I just had to share the gorgeous view from our home last night. Isn’t it stunning? The moon rose perfectly over the snow covered hills, and there was just enough ambient light to appreciate its size and shape. The view was breathtaking.
Tutorials on soapmaking, bath fizzies, lotions and more
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
I just had to share the gorgeous view from our home last night. Isn’t it stunning? The moon rose perfectly over the snow covered hills, and there was just enough ambient light to appreciate its size and shape. The view was breathtaking.
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
Look at these gorgeous bars of felted soap for sale on Etsy from SandieK.
If you’re inspired by these photos and want to make felted soap yourself, click here to go to the Mielke’s Fiber Arts. Hint: you don’t have to make the soap. It’s all in the wool and the felting process to make these little works of art.
Filed Under: Business Musings
United, United, United … I was prepared to love you. I even got a Frequent Fliers Card so that I could better fall in love with you and use you more often.
Until today.
Thanks to Yapta.com, I was alerted to a full $50 fare price drop for one of my itineraries. I was eligible to request a travel voucher for $50. Score! I phoned the 1-800 United number, dealt with your robotic little voice activated “No really, this is for your own good!” menu and finally got a real live person.
She informed me that she could give me my $50 fare drop but that unfortunately, she would have to cancel my $50 Economy Plus upgrades at the same time. Not to worry, I would be able to log in and easily upgrade myself back up to Economy Plus. I confirmed this three times with her and even got her to check to make sure all the legs of the itinerary had Economy Plus seats. After all, the trip from NY to Seattle is long and I’d like to have a few inches to move my legs.
But, United, your telephone person was wrong! Not only did I lose my Economy Plus seats, I am now situated near the back of the plane and cannot get my Economy Plus seats back. Despite spending another 45 minutes on the phone with yet another customer service rep (who couldn’t fix my problem because she “didn’t have access to my reservations.” Why is she even answering the phone if she doesn’t have access to my reservation!?!), I still don’t have my Economy Plus seating back.
She gave me the 1-800 number for Tech Support to spend another wasted hour on the line with Tech Support to beg to pay the $50 for my Economy Plus seats back.
What’s the point in offering a “Fare Protection” option if you don’t really want people to use it? What’s the point in allowing me to request a voucher if the experience is so negative that it negates the good feelings that the voucher engenders to start with?
For Soap Queen readers who have small businesses, think about your business practices – what do you do to just look good? Is your return policy overly generous in writing but stingy in reality? Do you claim that you send a “free sample with every order,” yet send non-saleable junk to your customers? Do you have a “Live Help” button on your web site but never staff it? January is a good time to rethink your true commitment to your customers. After all, there’s no point in promising something that you really don’t intend to deliver on.
Filed Under: Soap Queen Cuisine
Thanks to Linda in Accounting, the Bramble Berry staff get a treat today – Pineapple Upside Down and Broken Cake. It’s Linda’s Four Year Anniversary with Bramble Berry and we’re celebrating!
Having never made Pineapple Upside Down Cake, I doubled up the recipe to be on the safe side. It turns out that this was a prudent choice.
The secret to Pineapple Upside Down Cake is lots of butter and lots of melted brown sugar. This sugary layer goes down first with a careful smattering of Pineapples smooshed into the gooey butter.
Then, the batter goes over the gooey pineapple layer evenly.
After baking for 30 minutes, I attempted to flop the cake out smoothly and evenly. As you can see, half of the cake ended up on the counter. My husband took this as an open invitation to eat part of the cake. After all, it’s not like the staff would be able to tell any was missing!
But, the 2nd cake, came out perfectly and intact! Phew. Disaster averted.
Linda, thanks for being such a cheerful and effective accountant for the last four years.
Filed Under: Melt & Pour Soap
Big thanks to Nicole in Customer Service for coming up with this swell idea. Isn’t she creative?
What you’ll need:
Bramble Berry Ducky Soap Mold (S.W., in MA wrote us to say: “I wanted to tell you how happy I am with my Duck Molds. They made the perfect children’s soap, and the Pearberry the perfect scent. I work with CP soap, the molds were beautiful but not too detailed so that I would worry about air bubbles (no tapping). Made them yesterday and woke up to beautiful pearberry ducks. Everybody wants them.”)
Saran Wrap
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
While researching the perfect soapy Valentine presents for you, I couldn’t resist the siren song of this fabulous necklace. No, I don’t need it. Yes, I have plenty of necklaces. Yes, I am vaguely ashamed of myself.
The artist says this about my one-of-a-kind creation:
I have taken a small collection of things and made them into charms for this charm necklace. This necklace has a sweet little ‘i love you’ brass postcard, a puffed brass heart charm, a capped red faceted glass charm with red Czech glass dangle and a Czech glass flower bead in a pink with a bit of pale green.
