Saturday, February 28, 2009

A Little Video Tutorial - Draw a Tree!

Recently, on the Teach Soap Forum, I posted a picture of some new soaps I painted. One of the comments I received was from someone who didn't think they could draw trees like that. So they inspired me to create my first video tutorial.

Here is "How to Draw a Simple Tree" which uses a fun method I learned in elementary school. Enjoy!

Oh - videography and additional narration provided by my 3 1/2 year old son. :)

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Acupuncture for the Squeamish

I'm phobic of needles. Well, at least I was before my Cesarian Section and now I'm pretty tough. But ever since I was a kid and had to get a series of 5 shots in one day to get into kindergarten, I have been terrified of any kind of injection or - god forbid - getting my blood drawn.

So it's ironic that I'm married to an acupuncturist. If I wasn't, there's no way I would have ever tried it. But my husband, Jim Chialtas, is amazing and has helped me with health issues including Irritable Bowel Syndrome, PMS, depression, and he even made our daughter flip into the proper position when she was still in the womb!

Traditional Chinese medicine is thousands of years old. Unlike many western treatments that keep changing every couple of years, acupuncture has been fine tuned and is extremely effective for so many maladies, including elusive problems like migraines and infertility.

But, still. It involves having needles - many of them - stuck into you. That may sound scarey but actually it's not. In fact, most acupuncture treatments are extremely relaxing. The needles are super thin, unlike hypodermic needles which are actually sharp tubes. You could fit an acupuncture needle into a hypodermic syringe!

If you're squeamish, no amount of describing or reassuring would convince you to try it. So one of Jim's patients, who started SingleDad.com, created a video of a typical acupuncture appointment. You will see Jim's clinic room (typical of most modern clinics), and the process of receiving a treatment. Check it out here on Youtube.

If you have had acupuncture or haven't but checked out the video, please leave a comment here. I'd love to hear what you think! Thanks!

Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Read Soapylove's Secret to Success and Help Me Help You!

Thanks to Donna Maria of the Indie Beauty Network, I found a great way to share tips on business and also possibly win a grant!

My tip is "Diversify to Survive" and I have explained my strategy for helping my business to grow, even in a very tough economy. I hope you find it helpful! Please check it out and leave your rating. You might just help me make the next big step in Soapylove's future!

Thanks so much!

Posted using ShareThis

Friday, February 20, 2009

Soapylove Soapsicles Dressed to the 9's


I love Flickr. I created my account when I first started making soap and almost every soap I've ever made has a picture there. But another thing I love about it is keeping up with my contacts. The other day I saw a new picture from Red 7 Packaging. They posted a photo of New Year's gifts they made for their clients. I left a comment saying how lucky their clients are!

Little did I know that my Candy Cane Soapsicles were inside! Red 7 found me on Flickr and placed a bulk order but I had no idea that they would be getting the red carpet treatment. Cory and Angela Van De Griend, owners and designers for Red 7, gave me permission to blog (brag!) about their awesome gifts. Thank you!

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Those Red Devil Lye Soap Recipes I Mentioned

Hi everyone! For those of you who read my post last week about my grandma's soap recipe, I mentioned a brochure she sent me. I thought you might be curious about some soap recipes that Red Devil Lye was suggesting for "the thrifty housewife" to make. By the looks of it, I'm guessing it was published in the 60's or 70's.

So here is the recipe page of the brochure. If you click the image you will be able to read it and print if you like. And if you try the Fish Oil Soap recipe, please send me a bar! I'm sure scaring up 4 1/2 POUNDS of fish oil should be no problem. LOL!

Sunday, February 15, 2009

2009 Soapmaking Weekend Intensive at Otion!

Yay! The Soapmaking Weekend Intensive is officially ready for registration, scheduled for July 17, 18, and 19!

Last year I was so honored to teach at SWI, which is held at Otion in Bellingham, Washington. I'll be there this year as well along with Anne-Marie Faiola, Lori Nova, and Jill Heuser. It will be a full weekend of action packed classes covering cold process soapmaking, melt and pour, lotions, and more. For details, check out the class announcement here where you can also read bio's about each instructor.

Sign up early because the class size is kept small for the most one-on-one instruction. We had an awesome time last year. Don't miss it!

Saturday, February 14, 2009

Thank You for Your Input!

Thanks to everyone who commented on my post about advanced m&p techniques. The overwhelming response was "YES! Show us the hard stuff!"

Okey doke - I will!

There were also very smart requests for a range of difficulty levels in each Let's Get Soapy eZine so there is something for everyone. I love that and completely agree!

