Getting started/bath and body products

[GRANDAMGT57]

hi, anyone who could help me get started making body products would be greatly appreciated. I would like to start out making body butter and body souffle. Where is the best place to buy the necessary items and ingredients that i would need, also the best place for essential oils. Any ifo i could obtain as to info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, gail from ne ohio.

[IwantItgreen]

Any ifo i could obtain as to info would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, gail from ne ohio.

Hi Gail. You came to the right place looking for info. There's tons of it on this forum. The only requirement tho (and I say this sincerely, not snottish) is that you have to search for it. Let the search button become your friend. There are also recipes in the recipe section too that might help get you started, that section is for listing recipes, not asking for them. People here are very helpful if they see that you've put forth the effort to do your own research. This is a HELPFUL LINK FOR NEWBIES Pay attention to the search feature. The google search feature works great as does the Advanced Search. The regular search you see at the top of the forum, not as well although it will give to a good place to start. HTH! :smiley2:

Edited February 10, 2011 by IwantItgreen

[Faerywren]

Here, let me get my notebooks that I've spent years compiling with suppliers, recipes, ingredients lists etc. and post it all for you.

[Tabitha]

A lot of the suppliers have recipe and how to sections as well. wholesalesuplliesplus.com has a lot onfo available and easy to sort through. Hope this helps.

Edited February 17, 2011 by Tabitha

[MarsBars]

Gail, I would recommend researching recipes and experimenting to see what works best for you. Many factors determine the final outcome. I would highly recommend that you purchase from a supplier that is close to you as possible to save on shipping.

[ah-soy]

There are some wonderful recipes in the B&B recipe section here. Look for the 4 and 5 star ones. There's a lovely body butter recipe to help you get started. Like Marsbars said, look for a supplier close to you to save some shipping money. Good luck, making B&B is lots of fun!

[Pam W]

http://www.craftserver.com/forums/showthread.php?t=97&highlight=body+butter

[Noodle]

Here, let me get my notebooks that I've spent years compiling with suppliers, recipes, ingredients lists etc. and post it all for you.

[Johnna]

Here, let me get my notebooks that I've spent years compiling with suppliers, recipes, ingredients lists etc. and post it all for you.

Iwantitgreen had very politely helped the original poster by explaining how to search. I feel that it was not necessary for anyone else to make a sarcastic comment after that.

I get really frustrated in the forums and today's world in genera. What happened to if you can't say something nice don't say it at all?

[CellarDweller]

Iwantitgreen had very politely helped the original poster by explaining how to search. I feel that it was not necessary for anyone else to make a sarcastic comment after that.

I get really frustrated in the forums and today's world in genera. What happened to if you can't say something nice don't say it at all?

I couldn't agree more. It is this very reason that I don't post more on this board. Thank you for having the courage to say something.

[Scented]

Here, let me get my notebooks that I've spent years compiling with suppliers, recipes, ingredients lists etc. and post it all for you.

OK I'm waiting! Where are they! :laugh2:

EO suppliers. There are several to look at. I personally have been happy with Camden Gray, but that doesn't make them the best out there ... I have some lavender 40/42 from somewhere else that is completely different then what I got from Camden and I like it a lot, but even I don't know who the supply house was.

EOs can be different from crop to crop as I understand it.

Some places I can think of to look at (and keep in mind EOs are pricier than FOs) are Lebermuth, New Directions, Trilogy (I think), Camden Gray and there are going to be plenty I'm not thinking of too.

[Tina J]

Just curious but are you only going to be making stuff for yourself or are you potentially going to start a business with this? Besides ingredients there are A LOT of other things to consider if you are thinking about a business--testing, insurance, etc, etc...

[Noodle]

Iwantitgreen had very politely helped the original poster by explaining how to search. I feel that it was not necessary for anyone else to make a sarcastic comment after that.

I get really frustrated in the forums and today's world in genera. What happened to if you can't say something nice don't say it at all?

And I get REALLY frustrated when someone asks a question requesting suppliers, etc... I understand what you mean about "not saying something nice" etc... I honestly do. But what about simple etiquette? This is a huge forum. Anyone can clearly see that at first glance. It is not even about using the SEARCH feature. Not everyone knows about "searching". I just think that it is common sense to look around first before being so bold. Sure, people have become snappy and sarcastic in today's world. However, people have also become unintentionally bold and flat out nervy. I really do not think that this poster was trying to be rude. I just understand why some would think that her questions were rather bold, to say the least.

And on another note... as for not posting on this board because people say what they think and your nose is a bit out joint about it, well, get a bit of a thicker skin. This is a great board without much drama. To not post here because someone is sarcastic once in a while is just plain ridiculous.

