Off to Baltimore

Going away for the weekend, folks!

Any orders that come in today will be shipped on Monday, June 2nd.

Enjoy the weekend!

Product Shot

My friend and co-worker, Linda Skurchak, has a natural photographic eye. She is currently seeking a certificate in photography. I am very lucky that she's decided to take photos of my products as part of her product photography assignment.

Check out the goodness!

Danzig vs Orange Duck

What's this thing?

Beat it, duck, this is my window.

Hey, wait! Don't go! I was just kidding!

See? There's room for both of us. No hard feelings, right?

Danzig comes on strong, but he's quite a gentle cat. All 16 pounds of him. We are heading off to look at some houses today. Hopefully, there will be plenty of windows to go around by September.

Soap Cutters

I really need to get a professional soap cutter. I've been using my old faithful hand cutter (purchased at an antique store in Northampton, MA) and I think life would be much improved with a nifty new model. Particularly where my Joan Jett soap is concerned. (Sorry, old faithful - I do adore you, but your must be retired)

I want something like this for $200 +,



but I will probably have to settle for something like this for $25:

Product Body Goodness

Joanna Schmidt of Product Body sent yours truly a lovely package of goodies and I must tell you that my bath has been totally blissed out since!

First, I feel honored to be the recipient of one of her newest soap creations - pink grapefruit parfait soap. It is still curing, but I can't wait to use it! It has a very sweet scent that I can't help but sniff when I walk by the soap.

Second, she gave me a jar of Sugar Foot, which is a wonderfully creamy and fresh foot scrub with a phenomenal ruby red grapefruit aroma. It is a sheer delight to scrub my tooties with!

And lastly, I received a jar of her mango scented Crush On You body scrub. Again, a very creamy exfoliating experience with a clean finish. Awesome stuff!

I should also mention that her Sugar Foot scrub was just featured in the May issue of Real Simple (a favorite magazine of mine) in the pedicure section. I saw it in print yesterday at the laundromat and it was very exciting! I almost jumped up and screamed - hey, I know that girl! That would have weirded people out, I think. Congratulations, Joanna!

Sweet Tubs

I am in the midst of house-hunting and this has kicked me into "fantasy bathroom" mode. If I had an abundance of disposable income, I might opt for one of these beauts.


Hastings Lavasca | $10, 662 (on sale)


Rossovivo transparent tub by Massimo Farinatti | Who knows how freaking much? I can't find a price anywhere. You know what they say - if you have to ask, you can't afford it. "Equipped with a 14 jet remote control activated hydromassage system with an ozone dispenser, Rossovivo comes in three colors options: Ice Red, Ice Blue and Ice White."


I think I like this bathroom more than just the tub, but the tub is very sleek and modern. I really love the cubby hole in the partial wall.

A girl can dream.

Pour La Mere

Pour La Mere (For the Mother)

I named my whipped shea body butter with my mom in mind. I've been trying to find the right opportunity to create and name a product for her since I started Stella Marie. She was a big fan of the tester I gave her last week, so I figured that I picked the right product.

She is of French decent, thus the French name. She is also surviving cancer. Her bravery is a huge inspiration to me. I put the finished product in her Mother's Day basket today and gave her a well-deserved facial.

Me and My Mom, Fenway Park, Boston, July, 2005

2 New Scrubs

Here they are!

A Whole Lotta Scrub (Lavender & Eucalyptus) and S'mores (Toasted Marshmallow and Chocolate) ...





Remember that zebra-printed shower curtain I posted about? I found a (less expensive) knock-off at Target! Sweet!



(Don't make fun of our Betty Boop rubber duckie - our Mr. T rubber duckie will come out from behind the shower curtain and kick your butt! Yeah, I'm a 36-year-old little kid. What can I say?)

Nips and Tucks

I've been spending my vacation (from the day job) working on improvements to the web site, finalizing several new products, working on special orders, marketing and conceptualizing. I guess I should be kayaking and taking long walks. I'll try and squeeze in some R & R ...

By the end of this week, I hope to offer a eucalyptus and lavender salt scrub, as well as a toasted marshmallow and chocolate sugar scrub. I've been testing them both all week and I have to say, I really want to make s'mores!

Bartering

I am in the process of reading a very good book about finding creative ways to market your business on a shoestring. One of the suggestions is bartering. I am having a little trouble visualizing how a soap company barters. I've heard of these multiple party bartering circles, but they seem rather complex. I guess I would like to engage in some targeted marketing without dropping the thousands of dollars I don't have.

First, I have to think about who might benefit from free soap.

Perhaps I could supply a local Bed and Breakfast with free or discounted soap in exchange for, say, a prominently placed ad for my company in all of their suites. That way, I can be pretty sure that the clients will sample my product and if they like it, they know where to go to find it.

Any ideas on bartering?