Holiday Shop Closing Announcement

For all of you who can't stand being away from Product Body's Crush On You and soap and the new Creme Fresh, order today or you will have to wait until we return from vacation before we start formulating and shipping again.

Our physical store will be open 10 am until 7 pm today through Wednesday and then on Christmas Eve 11 am until 4 pm. After that we will be closed until January 5th. That is the day we will be returning to the shop/formulary so any orders that do come in will be sorted, and we will begin to formulate, but shipping for those orders will not begin to go out until Thursday January 7th or Friday January 8th because we will be making all fresh EVERYTHING, so you must be patient.

:)

We love you and thank you all for your support and patronage this year. Have a warm, wonderful holiday and a very safe New Year celebration.

I leave you with what I have always told my kids since they were itty bitty:

Surround yourself with people that make you feel good.

This isn't always possible during the holidays but it's something to think about for the new year. Have a happy, all!!

**

You Still Have Time To Order For Christmas!

You still have time to order for Christmas delivery. If you order now, we can still get products to you. We have to ship by Friday to play it safe, so if you order by THURSDAY, you can make it. That leaves you today and tomorrow. I will work my TUSH off and get that package to you. I promise you will get it before Xmas.

Everything is still handmade and fantastic. I will even throw in a free surprise.

:)

Shop away!

New Scent For The Winter

Ginger Milk Tea

 Steaming creamy milk tea with ginger and a whisper of clove.

We are only offering it in Crush On You and Creme Fresh for now.  ....Well..... I made a loaf of soap, but it won't be ready until mid January.  Pictures to follow when I cut the loaf.

I tell you, I am hooked on the scent, BIG TIME already.  It's my new favorite.

Our Gift Sets Are Apple Crispy And Ready

Last year our Figgy Pudding gift set was so wildly popular with all of our customers.  The apple crisp sugar scrub scent we created was raved about, so we have dedicated two entire gift sets this year based on our hand blended, signature secret sauce scent : Apple Crisp Gift Set and Apple Crisp Mini Set. 

Hot baked apples, drizzled in butter, sprinkled with brown sugar, cinnamon, graham cracker crumbs and a whisper of cloves.  Oh, you must try this set.  If you don't get the set for someone else this year, get one for yourself.  There are a limited number and we may not be offering this next year, so get 'em while they are fresh out of the oven!

Can you stand it?

Brine Thyself!

It does look like snow, but acts like the ocean to soothe, soften and take you away to a place of bliss. We've made a bottle of relaxation just for you to enjoy in your tub. 10 ounces of a magical mix. Sea salt, epsom salt, tapioca and fragrance.

Salt Snow... Fantastico!

Come see what all the fluff is about.

*

Joy Of Statistics

Have you heard the big news?

It's very big for us. After serious number crunching and long, hard hours of back and forth between me and my husband/business partner, we have dropped our prices by 15-25%. This was a hard decision, but we believe that in these economic times that we all face and with the situation being what it is for so many of us, we need to put this company in a more accessible place without sacrificing quality. We hope that Product Body will be what you reach for when you need something and that it is easier because we brought it closer to you.


We love our customers and every email and phone call we get brings smiles and adds lifts under our toes and sparks energy into our very noisy muses, so thank you thank you thank you for your support and feedback.

You have no idea what joy it brings me, personally, every time you add a comment on my blog or send an email about an experience you had about a product you used and how it made you feel or what memories the scent evoked for you. You think I may not be listening or don't care? You are wrong. I read every word myself. I eat that stuff up. Maybe because it just brings me such joy to bring people such joy!