Edited February 18, 2011 by Noodle

[essence4me]

I get really frustrated in the forums and today's world in genera. What happened to if you can't say something nice don't say it at all?

I completely agree. Not everyone is trolling around for shortcuts, some just want sincere help and honestly do not know where to start. I was in that position once and if I hadn't had wonderful people who shared their wealth of expertise and little secrets, I may have given up, but instead, over time, I have had the opportunity to pay it forward many times and that in itself is it's own reward.

Gail, there are so many wonderful suppliers out there, but in my opinion, if I were just starting out, I think it would be hard to go wrong with the following products and suppliers, you may want to check them out:

Aquatech Skincare- has a nice body cream/butter:

http://www.aquatech-skincare.com/miva/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=ASC&Product_Code=2451 (I like to add a little sweet almond oil to it.)

They also have a lovely hemp lotion

Here's a general base where you can add to it:

http://www.texasnaturalsupply.com /productinfo.aspx?productid=ANCLBNF3

Essentials by Catalina has a whipped body frosting that seems to be popular for those who do not like a greasy after feel.

Bitter Creek North has a wonderful lotion: (candlesupply.com)

Essential Wholesale is a good site if you prefer more natural products which is what I do now.

Natures Garden and Berts Heaven Scent have very nice fragrances at reasonable prices. Wholesales Supplies Plus and Snowdrift Farm have an abundance of information for someone who is just starting out.

And finally the list of suppliers, which has probably already been given out to you....this link is invaluable.

http://www.craftserver.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5492

Best of luck to you and remember the main thing is to just have fun.

Edited February 18, 2011 by essence4me

[mrsadler05]

I think the biggest problem is the number of posts asking for the same information. The redundancy of newcomers asking the same question that was just answered a few days ago is ridiculous.

I read this forum for weeks before ordering any products or asking any questions. I continued to read and tried to ingest as much info as posible but I had information overload. I posted a question then immediately went back to researching- this time with my notebook and pen.

I took better notes and made wick/wax charts to help me.

Yes, the research is tedious, but all of the veterans have put in their time. I am still a newbie myself and I have so much to learn.

You can't call Coca Cola and ask them for the recipe and think they will just hand it over. Research is your best friend. Sharing your findings and bouncing ideas off of each other after you have done your research is probably the most efficient way to use the forums.

[Pam W]

I had poured (tried to anyway) a bunch of candles before I found this forum. When I came here and started reading thru the threads, I found out the things that had been bugging me, like why my candles always had sink holes..then I learned that there were better places to get supplies than the local craftstore.

Even tho I was only interested in candlemaking, I couldn't stop reading the threads regarding B&B....and you know the rest of that story:laugh2:

[Faerywren]

If you are sitting at the computer, the google search bar is right in front of your face. A simple "bath and body recipes" search would have yielded, what, a million hits? Some of you found my initial response uncalled for and sarcastic. Damn straight, as I find these "give me, tell me, show me" first posts uncalled for and annoying. It's akin to someone walking up to us at a show or market and saying "Tell me how you make all this!"

[essence4me]

If you are sitting at the computer, the google search bar is right in front of your face. A simple "bath and body recipes" search would have yielded, what, a million hits? Some of you found my initial response uncalled for and sarcastic. Damn straight, as I find these "give me, tell me, show me" first posts uncalled for and annoying. It's akin to someone walking up to us at a show or market and saying "Tell me how you make all this!"

Pretty much defeats the purpose of having a help forum. Even if someone new starts searches without having any knowledge of the industry, it can still be overwhelming if your absolutely green, and even asking for a favorite fragrance oil or recipe can be confusing, there are so many different answers and opinions out there. The fact that they even found this forum tells me that newbies do know how to do a basic search. I have not seen one post on this entire forum where anyone has given out all of their secrets.... not one posted e-book. I, for one believe we are here on this earth to help one another and I can't even imagine being so rude to someone who I have never met and has never done mean a thing to me. I don't get it and I'm glad for that. It's much more uplifting for my soul to treat others the way I would like to be treated. I can't even begin tell you how many times these little acts of kindness have come back to me.... many-fold!...so there's got to be something to this line of reasoning. If you don't like the question, then don't respond, if there are zero responses, then the poster will get the message.... and at the same time allow those who want to help do so.

[Noodle]

I read this forum for weeks before ordering any products or asking any questions. I continued to read and tried to ingest as much info as posible

I could not agree more. I cannot imagine coming into a brand new forum and asking its members for their suppliers. Do I think that it is rude? Not rude per se, but certainly not what I view as appropriate. It also escapes me how people do not understand simple etiquette be it on a forum or in person.

