I decided to make a lap quilt
Posted by scentsthatmatter in September 18, 2010
I decided to make a lap quilt. Keep in mind I have no idea how to make a quilt. My mother makes them and hers are beautiful. But I’ve only seen her cut out little squares and then the final product.. I’ve never seen her design one or sew. But is that going to stop me. NO WAY! It’s not prefect I see several things I would change. But I want to keep it this way because I will be able to look at it and say to myself. “I learned a lot from making this one.”
I finished the top and didn’t know what to do next so I called mom. She told me I had to get this certain type of batting. She gave me the name of someone who can put the top, the batting and the back together for me because I don’t have the right type of sewing machine to do quilts.
Mom and I went to Hancock’s Fabric to buy the batting. But of course they were having a wonderful sale. I saw this great fabric for 75% off. To make my granddaughter a Halloween costume. She can be a Good Witch. Have I ever done anything like this? NO WAY! But that’s okay. I can figure it out between now and Oct 31. I have plenty of time.
Let’s get back to the quilt. It’s going to cost me was much to have three lap quilts done as it would to buy the machine. I have to do three if I am going to give one to my grandchildren and keep one for myself. So now I want a new sewing machine.
This always happens to me. I see something I think I can do that and then I want the supplies and the tools to do it. My mother is leaving an inheritance of fabric. I am leaving an inheritance of gadgets. I need a much bigger place to store all my gadgets. But the thought of paying someone $80 to $100 dollars to do something that I can learn to do seems ridiculous to me.
I am on a mission to save the money to buy the machine. I may have to break down and sale soaps on EBay. If you see Scents That Matter on EBay, you know it’s me. I should do it anyway. I have been able to give each month to charities but I would like to do more.
Iowa in September
Posted by scentsthatmatter in September 15, 2010
Due to an emergency I found myself in Iowa last week. It’s a long drive from Texas. I have never been to Iowa before this trip. The weather was beautiful. I realize that it gets cold in the winter but, in September…it was near prefect. The high was 75 degrees and the low was 55 degrees. I could have wished for 70 degrees instead of 75 but that’s just being difficult so I was happy with the weather we experienced. Plus it was a horrible storm in Texas because of the hurricane. DFW had extensive flooding and multiple tornadoes touching down at the same time. I was happy just to be outside the state for the week.
One thing I noticed in Des Moines Iowa, the number of pregnant women was extremely high. You could not turn around without seeing a noticeably pregnant woman. The second thing I discovered was when my son and his wife went for tacos one night. They came back with plenty of tacos but they also had seen a huge 10 point deer. It was standing in someone’s front yard. When they stopped to take its picture it didn’t even move. It stared at them which made for a great picture. Someone from the area told us that deer were a problem this year. I don’t know the laws for deer hunting but they are plentiful at the moment. Someone else said that this summer a large deer made it’s home in her back yard every night. It had a slight limp. She thought it was staying at her house at night because it would have been venerable to wolves until it healed. She didn’t bother it and once it was better it went away. Anyone thinking about going deer hunting find out the state deer hunting law, purchase a hunting license and make sure you are not trespassing.
We left in such a hurry I hardly had time to pack. I remembered my Aloe Vera Lavender soap but I forgot to bring any lotion. I was so thankful I remembered the soap. My experience with hotel soap is it’s so drying it leaves my skin hurting and ashy. But having the Aloe Vera soap was great because my skin didn’t dry out. Even my son commented on liking the soap.
I’m So Happy Soap Turns to Bethany Lee Soap
Posted by scentsthatmatter in August 29, 2010
I started this morning making a batch of Aloe Vera Soap. It’s my favorite liquid to use then making soap. I put my frozen Aloe Vera Juice and my cold water in a pitcher together so they could become one icy mix. But as life would have it I didn’t have any more clean disposable gloves. If you read the post before this one you’ll know why that was a problem. I couldn’t go anywhere because I was expecting company. So I started playing with scents for this batch of soap. I used a lot of different fragrance oils. I keep them in a big tub so I can carry them from room to room as needed. I used citrus and other fruits, a couple of flowers, and an array of spice scents. I had to laugh when I realized my ingredients for my scent was longer than my ingredients for the actual soap. Using a drop of this, ml of that, and before you know it, you are happy with the beautiful scent you have created. I decided to call it “I’m So Happy” because that’s how I feel when I smell it. I left my great “I’m So Happy” scent on the table to visit with my company.
