Search Results for: www.brambleberry.com

My Kitchen to Yours

October 19, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

Our Kitchen Is Your Kitchen is a local cupcake shop located in Barkley Village in Bellingham, Washington. They heard the word on the street that I adore cupcakes (so true). So they hand delivered some samples to our retail store, Otion. That is some smart marketing, folks! We just placed an order for our all staff meeting last week. They were moist, delicious and gone in 30 seconds! Aren’t they cute? They were also pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

Here are some other super cute creations they made from this summer- Too cute!

Of course, any day is good for a cupcake so we were thrilled to support Breast Cancer Awareness while eating such moist deliciousness.

I Heart Onesies!

October 17, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

Thank you, loyal Soap Queen readers, for all of the congratulatory comments on the newest addition to the Bramble Berry Team! We’re calling the little one BrambleBaby for now until we figure out if it’s a boy or a girl. I’m so exited to have finally shared the belly news! It’s been a quiet Sunday after a full SoapQueen.TV shoot on Saturday that will continue on Monday evening.The projects are fresh and fun; I can’t wait for you to see them!

This was a little something extra we received in the latest shipment of Soap Queen Aprons. Isn’t it the cutest little onesie you’ve ever seen? I squealed and awwwwed at its miniature cuteness!

Little Toy Piggies making their Soap Queen TV debut.

It looks like I’m really concentrating here. Filming SQTV isn’t all giggles all the time.

Upcoming episodes will include a new Jelly Roll project, the marching piggies and a gardening soap. And we’re thinking about doing a natural colorants Cold Process soap one and a mineral eyeshadow make up one. This means that I’ll be reacquainting myself with natural colorants all week and starting the scripting process with the team this week. It will be fun to play with infusions and make soap all week.

We’re, er … um… I’m Expanding!

October 15, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

In addition to the Bramble Berry building project, my sweet husband and I have been working on a little personal project of our own. We are expecting our first child, the first grandchild in my family, on our 4 year wedding anniversary (no really, that’s the actual due date). Come April, we’ll have one new Brambleberrian to add to our team.

We found out on a very special day – my husband’s graduation for his Masters in Business Administration. Ironically, he had been telling me that he didn’t want a baby until he graduated. And in a stroke of amazing timing, when the entire family was here for his celebration, we added an extra little teensy sunflower-sized celebration to the day. Chris was sweet enough to share his day of glory with his firstborn.

This is the baby’s first picture – taken at 6 weeks:

This is the latest picture – taken at 12 weeks:

Totally loving the excuse to eat cupcakes and ice cream.

Tangle Free Soap Queen TV!

October 14, 2010 Filed Under: Tips & Tricks

Learn to make Shampoo and Conditioner in this episode of Soap Queen TV.

I love making my own hair care products so I can scent them with my favorite fragrances and layer my signature scents with matching bar soaps and lotions (for a subtle scent that lasts all day)! Making hair conditioner is just as easy as making lotion. You won’t believe how fast and economical this project is.

As a special bonus, I made the label template used in the video available as a free download on the Bramble Berry web site- Check it out here!

How to Make Shampoo and Conditioner from Soap Queen on YouTube.

Fragrance Blend:
1 part Rosemary Essential oil
1 part Peppermint 1st dist. Essential oil
1 part Tahitian Vanilla Fragrance

For the Shampoo:
1/4 oz Fragrance Oil Blend
10 oz. Shampoo Base

For the Conditioner:
2 grams Liquid Silk
22 grams Liquid Glycerin
35 grams BTMS-50
13 grams Jojoba Oil
6 grams Sweet Almond Oil
12 grams DL-Panthenol
374 grams Distilled Water
4 grams Fragrance Oil Blend
4 grams Optiphen

Get everything you need to make this project added to your Bramble Berry shopping cart by clicking here.

Shopping. Planning. Shopping.

October 13, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

We’re hard at work planning our Summer 2011 line. Our Spring 2011 line has been determined (thanks S.O.A.P. panel!) and will be announced soon. One of the ways I work to plan future seasons is by reading a ton of magazines, walking the mall (color trend, scent trends, bottle shapes and sizes all play into that) and buying from a bunch of different vendors to see what they are making (what they’re trending towards, are they making traditional products with a twist, what colors seem to be hot, what new ingredients have caught their eye). So, lucky me, it’s part of my quarterly job to seek out cool bath and body products to buy and yes, use.

My first purchase yesterday was from Angel Face Botanicals out of Portland, Oregon.

Citrus & Lavender Organic Soap

Milk & Honey Effervescent Spa Crystals

Pineapple Papaya Skin Mask

Honey Jasmine Natural Perfume

Then I went over to Nature’s Art and grabbed some all natural toothpaste that I had my eye on. And, since you can’t just buy one thing, I tossed a couple other things into my cart.

