A Surprise MakeUp Alley Review

Jen at MakeUp Alley wrote this great review and posted it on MakeUp Alley and on Flickr.

Thank you Jen!!

I ordered three Sugar Shea Scrubby Washes from Product Body at Etsy, and she included a perfume oil sample in my box. Here is my review as promised! First the TAT was amazing. She makes each product when its ordered and promised a 3 day turn around. She shipped my order in less than a day. She packed all my items with care inside a sturdy box and surrounded them in soft colorful tissue papers. The box was sealed securely, my items arrived safe and in perfect condition. :) As I opened the box, I first spotted a sample of her brand new limited edition Valentine's perfume oil in Lair. She describes it so accurately on her website, I'll quote her instead of searching for my own words: "Smoky sandalwood, crushed black tea, vanilla drops, cloves, and smoke. This one is sexy and dark. Imagine standing in a cabin in the woods. You've just showered, there's with a freshly lit fire, and you're warming yourself by the crackling flames. A breeze carries the almost imperceptible scent of distant flowers through the window... " I absolutely cannot wait to shower and use this perfume oil. If its as good on me as it is in the container, she may get another order from me. :) And now the Crush on You Sugar Shea Scrubby Washes! I've only tried one with a hand washing, so this is my first impression of the product. The containers are so cute! They each have a scent label on the top for easy ID, they're clear so I can see how much product is left at a glance, the ingredients are written clearly on the label, and they are packed to the top with product. The scrub is not greasy/oily at all and well, it feels kind of like sugar cookie dough! It holds shape when moved around in the jar and is really densely packed, yet loose enough to get some out easily. When I add water to the scoop in my hands and rub it around it turns creamy/milky like. The sugar granules and creaminess feels wonderful on my hands. After rinsing and drying, my hands feel soft, clean and smell great! The scent I tried is Mazu, its a little strong in the jar but softly scented on the skin. If I lift my hands toward my face and breathe in, I can smell it pretty well. I don't think it would interfere with perfumes or lotions. I took a photo here so you can see what I mean about its consistency. I tried my best to capture it. :)

Her scent descriptions are great, so here they are and my comments in parenthesis: Mazu - Coconut milk, lemongrass, blackened vanilla, crushed Indonesian lime leaves, smoky clove, a whisper of jasmine and a tiny hint of dark musk. (I definitely get the coconut, lemongrass, lime leaves smoky clove, blackened vanilla and musk. I am not picking up the jasmine) Ginger Milk Tea - Hot blended tea infused with nutmeg, cloves and vanilla topped with frothy sweet ginger milk.(Definitely getting all these scents with this one. Its not real strong in the jar, so this one may be difficult to smell on the skin if it follows how Mazu was) Raspberry Linzer Cookie - Raspberry Linzer Cookie smells just like that cookie! (I have never had a Linzer cookie, but now I have to. I'm actually running an errand in a bit after this post and plan on looking for some of these. It smells like heaven. A Buttery baked cookie with the brightness of Raspberry Jam and the sweetnes of sugar sprinkles on top, keep the spoons away from me, it smells good enough to eat!) Overall I am completely impressed with the TAT, CS, Scents, Products, and the generous sample I received. I am definitely planning another order as soon as I "use it up!"

Here is the link to the actual review:

http://www.makeupalley.com/m_120850606 When I went, I had to register, I'm not sure why...

so you can go here:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/cutsie/5396463617/

Gothique- Oui Oui!

photo credit: Gothique

I am so happy today. Product Body received a really nice review from Grey at Gothique blog which I visit all the time. Grey reviews all sorts of cosmetics like mineral make-up, soaps, scrubs, perfume oils.... anything that strikes her fancy, really.

Please check out her review over there.

*

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.....


;)

Specktra Beauty News

I received a lovely email this morning from Jamie Tabor of Spectra. She wrote a surprise review of Crush On You:

Product Body’s Crush On You ($22) scrub is hands down the BEST body scrub I’ve ever used. I got into the shower and rubbed my arms, legs, and torso down with this sugar based scrub, then rinsed off and honestly…I was awed.

If you'd like to check out the entire review, you can go visit Spectra.
Thank you, Jamie for a lovely review!!

a girl's gotta spa

My ears WERE burning!