=)

Soaps On The Curing Rack

In the soap curing rack:


Soap : time the soaps are ready for sale

Pumpkin : Halloween
{with real pumpkin pulp with scents of pie, graham cracker crust and warm spices}

Cocoa Java : November 20th
{Caffeine packed! Made with real unsweetened cocoa and pecan praline coffee grounds, sweet, hot dark chocolate and a drop of vanilla}

Ruby Red Rock Star : November 20th
{A burst of freshly squeezed ruby red grapefruit juice. Pink topped with glitter.}

Rhubarb Yuzu Cocoa Butter soap : November 15th
{Moisturizing bar made with extra cocoa butter and babassu oil, scented with sweet garden rhubarb and tart yuzu grapefruit}


This is for now.

Stay tuned for more.

Bring It Home

...bring it on home to me....( Led Zepplin if you didn't already guess ;))

3/50. Great concept. Click to read it clearly.

*

Mashed Potatoes?

We had our shea butter sugar scrub, Crush On You, photographed (by us of course, as usual) thinking we did a great job and how peaceful, spa-like and luscious it all looked. Well, Girl's Life (GL) wanted to do a give away with us a week or so ago. GL 's a magazine and blog that is targeted to 10-14 year olds. This I didn't know until after the giveaway started. I actually thought the audience was 14-17. So, on their blog, two comments mentioned that the Crush On You looked like mashed potatoes, so now every time I see this picture, I think of potatoes.

So sad and potatoey. You CAN tell me it doesn't look like potatoes, even if you lie to me. ;) Just lie to me.

On the flip side, it is the best damn scrub I have ever used. =0)

Closeouts are going going going...

photo credit twp (wire mesh materials)

You should check out our closeout section to see if anything floats your boat. Because we have changed sizes in some products or discontinuing smaller sizes, we are passing along the savings to you. We have discounted those items.

See what's left before they are gone!

*

Our New Line Up

It took long, grueling hours and a number of disagreements, but we finalized the look of our containers and labels. Here is the Product Body family, with the Mama Bomb folded into it all nice and snug.

All cohesive-like:

The Product Body line is available here

**

Changes

There will be changes coming with our products....

Some new things, some things gone for good. Stay tuned for our newsletter and I will update you here as well with the news and with photos.

A Thousand Thank Yous

We made it past 50 endorsements for Shine A Light! I am thrilled. We are into the first round of the "Judging Phase", I can't even believe it. Brad nominated Product Body and who knows?? Well, you never know. I'm sure thousands have entered, but Product Body sure could use the award money for marketing, staff (boy, I really could use help!!), a sales person... we could really be efficient!

We may be inspiring enough....

I love you! And so I give you a thousand thank yous and my promise to continue to try to be the best I can be and try even harder.

Shine A Light Small Biz Award. Can't Do It Without You.

Shine A Light Program is an opportunity of a lifetime for me and Product Body. Amex and NBC are asking people to recognize inspiring small businesses. I have until Sunday to collect at least 50 endorsements to qualify...to be in the running for a monetary prize so we can make Product Body go to the next step, to continue to bring you yummy body treats.

When you go to endorse Product Body, you do need to register. It will only take one minute of your day. I promise.

So if you'd be willing to help us, please register here: Shine A Light and then hit our story page and click the Endorse Now button on the upper left part of the page.

You can get to our story page directly by either going here, Product Body Shine A Light Profile Page or by clicking on the Nominations button, then using the search box and searching under Product Body.

This means the world to me. You have no idea.
Thank you.

ps: If you are really feeling crazy, tell the world and send the message out to nominate us, too!

*

A Facelift

Product Body's homepage was redesigned and I am loving the colors, the treatments and the whole vibe. It needed to be brightened up, cheered up and simplified along with our slimming menu changes.

We hope you like the changes and the eye candy. Thanks to my husband for his talent, perseverance and his patience with my perfectionism, nit-pickiness with this-n-that, and my random thoughts through the process.

Go see it for yourself: Product Body Website

*

Very Slimming

The shop looks so much nicer now from the front.
Must. Take. More. Pictures.
And my hair has grown. ;)

Being everything for everyone has put me and this company into a head spin. As much as I love to formulate new things and offer a million wonderful fragrances, I can not do that with the lack of staff and support I have in the current state we are in.

