New Year, New Safe Team - Part 2

Welcome to our second installment of the SAFEteam's own New Year's resolutions. Thank you Etsy for helping us reach our goals!

Anhoki's Place

OK...I said I was not going to make a resolution but I lied. It's for the best so here we go.

I, Anhoki, will try to be more patient and learn to breathe.

New Year, New SAFE team part 1

The New Year is a time to reflect, re-examine and move forward.

The SAFE team decided to make some resolutions...and realized Etsy is a great place to find items to aid in almost every resolution execution :)

Each day we will share with you one of our shops, our resolution, and a couple of items that we found on Etsy to help us meet our goal! Hope they help you in your quest for greatness!


LifeSoapSimple



This year I'd like to continue on my path to simplification. To me this means getting rid of the unnecessary, organizing the needed, and being content.

Here are three things that can help me in my goal.

For trashing the junk:



For organizing what's left:



and for remembering to find peace in the simple things:

SAFE Team's Christmas Carol Challenge

Is that favorite Christmas song running through your ahead already? Is it Silent Night? Deck the Halls? Santa Baby? Or, I Want A Hippopotamus for Christmas?

This month, SAFE team members were given the challenge to create a soap based on their favorite holiday tune. You job is to pick a favorite. Vote by telling which one gets you humming in the comments section and you'll be entered to win the winning bar! Good luck, and Merry Christmas!

1. Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy - Goat's Milk Soap by greensprings0



I choose this song because every Christmas we watch our granddaughter perform the Nutcracker with her ballet school. This year is the first time she will dance on pointe. She has been waiting a long time for this moment.

Wanting a complex sweet scent, I choose lavender, rose, ylang ylang and pettigrain essential oils.

2. Away in a Manger Christmas Soap by LifeSoapSimple

Away in a manger,
No crib for His bed
The little Lord Jesus
Laid down His sweet head ...

"Away in a Manger" is always the first carol that children are taught. Having two young children this song still touches me...especially when they are singing it. It is simple and says all that needs to be said about God's love.

"Away in a Manger" was originally published in 1885 in a Lutheran Sunday school book and this created the misconception that the lyrics were actually written by Martin Luther himself. The author is unknown. The music to "Away in a Manger" was composed by William J. Kirkpatrick in 1895. via http://www.carols.org.uk/away_in_a_manger.htm

Our soap rendition of "Away in a Manger" is made from our favorite Shea butter cold process soap formula. It is scented with a light, mysterious, and earthy blend of Amyris, Sandalwood, Vanilla, and spices. The Oat Straw (a gluten free alternative to oats) imparts a light grainy aroma and gentle exfoliation for a very mild bar, gentle enough for ... a baby, but fit for a king.

3. Holly Jolly Christmas Handcrafted Soap by Poshwashsoap

Have a holly, jolly Christmas;
It's the best time of the year
I don't know if there'll be snow
But have a cup of cheer ...

The Christmas song "Holly Jolly Christmas" sung by Burl Ives, was my inspiration for this soap. It's my favorite Christmas tune. It is a timeless, happy song, that never fails to get me into the Christmas spirit! I hope this soap will do the same for you.

This soap is scented with a blend of happy, holiday fragrances. Red, green and shimmering silver are embedded in a snow white soap. Each bar is handcut and weighs about 4.25 ozs. This listing is for one bar of soap.

4. Carol of Bells Soap by theskinyourein

Hark! how the bells
Sweet silver bells
All Seem to say,
"Throw cares away."
Christmas is here
Bringing good cheer
To young and old
Meek and the bold.

This new soap reminds me of one of my favorite Christmas songs, Carol of the Bells. It speaks of the scent of pine, frosty air, happiness, family and beauty all around.

This song flows with the mesmerizing sounds of bells and beautiful words.

Our Carol of Bells Soap contains Palm Oil (sustainable), Water, Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Sodium Hydroxide, Castor Oil, Fragrance Oil and skin safe colorants. The scent is called Winter Hearth and smells of pine with very subtle nuances of spice. It is the epitome of the scent of the Holiday Season.