Shannon Nelson, of a girl's gotta spa blog, wrote a nice review on Crush On You and Cream. You can see the review here if you'd like to.

Shannon is a very talented and busy woman. She writes for Makeup Minute and is the Corporate Communications Director for Pierce Mattie Public Relations. Now THAT is a mouthful!

Thank you, Shannon, for the lovely review!!

not martha

I think I love Megan Reardon who writes not martha, which is a blog I love and read every day. She wrote all about Product Body today and I am super excited, thrilled and still catching my breath from her blush-inducing comments!

See about not martha's give-away and Read her review of Product Body here!



....there is much more in her review...this was just a screen shot.

Don't you love Megan, too??

Thank you!!!!!

Scent Review of Sexy Laundry Day

A lovely, lovely customer of mine gave me a scent review for Sexy Laundry Day that I'd like to share.

Sexy Laundry Day is the perfect name for this scent. It's soft, sweet, and clean. Think clothes on the line on a summer day with sweet undertones. It's perfect for my job where perfume is not allowed but I still want to smell nice. I used Crush on You and Cream both scented with SLD since layering the scent makes it last longer. Once it's on the skin, this scent is subtle yet alluring. My husband caught my arm and pulled me close to get a better sniff. Now that makes me want to use it every day!

Nell

ps- I love the salt soap too.

Thank you, Nell. I appreciate your emails and wonderful comments.

Queen Of Scrubs?

Kristen Kelly of Beauty Addict did it again.  She wrote another wonderful review of our Sugarfoot on her blog and I am blushing once again from her praise.  If you want to read the entire review, go here to read "The Two Sugarfoots (Sugarfeet?)".  Here are a couple of highlights I snagged:

...I'm just gonna come out and say it: Joanna Schmidt is the Queen of Scrubs.

...packed to the gills with scrubby bits. This is key for me these days, especially after my recent disappointment with that useless L'Occitane scrub.

...And like all of Product's products, it feels and smells absolutely heavenly. It comes in two scents, but really, who cares about Ruby Red Grapefruit when you can have COOKIE?

Thank you, Kristen!

***Kiss***

Prehistoric Conair Will Not Smell Like Burning People Anymore

FHI Black Turbo Hair Dryer - Nano Weight Pro 1900 

Misikko asked me to do a review on a hair dryer they are selling on their website.  I review soap on my soap blog all the time, but that is what that blog is partly about.  This blog however, really is about my personal and business life and all that encompasses.   So I had mixed feelings about doing a review.  

They shipped me one.

I have to tell you, this is a great hair dryer, no kidding, y'all.  Okay, my last hairdryer (now permanently residing in a dump in Sun Valley) was a Conair from 1990, I think.  That stupid thing smelled like a burning human every time I used it.  Luckily for everyone in the house, I only dried my hair when I was cold or had to look extra presentable, which is about twice a year.  Maybe three.  And since we moved to Florida 5 years ago from NY, I'm not cold very often.  Three times in five years?

So I get this dryer and it is very sleek in comparison to my clumsy, smelly-burny Conair.   A true hair treat. So I instantly jump in the shower, get my hair wet and jump out dripping all over the floor and start up the blower.  I plugged it in prior to my shower so electrocution wasn't an option. 

Hmm.  I am not a caveman, but I noticed right away that there were many buttons (unlike my prehistoric Conny) so I needed to figure it out.  Manual?  Oh, please-let's get started.  While on, of course, I start changing the settings, buttons, levers..... I was quite impressed.  It has low, medium, high, as every one of these suckers have in this century.  But it also has cool, warm and hot.  Most of the ones I've tried only have had cold and blazing-burn-your-scalp-to-a-nice-cayenne-red HOT. 

Warm.  What a concept.  

It's funny how it never occurred to me that warm was an option or ever thought it should be, I just held the darn dryer at arm's length so my hair wouldn't catch on fire!  It's weird what I save my money on.  I'll go out to dinner that'll cost me $70, but to spend money on non-necessities?  That is where I'm cheap.  I know.  Shut up.

Back to drying with a Porsche-like hair dryer.  Here are the features it has:

• Adjustable heat:  Heat and Speed, Turbo Boost, Cool Shot (yeah, there are these buttons that do this stuff!)
  