With that, we have decided to discontinue some products from our line and just focus on the products which are our best sellers.

We will be eliminating:

• Chez Salt
• Velvet
• Butter Scrub
• Bubble Rubble
• Tangerine Whipped Dream
• Coconut Milk Bath Soak
• Salt Bath

What we have on our shop shelves that are already made are on closeout on our website and when they are gone, they are GONE. Super discounted, some over 30% off. We will be offering new things for the holidays and we will bring in new things eventually, but for now, we will be offering the best of the best and we will NOT disappoint.

The Crush On You is amazing and is our very best seller. Apparently, some of you scrape the bottoms of your jars while you wait for your paychecks. I totally know how you feel, though because I can't live without it. I have to scrub my face with it every night, and I am addicted to the Baked Bread scent. Can't live without it, oh my gawd! It's THAT good.

The other thing is that we added some handmade soaps to our site. You can still see all of my soaps that are available on my Etsy shop, but if you want one transaction when you shop with us, we'll be offering more and more soaps as we go right there at the Product Body site.

So this is my update for now.

Hope this wasn't too much of a hit.

I still love you! And I'm still here. =)

End Of Summer Sale!

Yes. Summer is ending. There are only a few days left in August and then September rolls around, Labor Day comes and before you know it, Halloween will be creeping up on you. Yeah, you'll see!

So.... for the last few days in August we are offering 15% off of everything except Product Travels and Gift Certificates. It's the last yee haw of summer.

Coupon code is summersend

SO, use it, share it, use it again. It expires when August does!

My Etsy Shop

Because it is too hard for me, personally, to upload my ever changing soap and bath bomb products every week or so on Product Body's corporate website, I opened an Etsy shop where it is very easy for me to manage my own updates. I know that may sound lame, but because I don't make 6 of the same soaps all the time, I don't have standard listings.

I am having so much fun with soap making and bath bombing I can't even tell you. I would love you to periodically check out what I have to offer there because handmade soap is incredible. I make it all from scratch using fresh, nourishing oils, lye, water and the best fragrances I can find. Here's the address: http://productbody.etsy.com

Like I mentioned, the shop is constantly being updated, so what you see there today is not necessarily what you'll see there in three days. In about a week, I have a very pink Ruby Red Rock Star (tart ruby red grapefruit) coming due and she is fine and tart!

Lots of love from my soapy lab of smelly goodness!!

xo
Joanna

Beauty By The Batch

Have you checked this place out?

"Beauty By the Batch is dedicated to promoting the benefits of using handmade beauty, health and home care products to consumers seeking high quality products."

We are one of the featured artisans there and I am really proud to be a part of this new website. They have artisans listed, but they also have articles in their Personal Care Articles Library that are saturated with an enormous amount of information that we can all learn from.

=)

...don't be left out without the information

Vacation Notice

I am giving my notice. ;)

Product Body will not be formulating or shipping any more orders until we start processing orders again on August 11th. So if you haven't placed an order by yesterday, Friday July 31st, you will have to wait until August 11th to have your order processed, formulated and then shipped.

I do hope you understand. I must have a vacation before I fall over. I haven't had one in (I think) two years.... SO! Here I go on a road adventure. Perhaps I'll see you on the way!

Have a wonderful half of August.

this is how I feel now....

this is how I want to feel on my vacation.... =)

Ooooo! Another Rave! Thanks, Dollface!

Cindy Bokma, the talented writer, mother, (to me) comedian, fashionista, extrordinaire who writes Hello Dollface blog and Conversations With Famous Writers blog has written about our products, again.

What a HONEY PIE!

I'd love to regurgitate it here, but you should go over there and read it yourself.

Some of my favorite words...

Hands down
Julia Child
lathers up
whisper
no lie
Hello?
heaven
sniffing me

Cindy, perfume. I like it.....


;)

What Fun! I Stumbled On A Rave.

