recipe I would like to replace some of the water with GM. Do I need to up the Preservative? I use Phenonip. What if I add a touch of honey? More preservative for that too? Thanks, Bethany

Thanks for the input. I actually just bought the cobalt jars as I can find them in all the sizes I want. Bethany

The reason I am asking is that I would like to use amber colored jars which are single walled. Just wondering if it will make a difference is all. What stinks is you can't get a amber colored 2 oz jar! smallest I've found is 4 oz. Bethany

Does it make a difference? I will be using them for body butters. Bethany

Anyone? Thanks, Bethany

How much honey per lb of lip balm base should I use? Can I add it to an unscented body butter? I'm thinking of making one with just honey for fragrance to go with my unscented OMH. should I add it with the water phase? would I need to add more preservative? My recipe yeilds 1.5 lbs. Thanks, Bethany

I've only used EO in CP soap when I first started soaping - it was orange and didn't take well so that was a bad experience. I've been using FO's ever since. Now I bought BB 2nd distillation Peppermint FO. How much do you use PPO in CP? What about in Lotions? Thanks, Bethany

You can get these really cute ball canning jars at Walmart- they are 8 oz if you fill them to the VERY top. They have the cool platinum lids. Less than a buck a jar. comes in a 4 pack. but if it's just for you, use whatever! Bethany

fabulous - but how did you get that purple? Purple and I are not friends! Bethany

Where do you get your milk bottles from? I am assuming you are using instant powdered milk? Thanks, Bethany

SOmeone told me a salt bar made the classic way - 75% coconut oil and 25% shea with same weight of salt ppo works well with acne. I made some and hate it for my body so maybe i'll save it and see if it will work for acne. Bethany

There are vegetable fats that clog arteries I've been thinking about this all day. I would never put lard in a moisturizer, but I would put it in my soap. Do you think it is different when it is saponified? I mean, I know it is, but does it break down the fats in a different way so they don't clog so much? I have been using OMH for two months and don't notice any change with blackheads, etc. Bethany

So peppermint FO would give the tingle, huh? Thanks for the suggestions! Bethany

I'm a licensed cosmetologist and my studies have told me that not only animal fats, but olive oil clogs pores as well. They also say that one of the most common causes of acne is overdrying. The cycle works like this - you wash your skin too much, it thinks that it needs to produce more oil, so it does and then you get oily skin topped of with some bacteria for good measure and voila! Acne! And of course you think - "My skin is oily!" so you wash more and with more drying ingredients and it makes it worse. Then hormones also play a big role. I totally believe in the overdrying theory, but the animal and olive fats not really. I use between 40-60% Lard in all my soaps. I have dry skin and I use my OMH on my face and it works very well. My kids are just approaching the breakout years. They have been using just water and a washcloth to this point and my oldest did have quite a few breakouts. I started him and my daughter on the OMH and they have had no breakouts whatsoever in the two weeks they have used it. I know someone who makes a neem/castille bar that is supposed to work wonders. If my OMH stops working I will try that. My two cents... Bethany

I have never soaped a mint bar except a cucumber mint FO that while heavenly doesn't give a tingle, which is fine for that bar. BUT I want to make a tingley tea tree or spearmint, or some kind of minty thing. If I use EO's will it be minty? If not what should I add and how much PPO? I also would love to make a lotion that was tingley too. I make Goats milk CP. Thanks, Bethany

Even with your GM frozen you will still get a orange color. I always soap with 100% GM stone cold frozen in all my bars and OMH is the only one that ever gets that orange. It's the honey (I use more honey than most people), but like you have seen it all turns out nice. You could use less honey if you wanted and that might help, but why? It looks nice! I also soap with my oils at room temp because like someone else said that honey really heats things up! I had a batch that I didn't think and the oils were HOT and what a mess! Will never soap OMH with hot oils again! Bethany

I think this depends on the FO you are using. For my testing I always start out with one ounce Per pound of wax, so my ratio would be less than what you are talking about. Bethany

Thanks! I think I will try it today! Bethany

I use c-3 soy for candlemaking and have been known to rub it into my skin a bit while candle making. Is this safe to use in lotion bars and lip balms? If not, can someone direct me where to purchase cosmetic grade soy wax? Thanks, Bethany

I've never done this with balm - have only made soap and lotion bars. But for soap I make a master batch of oils and I would imagine it works the same. just make the big batch without flavor oils, then put it in a container. You can scoop it out measuring by weight the amount you want melt it down, and add the flavor oil. This is what I plan to do as even with my decent digital scale measure miniscule amounts is a pain! Bethany