Free Samples Anyone?

We usually hand out free samples at our shows to share some lovely lotion with everyone.  It requires a lot of prep time making the lotion, bottling and labeling them.  That is not even the hard part.  Giving them away is the hard part!  

Handing out free samples is harder than it looks.  Trust me.  It is true.  It is not even about technique.  Sometimes different ways can be more effective but more often than not it is hard to give away free stuff.  It seems as though people think if they take a free sample of lotion that they might explode or spontaneously combust.  I stand at my booths for each show offering free lotion samples to anyone and everyone.  So many times I am shot down like a crazy person offering you a bug sandwich.  I think some people actually believe that if they take the free sample that the sample will jump at them and chase them around like a wild rooster.  Don’t get me wrong I understand the fear of being chased by wild roosters.  As a child, I was once chased around the yard by a psychotic rooster.  Don’t laugh!  You don’t know fear until you have been chased by a psychotic rooster!  I still stand at the ready to offer you a free sample of some amazing lotion with a smile on my face.  But, the smile might just be from picturing you being chased around by a rooster.  ;)

Felted Soap

Felted Soap

The chaos continues.  Once again I think I have a great idea and I want to make something different.  Sometimes it would be better if someone would just sit on me and hand me some chocolate to distract me.  Oh well, I am always up for a challenge.  I decided that it would be cool to make soap pouches.  I figured how hard could it be to sew some terry material to make a pouch to slip your soap bar in?  Then you are always armed with your soap and wash cloth at the same time.  Brilliant!  Of course!  One problem.  I don’t sew.  I have a sewing machine that was handed down to me a long time ago but I still don’t even know what to do with it.  When I was a really young I remember sitting with my Grandma as she made Barbie doll clothes for my dolls.  She was showing me how to make them and I thought it was the coolest thing in the world.  Unfortunately, I was not blessed with the talent or ability to replicate.  I pull out the old machine, my fabric, etc.  Did you know that it is not very easy to sew terry material?  Maybe it was just me but every time I tried the machine became very angry and ate of the thread like a hungry beast and spit it all back out in a huge knot.  It was mocking me.  This is when I discovered soap felting.  Now this I can do!  I started making wool felted soap bars.  What a great idea.  You still have your soap and the cloth together.  It was fun and easy.  The kids can even help with this one.  So long story short the pouches may be buried in the back yard but the warrior felted soap bars live on!

Tingley Feet

Tingley Feet Peppermint Foot Spray

You know that funky smell when your husband takes off his work boots?  Or your teenager removes his basketball shoes?  Stinky Feet!  You cannot run or hide fast enough.  First , you grab the room spray, powders, anything to get that smell out.  This war prompted me to find a better quick solution.  Something that would tame the serious nose assault.  We worked with some different ideas until we found a good mixture that uses tea tree oil and peppermint oil.  TA DA!  It was amazing the smell calmed and the victim’s feet were left feeling refreshed and cooled.  It leaves such a great feeling especially in the Summer with hot, tired feet.

Tingley Feet Cream

 Tingley Feet Cream is a refreshing, moisturizing foot cream. We all love to wear sandals for the Summer but are dry, cracked feet would be better off hiding so we won't scare off small children or animals.  Sometimes they are so hideous we shutter at the sight of our own feet.  This lovely hydrating cream with soothe those dry feet and leave them a little less monstrous.  It could even help with your husband's scary feet!

Order now and save yourself!

www.EnchantingOrigins.com

Traveling

For those of you that don’t know, I travel to Texas every month for my little shop in Canton, Texas.  As you would imagine there is never a shortage of comical stories related to the travel experience.   Many times of course you forget important items at home.  Hopefully of course, not your ID, because that is always a way to miss your flight.  I know because I have missed them before.   Don’t judge me, you would be absent minded too running around like a chicken with your head cut off.  Wait!  That may have been a little graphic for some people to handle.  I am sorry. (Deal with it) ;)

Airport Security.  Need I say more?  I see more and more people that have never been through security which becomes comedy you can’t even make up.  People seem to lose all common sense and intelligence due to Airport Security Fear.  You would think they were being placed in front of a firing squad because they forgot to take their water bottle out of their bag.  Dozens of scared people removing their shoes and piling their belongings on a conveyor belt then proceeding through XRAY machines as if they are terrified that alarms will go off and they will be wrestled to the ground.

