I call these the "whisper colors." Ginger Lime is a lovely clean and on that is Fresh Linen. The barely there peach is scented with a combination of coconut with citrus and spice notes that I just designed this week and I call it Caribbean Coconut. It's yummy! On that is a pale yellow honeysuckle, a lovely fresh clean Spring scent. The white/cream combination is Sweet Almond which is what you'd expect with a touch of nutmeg that really is marvelous, and there is oatmeal for exfoliation. Finally, Yellow Rose Mint is a lovely fresh floral/minty scent that I've worked on for some time. It has green tea and calendula petals in it for added skin pampering texture.
These are the "cool cats" of the collection: The pale green is Ginger Lime (pictured above also), the brighter green is Lime Basil with basil in the soap. There is a turquoise inspired soap in a sweet spicy scent and Robin's Egg which is a combination of evergreens and some exotic spices/floral notes and poppy seeds for exfoliation. The purple is Amethyst Lilac which is a lovely Spring floral. And finally a classic Lavender Vanilla with lavender buds in it. I'm lovin it!
Almond Blossom is the layered pink soap, Robin's Egg is the blue with a combination of evergreens and some exotic elements. The green one is Lemongrass Sage and has proven to be a favorite with my clients. And finally the classic Lavender Vanilla.
Jasmine Clementine has calendula petals in it for a lovely golden amber color. The floral citrus in this one is especially nice. The lime basil is mentioned above. And finally the best selling Raspberry Black Pepper is my personal favorite. Raspberry is usualy a bit too sweet, but that unexpected hit of Black Pepper just makes this one sing. I sold out of this one at the show this morning.
These two are for all the people who walk past my booth at a show and talk about eating the soap. Mint Truffle is Chocolate, Cocoa and Crème de mint. The other is Chocolate Cream Pie with oatmeal in the pie crust for extra skin pampering fun. Yummmm! All the treat with none of the calories. A customer today told me that they had purchased chocolate soap (elsewhere) and left it on the kitchen table. The teenaged son took a chomp out of that thing... which I imagine was rather disappointing. They laughed and laughed. Silly humans!
And a client today thanked me that I wasn’t making those huge chunks of soap. She just said that a friend had purchased a large bar and just wondered when it would EVER end. Always leave them wanting more.
I’ve had a great week! Early this week I woke at around 5:30 am as the sun rose to help roof the house that my husband grew up in. It was hard work, but working in those early hours made it much more comfortable. It quickly grew hot by 11:00 and by then my muscles were screaming and my back was hurting so I’d pass on the work to others. Again after supper I was up with the rest of them on the roof laying shingles. At about 7:00 pm the temperatures started to come to a more comfortable place, it was still hot and for a while the sun was in our eyes but I have a sense of accomplishment that there is a roof in Northern Indiana that I helped apply. Now I don’t get to do that every day, nor would I want to. But it was a welcome change of pace for me.
By Wednesday I had a pain places in my right shoulder and back from wielding the nail gun and pulling on the air hose. We got up early once more to pack the van and get started on our journey back to Virginia. I caught up on some missed sleep then and with some pain relievers and two of those 12 hour heat patches on my back, life became bearable once more. Picking up our girls from the doggy hotel was a highlight, we were all glad to see each other!
Thursday and Friday are a blur. I made and wrapped over 300 bars of soap. I must have actually made about 500 bars, but only wrapped a portion of them. It was two really long days but I came out with quite a few new fragrance/color combinations and I’m really happy with how they turned out.
Early this morning I set up my booth at the Farmer’s Market and sold soap for four hours straight. I sold out of my favorite Raspberry Black Pepper and made a big dent in the other kinds as well. It was my best market day yet and I came away very pleased with the week’s work. And I heard from various visitors that they’ve seen my soap in a local shop and so I know that my wholesale account is enjoying success as well. That was very nice to hear!
I did a little shopping at the Farmer’s Market today as well. I bought green peppers, purple peppers, zucchini, yellow straightneck squash, yellow plums, purple plums, red skinned potatoes, yellow tomatoes, and the biggest blackberries I’ve ever seen in my life! Ohhhh, YUM! I’ve never been a Farmer’s Market shopper but I’ve quickly grown to love it! Oh, I almost forgot – I bought a couple chocolate whoopee pies from some Mennonite boys, oh they are so good. And remind me so much of my youth though my mom didn’t make them often because they are so much work.