• Ceramic heater:  Far infrared ionic heat.
  
• Tourmaline, Nano silver and titanium oxide: adds ions, shine; removes chemicals and bacteria (I don't know how that works, but this is a claim they make...)
  
• Attachments: diffuser and concentrator
  
• One year warranty, super lightweight and it is safe for the environment because it has low EMFs!
  

Price: $195, Sale price: $130 (but I think this is the price they sell it for always).

While I think that is an expensive item, I also think that if I could have had this dryer instead of that wannabe over achiever Conair, for that many years, it would have made sense.  $130 for 18 years.  That's $7.00 a year for a beautiful head of hair without burn!!

They also have chi flat irons/straighteners - http://www.misikko.com/fachiceflir.html 

9 Best Coconut Skin Care Products - We Made The List!

About.com listed Mama Bomb Coconut Milk Bath Soak among the 9 Best Coconut Skin Care Products.  What an honor!  Listed among the very big hitters, we are the only indie company included in their head to toe top picks.  That feels good.

Shea Butter Deodorant by Savonara

All natural deodorant?  I have been using Tom's Of Maine on days I don't use my Lady Mitchum.  Really it is about convenience and where the stuff is at the moment of my underarm preparation ritual.  I have heard that the nasty aluminum junk in antiperspirants cause cancer, especially in women.  I have been hearing this as long as I can remember.  This is why I have Tom's of Maine, to offset the abuse I give my armpits with the commercial stuff.

Sher, owner and creator at Savonara, is very sweet and super talented.  We did a trade and I got some of her soaps (which I will review on my Soap Blog in a couple of weeks) and I got her shea butter deodorant.  Honestly, I was hoping for the best, but I didn't have too much faith in its effectiveness.  Armpit goo (aka Shea Butter Deodorant) made with shea butter, coconut oil, baking soda, corn starch and essential oil just doesn't sound like it would combat the armpit stench that often comes from the granola smacking group of people in the crystal aisle.

So "curmudgeon me" aside now:: That goo works!!  I swear that stuff surprised me silly.  Now, I didn't go out in 90 degree weather and weed my garden for hours to test, so I am not sure how it would perform under heavy duty sweat conditions, but I have used it for about two weeks and I do my fair share of sweating, especially when I am formulating and lugging 25 pounds of shea butter from here to there.  

To use:  dip finger in goo and scoop out about a pea (closer to chickpea, perhaps) sized shea lump and spread onto skin under the arms.  This does not feel oily or sticky in any way, which surprised me.  I truly thought I would have a greasy yucko feeling in the pits, but I did not.

Sher made me a special scent, geranium, but she is selling her armpit goo (aka Shea Butter Deodorant) in rosewood, orange tea tree and lavender lemongrass.  For 2 ounces, it costs a mere $6,00.  I think that is very reasonable.  And no cancer!  How about that!!??

Check out her soaps because not only are they gorgeous to look at, they smell awesome!  She also has a blog, if you want to go check that out as well!

Best News Ever

I got confirmation of some great news yesterday, but, I actually haven't gotten my hands on it yet.

My friend called me yesterday afternoon to congratulate me.

Huh?

"I saw you in REAL SIMPLE magazine! It's on page 97 and there is a big foot and they talk about Sugarfoot!"

Omagod, omagod, omagod. I was aware that Real Simple had chosen us to be a part of their May pedicure story, but they also said that I could be yanked at the last second before they go to print. I know for a fact that some other businesses have been yanked, literally at the last moment so I didn't want to get my hopes up too high. According to my contact there, the magazine is supposed to hit newsstands on Monday, but I suppose some subscribers get it a few days early (?)

Tonight my mother calls me and said she saw it on their website. So here it is. I am super proud to say that Sugarfoot is a "Real Simple Pick". I have been loving this magazine way before I even got into this business, so it kind of feels hard to believe we are IN it.

There is my jar of Sugarfoot!

When I get my hands on the real thing, I will scan it and share with you the moment I can.

Thank you all for being so supportive.

Yayayayay!

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?

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.

DeLush Gushes

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

Product Body Crush On You

What 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:

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!!

