I started making a line for baby sensitive products, and came up with these cute little shampoo bars. The fragrance is very light from a lavender essential oil, and there is no added color. The light yellow is from a calendula infused oil.

I have been trying to decide what to do about my increasing amount of soap that needs to cure in a breathable environment. I think I came up  with a curing shelf that will work. I made this very simple wood frame cabinet, and cut the metal closet shelving to fit. The shelves can slide out to see in back. Not quit a profession quality shelf, but no one will be looking in my closet anyway.

This summer I decided to pull out some paint brushes and have some fun on canvas. The picture doesn't capture the detail in the paintings, but they are still fun from at a glance. It has been years (like college) since I painted anything, and I enjoyed dusting off the tool bag, plus I now have have some very cute soap signs.

After making the Mother's Day laundry bag, I started thinking about including that online but I wanted it to be easier to see the contents inside the bag. I was going through my bin of leftover quilting material to get ideas, and came across several squares of already quilted block. It got me thinking about quilted totes, and after a quick search online I  was getting excited. I enjoy quilting, and in tote size it is like a mini quilt project, and a way to make use of the leftover material! Here are some samples from the weekend...

I know so many people having babies this summer that is has inspired me to make some baby bath stuff. I bought this terry cloth to make some animal hooded towels. I love how bright and sunny the colors are, and am excited to get started on this project.

My soaping wheels have been turning after needing to take my car into the mechanics to get fixed. I wanted to make something to clean greasy hands...

 I decided to start with loofah as a way to exfoliate deep withing the groves of skin. I like pouring the soap right into a chunk of loofah instead of grinding it up.

 The next ingredient I decided on was activated carbon (charcoal) which helps draw dirt, oil, and toxins from the skin, followed by oatmeal for balance and healing, and shea butter for moisture.

The final soap looks very garage worthy, and I can't wait to test it out in 4 weeks!

 So I finally finished putting together my mother's day laundry bags. My kids got a kick out of the wool dryer balls which are hanging in the nylons. They thought they made great necklaces, and were a little bummed when I started cutting up their new toy.

 

 This is the stain stick which unfortunately won't be done curing by Sunday, but in another 2 weeks will be great for treating clothing. I like how the scent came through after the soap processed, just a gently hint of a fresh linen type fragrance. 

The final laundry bag! So it includes a 32 bag of powder laundry soap, 3 wool dryer balls with a rub to refresh the fragrance, 2 stain sticks, and a cute spring pattern fabric drawstring bag to store it all together.

So Mother's Day is just around the corner and I have been working like crazy to get something together for all the moms in our family. 

I decided on a laundry basket theme as a way to break off from the overdone candy and flowers. I made a stain stick the other night and now am trying to wait patiently before I cut it. This is the first soap I made in my new soap molds and have been happy with it so far.

I am putting together a fabric softener right now, and have to run to the store to get materials for a wool dryer ball and laundry soap.

I am having fun designing labels for these new products, and can't wait to see how the gift basket looks all together.

I recently decided to change the packaging for my soap because the boxes take too long to cut out and fold, and they don't hold up well against the oils in the soap. I would like to try a sleeve type label with a fabric drawstring bag. I'm choosing between a burlap and the sheer utility fabric, but leaning towards the sheer because it is not as rough.

I found these soap molds at Michaels for a pretty good price. I had to cut the width down from about 4.5 inches to 3 inches because I don't like a soap bar that gets too long. Now that the width is right they are perfect to start soaping with.

I've been making small batches of my bath drops, and love how good my skin smells afterwards. Each bath drop contains a unique blend of ingredients that aids your skin and senses in different ways. Over the winter I loved relaxing with a cold and flu bath drop. The essential oil and salt blend helped to ease my tired body and relive my congestion. Lately I have been brainstorming  ideas for a new bath drop, maybe something for mother's day...

I found these glass roll on perfume bottle recently, and have been going through different ideas of how I want to use them. Whatever I decide I think they are lots of fun. The possibilities...

I spent this morning making bath drops, my house smells so good now! Most of my jars are empty so I think I'll need to set aside more time tomorrow to finish.

I have started making deodorant for myself because the aluminum in the store bought stuff is not suppose to be good for you. I have been pretty happy with the effectiveness of a homemade deodorant, but still am trying to fine tune the recipe to get the right texture. Does anyone have a successfull deodorant recipe to share? 

With summer just around the corner many of us start to plan our camping and hiking trips. I recommend bringing a head to toe shampoo bar to reduce the number of bottles you have to pack. The shampoo bar is extra conditioning so you can even skin packing a conditioner and lotion. They are formulated for a variety of hair types, and if you want an extra bug repellant try the puppy shampoo bar. I'm thinking of making an insect repellant in a lotion bar for simple, and small, packaging. Did you know drinking some teas can also repeal misquitoes.

I wanted to make a new fragrance for this summer, and decided on a pina colada. I love how the tropical notes of citrus in the pineapple combine with the sweet coconut. My only regret is that the soap actually started out white with yellow and the green, but has discolored  from the coconut fragrance oil. I'll have to make some adjustments for my next batch.