Toward noon I had grown exceedingly hungry so I quickly stepped away from my booth for a moment to find something to eat. I came across a Lindser Torte with raspberry filling and snapped it up. No, it’s not what I’d consider a healthy meal but it was right there under my nose beckoning me. And after the first bite into that thing I was in heaven! Customer’s were walking by and I was ignoring them over the bliss that was that torte! Heavenly days, I ate every single last crumb! It was baked by a lady who used to be an investment banker in New York and thought she’d rather be baking. I’m thinking that was an excellent career move for her, or at least one I’m grateful for.
To top off my marvelous day, I happened to be in a new location this week and I really liked it very much. There were some shade trees though the temperature in my booth (in the shade) still made it to 91 degrees. But the amazing part was the lady next to me selling orchids. Oh my goodness, they were amazing! So I treated myself to the most beautiful vibrant fuchsia orchid I’ve ever seen. Her product and mine were hitting the same demographic so we hope to be side by side again.
I came home, washed off some of the sweat and headed for bed. I’m going to take it easy this evening. I’m really pleased with my week!
I used to work at a bakery here in town, and one day a camera crew from Rosetta Stone came through and photographed a cake in different stages of being decorated. They got shots of me with the cake as well as some models they brought along and staged a variety of situations. As it turned out, they offered my boss a copy of the software if she was interested. I found out a few days ago that a copy of the Rosetta Stone Spanish course – the Latin America version was waiting at the bakery to be picked up. I just dropped by there today after the farmer’s market and picked up the box. This is level one and retails at $219. There is also an online option for immersion language training. Shane has got the box out and is already into the software and I guess I’m waiting my turn. But so far we are both very impressed with the gift! So a huge “THANK YOU!” to Boss Lady at the Bakery for my brand new copy of Rosetta Stone software! And thank you Rosetta Stone! We are very grateful and I’m looking forward to learning the language that my children speak.
"There's only one way to succeed in anything
and that is to give everything."
- Vince Lombardi
Finally home! Yes, it was a marvelous trip, though completely exhausting! So I’m here with my girls curled up in their usual places, they seem none the worse for their week at the doggy hotel. The lady that kept them said they were "bossy." LOL! We've got two bossy bitches! We are all in our usual places tonight and all is well with the world. It is good to be home. I am soooo tired! I have had some serious back pain today from helping with putting on the shingles (yes, I love me some nail gun power tool!) but hopefully that will fade away soon enough and I’ll be back to normal.
I sold a tremendous amount of soap over the last while. There was a huge wholesale order, followed by sales at the fund raiser. Then there were a few private sales from friends of family and family and now I’m down to the bottom of the box and I’m going to be scrambling this week to get enough product together to even do the show this weekend. I've been out of town so making more wasn't an option. Now that I'm home, my "to do list" is set! It’s going to be a busy week!
I dreaded this event more than any fundraiser we’ve been a part of so far. This one was the wild card – the room full of people that we might or might not know… the usual questions where the answer I want to give is “none of your business” yet somehow I have to work out something a little less rude. There were so many ways this could go so horribly wrong. Combine that with sleeping in a strange house and some strange nightmares the night before… well… I was strung a little tight. I can only say that I’m REALLY glad this fund raiser is over and done with!
Ok, I haven't been able to complain to anyone else about this... But when we heard where the event was going to be held we asked them to check and make sure the venue was air conditioned. July in Indiana can be unpleasant. Well... I don't know whatever quite happened to that but the place was decidedly NOT air conditioned and as I hot flashed and sweated all over the place... oh never mind. I'm so freakin old!
At five the crowd descended and we weren’t quite prepared for them. It was a flurry in the kitchen as I sped around putting together the final details. Thank God for Bob and Marla who showed up early on – the only people I recognized at first. After I saw them I knew it was going to be ok. A little while Ginger Sister came and I snuck into the hall to let off a little steam with her. Thank God for these people who help me retain (hey, it's all relative) my ginger grasp on sanity some days.