When they left I went back to check on my juice and my scent. The juice was still frozen solid and the scents where smelling better than ever. So, I left them alone and went to the drug store for gloves. I came back and went straight to work. I pulled out my ingredients and made soap. The process was smooth as silk. Not a hiccup one.
I added my color at trace. It’s red but because the soap has a yellow hue it came out orange. I have no idea what will happen when it cures. It could stay orange which I would like or it could turn which would be fine with me. I’ll stay open. I added my created scent. Wow, I am so pleased with it.
As I poured my now thickly traced soap into the mold I said to myself, ”Self, this scent reminds me of something. What is it?” Myself answered “It’s a Happy Type scent.” I took another big whiff of the soap which I shouldn’t have done because it is uncured soap. So kids, don’t try that at home. But I think shock caused me to do it. The end result was it smells a great deal like a Happy Type fragrance, with citrus, flowers, and spices it’s a bright fragrance. I love it. I have no idea how they make Happy and that wasn’t my plan today. I will have to think of another name for it. I am thinking Bethany Lee Soap after my niece that enjoys this scent. I don’t mind saying the scent reminds me of a Happy Type fragrance but I don’t think the name should reflect that as if I’m trying to sale the product using their trademark.
Rookie Mistakes In Soaping
Posted by scentsthatmatter in August 28, 2010
My poor fella. We had plans to go to lunch today. I thought he would be here about noon. He got here about 10 am. He saw me mixing the lye in the pitcher and commented he was glad to see I was using gloves and goggles. After the lye was mixed I took off my gloves and started working on heating up the oils. He was hungry, I suggested he line the molds for me while I iced down** the lye in an effort to speed the process up. He was agreeable so I gave him the mold, tape and freezer paper explaining our goal. I got the lye on ice and came back to check on how he was doing.
He was doing well but, commented his hands here starting to itch. I looked around and didn’t see any thing with lye on it. I had put up the bucket of lye. The spoon and thermometer were in the kitchen near the iced lye. I hadn’t mixed the lye in the spot he was sitting. I couldn’t see anything to explain why he would be itchy. Then he picked up the tape I had handed him and there it was. A blue glove I used to mix the lye! He had laid the tape on a glove used when I was mixing lye! Why he reached all the way over to that glove to lay down the tape is beyond me but he did.
His mistake he laid the tape on a glove he knew had been used to prepare the lye mixture.
My mistake was not remembering he was a rookie. I should have warned him. I left it on purpose so that I would remember to clean that area up extra good when the soap was made and I final clean was done. You can lose track of the exact spot when you’re wiping things down as you go.
So, I sent his itchy self to the kitchen telling him not to scratch or touch any other part of his body especially his eyes. I followed him and poured white vinegar on his hands and told him to rub it into his hands and arms. The next step was to wash his hands and arms really well. He did but still felt a little itchy. I told him to use the shower. I’m not sure how much of it was just the thought that it was itchy and how much it was still really itchy. But either way a good shower was going to help. He was fine after the shower. He was a little surprised at how easy it is to get exposed to lye and how dangerous it could be. He was pleased that I knew just what to do. Its one thing to hear about it, it’s a whole different animal to have the experience. It’s the difference between a new born pup and a full grown hungry wolf. So, even though he got here early, by the time he showered while I finished my soap and I showered we still didn’t leave until noon. But we had a great lunch. We went to our favorite hamburger joint. We split a cheeseburger; onion rings, a coke and a float for dessert. It’s an old hamburger stand that when you drive up they come out to your car to take your order. It’s been around since 1956 making great food with large enough portions to share and they make their own Root Beer.
** I put the pitcher of hot lye mix inside of a larger bowl. Then I add ice cubes into the larger bowl around the outside of the lye pitcher. That will help lower the temperature if time is of the essence.
Stretching my Limited Organizational Skills
Posted by scentsthatmatter in August 25, 2010
I am really stretching my limited organizational skills to the max. It’s been a busy time and I am just beginning to get rolling on my goals. I find that I have so much to accomplish in a day. I’m sure you know what I mean. It’s the first day the temperature has been under a 100 degrees this month. I don’t function well in the heat so below 100 degrees is excellent news. Not as good as 50 degrees but I am not being overly demanding of the weatherman when I ask that it be cool enough that an air conditioner can do it’s job. I had high hopes for this recent break in the weather. I had a list of things I wanted to get done today. Here are my goals:
- Research postage cost.