[Scented]

Pretty much defeats the purpose of having a help forum. Even if someone new starts searches without having any knowledge of the industry, it can still be overwhelming if your absolutely green, and even asking for a favorite fragrance oil or recipe can be confusing, there are so many different answers and opinions out there. The fact that they even found this forum tells me that newbies do know how to do a basic search. I have not seen one post on this entire forum where anyone has given out all of their secrets.... not one posted e-book. I, for one believe we are here on this earth to help one another and I can't even imagine being so rude to someone who I have never met and has never done mean a thing to me. I don't get it and I'm glad for that. It's much more uplifting for my soul to treat others the way I would like to be treated. I can't even begin tell you how many times these little acts of kindness have come back to me.... many-fold!...so there's got to be something to this line of reasoning. If you don't like the question, then don't respond, if there are zero responses, then the poster will get the message.... and at the same time allow those who want to help do so.

There's a lot of truth in what you say and then there's plenty I disagree with, but this thread has gone OT from the OP's initial question, unfortunately.

The majority of the members here have been chastised for various things, myself included. I appreciate both the negative and positive comments and disagree with your statement. If you don't get the negative, you get tunnel vision only. We've had people come into this forum who made light of using lye and turned out not to have the education about the ingredient to even be speaking ... and they were properly chastised, IMO. We have noobs who come to this forum who simply continue to repost their question because other's won't answer it for whatever reason and then get pissed off and nasty because of it, so they don't get the clue, the hint or whatever and other times a forum gets so busy that the questions get lost and that's just how it goes.

We have people come here and demand answers to stuff along with various other statements and frankly the members are allowed to rebuke, rebuff and make statements that have been made. Sometimes a slap in the face wakes a person up. Sometimes it doesn't, but we don't censor the good and the bad. There are rules to the forum and one of them certainly isn't telling someone to shut up because you don't agree with their statements. And then when it gets out of hand wonder why a thread gets locked.

It is all part of the learning experience here and if you don't think someone can't learn from what you might call a negative, then that's unfortunate. All of us get our noses out of joint, our egos bruised or not stroked enough when we think we should have and that's just how it goes. To tell someone not to post because they don't like a question or because they can't be positive and helpful is a little like tunnel vision IMO.

Yes, this is a "teaching forum" and part of teaching isn't all about making sure everyone gets an A. If you can't learn from negatives or different trains of thought then you're only cheating yourself from learning something new or understanding a different perspective. Peace out.

Edited February 19, 2011 by Scented

[essence4me]

To Scented:

I do agree with some of the things you wrote in your last post, and I do support and welcome constructive criticism because one cannot grow, or in this case, perfect their product without it, and believe me, if it wasn't for c.c. when I was asking for and receiving feedback of my newly concocted products, they probably wouldn't have sold very well and I might not have remained in what has turned out to be a thriving side business (this was originally supposed to be just a hobby along with another favorite pastime: jewelry making.) However, I still feel that people can make their point without having to come off as snarky or make assumptions unless one knows for a fact that they're trolling around. On this very thread, there are posters politely suggesting that the person in question spend a little more time researching which came across as well meaning yet right to the point. I just don't see why people sweat the small stuff so much, life is way too short for that. And on a final note I have to agree with you that we have gotten wayyy off topic here. :-)

[IwantItgreen]

I noticed that OP hasn't been back to this board since she posted that question. I also noticed that the thread lay dormant for a week after just 2 relplies. I think we should have let it died. JMO

[Noodle]

I don't know about letting it die. I rarely look at the dates of posts if the post is recent. I just reply. Sometimes a couple of days go by and I want to catch up. A week is not that long in my opinion. However, sometimes I do see threads brought up again after AGES. I do not understand why this is since the person really had to hunt in particular to find the thread. I understand when I see the person say something like "so how did this turn out?" basically revisiting something for a reason. Some thread resurrections are just plain strange though.

[Scented]

To me age old threads is a good indication people are reading.

[soy327]

If you are sitting at the computer, the google search bar is right in front of your face. A simple "bath and body recipes" search would have yielded, what, a million hits? Some of you found my initial response uncalled for and sarcastic. Damn straight, as I find these "give me, tell me, show me" first posts uncalled for and annoying. It's akin to someone walking up to us at a show or market and saying "Tell me how you make all this!"

Did you get up this morning and drink your bath water? Damn straight your remarls are uncalled for and sarcastic not to mention plain out mean!

This person just needed some guidance and iwantitgreen started the ball rolling we didn't need your nasty 2 cents worth.

Johnna, Cellerdweller, and essaence4me I agree with you. There are people that don't want to post questions because this same S**t different day you never know what your gonna get.

I am new to the B&B too, and if I got this response I would feel pretty HUMILIATED, nothing like getting a crappy response to a simle question. I am so grateful that most of the people here have been here to help me. Why can't we do that for this poster?