25% OFF ON ALL SOAPS!

I wanted to let you all know I am doing a Halloween Sale- 25% off my soaps. I might keep the sale up for the weekend..or I might end it tomorrow, going to see how it goes.
buy on etsy!



Also I wanted to show off my boyfriend's most recent art project. He had some of his designs cast into resin 'toys' and then spent hours painting them and making the cases from scratch. He has been staying up till 2-4am and waking up at 7:30- he is crazy, but they are finished, and very neat!

http://jareddeal.blogspot.com


toy release article*

for sale here*

Another Monday, Another {NewNew} Giveaway!

Each and Every Monday The {NewNew} York Etsy team has a give-away and this Monday they are giving away a pair of Mosaic Dot Earings from Salt and Paper.

These earrings are part of her new dot mosaic collection. They bring me back to my childhood when I always wanted to make neat little things with polymer clay--but my sister was way better at it ; ) Her main talent was making my Barbies cute little food.

Natalie Wedeking is the Brooklyn-based designer/craftsperson behind Salt & Paper. She is inspired by mostly non-jewelry things: good package design, poster art, old marimekko patterns, William Morris wallpapers, scandinavian folk art, prefab housing, old book covers, vintage signage - pretty much anything made before 1975. In real life she is a graphic/package designer and the things she loves in graphic design - flat color, patterning, unusual color combinations - show up in her jewelry work. Natalie particularly likes to work in polymer clay, which gives her an opportunity to make completely unique jewelry elements from scratch. The medium lends itself to abstract florals and flat, graphic patterns like woodgrain. She layers it almost like paint, often very precisely and geometrically, but in flattening and finishing a piece, the nature of the clay takes over and the end results are unpredictable and very interesting.

New Soaps..

I made a couple soaps awhile back that I am really excited about.. Santa's Pipe (Blend of: Cherrywood, Raspberry, Vanilla, Tobacco.. smells a lot like Cherry Almond, but even better) & Creme Brulee and Cocoa (Blend of Cocoa, Cream, Vanilla, Almond). I may keep these names, but Creme Brulee & Cocoa is a little boring.. any ideas?

I took some pictures since I think the soap making process is pretty interesting and I love sharing it..

First picture is of my soapmaking *set-up*, my recipe hanging on the wall so I know what weights of each oil/butter/etc I need. Next to that is the metal pot where I mix distilled water and sodium hydroxide and next to that are my soap pots.

I added coconut milk powder to these soaps to make them creamier and more moisturizing. It's always been my goal to make a non-drying soap-- and handmade cold process soaps to begin with are less drying than cocommercial soaps because they are made with oils and butters, not detergents and fillers. But-- a little lesson in soap making, soap qualities are dependent on what oils and butters you use, and at what percentage. I've always used a high percentage of olive oil and added some sort of butter (shea or cocoa)- but recently I've been lessening my coconut oil (which tends to be a bit drying although it creates good lather) and adding larger amounts of butters. I'm planning on using both cocoa and shea in my future batches and at a higher than normal percentage (Most add maybe 1-5%, I'll add at least 10-20%). While this is expensive, it will create a ~luxury~ soap bar and that is my goal. And like I said, I am also using different additives to create different qualities.. such as the coconut milk powder in these batches.

After I added the coconut milk powder and the saponification process began- I separated the soap into different pots so I could add the different fragrances and additives. It can become a fight against time when you do it this way because one batch of soap might become harder faster than another (as it saponifys it basically turns from oil into thick "cream" and hardens overnight) and the goal is usually to pour while it's still pourable ; ). However, since I make limited edition batches in small quantities, this is the easiest way for me.

I added some soap shreds from a previous batch (you have to plan ahead for this kind of stuff! so in another batch I used a little bit of the same fragrance and left over soap to create soap shreds and a soap oval log (made from leftover bits of my Brown Sugar soap) which I put in Santa's Pipe to give a 'pipe' effect?..haha, you'll see pictures later, I like the way it turned out) and some luffa for Creme Brulee for gentle exfoliation and lastly, apricot seed for Santa's pipe, for a not as subtle exfoliation/texture to the soap.

I also tried out my new cameo mold and I love(d) the way they look(ed)..sadly.. I cannot get them out of the mold. If I ever get them out, I might try the mold again in the future and just oil it a lot before pouring soap in..hope that works. I really wanted to make a variety of cameo soaps for all the holiday craft fairs..seems like a nice 'gift' type item, right? (image on right: made a bit of a mess, didn't I?)

Soap making is a long process. Some people are shocked to hear that you should wait a month to use (or to sell) after you make it. I stole this from David Fisher on about.com:

Cold Process soap needs to age or "cure" before it is finally ready to use. Cured soap is harder, milder, and more "finished." Reason to cure:

1. To make sure that the saponification process is completely complete. This generally takes about 24-48 hours. Yes...I know it sounds like blasphemy...but your soap really IS safe to use after a couple of days.

   Now...before you all yell at me...it does become milder as it ages and cures more...but only a TINY TINY bit. 99% of the ph changes happen in the first 48 hours.

2. The real reason to cure your soap is for the water to evaporate. A harder bar of soap will last longer, lather better and just be overall better soap. For this, yes, wait a few weeks.

Generally I've heard of soap makers testing their soap after 2 weeks and selling after 4- so that is what I stick to. These new soaps are just about ready.. ! I took pictures of them since they've been cut and I will post soon. They have both darkened a bit from the vanilla (but that is what I expected and wanted). Like I said, I am excited about these ones! ; )

Karen's Monsters!

It's another Monday.. that means another {NewNew} Giveaway! Last week I gave away a soap- and this week, there is a super cute Halloween themed plush from Karen's Monsters.

