According to the National Breast Cancer Foundation, breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women. It is likely you may know somebody affected by breast cancer, or maybe you are a breast cancer survivor yourself. Fortunately, death rates from breast cancer have been declining since 1990. Early detection is key; be proactive and schedule an annual breast exam.
This soothing breast balm was created to raise awareness and help women going through breast cancer treatment. The recipe is inspired by Sharon’s Boob Balm for Radiation Burns. Using similar soothing ingredients such as olive oil, vitamin E oil and calendula extract and lavender essential oil, this balm is moisturizing and calming for any ouch or rough patch on skin. Apply this balm directly to affected area multiple times per day. If you are going through radiation, check out Sharon’s Boob Balm for Radiation Burns for an extra powerful version of the recipe below.
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Guest Post: Should Breast Cancer Awareness Month Be Breast Can Cure Awareness Month?
This blog post comes from my aunt Sharon, who is a breast cancer survivor. In addition, Sharon is an author and a major proponent of positive thinking. October is breast cancer awareness month, and as breast cancer is the most diagnosed cancer in women, many of us have been affected by the disease. In this post, Sharon asks how positive thinking may affect our perception of cancer. -A.M.
Whenever I see the word cancer, my fight-or-flight response kicks into high gear. And now that it’s October, I’ll be seeing the word everywhere for an entire month. All of us will. Awareness is good, but . . . is it possible we’re compromising our good intentions by concentrating so much of our attention on the word “cancer”? What would happen if we made one small change to the name of this month’s campaign?
Facebook Photo of the Week (Oct. 11th ~ Oct. 17th)
The temperature keeps dropping here in Bellingham, so here at Bramble Berry we decided to embrace it! This week was full of tutorials that are great for fall and the holidays, like these Neroli and Shea Blossom Wax Tart Melts. Scented with clean and floral Neroli & Shea Blossom Fragrance Oil, these tarts are a simple way to comfort you on a rainy day.
How to Assemble Dividers for Birchwood Soap Molds
Sturdy and durable, wood molds are a favorite when making cold process soap. Bramble Berry offers a wide range of sizes of Birchwood Molds, including a 9 bar, 18 bar, and 36 bar wood mold. Each mold includes a set of plastic dividers that can be inserted to create consistent sized bars every soaping session.
These dividers are easy to use, but can be a little confusing the first time. This video demonstrates how to assemble the dividers and insert them into the mold. Once you get the hang of the dividers, you may never soap without them again!
Do you have any tips for using these dividers? Please share in the comments below!
Neroli & Shea Blossom Wax Tart Melts
On a cold and rainy day, there is nothing better than filling your home with a warm scent. Wax tart melts are a fun alternative to candles and require no open flame. Simply melt down wax, add your fragrance and color, and heat the tart on a warmer tray to release the fragrance. They’re easy to create and are a great project for beginners.
Neroli & Shea Blossom Fragrance Oil is a fantastic blend of bergamot, orange blossom and amber, making it a great choice for a home fragrance. It also blends beautifully with a wide variety of fragrances, including Smoky Patchouli and Vetyver Fragrance Oils. If you’d like more blending ideas for this project, check out this idea sheet!
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Cheery & Bright Gingerbread Man Melt and Pour
Soapy inspiration can come from a variety of different sources. From places and design to scents and colors, possible influence is everywhere! For this adorable gingerbread man project, inspiration came from a colorful yet slightly festive color palette via Design Seeds. With a deep burgundy, bright green and icy blues, this color combination is a fresh take on the holidays!
Achieving these unique colors requires mixing both liquid and powder colorants. The end results are worth the extra effort; these shades are a great combination of cheerful, sophisticated and festive. Scented with a delicious smelling combination of Almond and Cinnamon Sugar Fragrance Oils, these cute gingerbread men smell good enough to eat. Just don’t forget to add the Vanilla Color Stabilizer to prevent vanilla discoloration!
If you’d like to create a more traditional gingerbread man soap, check out this Soap Queen TV video. You can also download this free box template to package up your cute creation for the holiday season.
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5 Tips to Take Soaping from Hobby to Business
Soap making is a hobby that brings joy to those who make it, and those who buy or receive the luxurious product. It’s no wonder that many soapers are able to turn their hobby into a business! But, making the transition from hobbyist into small business owner can be a little intimidating.
Here are 5 tips to help take your hobby to the next step; simply click through the slides below! The presentation is via a site called SlideShare. SlideShare enables users to share information in the form of slides, making the content easy to read and interact with. Have you used Slideshare before?
Are you a soaper considering starting a small business? I would love to hear about what is holding you back, so I can offer more tips. Also, if you are a small business owner, please share your tips for those just starting out =)
Mica Paint & Glitter Pumpkins (3 Different Ways!)
One of my favorite things about Halloween is the decorating. Yes, candy and costumes are fun, but Halloween decorations means crafting! If you are throwing a Halloween party (or even if you aren’t) these pumpkins covered in metallic glitter and mica really bring the wow factor. While they are not suitable for the outdoor elements, they make fantastic centerpieces and indoor flair.
