Soapy Social Media Roundup and Winners!

This week I spent a few days in the beautiful (and cold!) New York City. It was wonderful to see the big city all dressed up for the holidays. All you New Yorkers are lucky to live in such a bustling, magical place. While most of my time was spent working (pinch me, I got to meet the Martha Stewart team!) I did squeeze in some fun with an amazing Broadway show.

Now that I’m back home, it’s time to focus on family and the upcoming holiday! Luckily I started my Christmas preparation early this year, so most of my gifts just need to be wrapped and shipped. If you’re needing a little holiday gift inspiration, there is still time to make homemade gifts! The 12 Days of Christmas series is full of last minute projects =)

Speaking of holidays, thanks to everybody who shared what they were thankful for in the Thankful, Grateful and Joys post.  It was wonderful to read all the thoughtful responses. It was hard to choose just two winners, but the comments from Ray and Valerie  really stood out to me. Ray and Valerie, look out for an email on Monday to claim your Handmade Beauty Box! Looking for even more holiday fun? Check out my favorite tweets, pins, and ‘grams this week!

Pins:

Left to right, clockwise:

• This Cranberry Punch looks so festive and delicious! It would make a wonderful beverage on Christmas Eve.
• Full of red and white curls, this melt and pour soap made by Artisan Suds would be a great gift. Who doesn’t love receiving handmade soap? Made with Peppermint Essential Oil and Vanilla Select Fragrance Oil, I bet it smells amazing.
• That cranberry punch would look beautiful on top of this glamorous DIY Gold Zig Zag Tray! I love that this tray looks holiday inspired, but is also appropriate all year long.
• These Peppermint Kiss Thumbprint Cookies will be perfect for the upcoming office cookie party =)

Instagram:

Left to right: The kiddos had a blast decorating the tree. They were so excited to hang up the Christmas ornaments they created. Speaking of ornaments, the Scented Beeswax Ornaments seen in the photo on the left is making our tree smell even more wonderful than usual!

The cold weather makes bath time more relaxing and invigorating. I have been using the Minty Layered Bath Salts to add a fresh scent and skin-loving epsom salt.

Tweets:

• Is it possible to reduce your stress in 2 minutes a day? Try these tips and find out!
• Some emails are difficult to write, such as writing a thank you note, or turning down a project. Here are 27 pre-written templates for these tough emails.
• How much of a blog post do people actually see? If you’re reading now, you’re in the 25th percentile!
• A monkey wearing a coat and diaper was found wandering an Ikea parking lot, looking for his “mom.” Luckily the little guy is doing alright, but the legal battle that followed took a toll on the sanctuary that took him in.
• The human brain is an incredibly complex organ…did you know gaining weight may cause the brain to shrink?
  

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.