5. Winter Wonderland Christmas Snowman Handcrafted Soaps by PacificParadiseSoap

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,
In the lane, snow is glistening
A beautiful sight,
We're happy tonight,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

My favorite Holiday song is Winter Wonderland. I learned how to play it on the piano at a young age.

My Snowman is made of 3 soap balls for a total of 11.7 ozs of wonderful soap. Luxuriously lathering soap is made from Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, Rice Bran Oil, Shea butter, and Mango butter. The soaps are snowman scented (a blend of spiced mahogany and plumeria). Merry Christmas!

6. Winter Wonderland Cold Process Soap by Anhoki

Sleigh bells ring, are you listening,
In the lane, snow is glistening
A beautiful sight,
We're happy tonight,
Walking in a winter wonderland.

Christmas and Winter Wonderland for me is.....
Snow angles, snowmen, snowball fights, mistletoe, eggnog, sleigh rides, snuggling by the fire, midnight mass, driving around to look at everyone's decorations, PRESENTS.

What I love most about Christmas is family. Tradition for our family is to do individual family Christmas on the Eve or day before and then all gather together on Christmas day. The breakfast everyone feasts on is ginormously awesomical. Seeing everyone together is the best. Family you haven't seen in a while, those you would prefer to see less frequently....everyone is there. We don't always have a "white" Christmas where we live so it is truly a blessing when we do. I love Christmas.

To our favorite blend of olive, coconut, palm and canola oils we have added cinnamon, cedar, fir, clove, orange, pine, and sage essential oils. It's an amazing blend. This blend IS the Holiday season for me. Merry Christmas.

7. White Christmas - limited edition soap and shampoo bar by SwanMountainSoaps

I'm dreaming of a White Christmas
Just like the ones I used to know
Where the treetops glisten
and children listen
To hear sleigh bells in the snow.

Bing Crosby's beloved Christmas song was released in October 1942 and steadily rose up the charts. What really made it a success was its inclusion in the playlist of Armed Forces Radio. American GIs spending their first Christmas overseas during World War II wholeheartedly identified with the song.

"I sang it many times in Europe in the field for soldiers, and they'd holler for it. They'd demand it. When I'd sing it, they'd all cry," Bing Crosby said. "It's nostalgic, and it's kind of poignant, you know, particularly during the war years; you know, so many young people were away and they'd hear this song. And it would happen to be that time of the year, it would really affect them."

The song has special meaning for our family. When Papa Swan was stationed in Afghanistan a few Christmases ago, it was guaranteed to make Mama Swan break out in tears. Papa is safely home with us now, but we will always remember those who serve away from their families at Christmas. Our prayers go out to them.

Our White Christmas soap/shampoo bar features a wintery blend of Peppermint and Tea Tree essential oils for a completely cool and wonderful, chilly fragrance that both cleans and energizes your whole body!

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So those are your choices - now go vote! And Merry Christmas!

THE SPLENDOR OF AUTUMN

The Splendor of Autumn the Safeteam way.

We all enjoy the colors of autumn leaves. The changing fall foliage never fails to suprise and delight us. Just like the wonderful colors nature provides us, at this time of year, so does our Safeteam. We are as different as the trees that cause the wonderful scenes you can see, while out for an Autumn Walk. We are all from different parts of the country, so we all witness a different scene, as our Summer's fade away to Winter, via Fall. In this challenge, our wonderful soapers were asked to reveal what they witness outside their own front door. We have from North, to South, to East, and to West just for your delight and pleasure. Please read through this entire blog, and admire and read about every soap and soap maker, then leave a comment at the end giving your vote for your favorite. A winner will be chosen at random from the comments for the most popular soap. Go ahead and enjoy each and every soap, leave your vote, then wait to see if you get to actually win your favorite bar. Go ahead and indulge and good luck.

Beyond The Picket Fence

http://www.etsy.com/listing/57574289/fall-harvest-reserved-for-safe-team

Fall to me is pumkin picking! No question! And YAY! The pumkins are early this year! I already have a stash beautifying by backyard deck. Can't wait to make them into some soup (I have already made them into soap) I think I have an addiction!

