Monday, March 31, 2008

Busy Day

Today I didn't even have a chance to breathe. Work work work. Days like that are fine, but I missed reading the blogs I like to read and I never even got around to drinking my second cup of coffee. You know it is bad when I can't get to that! As promised, I will be making my first batch of Bubble Rubble In Carrot Cake and will share with pictures. Hopefully they won't turn brown like the sweet vanilla mango. If there is vanilla in the fragrance (which I am betting there is), it will be a shade of brown, perhaps a mauve-like taupe.

Yes, tomorrow, Bubble Rubble.

I also would like to shout out to The Wedding Bee for reviewing us on their blog. How nice is it to just stumble on a great review you knew nothing about?

Sunday, March 30, 2008

And The Winners Are...

Heidi Bott of Soapaholics Anonymous and Teresa R. of Life, Homesteading and Everything.

Congratulations and a big, fat thank you for your sweet words in your reviews. I love that you both are regulars and continue to read and comment often. Big smooches!

You will each get a jar of Crush On You and Whipped Shea Butter from me to you. Hope you like them!! Send me your shipping addresses if I don't already have them to jo(at)productbody(dot)com.

Whipped Shea ButterCrush On You

Happy Sunday!!!!

Thursday, March 27, 2008

Bubble Rubble In Yuzu


I decided to try making Bubble Rubble in one of my favorite scents, yuzu. I made them a greenish teal and added some moon dust glitter, which you can barely see in the photo. They will be broken up and jarred today for some customers, but I think they came out great. I think I'll make a Carrot Cake Bubble Rubble next. Mmmmm.

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

No More Parabens In Crush On You!

I played around and made a sign about our awesome news.... click on it to read.

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Crush On You - Doesn't She Learn?

My mother wrote a great story about her first Crush On You experience before: A Gunk Dilemma.... I blame the short term memory loss on this. Must.... get ..... her .... some ..... help. ;)


About a week ago my niece and I went to a conference together.
After about 20 minutes I became totally distracted and bored (probably ADD) and began to feel my legs. I said "Karyn, feel my legs. I should be ashamed of myself,with a daughter in the business, how can I have legs like sandpaper." At this point Karyn said, "feel mine," which I did and her legs felt like a baby's tush, soft and creamy. She said "Crush on You. I use it everyday and it makes my legs, my whole body and my face soft and creamy." She went on to say that she hadn't used any for a WEEK and just got her order in the mail today and hadn't had time to use it. Her softness was from Crush on You she put on a week ago.

Anyhow, we went on listening to the lecturer (kinda) but I thought about what Karyn had said. Karyn is not an old bag, she is only a little older than Jo, but she and her mom have a regimen, they use the Crush on You and the Lotions by the gallon.

I am turning over a new leaf. No more sandpaper legs. I am forging on and beginning a regimen of Crush on you and Lotion. With these old legs, I think I need both.

Love & kisses, Momma


Sunday, March 23, 2008

Stoopid Girl




Triple-Sweet Big Sprinkles - Resin Ring

Swimcap -Fine Art Photo Pendant Necklace



Sprinkle It With Love - Resin Heart Shaped Cupcake Necklace



Candy Land Fine Art Print

Love this stuff. Resin is so versatile and she is fantastic!

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Just Plain Silliness

It was a stressful week for all of us. High stress at work, FCATs (Florida standardized testing for my 11 year old girl, Nina), my son has been home with a bad cough and insisting on watching the very inappropriate for a 7 year old, "Angry Kid"all day on my computer, my husband working seriously long hours on contracts and "business" marketing materials and me having a lousy batch #3 soap, which you can see on The Soap Bar with video of said soap.

So my kids and I blew off some steam, thank goodness, because you could cut the tension in here with a knife. Desmond, 7 year old photographer of the family, takes full credit for these photos:



love my uggs!


So, {breathe deeply}, I think we feel better. Now once the pool warms up, the water will bring us out of our tension daily....very soon, very soon. (No pool heater so it is quite the chilly body of water these days)

Send Us A Review + You Might Win Something

If you have tried our products and want to send us a testimonial or review about it, please send them to me at: jo(at)productbody(dot)com. I will take all the reviews you send me over the next week and pick 2 random people from that list. The 2 winners will receive a free gift from me. It's a surprise, though. I'll announce the gift once the winners are chosen.

One quick rule. If you send me a review, leave a comment that you did...in the comment section. If you have had any negative reaction to the products, feel free to give me your input anyway - really. I think any feedback is good feedback! We need to learn, right?

I just love give-aways.

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

All Natural Ranting (And Raving)

Photo courtesy of Product Body


The All Natural trend is a very frustrating topic for me. I own Product Body and created an all natural line of pregnant bath and body formulations with my own hands: Mama Bomb. When doing research on pregnancy products, I found that so many companies making the pregnancy skin care say "ALL NATURAL" on the front of the label but contain parabens and other toxins (look on the ingredient list in the back). How awful! I guess they are allowed to say that it is ALL NATURAL because all natural ingredients are in there. How awful to pull the wool over people's eyes, especially when they are carrying. If pregnant women want to use unnatural products it is their choice but to fool them into your product when they are specifically looking for a natural moisturizer? Shame on them! When I came out with Mama Bomb (a truly all natural body line for pregnant and new mothers) I was thanked by so many pregnant women customers of mine. A choice!!