Usually when someone does a review about our products, they let us know, so we can be grateful and, of course, link back to their site and give them THANKS. But this time, I stumbled right over my own feet and into the screen on this one. How nice! Please go see it for yourself by going here to THE FIND blog. I have copied over the text of their review of Crush On You for your reading pleasure:


Beauty Review: Product Body Cream and Crush on You Sugar Scrub

posted July 9th, 2009

I’m a sucker for indie beauty brands. Especially those products that are handmade. Many of my blogger friends had been raving about Product Body’s Crush on You sugar scrub, so not wanting to be the one left out, I had to get my hands on it to try it out for myself.

Crush on You: This sugar scrub has the texture of cookie batter–and that’s a good thing (unless you are hungry!) A blend of sugar cane, sunflower oil, shea butter and glycerin, Crush on You is the perfect way to both exfoliate and moisturize at the same time. Your skin will feel incredibly smooth without a trace of flaky skin. I have it in Lemon Essential, which smells just like lemon zest. Or if you are from Rhode Island–it smells like a Del’s Lemonade!

Cream: While this looks to be a heavy cream in the jar, it is a very lightweight moisturizer that packs a deeply hydrating punch. Shea Butter and Sweet Almond Oil will work their way into your driest spots to breathe life back into your skin. Once the dead skin has been sloughed away by Crush on You, Cream is the perfect follow up now that your skin can better absorb it. I have it in SEXY Laundry Day, which is a very unique scent (and only available for a limited time!) It is a very clean and crisp fragrance, yet slightly floral.

I hear that Bubble Rubble is a major hit, as well, so I might just have to check that out. I’m definitely impressed by these two products and I am not at all surprised by all of the beauty mag press Product Body is getting lately. This is one brand you’ll want to keep your eye on! www.productbody.com


From our friends at A Girl’s Gotta Spa



Gotta love it.
Thanks for letting be be happy about smelling like lemonade. =)

Jo

Product Of The Day At Product Body

CHEZ SALT in pink grapefruit

Emulsified shea butter and olive butter salt scrub made by hand and excellent for the AFTER WAX of the bikini area to keep ingrown hairs at bay.

Salt. The magical bikini area mineral.

Oh yeah.....

*

Another Give Away

On the very stylish, awesome Indie Style Blog written by Crystal of Dirty Girl Soap, more Product Body goodies are being given away..... wahooooooo! You can win: one 9 oz Crush On You, one Champagne whipped soap and one Sahara Moon soap.

TWO winners. Have fun playing....

:O)

Quick! Give Away At The Bright Side:: Ends Today

The Bright Side Project is a website dedicated to daily giveaways. Each day they feature a brand or product they think will add a little sunshine to your life. Today is the PRODUCT BODY GIVE AWAY. So think quick folks and get out there!

Two winners (!) will receive one Crush On You ultra plush sugar shea scrubby wash in any scent available and a Product Travels Creme Fresh. In order to win.....

Go find out! The Bright Side Project

Summer Hours

Shop hours have changed for the Summer. We will be closed every day at 5:00 pm instead of 6:00 pm Tuesday through Saturday. We remain closed on Sundays and Mondays.

Enjoy the Summer!

*

Wash and Road Wash Price Drop For Good

Yup! We dropped the price.

Road Wash went from $16 to $13.50 and Wash went from $22 to $19.50.

A...N....D... an awesome new scent that you could die for:

c o c o n u t l e m o n g r a s s

Just get me the suntan lotion and a smoothie. STAT!

Double Item Sale! Sugarfoot and Cream......

Yeah. 20% off Sugarfoot and Cream going on now through June 29th. The sale was sent out in the newsletter to our customers, but we've decided that times are tough for everyone and we all deserve a sale, don't we??

:O)


Go check out the online version of our newsletter and get the sale code.