- US
- International
- Price shipping materials at two stores.
- Open Etsy Store.
- Post items on Etsy Store.
- Update blog with:
- Etsy connection link.
- Update new store on Product/Store page.
- A post, this seems to be the post.
- Make a new batch of soap, what I want to be my post.
- Select fabric for flip flops to be posted for sale.
- Review and make changes to Google Analytics and PayPal as needed.
I can report good news and bad news on today’s accomplishments. I have done about half of what I wanted to do. I know that I really need to make more soap but I also need to package up soaps that are ready to be donated. With limited space I am tempted to do the packaging first and the soap second even though it’s not on my list. See my organizational challenges? But packaging my donation for September didn’t sound like a priority last night. Soap takes six weeks to cure. Time is of the essence. So stick to the plan, I will make the soap which needs to set up in the mold for a couple of days. That gives me time to package the donation before the new soap has set up. These are the things I let take me off task sometimes. They are good things and must be done. But in this case the time table is really sometime in September. See how easy it is to get off track?
But my question today has been what’s standing in my way of having 100 % of my goals reached? Other than it is a lot to do while in a learning curve? The PHONE is the #1 enemy today. I realized the phone is a problem every day. Not the only problem but the biggest problem. My loved ones call all day long. When I don’t answer because I’m trying to stay on task, they call in recruits… more loved ones! Don’t get me wrong, I want to talk to them. I just need our talks to be more organized resulting in more productive conversations. That would reduce the average 15 daily calls from down to three call. That would be good, right?
I have a new strategy. Tomorrow while my lye is cooling down and my oils are heating up my “To Do” list will include making a weekly plan outline of daily responsibilities (such as, shipping and walking the dog) and goals with a tentative time line to do those things. I will tell my family what times I plan to be working, morning, afternoon or evening on what days. I will be turning my phone on silent so I won’t be tempted to answer my phone during those times. That should get me back to doing the things I love to do….creating new products. Tomorrow is another day. I will be starting the day with a walk for myself and the dog, then it’s time to make soap! Two major smiles for me before 8:00 am.
Life Simplified
Posted by scentsthatmatter in August 20, 2010
Aug 25th UPDATE: I have opened an Ecrater and a Esty Store. The link to the stores are to the right under the heading of Soaps. The stores have a new product I just love! I hope you check it out for yourself.
Aug 24th UPDATE: I have also added a page to this website that will update you on new items as they come out. This will help manage the product line. I want you to have an easy path to finding the newest products. You can find the new page at the top of this website titled “Products / Oulets”. I hope you find this new page helpful and look forward to getting your input.
I am simplifying the www.scentsthatmatter.com life. I have been running my website and my blog as too separate sites. I realized I didn’t have time to do that and put things on Esty, Ebay, Ecrater or any other sale site. So, I have moved my blog to my website. The great news is those who are used to seeing my blog will continue to see the blog. Some changes will be made slowly. I will be adding pages that tell where to find new items with links for easy access. I hope you enjoy the change.
Bath/Shower Jelly
Posted by scentsthatmatter in August 18, 2010
I love this stuff. I took a shower with it this morning and it’s great! I just took a small slice and look what happened for lather.
I used Citrus Splash for the scent and left it in the refrigerator. After a morning walk with my dog it was just what I needed. It’s cool and the citrus scent enlivens the senses! It goes wonderfully with Young Love Solid Perfume. Young Love has some Citrus Splash in the fragrance mix so it only strengthens the top notes. When the top notes fade it will go into the warmth of the bottom notes of Young Love. Okay, now I am ready to go help my DIL with her class room again. If you decide you need a lift to your step in the morning, bath/shower Jelly will be added to www.scentsthatmatter .com soon. The cost is only $3.00 for a small tub that holds 3 oz. Not bad for lots of cleansing lather and spring in your step.
Young Love Solid Perfume
Posted by scentsthatmatter in August 17, 2010
Update: Out of Perfume will make more in September.
Before I spend money on all the items required to make a perfume I like to try it out as a reasonable price to see if I want to spend that money. If you have the stuff and want to go ahead and make it yourself here’s the products I used.