I am not against the use of parabens. At 1% usage in some formulas, the effects are inconsequential... in fact, broad spectrum preservatives (many of which do contain parabens)
are effective against bacteria and mold that can otherwise be deadly to the
consumer! If a product has no water in it, and no water is introduced into it, there is no need for a chemical preservative. If I were to make a formula with water or aloe vera juice, a chemical preservative must be used to protect the consumer from exposure to bacteria or mold.

I am hoping that my Mama Bomb products will help convince people to educate
themselves about the pros and cons of preservatives and other chemicals.
While in some contexts (as I mentioned) preservatives are critically
important, it is wise to balance that fact with recent studies that have
found parabens can cause hormone disruption - no kidding. I ask you, does a
pregnant woman need to be any MORE hormonally disrupted? I think not!!

I am all for all natural, and I am also in favor of super fun products that aren't all natural. It is the choice of the consumer. WE make the choice for our own bodies and for our family. We should not be lied to or deceived to think we are using something we are not. That is plain trickery and I continue to get all fired up about it.



Monday, March 17, 2008

Chicago's Gone Green For St. Patty


For over 40 years, the Chicago Journeymen Plumbers turn the Chicago River green for the St. Patrick's Day Parade celebration. This was created by Mike Butler and his crew beginning in 1961. You can visit Mike at his web site for more river dying information at, www.greenchicagoriver.com.



Happy St. Patrick's Day!!

Friday, March 14, 2008

International Green Sugar Delights

creamy korichio drink

Green Tea-ramizu (P95), a Kozui spin on the traditional Italian dessert

Click The City- (TOKYO) Everything at the cafe is made with green tea. I'd love to try that!




The Scent Of Green Bananas Blog has Tortoro matcha green tea cupcakes with pistachio cream frosting (GUAM) There are recipes on how to make them there.


Matcha Green Tea Cupcake

Food Lover's Journey blog has green tea cupcakes (AUSTRALIA)



Green tea baozi

Found this at Life Of Guangzhou -The inside is filled with a sweet taro pudding and the outside provides a wonderful clean green tea flavor


I watched a show last night with a famous chef traveling through Hong Kong and even though I had just eaten dinner, I got famished for delicious foodie delights! Yum.

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Winner Of The Ruby Red Bomb

On Saturday I had a give away of a 5 oz bath bomb scented with ruby red grapefruit and colored with rose clay. The winner was chosen randomly from a holler across the house. "#17!" The 17th comment was a deleted comment, so the next up is Heidi!!!



Congratulations, Heidi, your bomb will ship out today- I hope you enjoy it.

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Green Plastic Rings By Carrotbox For St. Patty's Day


I found The Carrotbox somehow and love love love their rings, especially their green rings being that green is my favorite color and St. Patrick's Day is approaching so it is quite appropriate to discuss the "GREEN". Actually, all of her rings are gorgeous!! I have a thing for bulky plastic rings and I am proud yo say I am a BIG Carrotbox fan. A little about them, just so you know where it all came from....

Quoted from her site:

"The Carrotbox is a site dedicated to all those wonderful rings made of glass, lucite, resin, plastic, jade, wood, bakelite and even stone — anything, as long as it's not metal!

Why Glass and Plastic Rings?

It all started because I'm allergic to metals. I can occasionally wear sterling for short periods of time, but never on my fingers — and never anything that only looks like silver or gold. But I'd love glass and plastic even if I weren't allergic to "regular" rings. They're fun. And colourful. And inexpensive... usually."

So go and buy lots of rings from them. They even have a blog for updates on what they are currently making plus info on other jewelers! So check 'em out.

Monday, March 10, 2008

Bath Bomb In Action With Desmond

He just wouldn't keep it in the water to show you how much it fizzed, but it was wonderful, and who can blame him? The darn thing looks like it's going berserk when it comes out!

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Ruby Fizzie Bomb Ice Cream Scoops

These are my favorite bombs - and I made them! How exciting. The pink color comes from Mica and pink clay and the scent is gorgeous: It is Ruby Red Grapefruit to match our just released SUGARFOOT which also comes in Ruby Red Grapefruit. My favorite part, is that not of them cracked and they are ready to be shrink wrapped. I think I'll have a give away!

I have added (to Product Body newsletter subscribers only) a coupon to try our Sugarfoot and anyone who spends $100 or more at The Product Body Shop gets one of these 5 oz Ruby bombs wrapped with a bow and sent off with a kiss!

So if you are not receiving our newsletter and want to get one of these for a fun bath, then leave a comment from now until Tuesday and on Tuesday morning I will randomly choose a winner for Da BOMB and ship it out promptly.

Good luck and spread the word!

ps: These bombs are not for sale, so the only way to get them is to leave comments.