More and more of our own friends showed up and it was fun to go from table to table and catch up with people. Ginger Sister stayed through to the end, hearty soul. Even though this is so bittersweet for her. She’s an amazing friend! And it’s so fun to get to know the Shush Butt family, having learned to know Butt Rock Ken years ago and meeting Shush Now only a few days ago in person. (Although I used to sell her beautiful seed bead creations in my gallery years back.) Their children are delightful! Zion is a doll baby and Mark and Amanda are such cute parents!
And my crazy/favorite aunt showed up. She drove in from Elida, Ohio. That just blows me away. After just a few moments with her I remembered that I used to adore this irreverent mouthy woman who speaks her mind and has a delicious sense of humor. I hadn’t seen her in 18 years! I hope it’s not so long next time. That was such an amazing surprise!
The money – whew! Can’t believe there was that much of it – all in one place. And plenty of it from folks we don’t even know (friends of the family.) Uh… speechless! Even me! Ok, so maybe speechless isn’t the word… how about astounded! That works. Lunch is on me! Ha ha, just kidding! Yeah… kid…ding… This was all about our adoption. It’s getting closer… I can just feel it. Good thing! It’s time. I want my kids.
Yeah, I want my kids to come home.
Well, it’s been a quiet week in Staunton, my (adopted) home town…
The morning of the Farmer’s Market I awoke at 5 am to the sound of a steady rain on the roof. We toyed with our options and finally decided to go on site, talk with some of the other venders and then decide. Selling soap in the rain didn’t sound like fun to me. The van was already loaded, everything was set, it was just a matter of getting myself together. So we went over, realized that all the venders – more than usual actually – were setting up. So we decided to stay, in spite of the rain. We got the tent out, set up and the rain vanished. The sun came out and the tourists descended. Hours later I was tired and happy with the day’s sales. We’d sold cookies, cherries from our cherry tree and lots and lots of soap. Best FM ever! What a delightful treat! Plus I'm getting to know the venders on either side of me and that is fun. Scary, because I'm dreaming of working in alpaca and angora right now... but fun.
Sadly, Saturday was also the day of Adam’s Burial and Funeral. I missed both because of the FM but spent some time there after finishing up. I’ve never seen so many mourners in one place, all dressed in black and white. Adam was young, 27 and a gentle and loving man. He went out of his way to make outsiders a part of the family. (Very much like his dad.) He went far before his time and his loss is tragic and life altering for his parents. I did go to the viewing and it was really rough to see that lifeless body in the casket, it hit home in a way I hadn’t expected for me then. His parents would glance that way every now and then - he was still there. His foster brother is a friend of mine and I think my heart broke as much for him as for his parents. John, Adam’s dad hugged me tight and looked at me and said I was getting a couple of these to worry about – meaning the children we are adopting. It was a moment. Yeah, nothing puts the heart at risk of being broken like having a child. Parents are supposed to die first, it is the natural order of things. Such wretchedness, to see our dear friends lose their son.
Sunday was rather low key at church, it was subdued in face of this tragic loss among us. I was at the piano so I didn’t see much of how people were reacting, but the tone was a little more somber than usual I guess. Pastor’s sermon captured my attention and I liked what he said and the spirit with which he said it. He’s in a series of sermons on the parables of Jesus and this week happened to be on three parables about loss. The lost coin, one other and then the parable of the lost son. He made the point that I’ve never heard a preacher admit to… that God’s mercy and redemption come before His law. I think it’s a profound truth of scripture but we’ve seen the law come before mercy so often we think that’s the way it should be. He made the point that right and almost right are not the same thing – almost right is still wrong. The Pharisees saw people through the law first, they missed the loving compassion and there was no redemption in their perspective – only cold hard law. So when we allow law to be the way we relate to people, missing God’s foremost desire for compassion, redemption and mercy… we get it almost right. And almost right is wrong. I couldn’t help but wonder if he realized the ramifications of his words from a political perspective. If the religious right started acting a little less like Pharisees and a little more like Jesus… then the community of faith wouldn’t cast their votes based solely on two issues. Cold hard law is wretched. Compassion and redemption… now there’s something miraculous. There is something amazing about this grace!