"Eyra is a Jack-o-Rabbit, part Bunny Monster, part Halloween jack-o-lantern. He is especially fond of this time of year and likes to rake up big piles of leaves to jump in, or preferably to jump in a big pile of leaves that someone else raked up. He can't wait to go trick or treating and hopes to find a new friend that will take him. Made from fleece and polyester and stuffed with fiberfill. He is almost 13 inches tall."

Karen Goetsch is a Brooklyn-based designer of monster plush toys for children and big kids. She began Karen's Monsters in order to offer toys full of creativity and sparks of imagination. Each monster is handmade, unique and kid safe.

Try to win yourself!

Register for a Goody Bag at the Holiday Handmade Cavalcade!

Come Join Us and Shop Handmade this Holiday!

The Holiday Handmade Cavalcade is a one-day shopping event being held at the legendary Knitting Factory, showcasing more than 30 locally-grown purveyors of handmade goods.

Register now to receive a free goody bag! Stop by before noon, you'll also receive exclusive coupons for discounts for and after the event.

And while you're there among the three floors of holiday shopping, don't forget to enter the free raffle to win creations from participating vendors.

So mark your calendar for Saturday, December 6 from 10am-5pm and come join us for some holiday cheer. We look forward to seeing you there!

RSVP HERE FOR A FREE GOODY BAG!

As mentioned in previous posts, I am co-chair of the ~goody-bag~ committee, and what we are doing is giving away free goody bags to the first 200 people who RSVP for the event. Right now we are asking for samples and donations from companies and I expect the bags to be filled with lots of fun things ; ). If you or someone you know would like to donate items for the goody bags, please e-mail handmadecavalcade@gmail.com. Originally we were requesting donations of at least 25 items, but we are now accepting any amount!

Advertising Opportunity: Hip Holiday Craft Fair Now Accepting Samples and Promos

-Advertising Opportunity: Hip Holiday Craft Fair-
-Now Accepting Samples and Promos-

The Holiday Handmade Cavalcade is a one-day three floor shopping event showcasing handcrafted goods. It will take place at the Knitting Factory in New York City from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm on Saturday December 6th, 2008.

The event is being organized by The {NewNew} Etsy team (http://thenewnewny.com). The group is partnering with many sponsors including Etsy & L Magazine (www.thelmagazine.com), and a large crowd is expected.

Anyone who RSVPs for the event online will be eligible to receive 1 of 200 complimentary, limited-edition goody bags. The group is now accepting donations for the goody bags. This will be a great way to promote your business & gain exposure around the holiday season.

Types of donations accepted include samples/smaller versions of your product (soap, earrings, prints, etc) and promos (pins, buttons, magnets, etc)— however, business cards, fliers, or related items will not be included unless they are attached to another item such as a coupon.

Contact handmadecavalcade @ gmail.com with the subject line *promos* for the address of where to send and with any questions you may have. *Donations must be received by November 21, 2008.*

For more info on the event visit www.handmadecavalcade.com

BK Flea this past weekend..

So I participated in the Brooklyn Flea again this past weekend with the {NewNew}. It was a much better experience this time in terms of the weather and my sales! I also had a ~celebrity sighting~, and amusingly enough, the BK flea posted about it on their blog (sure why not, Jemaine is pretty cool). Anyone watch the Flight of the Conchords? It's a silly hbo series. Another girl in the group pointed Jemaine out and asked if it was him.. I was pretty excited. I would have loved to talk to him (his voice..sigh)-- but did not want to come across as an annoying fan, so instead, I took a picture ; ). I almost got a face shot..but my camera was off & I did not want to be *too* stalker-ish. So much for my paparazzi skills.

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I also wanted to share some treasuries I have been included in: (A treasury is basically a collage of products that are posted on etsy to try and help get sales. It's good to be included in them for this reason..!)

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Win one of my soaps!

It's really easy! All you have to do is write something about my company-- it can be short and sweet. You can post it anywhere basically.. a blog, livejournal, myspace bulletin, facebook bulletin, twitter, etc.. Then just paste the link of where you wrote about DLC in the post on the newnew blog. I will be sending additional soap samples with this soap.

Visit the {newnew} blog for more details on how to win my soap!

YAY BUST!

So I applied to the BUST-Holiday-Craftacular and will find out in mid November if I get it.. If I do, I am sharing a booth area with another girl, but my fee is still quite expensive ($150 for the day) for I believe 4ft of space. With my products averaging $5-- I will have to sell *a lot* to even surpass the cost, but I'm thinking it's worth it.

Last BUST Craftacular had people lining up outside around the corner waiting to get in. Basically everyone comes to do holiday shopping, and my soaps just happen to be perfect for that~. It is also around the same time as the HHC, which will also cost me a good amount, but I am really hoping to do both. AND there is the Hearts & Crafts in Greenpoint (yay only 2 blocks away). Maybe I'm having craft fair fever.. hopefully it's not too draining. I've gotta make lots more soaps ASAP!

Also- BUST featured me on their main page!! (I should have wrote a better bio thing haha)





It's only gotten be 64 visits so far, but whatev, that is 64 people.. come on more hits..
I'm actually semi embarrassed about my website right now though. I really need to update it and make it nicer!

Oh p.s. I am in the process of adding my new soaps to etsy & adding new images to old soap listings. I actually started my first "grown-up" job on Thursday (finally! I graduated this past spring) so my schedule is not as open as it once was, but I am hoping to finish this weekend.

Virtual Trunk Show!

This is still new to me.. but Etsy has 'virtual labs' which are basically fancy chatrooms and the {newnew} team is having a trunk show where we show off our items and give discounts! Most of us will be going on web cameras, so it should be interesting... I'll post again when the show gets closer!