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Donna Maria's Handmade
Beauty Connection
September 9, 2002
A Publication of The Handmade Beauty Network
ISSN 1530-9630 |
Vol. 3, Issue 35
To subscribe, click here.
---> This Week's Sponsor <---
SoCal Handcrafted Toiletries Conference
HBN member Charlon Bobo is pleased to announce
next year's SoCal Handcrafted Toiletries Conference!
Date: April
26-27, 2003 Register for either or both days!
Location: Fairplex, Pomona, California (Los Angeles area)
A dynamic and inspiring array
of speakers is being assembled to address issues of significance for businesses
and hobbyists alike. Whether your goal is to grow a successful business venture
or maximize your fun as an avid hobbyist, this is the conference for you!
Featured speakers include several HBN members:
* Anne-Marie Faiola-McCauley of Bramble Berry, Inc. | Pricing Your
Products for Wholesale and Retail Accounts
* Casey Carole Kellar of Rain Shadow Labs | Designing A Successful
& Competitive Toiletries Line
* Donna Maria Coles Johnson, Esq. attorney and HBN president | Knowledge
Is Bliss: Making Practical Sense Of The FDA's
Labeling Requirements
* Diana Thompson of Milky Way Molds | Conducting International
Business
And MORE to follow!
Bookmark their Web
site for regular updates! The SoCal
Handcrafted Toiletries Conference has grown significantly each
year and it is always
fun and informative! Spaces are limited so register soon so you don't miss out!!
Contact Charlon
Bobo for more information or click here
for more details and to register!! See you there!!
1. HBN Update: Welcome New
& Renewing Members & HBN Members On The Move!
2.
Come
One, Come All To Next Month's Natural Products Expo East Trade Show!
3.
New At MakeYourCosmetics.com: Virgin JojoCoco Cream
4.
Handmade Beauty Trivia Question: win a bar of Magnolia Blossoms
Glycerin Soap!!
5.
Create The Life You Love™: The
French "Aroma" Connection, Part IV by Polly
Fletcher
6.
Handmade Beauty Product Review by Donna Maria: Bonnie's Lamb Handmade Soap
1. HBN Update: Welcome New
& Renewing HBN Members & HBN Members On The Move!
~ Welcome New &
Renewing HBN Members!
Butterfly Rising | Miah Yamobi |
Indiana
* renewing
member; all-natural
Total Body Butter (TTB) in Vanilla Kiss, Strawberry, Patchouli and more
The Soap Box, Michigan |
Christa M. Geraghty | Michigan
* renewing
member; handmade soaps, bath bombs, bath salts and lip balms; gift
baskets available
Garland of Grace Handmade
Soaps, Etc. | Victoria Camp | Virginia
* luscious gourmet soaps and spa products for face and
body; products for a lifetime of health and beauty
Body Wisdom West | Christine
Tafuri Lewis | California
* soaps, creams, bath salts, etc.
made with lots of natural ingredients
Cedar Lane Farms | Martha
Lupton | Virginia
* creamy, luxurious soap containing
over 33% pasteurized goat's milk from our registered Nubian goats
~
HBN Members On The Move ... ALWAYS!!
HBN member Michelle
Rotherham of Making-Soap.com is pleased to announce that she has moved
her buisness from southern California to South Dakoka ... making her HBN's only
member in that sate at this time! Now, Michelle is going to have to get used to
"real" winters! While their digs have changed, their unique raw
materials and packaging supplies like emerald green, light blue and cobalt
bottles and jars have not! So next time you're in South Dakota, be sure to look
her up ... meanwhile, visiting the Web
site will do just fine! Congratulations Michelle!!
Learn
more about our members and their exciting activities by visiting their Web sites through HBN's Online
Member Directory, now with 4 ways to search: (1) by state/country; (2)
by member business name; (3) by keyword search; or (4) using our new alphabetical
listings!
2. Come
One, Come All To Next Month's Natural Products Expo East Trade Show!
Come One, Come All To Next
Month's Natural Products Expo East Trade Show!
Date:
October 3 - 6, 2002 (Thursday - Sunday)
Location: Washington, DC,
Convention Center
That's
right! HBN will be representing several members at Table No. 1 at the Natural
Products Expo East Trade Show! HBN's
Table #1 is one of
10 located near the entrance to the trade show hall, providing us with great
visibility.
Several
of our most active members with some fabulous products are participating ...
these companies' products will be available for sampling and purchase at the
show at HBN's Table #1:
Silk'n
Shea (Oregon)
- fine synthetic-free products made with shea butter, herbs, essential oils and
other natural ingredients
sunny brae body
works (California)
- creams, soaps, balms and more created to integrate the healing qualities of
the natural world into your day through the use of herbs, essential oils and
vegetable oils
The Persimmon
Tree Handcrafted Soaps (Delaware)
- cruelty-free handmade soaps and bath salts made with olive, coconut and palm
oils, cocoa butter, natural colorants, pure essential oils and fragrance oils
Masterpiece
Bath & Candle
(Maryland)
- handcrafted soaps, bath salts, body powder, lotions, cremes, all-natural soy
candles and many other products for bath, body and home
Terra Soleil
(New
York) - Grow Younger Face Care, Condition Your Body Skincare and Body Balms For
Every Body. Terra Soleil nurtures natural health and
beauty inside and out. All products contain exquisite and precious oils.