So, as you can see, this soap was inspired by my favorite fall farmers market treat...the Pumpkin! And the scent smells like the walk you take after you have picked your pumpkin and have grabbed your hot cider and are checking out what tree you might like to have come winter!

Lily Pond Soaps

http://www.etsy.com/listing/57567995/pumpkin-spice-seasonal-scent-hot-process

Fall in the Rocky Mountains:
Vibrant colors of gold, yellow, oranges and red in contrast to white bark of the Aspen trees and the dark green of the Pines.
Cool crisp air
Shorter days
Cozy fires
Crunch of the leaves
Scents of holidays

Scent: Warm, spicy scent of pumpkins!

Swan Mountain Soaps

http://www.etsy.com/listing/57741455/the-woodcutter-soap-warm-spicy-scent-for

Autumn in Alaska means rain, rain, rain. Fall comes quickly and doesn’t last long – by mid-August the leaves are turning and by September there is frost in the garden and Termination Dust (snow) on the mountaintops. It’s a mad rush to prepare for winter, whether you’re stocking the pantry with blueberry jelly and putting freshly-dug potatoes and carrots into the root cellar, or you’re a bear fattening up on salmon to prepare for a long winter’s hibernation. The swans teach their young ones to fly as moose chomp frantically on everything left that’s still green. Alaskans chop wood and go moose hunting, mend last year’s snow gear and await that first snowfall that will transform everything into a silent world of white. It won’t be long now … snow is usually on the ground by the first week of October.

The Woodcutter soap embodies the quiet rush that is Autumn in Alaska. Scented with bay rum, this soap has a warm, spicy quality that will make you want to snuggle up under a warm quilt and a cup of hot tea on a rainy afternoon. Men will love it, and so will the women who get near them.

The Skin You're In

http://www.etsy.com/listing/57595344/pumpkin-butter-autumn-harvest-soap

My area of Southern California is called Lake Balboa which is a district in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles. Even though we have yet to see any changing leaves into spectacular gold and orange colors, you can tell that cooler temperatures are on the horizon. We will see a vivid array of golden yellows, burnt umber, oranges of varying degrees and toasted browns. Our street is lined with beautiful magnolia trees and many other varieties of huge old trees with leaves that gradually change with the cooling temperatures and eventually drop to the ground, forming a carpet of of fall colors. It really is spectacular to see.

My Pumpkin Butter Autumn Harvest soap is made with Organic, sustainable Palm Oil, Distilled Water, Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Sodium Hydroxide, Castor Oil, Palm Kernel Oil, Mango butter and Cocoa Butter. It is scented with a delicious variety of pumpkin pie spices, rich and delectable! The skin safe colorants of orange, yellow and burnt umber depict the colors of the leaves in deep Autumn and the brown represents the rich and fertile soil.

Thistle Delight

http://www.etsy.com/listing/57341608/swirling-leavesluxurious-olive-oil

We live in the midwest, so we get some beautiful Fall colors. This soap was made to celebrate the Fall colors we get to experience in our area. The scent used in this soap, is so vibrant and perfect for a fall walk, while enjoy all the wonders that nature provides. This scent is fresh, green, woodsy, earthy, and way off in the distance, you feel you can just smell someone burning leaves. This scent encompasses all the scents you smell while out for a wonderful fall walk. The swirl in this soap reminds me of a windy Autumn day, where you are getting glimpses of the fall colors from swirling leaves.

As with all of our Luxurious Soaps, they are made with Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Palm Oil, and Shea Butter. This soap will clean your skin with a wonderful lather, but it won't dry out your skin like commercial soaps. With Real soap made the cold process way, all of the natural forming glycerin is where it should be, right there in your soap.

This listing is for one bar that can weigh anywhere between 5 and 5.5oz.
If you would like more, just drop us a convo, and we will make you a listing to suit your needs.

Anhoki

http://www.etsy.com/listing/57561173/changing-seasons

The Southeast region is filled with beautiful color. From the Great Smoky Mountains of Tennessee to the Everglades in Florida and marshes of Louisiana the South has something for just about everyone. Miles and miles of farm land, forests filled with every color under the sun. Nature trails filled with native wildlife just as curious about you as you are of them. Watch out for that bear. I love when the leaves begin to change and fall. The oranges and red are breathtaking...almost like a Bob Ross painting. Hop in the convertible and take a ride along the Blue Ridge Parkway....OR... take a boat trip to the Gulf or South Georgia and Florida. Soak it all in. It's pretty awesome.