Toffee Soap

A couple of months ago I made soap with my daughter present in the shop. She didn't actually help me make the soap, but she designed the soap, scented it and topped it with sugar and chocolate soap shavings after the pour. She did a great job, I must say. We didn't name it until the soap was fully cured, because the scent fully morphed and now it smells mostly like toffee. It looks like fudge or pie....definitely edible. We made two loaves and Nina gets a lot of compliments on the bars. People come in all the time, take one look at the curing case and wonder if they've stepped into a fudge shop.

Hehe.

If you are interested in getting a Toffee soap, you can find them at our Etsy shop here. The main Etsy shop link is here if you want to check out our other Etsy offerings.

***

Bubble Rubble... In Sexy?

Oh yeah, in green, and the pink is Gardenia. Just sayin'.

Shop for it....

And The Winner Is.....

Random.Org generated a random number, so with all of the comments tallied in, then all of the posts that people wrote, which earned them extra points, and then all of the referrals and extra points earned there, the winner came out to be...... tinagirl.

tinagirl, congratulations!! Get in touch with me by email, so you can get your $25 in
Product Body Cash! jo(at)productbody(dot)com

Thank you all for playing. Maybe next time, we'll do a scavenger hunt ;)

Product Body Cash Give-Away

We are giving away $25.00 in Product Body spending money. It's true. We will put money into your Product Body account (you don't have to have one set up yet) for you to use towards any Product Body online purchase. It's used like a gift certificate/cash and never expires. Fun, yeah? Here are the ways that you can earn entries:

1. Go to the Product Body website and look around...find a product you'd like to try in the scent you'd like to try it in and return here and leave a comment with your answer. You may leave a total of three of these (we know how hard it is to choose only one Product Body product).

2. You can also send your friends to do the same thing, BUT they have to mention in their comment that you sent them. You'll get an extra entry automatically for each person you send.

3. If you have your own blog and you post this give-away on your blog, you get TWO automatic entries! (let us know so we can add entries to your name)

Contest ends on JUNE 17th. So have fun browsing and good luck!

Inexpensive Pocketbook Item

For only $6.50, you can get a Product Travels Creme Fresh (pictured above) and it's not such a big investment. Isn't it cute? Look! Those are my keys, my green leather purse and my green sunglasses, all sitting on my brown leather wallet. My husband and I do all of our set design, so everything that is set up is taken from one of us, unless there is a prop-less set, of course.

The Creme Fresh is nourishing and more than 99% natural. Get some. Get smooth. I find that my hands get dry looking at the most inopportune times, like when I'm about to meet someone I don't want to have dry looking hands! Yeah, especially me, the one who makes creams. A horror!

It's like a make-up artist walking around with no make-up.
A shoe maker with holey shoes.
A boat maker who lives in the Colorado mountains.

Oh, you get what I'm saying. Don't make me come back there.

Update on Ingredients - ORGANIC!

Product Body is now using organic high oleic sunflower oil across the board replacing all high oleic sunflower oil that we have been using prior. This change began in April and the website shall reflect this as soon as we can update this. We are also now using organic palm oil that is also farmed using sustainable farming practices.

We try to use natural and organic ingredients when it is feasible, but we also try to maintain fresh, quality products at a reasonable price. I read an interesting article today "Being Organic Or Natural Won't Necessarily Make A Product Green". You may be interested in it. Sometimes natural practices without thought can create an even bigger problem.

As product manufacturers, we need to look at the larger picture.

This organic news is good news. The palm oil especially. You can read a bit about the Orangutan species and why buying sustainable palm oil is important over on my soap blog here and here.

Thought Provoking Quote

Never mistake motion for action.

~Ernest Hemingway

Want To Lose Some Poundage?

flaxseed

A generic letter from my doctor:

There are seven simple foods for you to keep in mind that

can help you with controlling your weight:

(1) salmon,
(2) walnuts,
(3) hot sauce with capsaicin,
(4) water with lemon,
(5) ground flaxseed,
(6) cinnamon, and
(7) granola bars with high fiber and low sugar.

