Rhubarb Vanilla

Rhubarb is one of my favorites in the Spring and Summer. I've posted my rhubarb love a few times in fact! Now, I finally decided to put that rhubarb love into soap form. I think this combo of rhubarb and vanilla is divine!

Tangy, fruity rhubarb adds a burst of excitement and energy to delicious, elegant vanilla. A sophisticated blend, though, not so foody. In fact, I think it's a very classy, feminine scent for Spring.
Here's the listing on Etsy: http://www.etsy.com/listing/72749759/rhubarb-vanilla-soap-bar

New Collaboration with Hearts and Laserbeams

Steph of Hearts and Laserbeams http://heartsandlaserbeams.com worked up some super fab new label designs for me in a Limited Edition series of soaps. I love what she came up with, they are so cute and fun!! I hereby introduce Oatmeal Stout, Bonsai, and You're a Peach, Ginger!

Sugar Scrub Cubes~New Product!

Soap and Sugar Scrub all-in-one! I just love a pampering bath or shower, but usually there is so little time. These make it easy to feel pampered while keeping to your busy schedule.

My solid sugar scrub cubes are made with moisturizing sweet almond oil, gently scrubby fine sugar, and an all natural glycerin soap base to give you the ultimate exfoliating shower scrubbing experience.

These first-in-the-line-up cute little cubes are scented Ginger Orange. Freshly squeezed oranges spiced up with refreshing ginger. A clean, crisp, delicious blend. More scents to come soon!

To use your scrub cubes, simply smoosh a cube in your wet hands and scrub over your body.
Check them out at http://soaprehab.etsy.com

Happy Thanksgiving And a Sale!

To celebrate the season, I'm having a special Buy One get One Half Off Sale this weekend! Friday, November 26 through Monday, November 29 (Black Friday through Cyber Monday) each item in my Etsy shop is Buy One get One Half Off (with the exception of Gift Sets). I will promptly refund through Paypal your lesser priced item(s). Happy Thanksgiving! http://soaprehab.etsy.com

Cranberry Spice Leaves and Pumpkin Spice Pumpkins

So Cute! I had a lot of fun making these sweet little shaped soaps. The red fall leaves are Cranberry Spice, and the little pumpkins are (naturally) Pumpkin Spice! Two quintessentially fall shapes and scents to enjoy in the bath. Would be very pretty sitting in a dish in the guest bath, too, if you'll let them use it. ;)

Polly's Paper Studio

Soap Rehab soaps and lip balms are now available at Polly's Paper Studio in Pinckney, MI! Including some soaps that are exclusive to Polly's. If you are in that area, be sure to stop by and sniff the soaps and check out all the fantastic scrapbooking paper and supplies. She has the *best* paper selection! Have a cup of coffee and browse and you'll be dreaming up your next scrapping project in no time. http://www.pollyspaper.com

Cuppa Chai-New Soap for Fall

Chai tea is one of my favorite beverages, especially in the fall. That warm spicy blend of creamy vanilla with cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Yum!

My Cuppa Chai soap is made with skin-loving, creamy shea butter for a non-drying bar. I also added a real black tea infusion and tea leaves suspended throughout for light scrubbiness.

New Spring Soaps!

In my Etsy shop! Pineapple Crush is a juicy, delicious tropical paradise-type scent. All about the pineapple, this scent takes me right back to Hawaii, eating fresh pineapple on the beach. yum
And a sneak preview: Fuzzy Navel, coming soon! A fun, fruity blend of fuzzy peach and bright citrus-y navel orange. Just like sipping cocktails poolside.

Failures. Ugh

I can be pretty hard on myself when things don't turn out right. Soap batches in particular. Sometimes a certain scent will cause the young soapyness mixture to rebel, overheat, separate, ooze, turn into miserable ugliness. Sometimes it can be saved as ugly soap. Sometimes it's lost forever. Oh how it makes me sad for a long time. Soap gremlins. The bane of my existence. Now, with making other things I can get frustrated as well, but usually not to the point of huddling in a ball of tears. Things like yarn that's all splitty when I'm trying to crochet. (stay, yarn, stay!) A pattern that is not really looking like it's supposed to look. Trying to sew curtains and getting a crazy crooked stitch line. Lotion that doesn't set up like it should. (ah liquid slathering) Lip balm tops that break off where they shouldn't. Labels that print crooked. These things are more like everyday annoyances. Like traffic backups and long lines at the market. But the soap gremlins, they make me terribly upset every time. I'm trying to work on that. Especially right this minute as I am desperately hoping to salvage a new messed up batch. I'm pretty good at punting normally. There are times when you have to do a quick move to a plan B that hasn't even been laid out yet. I'm not bad at seeing when something just isn't working and moving along. But, the soap gremlins make me ill. Have I mentioned that already? ugh.

New Fall Soaps!

New fall soaps are ready! Punk'in Pie Soap is back and now a new fall soap, Hot Apple Cider is available. Made with a scoop of real pumpkin, Punk'in Pie Soap smells freshly baked! Delicious notes of warm, creamy pumpkin, spicy cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger, topped off with whipped cream.

Tart, juicy harvest apples combined with the warm, spicy scent of cinnamon and a hint of orange peel = yummy Hot Apple Cider in the shower!

New-Bohemian Soap Bar

My new soap, Bohemian, is a blend of earthy patchouli, refreshing citrus, spicy & woodsy elemi, and sensual sandalwood. A super sexy blend, especially for patchouli lovers! This soap has no added coloring, just the yummy buttery color of the essential oils. It was a big hit at the craft show this past weekend and my son's new fav!