My perfume base includes Beeswax, Coconut Oil, Olive Oil, and Castor Oil. Heat the ingredients together. After the mixture has cooled keep it in a sealed container to avoid contamination but give it a couple of weeks to make sure it behaves itself. It always has but I like to do it anyway.
It’s now time for the fun stuff. It’s a well behaved base and ready to be turned into something wonderful. I need new perfume because I have almost used up my old supply and I need some for my website too. Here are the skin safe fragrance oils I used.
Snuggle Baby
Citrus Splash
Carnation
Coconut
Sandalwood
Frankincense and Myrrh
It’s added up to .2 oz fragrance oil total. I heated up 2 oz of solid base and added the fragrance oil mix to it stirring to mix. Then I used a disposable dropper to move the mix from my missing container to the individual pots. It’s less messy. The mixture will harden if you don’t move fast. That’s okay if you have used a heavy duty plastic mixing container (I use the inside of a larger cosmetic pot) and a disposable dropper. You can put it what hasn’t been transferred in the microwave using ten seconds intervals until it is liquid again. I’ve never taken me more than two 10 second bursts. Don’t forget you can get a great discount and receive the fragrance
Gifts of Soap And M&P Additives
Posted by scentsthatmatter in August 14, 2010
My niece is coming into two today. The local family gathers to see her and her family. I have a gift of soap for them with A&M baggies. You can find like soaps at www.scentsthatmatter.com . Most of these are discontinued soaps, not all but most. Either the fragrance or the recipe was discontinued. While they are great soaps I often change things up. I am always experimenting with fragrance, recipes and shapes! Expect the clear green ones are no experiment. They are her husband’s favorite and are a special order request. I use melt and pour for his soap because this scent does not hold up well in cold processing soap but hangs in there just fine for M&P soaps. One of the disadvantages of M&P soap is it doesn’t last as long as C/P soap in the shower. I guess we can say “It melts!” There are ways that you can extend the life of the soap but I find it inhibits the lather and suds which he loves.
WAIT a minute. I think I will try adding a 1 tablespoon of sugar (adds bubbles and lather) and 1 tablespoon of melted Beeswax (extends the life of the soap) together. The beeswax should melt the sugar. Then I can add this mixture to 1 pound of melted M&P soap and gently mix well. I have found that my fragrance and color work better if I keep the temperature below 140 degrees. I like 140 degrees or lower as long as my M & P soap is still liquid. I avoid letting my M&P soap get over 160 degrees. Using a double boiler helps control the heat better than a microwave. Stirring helps to lower the temperature and insure a more consistent temperature throughout the mix. I can always pull the M&P soap off the burner before it’s fully melted and gently stir the soap to distribute the heat and it will continue to melt for a bit. Fragrances seem to hold up better at the lower temperatures. Of course I have to read the fragrance label for the flash point. Some fragrances have a low flash point which makes it all the more important to check temperatures and pull it away from the heat before it gets to hot. To be honest I avoid fragrances that have a really low flash point. I like a healthy safety margin. Burning down my kitchen is not on my “To Do” list.
Teachers Are Getting The Classrooms Ready!
Posted by scentsthatmatter in August 11, 2010
I spent the morning with my DIL helping her get her classroom ready for 3rd and 4th graders. We rearranged desks, file cabinets and shelves. We put school books on shelves and basically did the manual labor today. I’m out tomorrow because of my Avonex shot which kicks my “behind” every week. But Friday I will be back to help her. I forgot how nice it was to help my mom every year get her classroom ready. Hopefully I will be able to use my Cricket to create useful things for her room, which I did not have as a little girl helping my mom. Everything had to be hand cut for her boards.
Lots of teachers were working on their rooms. They checked out each other’s rooms. The shared ideas and encouraged each other. The halls were full of extra things that could be used for the right creative teacher. The Principle was busy up and down the halls following up on issues and confirming needed actions where resolved. His head would get full of answers and he would go back to his office to complete paper work. Busy bees were everywhere you looked.
I hope by Friday the room will be ready enough that we will really know what we can use from the hall. I have my eyes on some balls that I am sure could be incorporated into something fun and educational.
My DIL will be in charge of PE for her class. PE is going to be on the back parking lot in the Texas heat! That seems like a challenge to me. The best I could come up with was kick ball. Are there any ideas on that one from any of you readers? I will be looking on the internet but your insightful thoughts would be a bonus.
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