All of these are good items to consider when you want a

snack or when you want to help control that feeling of

hunger so that you can maintain control over your weight.

To Your Good Health,

Dr. Paul Winner

That's if anyone is looking to lose some pounds, or get healthy!!

NEW! TSA Approved Travel Set!

Are you so tired of squirting your stuff into tiny jars or mini tupperware so you can travel? Well cut it out and look no further! It is so true and it is awesome - in our newest scent, Beach House. Get them here. Also, you can get all the Product Travel items individually at the Product Body site....

Shop on Candid Camera

Thought I'd show part of my workspace.

I have 5 different work stations in this little area. You can see a little of this here, a bit of that there... Oh yes, this is a cruddy mess. After a full day of formulating, making and pouring soap and before clean-up. I DO clean up after every project, but I did have a few going at the same time, so it got crazy AND it was the end of the day.

From the work table in the formulary looking into the retail portion and out the door... (underexposed, sorry).

Mother's Day Approaches

If you are local, please stop in for some very cute Mother's Day packages I've put together ranging from $15-$89. Some are in plant pots, tea pots, baskets, etc. So, so cute! We decided this year NOT to do a Mother's Day offering online due to a busy wholesale schedule here (we just don't have the staff this minute), but we did send out an incredible Tips and Treats newsletter celebrating our wedding anniversary.

We gave 20% off of Coconut Milk Bath Soak and when the customer buys a non-sale item and wishes us a happy anniversary in the comments section at check out, we'd send them $13 gift certificate into their account. That is one dollar for every year. Yeah, it's like cash and it never expires.

So if you are on our newsletter list and you happen to miss that email - - check you SPAM filter.

Am I A Control Freak?

It's hard to be lying in bed all sweaty and achy while my husband mans the shop and puts together the orders I almost completed on Saturday. I know he's competent. I am just so used to me doing it all myself that when I am not there, I feel like I have no control. And I don't. So this whole idea of control is really a bigger issue.

Since I'm already in a lying down position, there's no need to sit down to think about control. I'm here, in the most relaxed and exposed position known to man. On my back. Like a turtle. So I'm thinking, "Am I into control? Do I need to have things go the way I want them to go? Do I need to maneuver situations in order to guide things to my desired outcome?"




My answer is no. I am just not one of those people. I mean, I'm not someone to be walked all over or just shrug my shoulders at any idea. I am not a slug with a lack of input. I just don't carry agendas that are inflexible.

So why is it that when I am not at work, and others are doing my job, do I feel a bit worried, like somehow it might not be done right? Again, super competent husband doing really easy packaging and labeling work.... I suppose if we had a bigger staff and we had individuals doing specific jobs, I could let go of the control.

Ok, I am achy now and my little moment of stress should have been a moment of Zen. My oatmeal and water must settle and now I need to nap.

I hate fever aches. :(

***

A Macro Detail

Shop's Curtain

Sometimes it's just good to stop. Look closely at where you are EXACTLY and see the beauty in the regular, ordinary things you see day in, day out.

Pretty In Pink Or Just Overkill

I've been on a cupcake bath bomb kick like a LOT of people. I'm still working on getting my peaks (frosting) much higher. I have to tell you, when I leave out the bubble bath portion, I can get them much taller, so i think I'll stick with the original formula I started with.

Thought I'd hit you with el carnival cuppy cake! If you are in the neighborhood, I have 4 individual ones and a 4 pack wrapped up in a cupcake box tied with a pretty ribbon all ready for a party!

Now, I am ready for a real cupcake. DD, my cupcake friend who has a cupcake shop around the corner, I need a red velvet with cream cheese frosting - aaaaaaahhhhhhththththh!

Chez Salt - What It's Good For....

If you get waxed at all, on your legs or your bikini area especially now with the Summer coming, you may want to start using a salt scrub to avoid ingrown hairs. Because...ow, those are no fun, and they are ugly. Yup - it's really true. And if you don't believe me, ask a spa manager, although, they'll try to sell you the salt scrub they carry in their spa.

