Happy Halloween!

Here's a little Happy Halloween image I made a while back with one of my 3D characters, Gothilina! Happy trick or treating!

New Fragrance Oil Order

I got a big shipment of fragrance oils today and most of them are tried and true, the ones that sell well year in, year out. But I can't resist trying new ones and today I got the most incredible Lavender Ginger blend. It's so awesome, perfect for people who love lavender and even those who don't, because the lavender is barely there, just enough to soften the zip of the ginger. I can't wait to soap this one!

Tonight I made a scrumptious pasta dish with a luxurious, creamy sauce made from evaporated skim milk, pumpkin puree, gorgonzola cheese, fresh sage and nutmeg, mixed with penne and sauteed onions, garlic and shitaki mushrooms. OMG. It was heavenly, but a lot of work. It wouldn't have been so bad if I wasn't also trying to make homemade bread and boiling a chicken for the cats. Yes, we boil a chicken once a week for the cats, then portion it out into freezer bags for the week. We love our kitties around here!

Flower Balm Minis and Pumpkin Creme Brulee

I was busy taking photos with my new light box setup yesterday so I could get new goodies into my shop. I finally got ahold of a huge box of the cutest little mini lip balm tubes, so my first product with them is my Flower Balm Minis -- My Luxury Lip Balm flavored in Rose, Violet and Lavender Vanilla, packaged with a little cello bag and shiny bow, perfect for gift giving. It's here in my shop or over here at Etsy.

And my Pumpkin Creme Brulee soap is here, plus it's on Etsy too. This stuff smells amazing!

Both of our kids were home for the weekend. It was so nice to be able to spend time together, watching movies and cooking their favorite foods. I miss them so much.

Mabel's Mint Sugar Cookie Soap

New in my shop today, Mabel's Mint Sugar Cookie Handmade Soap! It's a nice warm bakery scent and the mint is delicate, not eye-watering. Think of a sugar cookie right out of the oven. Mmmm.

A Sad Journey

I've just returned from 3 days North Carolina. My sister died, unexpectedly. She was only 58. I hope I was of some use to my nephew, helping to sort through things. It's going to be hard to realize I'll never see her again.

Cozy Christmas Handmade Soap

Well, it's kind of a homely, speckled brown bar, but the fragrance of my Cozy Christmas handmade soap is amazing -- A deliciously complex blend of rum, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and chocolate. Mmmm. It makes me yearn for a mug of something wonderful and a rocking chair in front of a fireplace.

One of the things about making soap that I don't like is cleaning up after I remove the soap from the molds. It seems to take forever to scrape all the excess soap off, then scrub all the stuff off the molds in the sink, banging and clanking around, knocking the water filter off the faucet, then drying everything with paper towels. The other night I got a brainstorm and wondered why I hadn't thought of this before.

I filled up a big storage container with water from the hose in the front yard, put all the molds in there and let them sit for a couple of hours. I came out and voila! Everything had dissolved off the molds. Just had to hose off all of the pieces and laid them out on newspaper to dry on the lawn. It only took me almost 10 years to come up with this method.

Mermaid Dreams Treasury

No kidding, I've been trying to make a treasury for two years now and tonight I finally got my chance! Check out the beautiful, briney brushwork in Mermaid Dreams! There are some really amazing artists on Etsy.

Winter Festival Handmade Soap

This new soap smells sooo good, bright citrus and deep conifers in a lively, wintry blend! Check out Winter Festival, also in my Etsy shop here.

We drove up to Tampa to have lunch with Vicky the other day. It was so nice to get to spend some time with her, since she hasn't been home for a couple of weekends. She got a job at a whole foods grocery store and will start working there soon. She wants to make more moolah to attend more of the many, many concerts available in the Tampa Bay area.

This weekend Geoff and his girlfriend drove up to Tampa to spend the weekend with Vicky. It's so nice when your kids grow up and get along. I remember the first few years, trying to keep her from banging him on the head with her bottle. They are only 11 months apart and it's only in recent years that they seem to have fun together!

Patchouli Raspberry Handmade Soap

New in my shop today, sweetly exotic and luscious Patchouli Raspberry soap! It's also available in my Etsy shop here.

We had quite a scare yesterday. Vicky attends USF in Tampa, where there were reports of a man with a bomb and a gun, and another guy with a knife around the library. The entire school was in lockdown for 3 hours. Fortunately, the school sent text messages to all the students and staff, so she knew to stay put until the crisis was over. The schools have learned a lot from the tragedy of Virginia Tech a few years ago.

Cute Crocheted Bath Mitt

I think this is too freaking cute for words -- A crocheted duckie bath mitt! I got the pattern from one of my favorite sites, Annie's Attic. It doesn't have a thingie for the thumb, but there are little pouches on both sides for your fingers to get a grip.

Last week I made some cute little soaps in a seashell candy mold. I thought I might give them away with big orders over the holidays. Then I got the idea that they would be pretty on top of regular, full sized bars of soap. So I tried it out and these turned out so pretty! They are topped with a light dusting of white gold mica for some pretty sparkle.

Two days ago I had to go to the eye doctor for my annual exam. This visit he didn't have the lower dose eye dilating medicine that they usually use so they can look way into your eyes. I had to have this full strength stuff that messed up my vision and perception for most of the day. I had a terrible reaction to it, including grossly elevated blood pressure, nausea and rapid heart rate. I was really scared about the blood pressure especially. It's finally gone back down to normal, thankfully.

You never think about something routine like that having such scary and potentially life-threatening side effects. But the eye drops contain atropine, and among the side effects which are rarely reported are perceptual disturbances, nausea, dizziness, elevated blood pressure and racing pulse. Just my luck.