Queen B Bath
Company
(Illinois) - Wholesale
of premium quality natural bath and body products. Elegant packaging and
a line of quality and affordable bath accessories too! Private label
available.
Bathsheba
(Georgia) - Handmade bath luxuries from exotic oils blended to create the
perfect bath experience
African Shea
Butter Company
(Virginia) - Suppliers of hand-crushed, yellow and refined shea butter and
makers of natural shea butter products ... lotions, creams, butters, lip
butters, soap an bath salts
So if you're a retailer
looking for some fabulous and unique products to stock for the holidays, be sure to stop
our Table to sample the goodies for yourself and make your purchases on
the spot! While there, enter our drawing for fabulous Abundance Gift Baskets ...
assortments of HBN member products. Just drop by and leave us your card or
complete one of our lead cards to enter. You don't have to be present at the
time of the drawing to win!! So
if you're planning to attend the show, don't forget to stop by HBN's Table #1.
Be sure
to check out HBN's
Virtual Trade Show so you can learn more about the wonderful handmade beauty
products made by these participating companies. And while you're at the Expo,
don't forget to stop by HBN's Table #1 to place your order!!
For more
information about how you can attend the Expo and have a chance to stock these
fabulous HBN member products just in time for the holidays, click here!
(HBN
members, if you missed the announcement about how you can participate in the
show, click here
and enter your username and password for details!!)
3. New
At
MakeYourCosmetics.com:
Virgin JojoCoco Cream
Virgin
JojoCoco Cream is a little cream for dry skin that my new apprentices
Cecilia and Rhea mixed up in my kitchen last week. We liked it because the
rich oils helped to soothe our dry patches, especially elbows and heels.
This also makes a really nice and rich facial cream for dry skin. Get ready
for the winter with this special formula! Hope you like it too!
When
you visit MakeYourCosmetics.com, it's easy to
buy the ingredients you need by clicking on our Partner links:
Essential
Wholesale: pure essential oils, base carrier oils such as avocado,
sweet almond, jojoba and shea butter and specialty packaging supplies
packaging supplies!
Bramble
Berry, Inc.: over 75 different fragrance oils
(including their exclusive "Relaxing" and "Rosehip
Jasmine"), all soap tested, soap molds and unscented soap
bases!
SunRose
Aromatics: pure essential oils
(many organic),
carrier oils and other aromatherapy products, each carefully selected for
quality. Check out their new Perfumer's Emporium.
The
Scent Shack: fragrance oils and soap supplies. Fragrance oils are pre-tested
in cold process, melt & pour soap, and candles, and test results are
listed at the
Web site. Scents tested by soapers for soapers!
Lynden
House International , Canadian supplier of soap and candlemaking
supplies such as fixed oils, perfumes, essential oils, molds, powdered
milks, colors, pre-made bases, candle wax, wicks, embeds and more!
4. Handmade Beauty Trivia
Question: the winner of last week's
contest was HBN
member Renee Deal of Deal Farm Soap Company. Renee won a
sample of my Virgin Coconut Vanilla Oil!!
 Last Week's
Question: How many members
did HBN
have in its online member directory as of 12:00 midnight on August 26?
Last Week's Answer: 322
This Week's Question: I am the number of minutes you can
stay unprotected in the sun without burning multiplied by the number of
minutes you can stay in the sun after applying a product containing
sunscreen.
To win this week,
be the first person to provide my full name and
my acronym and win a bar of Magnolia Blossoms
Glycerin Soap, courtesy of HBN member Joan's Gardens!!
Please read the contest rules here
before submitting your entry. Put "TRIVIA CONTEST ANSWER" in the subject line or your answer will
not be considered.
While time does not permit me to respond personally to all entrants, the
winner will be notified by email and their name posted at HBN's home page.
5. Create The Life You Love™: The
French "Aroma" Connection, Part
IV,
by Polly Fletcher
This
week, I bring you the final part of a 4-part series of articles by guest writer
and HBN member Polly Fletcher of Life Balance. In the series, Polly shares with
us keen insights into the wonderful learning adventure she enjoyed in France
earlier this year. If you missed the first 3 articles, here they are:
Part
I: Introduction To The French "Aroma" Connection
Part
II: Grasse: The Perfume Capital Of The World
Part III: The Crux of Polly's
Adventure: The Distillery
This week, Polly shares her parting advice on
choosing essential oils for your handmade toiletries. Take it away Polly!