Check out JuliaCatherine’s Etsy store here.
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
The Manufactured Day of Love is approaching fast! Do you have your present picked out yet? I’ll be the first to admit that I don’t but I’m getting some ideas with all the massage candles I’ve been making this week!
From Etsy, how about some Heart Felted Soap? $6.50 at AmeliaMakesArt in Portland, OR. The wool acts like a wash cloth with gentle exfoliating action.
Soap is always a perfect gift so this Garden Party Soap from SoapyLove tfor $4.00 scened with Tomato Leaf fragrance is certainly Valentine-Worthy.
This is a flexible soap mold for the bargain price of $12.00 (silicone molds normally run pricier).
And, this might not be a gift for your sweetie but awwwww, isn’t it cute? And for $9, it’s a bargain! Get it here for the little munchkin in your life.
Finishing out the Valentine’s Inspriation collection is Conversation Soap Heart Cupcakes! A perfect meld of my favorite treat (cupcakes) plus my favorite art (soap), these topical pieces are just $4 per smile. Get yours here.
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
Felting Soap is a time-tested method of hiding really ugly soap or just adding value to a normal bar of soap. Wool shrinks when it gets wet. It’s a ten to fifteen minute process to felt a bar of soap but isn’t the final product beautiful?
Check out The Funky Felter’s Etsy shop or her blog here.
Filed Under: Bramble Berry News
I just love all of the regular commenters on The Soap Queen blog.They add to a feeling of community and I appreciate reading your views on the varied offerings of this blog.
I put together a fun gift pack of essential oils and handmade soap and toiletries to award to a random commenter from this past week.
My dear husband picked a random number (#31). Michelle in NV,thank you for being a regular reader and participant in the Soap Queen community! Email me at info (at) brambleberry (dot) com to let me know your mailing information and I’ll get your goody box in the mail to you on Monday!
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
Thanks to my generous and wise younger brother Erik (affectionately known as ELF), I am enjoying a renewed interest in skiing. My sporty hubby and I headed up to Mount Baker to enjoy a clear day of skiing and cold. Though a chilly 19 degrees, the wind was nil and the sun out. Though my skill are lacking, thanks to the patient cheering of my husband, I didn’t feel like a giant sloth or outta-control orangutan on skis. My father-in-law was a ski instructor and my husband practically lived on the slopes growing up. He is remarkably experienced and smooth on any downhill, ice-covered terrain.
So, while Sporty Hubby swish-swashed his way down the mountain, I carefully snowplowed and slid most of the day. Though clumsy as a newborn calf, I enjoyed myself thoroughly and continue to be thankful for my brother’s thoughtful and kind gift.
To ensure that I didn’t feel too proud and haughty about the day, the skiing gods endeavored to trip me up. On the way out to the car, arms laden with skis and poles, I did a full out slip’n’fall – feet sproinging out from underneath me, skis and poles flying akimbo as my body suspended in the air before crashing painfully down on the ice covered pavement. To ensure complete humiliation, I started whimpering and tearing up with a full crowd looking on. Thankfully, the only thing I have to show for the fall is a diminished sense of ego and a painful elbow.
It was a great day of seriously fun physical activity. Now, if only I could stand up without my legs shaking uncontrollably …
Filed Under: Bramble Berry News
Big kisses and thanks to SoapyLove from California for sending me a care package “just because.” It made my day!
Check out Debbie’s site here, her Etsy store here and her blog here.
On another note, I’ve been working on the soapmaking weekend extravaganza and have some fun ideas for a great line up classes. I’ll keep you posted when I have something (anything!) formally finalized.
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
These fancy cupcakes are knitted by one Ms. Darcy. There’s a great interview with her here. She’s even starting her own knitting club in Tacoma, WA so if you’re in the area and looking for some knitting camaraderie, head over to her club posting.
As Ms. Darcy says:
What’s not to love about finding something wholesome and cute to do that utilizes a handmade craft art form?
I agree! There’s lots to appreciate about this creative cupcake art.
Filed Under: Personal Ramblings
I just stumbled across another fabulous Blog and have spent far too much time reading all of their past posts.
It’s called Whip Up and is focused on sharing artsy & crafty ideas and tutorials. The also have a forum which looks like it is forming into something good.
Check out this article about making aprons for your dish soap bottle. It’s very cute and looks easy.
Then I found (while totally playing hooky from doing anything remotely business related):
Fancy Cupcake wrappers – How cool would these be for cupcake bath bombs?
They are $1 each – but considering that Bath Bombs are so inexpensive to make it seems that this would even out the cost.
Remember to look at other packaging ideas – not just those items that are sold specifically as soap or toiletry product packaging! Packaging is often the only thing that will set your product apart from others on the shelves.