Friday, March 7, 2008

Sugarfoot Has Emerged


Sugarfoot is a fabulous emulsified foot scrub/rub that feels like a fluffy sugar-packed cake batter but washes off cleanly. No oily goo! Packed with pure sugar to exfoliate dry skin and a blend of organic coconut oil and shea butter to moisturize and recondition your feet.

Oh, this may just be my new favorite and the ruby red grapefruit is intoxicating and tart!

DeLush Gushes

Here it is, but you can go to their site to see the whole thing.

Product Body Crush On You

prodbodycrush.jpgWhat They Say: "We've got a crush on you...and we'll do anything for someone we love. So we've formulated a unique and amazing exfoliating and moisturizing skin cleanser that you're gonna want to marry.

Crush On You is like nothing you've ever felt (unless you've run your hands through a bowl of extra moist sugar cookie batter). It's loaded with sugar that not only scrubs you clean but sloughs off dead dry skin cells. The macadamia nut oil and fresh shea butter we whip in moisturize your skin, leaving it soft and supple. Finally, the incredibly gentle body wash that holds it all together rinses you off as clean as a whistle, leaving your skin soft, clean and fresh feeling...."

Melissa Says: I tested this in an absolutely scrumptious scent, Pecan Praline. It's exactly as they describe - a wonderful whipped consistency, full of skin-scrubbing sugar, that leaves you soft, ever-so-lightly moisturized (not oily!) and smelling yummy. In my bath-junkie opinion, this is a no-brainer. In terms of scrubs of this quality, this one is worth every penny.

Shopping Tip: The 4.75 oz. "try me" container is MORE than ample to last more than a few baths or showers, and get you to fall in love. If you aren't sure, go ahead and order that size. If you know you'll love it, you'll be super-happy to get your larger 9 oz. jar.

Retail Price: $22.00, 9 oz. / $9.00, 4.75 oz. (at Product Body's Shop online)

DeLush Rating:

Thursday, March 6, 2008

Ginger Ale Pork Chops - Steps For A Great Dinner

I made this great dinner last night in hopes my family would start eating regular food again. I have been so bad. I make pasta with melted cheese for the kids, and make a hamburger or chicken cutlets and salad sometimes....nothing with flair these days. I went into my favorite cook book and went to town.



First, the ingredient list:
  • 4 loin pork chops (1 inch thick)
  • 1/2 tsp ground ginger
  • 1 TB unsalted butter
  • 3/4 cup ginger ale
  • 1/4 cup minced fresh ginger
  • 1/4 cup slivered crystallized ginger (I got this in the bulk section of my supermarket where they sell nuts and dried banana slices by the pound)
  • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts (I left these out because I don't like walnuts)
  • 1/4 cup golden raisins (I used regular raisins due to convenience)
  • 1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F
  1. Sprinkle pork chops with ground ginger.
  2. Melt butter in large skillet and brown chops over medium heat, 2-3 minutes per side. Transfer chops to oven safe baking dish.
  3. Add ginger ale, fresh ginger and crystallized ginger to the skillet and cook over high heat for 2-3 minutes.
  4. Pour this over the chops, transfer to the oven and bake 30 minutes.
  5. Then, sprinkle with walnuts (not applicable for me) and raisins and bake an additional 15 minutes.
  6. Transfer the chops to a serving platter and keep warm. Add the cream to the baking pan and place over high heat. Cook, scraping up the brown bits until sauce is slightly reduced and thickened, 2 minutes. Pour sauce over chops and serve immediately.
Yields 4 portions.


crystallized ginger before cutting

ingredients, chopped ginger, crystallized ginger, ginger ale in Pyrex and raisins


sprinkled pork chops with ground ginger sautéing in my Le Creuset

sauce before reducing to a thick sweet sauce

Final Ginger Ale Pork Chops with reduction sauce and served with steamed edamame.

It was dynamite!! My whole family devoured it. I should have made much bigger chops, but I didn't think the family would like it. I am constantly eating my creations for days because no one else will touch them.

It's funny. Before I was a mother, I made gourmet meals almost everyday. But now, I am cooking challenged. What is that?

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

Looking For A Day Spa In Every State

Not a terribly difficult goal, and yet we are not there yet. Corrine of Ohio will be joining Product Body soon as a sales rep. She is taking her product junkie tendencies and turning them into making money for her and her family by helping Product Body expand.

We are so pleased to have her. She is smart, educated, honest, young and energetic to name only a few of her positive traits.

Thank You Beauty Addict

Thanks to Kristen Kelly for the review on Ski Bomb. You can read the review here and if you haven't read her blog, she is wonderful. Honest, blunt and funny. She was the first beauty blogger I followed.

Cheers, Kristen!!

Tuesday, March 4, 2008

Chrisette Michele - Best Of Me

She sings this wonderfully. Reminds me a little of Billie Holiday's voice.

House of Tongues


I suppose normal families don't constantly stick out their tongues, but as I was going through our family photos, I noticed a recurring theme.... oh, happy times :)