Changing Seasons was inspired by my love for the Fall/Autumn season. Fall is such a beautiful time of year. The changing leaves, cooler temperatures, wildlife preparing for hibernation. It's amazing to watch.
The scent used for Changing Seasons is a custom blend created specifically for this soap. Earthy, wholesome and warm describes it best. Cedar wood, Dragon's Blood and Sandalwood come together to create a blend which perfectly describes Fall for me.

Made with olive, coconut, palm and canola oils each bar weighs at least 5.35 ounces. Happy Fall.

Bubble Tub Soaps

Autumn Beauty - Creamy Shea and Glycerin Soap Bar - Limited Stock

Behold the beauty of autumn and it's many colors. Here in Canada we are in full brilliance in September/October for gorgeous greens, oranges, reds and all colors in between. This soap is created to honor fall and all her glory!
The glycerin leaf is scented with 3 different fragrances:
Green is a fresh spruce meadow
Red is a crisp apple scent
Orange is pumpkin and spice
The outer body of the soap is made with creamy shea flecked with organic parsley to create a beautiful picture of the leaves settling in the grass. No fragrance was used in the outer body, as you use the bar you will notice the light fall fragrances coming out of the glycerin leaves.

Each bar weighs a hefty 5-6 ounces.

Uncommon Good Scents!

The SAFEteam's Perfume Challenge and Giveaway 2010

For this challenge, many of us were forced out of our comfort zones. Soapers were asked to create our favorite scent in a blend of our OWN. It could be a perfume, cologne, roll on perfume oil, or solid. We had to use two or more scents from fragrance oils, essential oils, resins, or absolutes in a blend that was uniquely ours.

Now it's up to you, the voters, to pick a winner. To vote, list your favorite in the comments section. We'll choose a commenter at random to win the winning perfume and a feature here on our blog.

And here are the contestants .....

1. Arrugginito Rosa by Anhoki

I remember the very minute we met. That little bistro in Brooklyn where I was sipping a Latte. You walked up, sat at my table, and handed me the most beautiful rose I'd ever seen. You said the rust color matched my hair. I blushed. For my birthday an entire field was filled with rust colored roses. The proposal was a wine tasting tour in Napa with a dozen roses handed to me as I walked through the double doors. The ring.... in a tasting glass. When we were married every guest was handed a rust colored rose. For the birth of each of our children you had our favorite florist send 3 dozen rust colored roses. SO beautiful. Time goes by so quickly anymore. It seems like just yesterday we began our journey together. Now I set here, alone, longing for you to hand me just one more rust colored rose. Until we meet again I will carry on our little tradition by leaving one with you.

Blended in a base of Shea butter, Virgin Coconut, Jojoba, Candelilla and Carnauba waxes Arrugginito Rosa (Rusty Rose) is oils and waxes of Jasmine Sambac, Rose Absolute, Rosewood, Petitgrain, Amyris, Amber, Ginger and Black Pepper. The complexity of this blend is overshadowed only by its warmth and subtlety. A truly beautiful blend for even the hardcore un-girly girls.

2. Whiskey Girl by Swan Mountain Soaps
At the corner of Bourbon Street and St. Phillip Street in the heart of the French Quarter stands a crumbled-looking stone building once used by the infamous privateer Jean Lafitte. History has it that Lafitte operated a blacksmith shop there as a front for his privateering operations. Today, the 200-year-old building is the coolest bar in New Orleans. And the home of one of the oldest cocktails ever invented - the Sazerac.

If you can imagine New Orleans on a foggy night in 1785, in a bar lit only by candle and hearth where absinthe and rye whiskey flowed, you understand the heart of Whiskey Girl.