Because I own Product Body, I'll suggest our salt scrub with soothing shea butter, Chez Salt. I made some FRESH this morning in juicy pink grapefruit. Just for your poor freshly ripped off skin that now feels like baby's skin.
:)

That's my skin tip for the day.

A Few New Things

We have been so busy in the lab whipping up goodies. My daughter was on Spring break last week and decided instead of vacationing, she wanted to come to work with me every day. She helped make bath bombs, clean up, wrapped and cut soap. She even designed and came up with a fragrance for her Toffee soap which I will post here next week. The soaps we made aren't shown in this post because they aren't cured, but they will be. They include Toffee, Clean Sweet and Ginger + Amber with Star Anise. They all came out very nice. Most of these can be found in the Product Labs Etsy shop by the end of this weekend.

Hot Process Yuzu Maui (with cp yuzu bits)

Sweet Lemon Pie Bath Bombs with calendula petals made and decorated by Nina, my daughter

Hefty half circle bath bombs in Passionfruit Guava (over 5 oz)--- sha shaaaaaa!

All natural lavender soap with rose clay and lavender buds

Bath bomb cupcake

Hot process soap:: Citrus Circus Squares
(tangerine, orange valencia, yuzu, grapefruit, ruby red grapefruit + lemon)

Have a great weekend and happy soaping, slathering or scrubbing! Also, if you are not following me on Twitter, get to it to get the April coupon for Crush On You!!

Dumping

It's like the old days when I first started concocting formulations. I did the research, created a "masterpiece", then dumped it in the trash bin. This was a good summary of the many batches of body goo I made for myself. Luckily, I didn't give up, yeah?

It felt like a little of that beginner's unluck muse was on my shoulder watching me on Friday and Saturday because I tried to make a huge batch of bubble bath cupcake frosting for my bath bomb cupcakes for the shop and I failed miserably. I don't know what happened except that I think I completely misread the recipe and added way too much water, then compensated with all the other ingredients, which never worked and just wasted ingredients..... all I can say is... I threw out over a gallon of frosting. That was a killer because I was all ready to have the prettiest cupcakes on the planet. (well, in Jupiter anyway, which is a planet but not on this planet.)

Then on Saturday, I went back to my original bubble bath royal icing recipe and it came out beautifully. It was a recipe for four cupcakes. When I was done and cleaned up the blender, I had my daughter (who was on Spring break and needing to make these cuppycakes with me) triple the recipe so we coud finish icing the rest of the bombs, I was mixing and mixing.....and what....was.....happening......the icing was.....all........ wrong. Oh mother of GAWD. Now what!?

I reviewed her math after the mixing had been done and realized she quadrupled one of the ingredients. Scrambling around and compensating for the mistake, mixing in more of the ingredients that hadn't been properly added, the darn icing just never got to where it was meant to be. It was thick and foamy looking, not silky and sticky looking the way it's supposed to look.

Hence, more dumping and more wasting.

I hate wasting.

Honestly, I have been quite preoccupied with a couple of medical issues, but now, hopefully that is behind me. So, with this coming week of recovery, I shall dream big and think positive with big fluffy peaks and those cupcakes will be grand.

YES!

(hey thinking positively can't hurt)

Lemon Bomb Is Green & For The Belly

We are in the current issue of Pregnancy & Newborn magazine :: The GREEN Issue!


Lemon Bomb for bellies (and super dry skin, too) ... When we get the magazine, we'll scan it for you all to see and post it up, but I couldn't keep it to myself. You know how I get with the press. Gitty is how I get!

xx Joanna

Crush On You Is Officially #1

Crush On You has topped the charts at Product Body. It is our top seller, it is the top discusser, the top raver, it's all anyone ever talks about these days. In fact, I am making it everyday just keeping up with the demand of the master exfoliators out there. (You know who you are ;P)

I originally made Crush for the body, but found myself using the scrub mostly for my hands at the kitchen sink because we are tuna fish eaters and garlic lovers here and that Crush On You takes odors right off the hands. Oil, too. Since I make the stuff, I have a tub of it at every sink in the house. I also love using it as a pre-shave for my legs. I love the roughness of a scrub on my lower legs especially. The rougher the better ...they are in a constant state of inner itch, so the scrub just eases the tension (hard to explain, so I'll just drop it so I don't bore you all).

