Wednesday, December 26, 2007

More Soaps


Well today was another soaping and research day for me. My day began as usual, out of bed, tidy things up around the house, and to the soaping area I went (prior to and after we (hubby and I) took our two boys and two nephews to see Alvin and the Chipmunks).

Anyway, today I made a facial bar batch that has Rosehip powder in it for its gentle, yet deeply cleansing ability. This bar has a very high percentage of Olive Oil along with avocado. Once unmold, cut and stored to cure, I tried a sliver on my hands and it felt good. Can't wait until this one is fully cured.

I also, made an unscented batch with infused calendula olive oil. Amazingly, the calendula scent came through the batch, well at least it did during soaping. We will have to see how it holds up once it has reached maturity.

Didn't get around to taking pix, hopefully that will be done tomorrow, after I make a Mango Madness batch of soap, then Raspberry Cream, and maybe some B. Paradise. We will have to see.

Tuesday, December 25, 2007

New Soaps

It is 7:39 pm EST on Christmas Day. The kids are exhausted from all the excitement from Christmas, Hubby is realizing catching up on TV time, while uploading new software to one of our computers and I as usual is doing business related stuff. My wheels are always turning and today was no exception.

Our day started early with the kids rising around 6:00 am running to the Christmas tree to unwrap their gifts. Our oldest who is 14 and looks every bit of 17 and sounds like he is 25 received everything he asked for, which was any and everything musical related. Such as a beat maker, mixer, microphone and some other equipment that I can't think of. Our youngest (9) wish came true, he got a Digitial camera, some sort of expensive race car, Playstation games, clothes, and shoes. Daddy is always surprised because Wifey knows how to bring a bright smile to his face, while he does the same for me.

As for business related ventures, I made a Creamsicle Butter Soap that is loaded with cocoa butter and smells just like the old fashion creamsicle ice cream bar. Boy I can't wait to try this soap. It has over 25% of cocoa butter intermingled with our basic recipe which has a high percentage of food grade olive oil. Scented with sweet orange essential oil and a hint of vanilla fragrance oil. Umm! Umm! good. Once it is unmolded and cut I will upload pix.

I also made a shaving bar, something hubby has been asking me to create for quite some time. It has a generous helping of the wonderful Avocado oil that is also balanced with our base recipe. In addition, it has a great slipping agent of mineral clays which allows for one to get a clean, close razor cut along with moisturizing glycerin. I anchored this one with a To Die For masculine essential oil blend that can be appreciated by women as well.

Stay tune, more to come

Monday, December 24, 2007

Welcome to Kares Krafters


Blogging has been something on our “To Do” list for quite some time. In fact, we have tried it once, but never did any updates. Well, going into 2008, we are going to make an effort to do much better than in the past. Therefore, we are not making any promises of constant posts!

It is great to see 2007 come to an end and with God’s grace and mercy, it will be even better to see a new year…2008! December 8th of 2007 was Karess Krafters 2nd birthday and we were excited to see how much we had grown since 2006. Our sales in 2007, tripled from 2006, largely due to use doing 20 additional Arts and Crafts Festivals than the previous year. Not only did it afford us more exposure, but it was also rewarding to pick up two wholesale accounts and more retail customers. God is AWESOME!

Moving forward into 2008, we will be offering a “Scent of the Month” every month. What this means is at the beginning of each month our newsletter subscribers will be the first to know about the fragrance for the month. Non-subscribers can either subscribe on our site or visit our website (www.karesskrafters.com) at the beginning of each month to get the featured scent’s details. The fragrance showcased will be offered in our signature handmade soap recipe and in some cases a moisturizer and/or roll on body perfume will be available as well. In case you’re wondering why some fragrances will be in a soap only, it is because some scent blends are only suited for a soap. Such as, when we blend a fragrance for our soap that contains Neem (which has a distinct smell of its own), it’s not always suited for a leave on body application, such as lotion. Also, the chemistry in lotion making and soap making are in two different arenas, which in many cases can cause the scent blend to take on another aroma of its own.

We have a great new scent line up for 2008, so stay tuned for more details as they begin to unfold in February 2008!