Whiskey Girl perfume oil is our own all-natural botanical blend of essential oils, with warm amber and spice accords, hints of bourbon, clove and lemon, a touch of myrrh and sandalwood, and a whisper of absinthe that blend into a seductive, mysterious creation. Total strangers will ask what you're wearing. Answer them if you want ... or keep them guessing. In New Orleans, nothing is what it seems.

3. Autumn Faire by theskinyourein

Soft, sexy, spicy, warm and very slightly sweet, just like a cool, colorful Autumn day. Autumn Faire Perfume Oil is just what your soul needs to calm and soothe you after a long hot summer and it's easy on your skin because it contains Jojoba Oil, Essential Oils and a dab of buttery vanilla fragrance oil to round it all out. You'll smell spiced oranges, mandarins, grapefruit, nutmeg, a dash of cinnamon, a pinch of Bitter Almond Essential Oil, Vanilla Essential Oil Blend and the icing on the cake is the buttery vanilla fragrance oil. Interesting combination, you say? The scent comes full circle from the first whiff to the gentle aroma that lingers on your skin.

4. Tres Belle Perfume Oil by Posh Wash Soap

When dreaming about the romance so inherent in a French garden, one might think of Monet's garden at Giverny - soft, lush and almost nostalgic for a lost paradise. The French, a characteristically passionate people, infuse their gardens with this passion as well, which is readily seen in its wide array of plants, its abundance of growth and the marvelous splashes of color born out of the dark green beds of foliage.

My perfume oil is inspired by a French garden. A fresh, flowery & green scent that starts out with French Lavender, combined with hints of lilac, rose, carnation, muget, musk & much more. Tres Belle is a romantic, fragrant walk in a beautiful floral garden.

5. Grace all-natural perfume oil by oilandspice

Grace Kelly has for decades epitomized the essence of refinement and
elegance. Her beauty captivated audiences in theater and film and soon won
the heart of Monaco's Prince Rainier Grimaldi III. Known as "Princess
Grace" Kelly she continued to set the standard of the sophisticated woman. Even
to this day her legacy continues on the wealthiest street in the world,
Avenue Princess Grace, Monaco.

Capturing this same essence of beauty and refinement in a gentle blend of
scented oils is "Grace." French Lavender and Sandalwood combine with hints
of Rosewood to produce a scent that is worthy even of the Princess of
Monaco. Superbly cultivated and painstakingly blended, "Grace" brings out
the Grace Kelly in each of us.

6. Flamme by Amelia’s

Formulated in an area of the country and on a barrier island that breeds sultry nights, there’s good reason to call this roll-on perfume by its French name ….. Flamme.

This is a fragrance of many layers and undertones of florals --- with an extra edge. When sniffing it for the first time, most people’s eyes pop open with pleasant surprise and then they look up with a smile.

Flamme has another meaning here …. more like fire …. hot and flirtatious. That’s the essence of the pleasant edge.

What’s that funny saying? “Good girls go to Heaven, and bad girls go everywhere!”

Flamme could rewrite that into, “Good girls go to Heaven, and Flamme girls go all kinds of merveilleux places!”

“Flamme, eau de parfum --- Let it take you places.”

7. Hunterdon by LittleBatch

I love where I live. Hunterdon County, NJ is a gorgeous place, so I
created a perfume blend in its honor, with all of the scents that I love
and remind me of home. Clean air, freshly tilled earth, green grass from
the fields, farm stand vegetables (cucumbers & tomatoes), wild berries
(strawberries & blackberries), evergreen trees, majestic oaks, and flowers
(hydrangea, rose, peony, honeysuckle) & herbs (sage, peppermint) from my
garden are all represented in this scent. It smells clean, nature-inspired,
and definitely one-of-a-kind.

8. Sultry Passion Perfume Oil by Starlet Glam Bath & Body

Old Hollywood Glamour and style of the past: And the sexy glamazons like Marilyn Monroe, Katherine Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Veronica Lake. All such classic beauty and sirens on the silver screen. An era full of Pin Up girls, Burlesque temptress lounge singers with their slow and sultry songs, Sensual Boudoir photo shoots, Silent, Golden age and Post war films.