Cream Cheese Body Frosting

Natural Tooth Soap

Saltworks Soap Skin Treatment

I also ordered from LUSH to see what’s going on in their trendy world (I am looking forward to trying their solid conditioner). I can’t wait to use the products, be inspired and get some new Shout-Out to Soapmakers Interviews up and running for you to read and get energized by.

Swap Your Heart Out

October 12, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

Wow! You are all so excited for the soap swap! We have had a huge response and can’t wait to see all of those amazing soaps. Below we will have a constantly updated list of who is participating and what fragrance they are using. Because we have so many participants, 2 people can use the same fragrance, but no more than that.

What’s that? You haven’t heard of our insanely popular soap swap? It’s not too late to sign up!

Here are the details:

You send us an email telling us what Bramble Berry fragrance you are using – check the list below.
You make 12 bars of soap (Cold Process or Melt & Pour) and label them with the ingredients you used and your name, your company name or soaping alias.
You send the soap to Bramble Berry ensuring that it is received by Friday, December 3rd

Ship to: Bramble Berry Inc.
C/O Soap Swap
2138 Humboldt Street
Bellingham, WA 98225

You purchase the Soap Swap item and choose what shipping method you would like. (USPS Flat rate box will be $13.15 but FedEx or Priority Mail may be less expensive depending on where you’re located)
Sit back and wait for your exciting box of goodies! We will get the swap boxes sent out by Friday, Dec. 10th.

Sound like fun? Sign-up here!

Here’s who we have for Cold Process:

Ali M. – Rosehip Jasmine
X Amy L. – Cedar & Saffron
T.A. H. – Baby Rose
Nancy L. – Kentish Rain
X Emily B. – Cherry Almond
Theresa M. – White Ginger & Amber, Wasabi
X Melissa J. – Oatmeal, Milk & Honey
Bridget G. – Energy and Champagne
X Cathy O. – Island Coconut
Shannon C. – Grass Stain
Amanda G. – Pumpkin Spice or Pumpkin Pie
X Kristy S. – Oatmeal, Milk, & Honey
Jennifer D. – Spiced Mahogany
X Jennifer C. – Sandalwood Vanilla
Angie D. – Fresh Mango or Mango Mango
Tara P. – still deciding
X Karen P. – Hello Sweet Thang!
Carmen M. – still deciding
X Cindy W. – Pineapple Cilantro
X Robin S. – Black Cherry
X Suzette S. – Bonsai
Donna R. – OMH, Feliz Navidad, and Buttercream & Snickerdoodle blend
X Lydia B. – Gingersnap
Erica P. – Pink Grapefruit
X Tony D. – Cranberry Realistic & Cranberry Sweet blend
Jamie S. – still deciding
X Sara S. – Coconut Lemongrass
Katie C. – Raspberry Porter
X David D. – Blackberry Sage
Betty B. – still deciding
X Emma P. – Dark Rich Chocolate
Wisalya L. – Oatmeal, Milk & Honey
X Lisa G. – Sandalwood Vanilla
X Cheri C. – Lavender FO
Renee L. – Summer Melon Spritzer
X Ann S. – Neroli
X Hillary S. – Pink Grapefruit FO
X Melissa B. – Clove Essential Oil and Spearmint EO
X Kelli O. – Bonsai
Kate S. – Spellbound Woods
X Liberty M. – Champagne or Turkish Mocha
Jennifer T. – Saffron & Honey
LuAnn R. – Blue Man
X Jesse W. – Matcha Tea
X Debbie Q. – Rain
X Marissa V. – Fresh Snow
X Elizabeth S. – Yuzu
X Traci K. – Santa’s Spruce
X Mary C. – Eucalyptus & Moroccan Mint Blend
X Sonia I. – Applejack Peel
X Curie M. – Pear Berry
Cindy H. – Cranberry Pomegranate
Dorenda C. – Fresh Mango
X Judy S. – Christmas Forest
Brooke L. – Kumquat
X Denny P. – Bay Rum
Michele A. – Violet & Champagne blend
Shannan J. – Gingersnap
Michele A. – Violet blend
Trish B. – Karma Synergy Essential oil blend
X Bonnie C. – Ginger Orange
Carol J. – undecided
X Kelly T. – Cranberry Fig
Catherine D. – Lavender and Vanilla Blend
X Shannon G. – Peppermint & Spearmint blend
X Susan P. – Rise & Shine, Energy & Yuzu blend
Heleln J. – Salty Mariner
Lorrane P. – Patchouli, Geranium & Bergamot
X Erin C. – Ginger Orange
X Christine C. – Lychee Red Tea
X Christine C. – Mint Chocolate Chip
Rachel P. – Black Amber and Lavender
Kristina V. – undecided