My son traveled with me for this trip as he often does.  Sometimes it is a good thing and some times it is a pain.  He is the shady character pictured above.  We missed our friend the wonderful skycap that always puts a smile on our faces.  We took a much earlier flight this trip so he wasn’t there yet.   We were worried that this was a sign we were going to have a rough trip.  We were relieved when we had a pretty uneventful flight.  We actually got to miss the crazy person that usually sits next to us.   This kid was actually polite and quiet.  We have had plenty of experiences with loud and unruly passengers.  And I am not just talking about us.  We have also experienced the person that insists on talking to you even if you don’t speak their language….the whole flight.  Nodding and smiling just isn’t enough…LOL

We decided after a long day of traveling to jump in the pool for a little swim.  Of course, that was more exciting than I was expecting.  My son decided to jump in and hit his nose on the pool floor?!?!  As you can imagine, this was a bloody, chaotic mess.  He is ok, no broken bones.   I must say the jokes at his expense about dragging his nose on the bottom of the pool are abundant.  We gave him all the standard excuses to start.  You are tough.  Chicks dig scars.  We also told him you need to come up with a story about jumping off the roof and landing on your nose in the pool to make you sound like a tough guy.  To add insult to injury after he was ok and everything was good, he slipped and fell on his knee. It was definitely time to call it a night.  We had to get to bed before he accidently lost a limb and he wouldn’t be much help at the show on crutches.  ;)

Lotion Adventures

Success?  Sometimes it takes a while to reach success but we don’t ever want to give up.  I always tell people about my lotion making stories.  Not quite like the stories from your parents when you were growing up about walking through the snow to school uphill both ways.   More like the hysterical drama of failed slimey first products.  Our lotion is an amazing and lovely product now.  But, before it become a lovely product it was a slimey, greenish yellow, oily mess.  I swore back then that my hands would never be dry or non-greasy again.  Through trial and error and lots of long days success was achieved.  It is exciting to create something and then carry through to success.  Each new product represents this rare challenge that can be met much like a pie eating contest that you know you can win.  Of course how can you say no to pie?  Thanks of course to all the wonderful “victims”  that were so great about trying the products during product development no matter how bad they looked.   

You guys are great, crazy, but great!

www.EnchantingOrigins.com

Wool Dryer Balls

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Wool dryer balls.  These things are really cool.  They safe money and energy.  They are also chemical free.  What could be the downside?  We enjoy making them but I must say it is comical to watch as you are rapping them and all of a sudden your fingers slip and it goes flying out of your hand.  The funny part is chasing to try and stop it before it completely unrolls and you have to start all over!  Which seems to happen a lot for me since I have clumsy hands.

Our wooly dryer balls are a great replacement for dryer sheets.  Unlike dryer sheets, our dryer balls do not contain any harmful chemicals.  They are great for softening your clothes and reducing dryer time.  Plus they can be fun to toss around.  Except when the dog thinks you are trying to play fetch and then you might have a fight on your hands.

Get a set to start making your laundry fluffy without all of the chemicals.  Maybe an extra set to play fetch or even juggle!

www.EnchantingOrigins.com

DANGER - Soap Making

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Soap making.  The joys of soap making.  I enjoy making soap so much but it doesn’t go without it’s challenges.  When I first started my biggest fear was using lye.  We have all heard the horror stories.  So, I put on my goggles, mask, huge gloves and measure out the lye.  Ok, no explosion.  Second, I add it the water with my eyes focused and body tense.  Nothing.  I begin to stir….nothing.  I am feeling pretty good now since that was the scary part.  I feel as though I just conquered the dragon and now all that is left is the celebration.  I mix the lye mixture with oils and bring it to trace.  Now it is time to cook it out.  SPOILER ALERT.  Do not turn your back on the soap when it is cooking.  I stand and watch for a little bit and start to get bored.  I start to perform other tasks to get other products ready.  All of a sudden I see out of the corner of my eye, a soap volcano oozing out of the crockpot everywhere.  Of course, I had taken off my gloves and gear while performing my other tasks.  As I frantically try to get them back on to stop the lava overflow I of course drop them a couple of times.  I turn off the crockpot and grab a spoon.  My dragon battle was just starting.  I am stirring and flipping and trying to keep anything around from being ruined.  After all lye is dangerous or so we have all been warned.  Finally after a long, fierce battle the lava settles and now all that was left was the cleanup.  Out comes the vinegar!