February Already???

Greetings Everyone.  I seem to be missing a month. Can anyone tell me what happened to January?  I remember spending Christmas with my kids and those new babies and then POOF! it's February!  I could argue that February is not the shortest month never mind what the calendar says. January must be, 'cause it seems to happen every year. I haven't even finished off the peanut brittle and it's hearts and flowers time already.

I want to say thanks to all of you who have taken classes, bought supplies and ordered soap this past year.  This is my 20th year in business as a full time soap maker and I can't tell you how much I appreciate your continued support.  Lord knows I'm ruined for any kind of normal employment so thank you for making it possible for me to bring my dog to work, play the music loud, keep strange hours if I want and demonstrate my embarrassing lack of computer skills while you all watched.  You've been swell. Thank you for not snickering.

I'm in the mood for florals, so this Spring we'll be bringing back some old favorite soaps like Honeysuckle and Gardenia.  Definitely planning a batch of Lilac and have a couple other flowery ideas in the chute as well. I found a new Pear fragrance I can't wait to try and also a Spiced Lime that shows promise.

The Spring Class Schedule is up so if you want to learn how to make soap, herbal salves, lip balms or lotions take a look. We have a good time.  I take pleasure in handing off this ancient art of soap making much in the way that bread baking was passed onto me by my grandmother. It's a good skill to have.  Doesn't mean I have to do it all the time, but I can when I want or need to. And it sure makes gift giving easier when you can hand someone a basket of soaps, a loaf of bread or a jar of pickled greenbeans.  Give of yourself and your talents. And if you don't have talent, come visit the Soap Shop and we'll send you home with some! I promise.  

Speaking of talent here's a photo of a recent gift... my daughter's first attempt at hand knit socks. I'm impressed! These are made from wool and bamboo and they are so soft and warm.

Thanks again Camille.  I love 'em. Soap making, bread baking, sock knitting...good skills to have!  Be well everyone,

Sandy

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86% Cocoa

Is taking things to excess a human trait or an American trait?  I'm old enough to remember the debut of mini-skirts. They were shockingly short (hey, if it doesn't shock the parents what's the point, right?)  and then they got even shorter. They got so absurdly short that someone invented matching bloomers to be worn underneath. A couple years later hemlines dropped...all the way to the ground.

Today I saw a young mom with two kids and a stroller trying to navigate a parking lot in heels so high I wondered how she makes her living, if you get my drift. We had a name for shoes like that just a couple years ago, now they seem to be SOP and I wonder why?  Why would anyone feel the need to teeter around in shoes like that just to go get groceries and gas up the car? If  high heels are sexy then REALLY high heels must be uber-sexy? How sexy do you need to be in the Grocery Outlet parking lot?

  A few years back someone discovered  there is a substance in dark chocolate that is actually good for us. Suddenly dark chocolate is everybody's darling. In typical American (?) fashion the thinking seems to be "if dark chocolate is good, then REALLY REALLY dark chocolate must be even better!" Enter the 71 or 86% cocoa bar masquerading as candy. Don't get me wrong: I love chocolate and I really love dark chocolate. I DO NOT however, want to eat baking squares. 71% cocoa isn't candy, it's for cooking.

In the 1970's vitamin C was widely understood to be necessary for all kinds of healing and other body functions. So of course, we Americans began to take mega-doses, always looking for the miracle that will fix everything.  It's happening now with vitamin D.  It'll happen again with some other substance in the near future...just watch. You do not have to participate, although bucking a current trend can be difficult.

Someone asked me the other day if our soaps are organic.  I paused and took a deep breath. "No. They are made from food grade ingredients, but I do not know if the trees used to make the palm oil are organic palm trees."   Like so many other American obsessions going organic has gotten out of hand in my opinion.

It's soap people! It's a humble substance. We're not going to eat it. We're not going to rub it into our skin and leave it there. It's made out of stuff you can eat. It washes off.  How pure does it need to be? How much does it need to cost? (Un-sprayed organic cherries at $8 a pound are one thing, but $20 a bar soap? I don't think so. I know... it worked for Brad Pitt in Fight Club, but he's looks way better in a tux than I do!) 

We're nearing the end of our annual season of excess.  More food! More presents! More decorations! Bigger is better! Spare no expense!  It's the American way and far be it from me to criticize how we conduct ourselves. But I would say to you all,  Relax!  Wear comfy shoes. Eat your veggies. Have a glass (not a bottle) of wine and chill out. Get a bar of yummy milk chocolate (oh horrors!) and ease into the New Year.  Moderation is good. Common sense is better.  Leave the miracles to the saints. 

Be well every one.

~sandy

A Good Plan

As many of you know I recently became a grandma for the first time. My daughters waited forever to start their families and it was Thanksgiving last year when my youngest, Amber, announced her pregnancy. Older sister Camille was already an old pro being 4 months along herself.

I think I'm having that moment as a parent when I can finally allow my knees to wobble, grab the edge of the table and breathe raggedly......"my job is done. I've raised them. They have educations, good jobs and acceptable, I mean exceptional husbands!