Making these pumpkins is a ton of fun, and does not involve any sharp and dangerous tools. In fact, you probably have a large majority of the necessary supplies already! The mica painted pumpkins are a great rainy day project. If you are making the glitter pumpkin you may consider crafting outside or covering your work surface. The glitter can get a little messy =)
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Soapy Social Media Roundup
This weekend, the family and I are celebrating fall. Today we had an amazing play date and tomorrow, our plan is to go to the apple and pumpkin orchard and farm to pick apples and find our perfect pumpkin (the gourds from the garden are great but the kids want a traditional jack-o-lantern too). If you have any wonderful apples recipes, I would love to hear them! I’m thinking some homemade spinach applesauce may be in order. If you are looking for a fun fall project, keep your eyes on the blog tomorrow. It involves pumpkins, lots of glitter and mica painting. Are you working on any fall inspired projects this weekend? If so, I would love to see them on the Facebook page. You can also share your projects on Instagram, just hashtag #brambleberry so I don’t miss them =)
Here are some of my favorite tweets, pins, and ‘grams from the week!
Pinterest:
Far left, clockwise:
- This Black Crepe Paper Wreath by Lia Griffith is a great combination of spooky and sophisticated.
- Made with avocado and argan oil, this Luxury Argan & Creamy Avocado Soap looks incredibly skin loving. I love the bright green colors!
- A fun twist on the traditional candy apple, this recipe for Purple Candied Apples uses violet icing color to give the apples a Halloween vibe.
- How delicious does this No-Bake Minit Chocolaye Chip Pie look? Yum! The recipe looks easy as well and with two little ones? Easy is essential for my cooking =)
Instagram: I have been experimenting with lots of bright colors this week. Maybe it’s the heavy dose of gray fog that Bellingham has been experiencing, but I can’t get enough! 
On the left, Lily has been showing us her independence more and more. She has also been talking up a storm! On the right, more bright colors are being used in the 10″ Silicone Loaf Mold. The fun red hue was created with Fired Up Fuchsia and Merlot Mica. 
If you’re looking for a new scrub recipe, the Emulsified Sugar Scrub on Soap Queen TV leaves skin feeling smooth and not greasy. I may need to whip up a few batches this weekend =) 
Twitter:
- Breaking down large goals into daily habits make goals achievable. Here are five tips for daily habits in successful content marketing, it’s all about the small daily updates!
- Jessica Alba co-founded The Honest Company in 2011, and today the company is worth nearly $1 billion! Talk about success. In this interview, Alba chats about running a company while having celebrity status.
- This list of 44 apps to turn your smartphone into a productivity powerhouse is amazing! Do you use any on the list? I love Eternity.
- Constantly being creative can be difficult. What’s the recipe for outstanding creative productivity? Free time, creation, stimuli and restraints.
- I need to start implementing these 10 things to start every week, especially #9! Which tip are you going to start?
I hope you’re all having a great weekend! To keep up with the latest soapy social media throughout the week, you can follow me on Twitter, Tumblr, Instagram, Pinterest, Vine and YouTube.
Facebook Photo of the Week (Oct. 4th ~ Oct. 10th)
Halloween is fast approaching, and with it comes scary movies, trick or treating, carving pumpkins and enjoying lots of candy. At Bramble Berry, Halloween also means spooky soap projects! This week there were plenty of tutorials to inspire you. You can see several fun recipes in this Halloween Project Roundup.
Emulsified Scrub (from Scratch) on Soap Queen TV
It’s another throw-back Thursday #tbt video from the unpublished archives of Soap Queen TV! This was originally filmed in 2010 – check out my bangs!
In this video, learn to make a unique emulsified scrub that is both cleansing and moisturizing. It’s a little more complicated to make than a traditional oil and salt (or sugar) scrub. But the benefits make it well worth the effort. This scrub is easier to use, doesn’t feel greasy or leave a slippery mess in the shower and it won’t leak if you ship it or it falls sideways.
Turning Gifts into a Business
Jessica started soaping during the holidays to make Christmas gifts for family and friends. This sparked a passion and, an idea and her gifts turned into her company Bellabrice Body Care and has been creating beautiful soaps every since. You never know when a new found passion will emerge! Read on to learn more about Jessica, her business tips and what inspires her to create gorgeous soapy creations.
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Pumpkin Soap on a Rope Tutorial
Isn’t this soap striking? It’s created using Pumpkin Souffle Fragrance Oil, plenty of orange colorant and a hint of black shimmer. The Spooky Pumpkin and Spooked Pumpkin 3D Molds create unique shapes that work incredibly well with soap rope. The rope allows the melt and pour to hang and avoid contact with excess water which helps the soap last longer.
The 3D molds are made up of two pieces, a white opaque back and a clear (or white) front. The molds also include two thick rubber bands to ensure the front and back pieces stay together while pouring the soap. In the instructions below, the front half of the mold is filled first, and the two mold pieces are put together. If you prefer, you may also put the pieces together and pour all at once, as seen here. For more 3D mold tips and techniques, check out this Soap Queen TV 3D Mold Episode.
Learn Aromatherapy Basics & More at Otion!
Aromatherapy is a form of therapy focusing on the use of essential oils to alter ones well-being. Recently, the popularity of aromatherapy has expanded tremendously. With a wide variety of applications both professionally and in everyday life, aromatherapy is a timeless and valuable ability.
For those wanting to take their aromatherapy education to the next level, Otion Soap Bar in Bellingham, WA is offering two “Intro to Aromatherapy” weekend sessions! These classes cover everything from basic safety information, proper usage in bath and body products and ethics for application in professional health care practices. Both classes include all materials needed, just bring a notebook for notes! To learn more about each class and reserve your spot, visit the links below or call Otion at 360-676-1030.
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