Wickedly Chic

Thank you, Wickedly Chic for a lovely review of our Cream and our newest addition, Coconut Milk Bath Soak. You can see the review at their website - Wickedly Chic is a website dedicated to sharing their indie finds - jewelry makers, tea makers, soap makers, candle makers ... lots of "makers". Their tag line is Independent Shopping For The Wickedly Fashionable.

Does that make me wickedly fashionable? I'll take it! :)

Coconut Milk Bath Soak Gets Attention

A BIG thank you to Carrie~Gigi of the Mud Puddle Girl blog for the shout out. Ms. Carrie ordered Mama Bomb Coconut Milk Bath Soak from my company, Product Body. I made cocoa butter sea salt bath melts for fun and included one in her package. She has been generous and kind to me and my daughter and I wanted to add a touch od sweetness to her order. What a cute picture she took! (I think she liked it :) )

Carrie~Gigi is a very talented soap maker. She created soap crumb cakes that smells absolutely heavenly... like maple syrup!!! I've blogged about her and her sweet bath goodies on my other blog, The Soap Bar here and here. Unfortunately, they are currently sold out, but she makes lovely soaps and bath treats, so go on over to Under The Willow Gifts and she if anything floats your boat.

Thanks again, Carrie~Gigi!!!!

Top Ten in Jewel Box Dreams

Susanna of Jewel Box Dreams is blogger who likes us (yay!).  She included Product Body as one of Jewel Box Dreams Top Ten Beauty Products picks.  We are very excited to be included in her list.  Susanna writes an excellent beauty blog and I have become a loyal weekly reader.

Thank you, Susanna!

....A Gunk Dilemma

My mother's account of last Sunday....

On Sunday I invited a bunch of friends over for a barbeque.  This is my favorite way to entertain, bringing friends together and not spending too much unnecessary time with the cooking deal.  Anyway, before anyone arrived, I decided to tackle a fixit job that has been bothering me for at least two years.  I must say that the only reason I decided to tackle this job one half hour before everyone arrived is because I am very shallow and wanted to impress my oldest grade school friend's husband who had never been to my house before.  My regular buddies could care less about the dysfunctional wood floor trim in my living room, as it is far less annoying than some of the other dysfunctional fixit jobs that I've put off, but I'm kind of tired of the dog charging around the living room, dining room and kitchen at 65 mph using the trim as his personal skate board.  Between the dog, the grandkids and an overzealous cleaning crew, the wood trim was becoming a priority or a lawsuit.

 

So back to the barbeque.  I got on my hands and knees scraping glue from the floor and the underside of the trim.  The vacuuming scares  the dog who thinks it's the enemy launching an attack on him.  More running, barking and chaos.  When I was ready to put the "liquid glue" onto the trim,  I used my fingers and was very pleased at the beauty of my work.  The job was done, and not too shabbily,  but now I had about half an hour to clean myself up before my friends arrived.  I read the label on the tube and there were no instructions about cleaning up the gunk from the hands, so I went into the bathroom, grabbed some soap and began scrubbing.  Nothing took the stuff off.  I got a brush, scrubbed my hands and fingers. The skin on my fingers were scraping off and bleeding, but the stuff wasn't.  

Since my daughter who is the founder of her own beauty products  business (Product Body, I'm proud to announce), she has in her lovely and quiet way, filled my bathrooms with all of her wonderful products (4 bathrooms all told).  I looked on the vanity and saw Crush On You pumpkin cinnamon scrub. I am a gal from the 60's.  We used oils, creams, but never scrubs.  I don't think there were any scrubs.  So, although these lovely products surround me in the bathrooms, I have failed to grab the scrubs and use them (my husband likes them, he reports).  Now I was pretty desperate so I dipped into the scrub (ummmm, smells good enough to eat) and washed my hands with it.  Not only did it remove all the black gunk on my fingers and hands (these lovelies were clean), but they felt softer than they ever had.  What a kick.

 

Now I know my sweet daughter will believe me because I am too depressed over Dan Fogelberg's death to lie.  Thank you, Crush on You.   

Mom

The picture of Natalie Wood looks like my mom when she was 20.

Nice to know she finally tried the stuff after THREE YEARS!  :)  

Thanks, Mom....I love you!

......Dan Fogelberg??