And for the Melt & Pour Swap

Cheryl M. – Fresh Snow
X Gail P. – Moonlight Pomegranate
Madolyn L. – Christmas Spice
Stephanie T. – still deciding
Heidi Z. – Vanilla Select and Sun Ripened Raspberry blend
X Lori R. – Honeysuckle
X Mariah G. – Island Coconut
Joan B. – Spellbound Woods
X Jennifer C. – Ginger Pear
Maxine L. – Lavender 40/42
Judy P. – Passionfruit Rose
Sharon P. – Plumeria
X Lorena H.- Frankincense & Myrrh
Tina R. – Lemongrass & Sage
Mariann M. – Energy
Taryn K. – Arabian Spice
X Gina S. – Warm Vanilla Sugar or Cream Cheese Frosting
Megan Y. – Pumpkin Spice and Sugar Plum Fairy blend
Kelsey S. – Juniper Sage
Michele C. – Dark Rich Chocolate & Moroccan Mint blend
X LeDeana D. – Soapy Clean
X Terri L. – Lavender Fragrance
X Mary T. – Grapefruit Essential Oil
X Lisa B. – Almond Biscotti
Tabitha J. – Frankincense and Myrrh with Cream Cheese Blend
X Cassandra H. – Wasabi
X Jennifer M. – Naga Champa and Yuzu
X Jenny R.- Lavender 40/42 & Patchouli EO
Keri C. – Oatmeal, Milk & Honey
X Christine C. – Tomato Leaf
X Christine C. – Moroccan Mint
Vicky H. – White Tea & Ginger
X Donna S. – Summer Fling
X Susan P. – Rise & Shine and Energy
Karina P. – Energy

X= swap soap received! Thanks!

Bursting at the Seams!

October 11, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

After being in our lovely 13,000 square foot warehouse for over five years, we were faced this summer with the prospect of moving or trying to build onto our warehouse. After working with the City of Bellingham to get a waiver for the 22 extra parking spaces they initially told us we needed to add (apparently they were treating our warehouse storage space like retail), we started planning for our very-needed addition in earnest. It was important to us to be able to stay in Bellingham and not add to the problem of sprawl in our county by being forced to move out there so we were thrilled to be able to add on to our building and stay in Bellingham city limits.

There’s a lot that goes on with a building project of this magnitude, not the least of which is that the City of Bellingham wanted us to put a sprinkler system into our entire 13,000 square foot warehouse and not just the 2,500 square foot addition. That added an extra month or so of delay and a significant additional cost. But in the end, we are happy to sprinkler the entire building to help keep firemen safer should a fire ever break out in our building (knock on wood). The middle photo up above is Norman, our COO and defacto General on the building project, wearing my pink soaping goggles to protect his eyes as the gravel gets poured.

After all of the i’s were dotted and t’s were crossed, we had the permits in hand but alas, it was October – much later than when we had originally anticipated starting and the start of the rainy season. We had our very first cost overrun the first day but luckily, one week later, nothing new or major has cropped up that wasn’t planned for.

This is the difference between 1 week to the next. Check it out! Trusses! Yay. Soon, by next week, it won’t even matter if it rains because the roof will be on. Yay!

We are so thrilled to be adding on to our space because it means more room for new products and more room to better serve you. We’ll keep you posted on how the building project goes. Right now, we’re just all thankful it’s not raining yet…

Sharpening the Saw & Synergy

October 10, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

My Mastermind book club read two Stephen Covey Books (7 Habits of Highly Effective People and First Things First) last year. The book, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is a must-read. It’s a classic time and life management book. Two of the key points in the book – numbers 6 and 7 are Synergy and Sharpen the Saw. Synergy is all about creative cooperation. It recognizes that two heads are better than one and that magic happens when a group comes together with one mind to accomplish something momentous. Sharpen the Saw refers to the principle that preserving YOU is key to living a long, successful and balanced life. This encompasses everything from taking care of yourself through physical activity to taking time to rejuvenate yourself through quiet time.

I can’t say it was a hardship in this beautiful setting.

I spent Thursday through Saturday doing both of those things with my Entrepreneur Organization. We have an annual retreat every year (this was my 8th retreat with the group) that focuses on growing ourselves as leaders and getting to know the other entrepreneurs in the group better.

Teamwork at its finest; Rock Star karaoke.

We started with a fun team building exercise put on by Event Experience out of Seattle. They had us all break up into teams, generally with people we didn’t know that well, and follow a variety of instructions in a scavenger hunt/race/following directions challenge. We had to do things like golf together, shoot water balloons, put on a dramatic play, bike, run and play with a giant Jenga game. It brought out a uniquely unflattering competitive streak in me. I’m not proud.