What a wonderful, occasionally wild ride it's been. (note to Amber: I still want to know how the side of the Colt got bashed in) And now there's Griffin and Amelia, my two grand-babies. I am so looking forward to watching them grow up and discover the world. My heart is full and for all that I give thanks.

Which brings me to what I originally intended to write about: Last Year's Thanksgiving Dinner.  More specifically, attending my daughter Camille's first full-on Thanksgiving dinner as a married young woman with a baby on the way. I can't supply any details but let's just say Camille and I had a moment, as so many of us women have had over the years, we had a moment when she looked at me over a bowl of whipping cream and said " I cooked three days for this?"  I didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

"Too bad you're pregnant," I said not unsympathetically, pouring myself another glass of wine." Now go deal with the in-laws, the out-laws, the noisy kids, the ungrateful guests, and next year when I say let's get the pies from Costco, maybe you'll listen." 

She's a smart woman, my daughter Camille. I spoke to her this morning and they fly out on Monday to visit her husband's family. This year she'll be a helpful guest instead of an overwhelmed hostess. Good plan kiddo. good plan.

Changing Times

The church two blocks from our house was torn down this weekend. I drive by it at least twice every day.  It was a big red brick building with a polished metal steeple and a nice statue of an angel on the lawn out front. Presbyterian I think.  I was never inside the building but usually appreciated the sentiment on the reader board out front....almost always something peaceful and progressive. We knew the tear-down was coming but it was still shocking to see the giant back hoe biting into the walls when I drove home from the soap shop last Saturday. It made me sad, like seeing a run-over dog. There's nothing I can do about it, but it's still a disturbing thing. 

The church, and many buildings near by, including our house, are in the right-of-way for the north/south corridor that Spokane so desperately needs.  It's a funny feeling living in a house that will be demolished soon. Fixing anything seems like a waste of time and money, yet it's not in my nature to just let things go.  I'm sure there's a lesson here somewhere about impermanence, attachment, possessions, etc. Still, I look around our little house, the house my husband bought in 1984, and wonder how we will separate ourselves from this place? His studio, the veggie garden, my hostas, the apricot tree grown from a seed. This corner of the neighborhood where 26 years of living has gone on. We know the north/south route is a good thing, but let me tell you....leaving a place voluntarily is way different from being told you must go. 

On a more cheerful note (puleeze!) we've been experimenting at the Soap Shop and will have some great new fragrances available at upcoming shows. I made a small batch of beautiful Bayberry soap today, and a new Sandalwood blend is also in the works. We have some absolutely edible-smelling holiday fragrances ready to go now: Creme Brule, Mocha Mint, Holiday Spice, Candy Cane and Turkish Mocha. And I'm pleased to say the Frankincense & Myrrh Soap turned out very nice too.

Remember, we can send a gift basket of soaps anywhere you'd like. Just ask.

On a personal note, my daughters and both of those still new little grand-babies are doing fine. It has been so much fun watching my girls become moms!  

We are off to the Tri-Cities next weekend for the big Custer Christmas Arts & Crafts Show at the TRAC in Pasco, WA. Show starts Friday, Nov 5th.  If you're in the area come by! It's a beautiful, well run show with top artisans from all over the NW.  

Be Well!

~sandy

Dirt Soap

So I found this fragrance oil that smells just like freshly turned sod. Dark, earthy, moist....made me think of little red fishing worms or repotting plants.  I knew right away  I was going to make soap with it, even though it may never be a big hit.  We colored it a soft brown with a pretty green swirl.....looks vaguely camo-like, and added plenty of fragrance. 

Reactions have been varied, with many people wrinkling their noses and wondering out loud why anyone would want a soap that smells like dirt.  Legitimate question. But dirt is not a bad smell. It's not sweat and grime. Dirt speaks of hope and promise. Dirt speaks of what is yet to be. We keep a bar by the kitchen sink and every time I use it I'm transported to my garden. Just think...without a little rain and 6 inches of dirt, life would not be possible.

Our Dirt Soap will make your gardener friends smile. Give a bar to the hunter in your life....it covers human scent and might help get that elk.

October means it's Christmas at the Soap Shop. In the next few days we'll begin production of our holiday soaps- Candy Cane of course, snowy white with a red swirl; Holiday Spice, an old favorite made with cinnamon, clove and vanilla oil; Mocha Mint, last year's surprise hit, and a couple new fragrances as well. Watch for Creme Brulee, Frankincense & Myrrh and maybe an Evergreen soap to round out our holiday offerings. 

Classes have been filling almost as fast as we post them so if you'd like to make soap for Christmas sign up now!  Handmade soap is a wonderful gift. Not only does it smell fabulous and soften your skin, it GOES AWAY. I don't know about the rest of you but I need gifts that disappear. At my advanced age I really don't need anything else to hang on the wall, sit on the shelf or otherwise clutter up my life.

I cherish my possessions and always have room for new books and music, but I LOVE gifts that go away! I told my daughters a few years ago that the best gifts were ones I could eat, drink, burn or plant in the yard. So bring on the chocolate and the wine! I'll light a candle and head for the tub with a bar of something delightful, my favorite Patchouli Lavender or maybe one of the new Christmas scents. The Creme Brulee truly smells good enough to eat. But don't!