Today has been a wild ride. I took soap to a local shop and they bought more than I had expected them to. Almost double what they had agreed to initially but they seemed to really like everything I brought so I just got my first wholesale order as a soaper. He seemed genuinely excited about the product and excited to have this box of soap. And I was thrilled! Now THAT was fun! I’m now really really low on stock and as soon as we are back from our trip, I’ll be full tilt into production to catch up.
I also got my first Etsy order today! They ordered alphabet photography and I’m very grateful for the order! I had wondered if that venue would ever yield anything for me and it’s nice to see that it finally has. Maybe this will lead to more. I hope so.
We’re packing up to spend almost a week in Indiana among friends and family. I’m really looking forward to catching up with people and I really hope that people are not all out of town on their own vacations. It will be time away from the daily ritual and that’s great. When I stay in the home of family I do not get the private quiet time that I’m used to having and I often find that this wears thin rather quickly. I’m just one of those weird people on the borderline – neither introvert or extrovert – just stuck right there on the line in the middle. I need both the private moments and the public ones! Plus we’ll be putting on another fund raiser event – only I haven’t been the one doing the planning for this one so it could really be interesting to see how it all comes together. I’ll be setting up a small display of my artwork and doing a cake for the event as well. It will be an intense week full of much activity. Not exactly a vacation but a welcome break from the routine.
I should go pack, especially since we leave first thing in the morning. Chow for now foxy voxers!
Hug your children, tell your family that you love them, you never know what tomorrow holds!!!
The golf course behind us puts on a huge firework display each year which means our normally quiet neighborhood gets swarmed with rude people who think they are entitled to park in everyone's yard, driving all over anything in their way. If you put up line, they'll cut it. People have to chain off their land to protect it from these rude people - yes real honest to goodness chain! People bring their own fireworks and the fireworks from the city bring the noise level to an incredible level. The golf course is covered with humanity, and I can't believe that they allow this on the green! The noise shakes our windows and makes the groud beneath us move. It drives our two border collies to a dangerous place. And me right along with them. I hate this! I hate it with a flaming purple passion! Would all these patriots just please go away and leave me alone?! Why in God's name do we celebrate this holiday with such extreme NOISE?!!!
Another reason to hate the 4th of July. Our neighbors are out in their yard setting up a pair of stereo speakers that come up to the shoulders on the teenager. Of all of the portions of their yard, they party in the part that is right outside our bedroom window. We struggle with them playing their music too loud most of the time. And now they’ve brought out those things. I hope it rains.
Oh merciful heavens, they’ve just plugged them into the getto buster and turned them on. They are both pointed directly at our house. Their music drives me up the wall. In my own house, with all the windows closed and the loud air conditioner on… Please rain! Please please rain! Wasn’t it calling for a thunderstorm this afternoon? Please ?
I guess I'm going to be THAT neighbor. I hate HATE the 4th of July. We have to go to a viewing this afternoon of a friend's son who died. That is horrible enough. But we don't know what we'll find when we get back to our property. I hate this holiday! Rain? Please? We need rain!!!
Shameless of me I know, but I was really happy with how these turned out so I decided to share them with you all. I designed these from photographs I've taken of the letters of the alphabet. And from these I've uploaded the images and had a line of t-shirts, etc made on cafepress.com
Check this out: http://www.cafepress.com/carmenrose
That's where you can view the clothing options with the above designs on them. Here are two examples I liked:
I said I’d never own one of these. An old VW vanagon maybe, a station wagon maybe, an SUV maybe, even an old hearse or limo, even something that has been spray painted with huge flowers in neon colors and has something welded to the roof. But NEVER EVER a mini-van. Oh the aesthetic horror of driving something that resembles a shoe box. Oh the amazement that we own something designed to trap and amplify squirmy loud baby humans and all their accoutrements. Oh the nightmare of trying to find this one among all the others in the parking lot at the store! I do not approve of this choice or this automobile. Have we no originality whatsoever? Have we completely sold out?
It is nice inside though. And drives beautifully. And its doors pop open when I push the button. I hate to admit it. Me likey. Well… maybe that is a bit hasty. I don’t actually Like it or anything. But it’s growing on me. Yes, I’m the owner of a Honda Momivan. I might as well buy a cause ribbon, a soccer ball sticker and an honor roll student sticker. Oh wait, maybe we should finish buying the kids first.
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