Sustainable Palm Oil

Why do I use palm oil in my soaps? A solid oil at room temperature, and high in saturated fatty acids, palm oil helps make a harder, longer lasting soap bar. Why do I use only sustainable organic palm oil? The clear cutting of palm forests in Indonesia and Malaysia are threatening the rain forest ecosystem, people, and the natural habitats of the orangutans. Using palm oil that is certified as sustainable by the RSPO(Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil) ensures that the palm oil I'm using is contributing to the economic development of the producing countries and to the diets of millions of people around the world instead of doing harm. Production is done on a smallholder level, providing opportunities to improve livelihoods and incomes for the poor in those regions.

Limited Edition Brown Sugar Pecan Hearts

One of my favorite scents, now in a Limited Edition sweet little heart. Made with the same formula as my other cold process soaps. See, it turns out that my nifty new mold (featured in a previous post) holds a bit less soap than the one I'd been using. I was a little off in my soapy containment calculations, and realizing my mistake only after I poured into the new mold, I quickly poured the leftover soap into some nearby heart shaped molds. It's a good thing I had those lying around handy. I think this is one of those mistakes that turned out ok, because I really like the cute heart soaps. I hope someone else will like them, too, and give them a nice happy soap dish home. :)

Fun with my new soap mold

Trying out my new soap mold has been a blast! The mold I was using was made by my husband, but aside from the sweet factor, I was beginning to have issues with it. These issues were making it more difficult to put the mold together each time, get the soap out of the mold, and then get it cut decently, resulting in some funky looking batches. I ~was~ getting that handmade soap look, but I wanted something easier to use, as well as nicer looking bars. So, enter the fancy pants new mold. Super easy to get the soap out, no problems getting the mold together and apart, easier to cut, and sure enough I got better looking bars (soon to be showing up in my store). Here's a peek at some Brown Sugar Pecan soap when it was still in the mold.

New Glycerin Soaps

I just added a new line of glycerin soaps to Soap Rehab! After searching high and low, I found a great soap base to work with that contains only simple, natural ingredients, and has no added synthetic detergents. Cold Process soaps also contain glycerin, as a natural byproduct of the soap-making process, these soaps just contain added glycerin which results in a different look and feel. My cold-process soaps are made entirely by hand...which involves melting all the different oils, mixing up a lye/water solution and combining the lye with the oils at the correct temperature. The chemical reaction that results, called saponification, turns the fats (oils) into soap. By contrast, glycerin soaps are made from an already manufactured base that is easy to melt, remelt and pour as necessary. Glycerin soaps have a different feel, due to the added glycerin content. Very smooth, these glycerin soaps have a nice bubbly, silky lather. Glycerin is a wonderful emollient, which softens and smooths the skin. Check out the new soaps at http://soaprehab.com

New Caramel Latte Exfoliating Body Soap

Need a morning jolt? A blast of java? If you love sweet coffee drinks, this frothy Caramel Latte is for you! Even if you don't like coffee in your mug, you might be tempted by the decadent caramel and rich roasted coffee notes to wake up up in the morning. I added finely ground coffee beans throughout the soap for some gentle scrubby action. Especially good this time of year to help slough off dry, dead skin cells. Exfoliating your skin is actually an important process to help your skin stay moisturized. I love it on dry itchy winter skin. If your skin is coated with a heavy layer of dead skin cells, all that lovely moisturizer you slather on can't do its job. It won't be able to penetrate that layer of dead skin cells and you'll still feel dry and flaky even after multiple applications of lotion. Gentle exfoliation also helps prevent ingrown hairs and body acne, in addition to moisture retention. So, get scrubbing! Of course, don't scrub too vigorously because too much of a good thing really can be bad, and you don't want that.

Specials at Soap Rehab!

New month, new flavor of the month special! February Flavor of the Month -- 10% off all "Tiny Bubbles" Champagne scented products during the month of February. Celebrate Valentine's Day with the festive, bubbly scent of champagne. Prices as listed.

Also, free shipping all this week! Sunday February 1 - Sunday February 8--Free shipping on every order.

A big ~Thank You~ to all who entered to win my giveaway last week at http://bella1104.blogspot.com! :)

Brown Sugar Pecan back in stock!

My best selling soap, Brown Sugar Pecan, is back in stock! This one is one of my favorites, too. Sweet but not cloyingly so...just the right blend of brown sugar, toasted pecan nuttiness, and warm creamy vanilla. A bit like a pecan pie without the crust, but more like Aunt Sally's Pralines from New Orleans. Delish!

January "Flavor" of the Month

Calm Me! Is your body signaling an S.O.S.? January Flavor of the Month -- 10% off "Calm Me Lavender" products during the entire month of January! Lavender is said to be calming and soothing. The Calm Me line includes a creamy, bubbly soap bar made with mango butter, a nourishing shea body butter to hydrate your skin, and a moisturizing fizzy bath soak. Check them out at the Soap Rehab Etsy store here: http://tinyurl.com/9l4tzv

New Product--Pure Rehab Unscented Oatmeal Soap Bar

This bar is Pure Rehab--it is simply a great lathering, soothing, unscented bar of soap to rehab your shower experience. Great for sensitive skin or for those with sensitivities to essential oils and fragrances. The oats are very finely ground for a slightly scrubby effect. This colloidal oatmeal also naturally calms and soothes your skin--moisturizing, softening, and protecting it. Made with mango butter, olive oil, and avocado oil for creamy, non-drying lather and coconut and palm oils for good lathering bubble action and a nice hard, long lasting bar. No fragrance or scents, just the light aroma of the oats.