As you can probably tell if you've read the entire series, I am very
particular about the oils I choose for my products. I try to include the highest
quality available for my line and my trip to France was one of many ways I now
satisfy myself that I know exactly what is in the products I manufacture and
sell to my customers. Every business is different, with different resources and
priorities, so each business owner has to decide how to allocate resources to
various different things. For me, investing a significant amount of time and
money in my trip to France to see where my oils come from was one of the best
things I ever did for my business. In light of my choices, here are a few of my
parting observations.
For me, building a first-hand, one-on-one relationship with a distiller as a
source for botanical ingredients was paramount. Any business can benefit from
consolidating different vendors. However, knowing exactly where your raw
materials come from and how they are handled during processing should be a
priority for all business creating toiletries and cosmetics. Whether choosing a
quality distributor or going direct, it is a good practice to know where your
plant materials are grown, handled and packaged. I feel fortunate that I was
able to witness first hand the start to finish process a distillery goes through
to make a quality product. My trip have given me the confidence to share with
our customers where and how our botanicals are grown, produced, packaged and
what makes them special.
Distillers and growers are always looking for assistance with the harvest. As
a result, a trip to France for the same reasons I went, or just to get a
first-hand view of how plants are grown, harvested, distilled, etc., is a
worthwhile adventure for any cosmetics company. I gained a huge appreciation for
the botanicals that finally make it into my products because I have now seen
first hand all the details that go into producing a fine essential oil or
hydrosol. I would think that any company actually that gets their essential oils
and hydrosols from another source would do their business and the customers a
great service by enjoying an experience like this so they could more readily
share the "harvest to extract" experience with their customers. The
experience was absolutely invaluable to our company. I look forward to going
back to participate with the lavender harvest next year.
About
The Writer: Polly Fletcher is the founder of Life Balance Hand Made
Formulations. A member of HBN since 2000, Life Balance is based in Boston, MA
and is committed to formulating skin care products that nourish the skin &
inspire the senses. You may contact Polly with your more specific questions
about the distillery at polylogx@aol.com.
Next Week: Stay
Tuned For A Special Surprise Announcement! .
6. Handmade Beauty Product
Review by Donna
Maria: Bonnie's Lamb Handmade Soap
Bonnie's Lamb Handmade Soap by Soap Dance
$4.50/bar of 3 bars for $10.00
I don't know about you, but for me, the fall season is always a special
time. The leaves begin to change, there is a unique crispness in the air,
and a late afternoon walk is especially pleasant as the leaves make such
soothing sounds as they are caught by a gentle breeze. Another thing that I
have always noticed about the fall season is that it is marked by a distinct
need to be surrounded by certain aromas. For me, those aromas include
cinnamon, pumpkin, ginger, banana, apple, and anything that reminds of me of
the warm oatmeal my mother used to serve me before school when the weather
was cold.
No wonder the aroma of Oatmeal, Milk & Honey in a bar of handmade
soap seems so inviting now that the seasons are changing. And that's why Bonnie's Lamb
soap has been so much fun to use over the past several days. It's a
substantial sized bar, hard and long lasting too! The brown color probably
comes from the fragrance oil that smells so delicious and/or the goat's milk
that's added. I really could almost eat it! But perhaps the best thing
about this soap is the way its lather feels on my skin. Creamy and prolific,
lots of fragrant bubbles. I'm sure one of the reasons it feels so good is
because Soap Dance owner (and HBN member) Patricia Ehaney, adds a ton of
shea butter and hempseed oil to the soap. Those two ingredients seem to always
combine to make something extra special, and they sure do this time! You can
get Bonnie's Lamb and other fabulous soaps
in several categories including herbal, fruity, earthy and others at Soap
Dance. While you're there, don't miss the beautiful photos of
her soaps and check out the lotions, potions and gift sets too!
Visit The Handmade Beauty Connection Archives.
Visit our suite of Web sites serving the handmade toiletries industry:
HandmadeBeauty.com: the
leading industry trade organization
MangoButter.com:
over 450 suppliers of raw materials and packaging, updated weekly!
MakeYourCosmetics.com:
ingredient encyclopedia & original cosmetics recipes
DonnaMaria.com:
sound advice for your small business, We2We Success Seminars
HandmadeBeauty.com:
e-greeting cards coming soon!
Handmade Skin
Care.com: secure online shopping coming soon!
Have your ad seen by over 3,200 subscribers! Click here
to see why Essential Wholesale says that the returns from their newsletter ad "just keep on coming," and
why Anastasia's
Ideas says "the ad I placed for my handmade soaps just 2 days ago has
generated 6 huge retail orders and 2 new wholesale inquiries from HBN
members with retail shops. Things are really good ..."
Donna Maria, Editor-In-Chief, DonnaMaria@HandmadeBeauty.com
The Handmade Beauty Connection
The Handmade Beauty Network | www.HandmadeBeauty.com
© Copyright 2002 Donna
Maria and affiliates. All Rights Reserved. Click here
for important legal information.
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