Sultry Passion Perfume oil was created and inspired with the magic of Old Hollywood of Sultry Love and Passion. A personal exotic sweet blend of Jasmine, Vanilla and Blackberry. With a hint of Chocolate, Almond and Sandalwood. Rich, Intoxicating, Sensual. And so seductive and perfect for passionate evenings! It comes in a hot pink perfume bottle.

9. Oakmoss and Sandalwood Natural Botanical Cologne by krugsecologic

Ituha - Native Americans use this word for "the mighty oak". This natural, uni-sex cologne blends Oakmoss and Sandalwood with a touch of Vanilla absolute for sweetness and citrusy lemon to top it off. This is a 100 percent natural blend.

Ituha reminds me of one of my favorite activities - running a trail in the early morning hours before anyone is awake, moving away from civilization. Everything is quiet. The only sounds are forest animals and birds, the wind through the trees. Before your eyes, lining the trail stand large, mighty oak trees. Calming you with their presence and simultaneously humbling you with their grandeur.

10. Purple Haze by Thistledelight

Purple Haze Pulse Point Perfume is so called, because I have dedicated this blend to Scotland's beautiful hills and glens. If you have ever visited Scotland, you will have noticed how the hills are covered with a purple hue. Most people think it is just the Heather, but it isn't, this purple hue even covers some tree trunks too. The scent is in the air, which is a mixture of heather, moss, woodsy, and greenery, with a hint of roses, jasmine, and the mountain springs. I have blended this perfume to remind me of my home. Just to wander our countryside and just breathe is a wonderful experience. It sends electricity through your veins and recharges the soul.

We need all of those scents in there together, as even Heather is not one scent. Heather is a complex scent because of it's beginnings, and why it graces our hills and mountains.

When God first made the world, He looked at the bare and barren hillsides and thought how nice it would be to cover them with some kind of beautiful tree or flower. So he turned to the Giant Oak, the biggest and strongest of all of the trees he had made, and asked him if he would be willing to go up to the bare hills to help make them look more attractive. But the oak explained that he needed a good depth of soil in order to grow and that the hillsides would be far too rocky for him to take root. So God left the oak tree and turned to the honeysuckle with its lovely yellow flower and beautiful sweet fragrance. He asked the honeysuckle if she would care to grow on the hillsides and spread her beauty and fragrance amongst the barren slopes. But the honeysuckle explained that she needed a wall or a fence or even another plant to grow against, and for that reason, it would be quite impossible for her to grow in the hills. So God then turned to one of the sweetest and most beautif ul of all the flowers - the rose. God asked the rose if she would care to grace the rugged highlands with her splendour. But the rose explained that the wind and the rain and the cold on the hills would destroy her, and so she would not be able to grow on the hills. Disappointed with the oak, the honeysuckle and the rose, God turned away. At length, he came across a small, low lying, green shrub with a flower of tiny petals -some purple and some white. It was a heather. God asked the heather the same question that he'd asked the others. "Will you go and grow upon the hillsides to make them more beautiful?" The heather thought about the poor soil, the wind and the rain - and wasn't very sure that she could do a good job. But turning to God she replied that if he wanted her to do it, she would certainly give it a try.
God was very pleased.
He was so pleased in fact that he decided to give the heather some gifts as a reward for her willingness to do as he had asked. Firstly he gave her the strength of the oak tree - the bark of the heather is the strongest of any tree or shrub in the whole world. Next he gave her the fragrance of the honeysuckle - a fragrance which is frequently used to gently perfume soaps and potpouris. Finally he gave her the sweetness of the rose - so much so that heather is one of the bees favourite flowers. And to this day, heather is renowned especially for these three God given gifts.

This blend is a combination of many scents, some of which are, white roses, sandlewood, geranium, lavender, and oakwood to name a few. This scent is a mixture of floral and sweet, but grounded by the earthy green undertones. This pulse point perfume was made using fractioned coconut oil since this oil absorbs into the skin quickly, then topped off with the wonderful fragrance blend. Each bottle is 10ml and is a roller ball application. Very neat and tidy to fit straight into your purse or pocket for easy top up. Rub some on your pulse points and enjoy the aroma all day long. Just a little dab will do you for quite a few hours indeed.