Since Crush On You was born a few years ago, it's been just a body scrub, or so I thought. This year, my cousin tells me she's been using it on her face and has been for months. People at work keep stopping her and asking her where she's getting her "work" done. "Are you going to a dermatologist or getting plastic surgery or botox, or what!? I need their phone number!"

Get outta here!

She says to me, "No, Jo. Really." Then she tells me her son (who is also my Godson and 16 years old) has been using the Crush On You and his acne cleared up since he started using it. WHAT!? Get out. Okay, now, looking younger and beng acne free? Give me a piece of that Kit Kat bar! So guess what? I started using Crush On You as a facial scrub every night before bed for about 2 months, and my skin is way softer, looks smoother and my pimples are at bay. Hormonal acne can't be treated... those come from within, but the excess ones? They are gone!

SO if you have a Crush On You in your possession, try it on your face for a few days and see how you feel and look. Then write me an email if you have any feedback for me. I want to hear what YOU have to say.

I do.

The Shop Has Been Buzzing

People have been coming into the shop and have been super interested in the soaps we've been making. All of the soaps we carry we make the old fashioned way...with lye and oils and are cured for four weeks. We currently have these in the shop:

Baby Rose Cupcake
Creamsicle Honeymoon
Naked Nellie
Rhubarb Yuzu with avocado and cocoa butters
Fresh Baked Bread with rhassoul clay
Yuzu Maui (hot process)
Pumpkin Spice
Sexy Laundry Day

I have more planned, including goat milk, exfoliating oatmeal and coconut soap.

Some of the soaps in the shop are available on our Etsy shop: Product Body Labworks. That's my soap news for the day.

It Can Happen To You

It's OK To Be A Product Junkie
Product Body

The shop has been opened now for three months and we are still fairly slow, but we are now getting "regulars" and they come often. A lot of our online customers have become addicts and now I see it's happening right here in Jupiter. Women come in to the shop with a sense of urgency, walk over to the shelves nervously twiddling their fingers, looking for their "junkie" product in their favorite scent and when they find it, you can see their body change shape... there is a release of tension and nervous energy as they hold the jar tight.

I keep getting questions like, "this will remain a permanent scent in your line, right?" or "is this soap one of your signature ones? You will always have this available, right? I don't think I can live without it."

I am honored that people like the products and I am doubly thrilled that the soaps are such a big hit here. I can't make some of the soaps fast enough. I am getting soap requests and I am up for the challenge. In the meantime, spas are loving our Creme Fresh and saying their staff AND customers are flipping over it and the jars are flying off the shelves. Again, one of the spa owners (my customer) feels a bit like a drug dealer because people come to her frantic when the spa gets low on inventory. "When are you going to get more?.... I can't run out...."

It's better to be a Product junkie than any other kind of junkie, so yay to that.

Come to the shop if you are close. First sample is free...

Watermelon Brilliance

Fussy shared this and I am passing it along. It's too cool.
You can see the other watermelon brilliance here at the Watermelon Carving Contest.

The Sexy Winner Is 13

Who would have thought that on Friday the 13th, Random.org would have randomly chosen number 13?? Tis true! Take a look at that. Well, Elizabeth Gassner, I think your day is a lucky one and you are officially tagged: SEXY ... so move over Marilyn Monroe, the Sexy Laundry Day items are coming your way...shipping out on Tuesday and will make you feel good and, well, sexy.

Congratulations, Elizabeth!!

Stay tuned. Thanks all for coming and participating!! More fun to come soon......