In 2 weeks I'll be heading over to my sister's house for the first photo shoot for the Summer issue. I'm really looking forward to it! Get ready for a colorful, fun, and inspiring issue!

Friday, February 13, 2009

Don't Forget! Birthday Specials Ending Today!

This month is Soapylove's 3rd Birthday and I'm offering 2 amazing specials to celebrate, but they're both ending at midnight tonight! Check out this post to see what I've got lined up!

Thanks so much!

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Grandma's Soap Recipe

I was recently invited to write a guest post for Wishpot's Indie Blog. It was a nice excuse to mention my grandmother who planted the soapmaking seed in me a very long time ago. I didn't elaborate too much at Wishpot because I wanted to focus on current soapmakers, but since this is MY blog, I can tell you a little more.

Florence McNulty was my maternal grandmother. She was a very loving and bubbly woman who lived in Yonkers, New York, where I was born. Since my family moved to San Diego and I have 3 siblings, we didn't get to visit my grandparents often, but the memories I have are very vivid and special.

One thing that made a lasting impression on me was her handmade soap. In the washroom there were creamy handcut bars for hands and laundry, and I remember seeing her take a metal pan of curing soap down from the attic to show me. Grandma made it from fat collected during cooking. She kept a metal coffee can to save any leftover grease from cooking pork chops (my grandpa's favorite dinner), bacon, etc. Whenever the can filled up she would make a batch of soap.

When I was in college I decided to ask her about the process. We wrote letters to eachother and she sent me her recipe plus a brochure from Red Devil called "Making Soap with Lye." You can see in grandma's recipe that it's not very specific and obviously for someone who's done it before. I was a little scared to try it myself. Then when I looked through the brochure the many skulls and crossbones and "Poison!" warnings further intimidated me. The recipe for Fish Oil Soap sounded pretty gross, too, so I carefully put everything back in the envelope and stored it for safe keeping. So much for that! LOL!

Eventually, 10 years later, I did try making soap from scratch. I had my husband (a science guy) handy to be my safety manager and we made a nice batch of basic soap! But it didn't have the rustic charm of my grandma's.

Many thanks to the years of competitive ball room dancing she and my grandpa enjoyed, she lived a long and healthy life into her mid 90's. Wherever you are, thanks for your inspiration, grandma!

Friday, February 6, 2009

Happy Birthday to Soapylove!

Yay! Soapylove is turning 3 this month! Woo hoo!

Let me take a moment and reflect...

What began as a desire to be thrifty and creative during my pregnancy turned into a rediscovery of my creativity and ambition. The excitement of a sale and getting some attention for doing something fun has evolved into a business that allows me to be an "indie" and a WAHM! (I know, that was really brief, but speeches aren't my strong point).

Soapylove has been such a life changing experience for me. I'm thrilled that it's still growing and that there are so many more exciting things coming up this year.

Of course, Soapylove would not exist if it wasn't for you. So, to celebrate, I'm having a major promotion!

Hit up the Soapylove Pop Shop and get 30% off! Just enter BIRTHDAY in the cart voucher box during checkout.

AND

Get 1/3 off of the Let's Get Soapy eZine! Go straight to the "Drop" site to get $5 off! (If you'd like to know more about Let's Get Soapy first, just click here).
The party is happening all week until Friday night, so jump on these promotions before they're just confetti on the floor!

Thanks again, everyone! It's been a great 3 years and I hope to be here in 3 more years, too! :)

XOXO!
Debbie

Check out this Awesome Soap Queen Tutorial!

Today The Soap Queen posted a really cool and fun looking tutorial using those neat unmounted rubber stamps. It's such a great way to customize your basic soap shapes in an unlimited number of ways!

The Soap Queen (Anne-Marie of Bramble Berry Supplies) was on Martha Stewart Radio discussing this project and making bath fizzies. She has been on their show 3 times now, so I wouldn't be surprised if she became their bath and beauty expert! That would be so great!

Have a fun weekend, everyone!

Thursday, February 5, 2009

Need Your Opinion - Advanced M&P Techniques?

I am brainstorming for future eZine articles and wanted to get your opinion on one theme - advanced melt and pour techniques. I have lots of designs that take many steps and some sensitive temperature monitoring, but the results are really cool. However, my most successful tutorials have been the easy ones.

Would you want to learn about over-the-top crazy complicated soap designs? Leave me a comment and you'll help shape the Fall issue of Let's Get Soapy! Thank you!