My values. I was the only person with a wheel.

Friday was all business, all day. We started the day at 8 a.m. and did not quit with the intensity until our brains were fried like an egg on a hot sidewalk. The morning was spent taking a ‘Life Assessment.’ With questions like ‘Rate your Spirituality’ ‘Rate the hand you were dealt in life’ and ‘Rate the quality of your relationship with your mate’, it was a wide ranging, insightful assessment. There was a lot of deep discussion around the answers and many insights to be gained. We worked through lunch, continuing down that path. We identified the values that we live our life by and then started on working on very general idealized future. And then the hard work really comes in when we put the low numbers from the life assessment and mixed it in with our values to come up with specific SMART goals. We continued with that work Saturday. And, I’m excited to keep going with the values-integrated goals over the next few quarters.

I hope you had a fantastic weekend with friends, family and yes, maybe even a little bit of work. We’ve got an exciting week ahead of us at Bramble Berry because we’re shooting more SoapQueen.TV next weekend.

Want more information about planning? I’ve blogged about the process of goal setting, planning your year, determining your vision and values here, here, here, and here

Advanced Oatmeal Stout Cold Process Soap

October 7, 2010 Filed Under: Cold Process Soap

The tutorial and recipe you’ve all been waiting for…Oatmeal Stout scented cold process made with real Oatmeal Stout Beer. Can it be? It’s true and it’s made with real oatmeal too!

Learn how to make oatmeal stout cold process soap in this tutorial!

If you have never made cold process soap before, I strongly suggest getting a couple of basic recipes under your belt before diving in…working with beer is definitely an advanced technique. Click here to read more about how to use alcoholic beverages such as beer in your soap. Check out Soap Queen TV on Cold Process if you want to get started with cold process. It’s a 4 part series that will take you through the basics (and be sure to watch the episode on Lye Safety). If you’re a book worm, Bramble Berry also has some helpful reading on the cold process.

technique.

Ingredients

Oatmeal Stout Fragrance Oil

18 Bar Birch Wood Mold

Oatmeal Stout Beer

Titanium Dioxide

Super Pearly White (optional)

Long-Cook Ground Oatmeal

Tools

2 large glass mixing bowls

Stick Blender

Spatulas and spoons

Infrared Thermometer

Get all of the ingredients in one click!

(olive oil, beer and oatmeal not included)

PREP: The first step to a successful beer batch (in my opinion) is boiling flat beer. Let your beer sit open for 24 hours to get rid of the fizz then boil it for about 5 minutes to cook out all of the alcohol. The beer really ‘poofs’ up during this boiling phase so don’t leave it unattended. Also, be sure to line your wooden mold with freezer paper, shiny side up.

ONE: Measure out your lye (by weight) and beer (by volume) and slowly add the lye to the beer in 3 batches (pour a little lye and stir- repeat 2 more times). Repeat until the lye is completely added and stir until the lye is dissolved. Let the lye mixture cool to about 130 degrees.

TWO: Melt and measure the Olive Oil, Coconut Oil, Palm Kernel Flakes and Palm Oil. Then stir in the Shea Butter (until liquid). Let the oils cool to 130 degrees.

THREE: Slowly pour the lye mixture into the melted oils and mix with your stick blender for about 30 seconds.

FOUR: Separate your soap batter in half. It does not have to be exact but try to eyeball it so it’s equally separated.

FIVE: Add a heaping table spoon of Titanium Dioxide to the one half of the batch to lighten it up and mix with the stick blender. Then add 1.5 tablespoons of long-cook ground oatmeal to the mixture and stick blend.

SIX: Hand stir in 2 ounces of Oatmeal Stout Fragrance Oil and pour the soap into the mold.

OPTIONAL: I dusted a vein of Super Pearly White Mica. This is an optional step. I couldn’t see it as much as I wanted in the final, cut soap.

SEVEN: To your other half of soap batter, add the rest of your Oatmeal Stout Fragrance Oil (2.1 ounces). Hand mix the fragrance in and pour the second layer.

TIP: To make sure the top layer of soap doesn’t penetrate the bottom layer of soap, pour the soap onto a spatula so it drips slowly into the mold.

EIGHT: Press your dividers down into the mold and sprinkle on some whole oats on the top for decoration. Pop the lid on and insulate with a towel to keep the temperature up. It will help with a lovely gel phase and also prevent soda ash. Once the soap hardens up, carefully unmold the soap and let it cure for 4-6 weeks.

You’re Making Me Blushie

October 6, 2010 Filed Under: Personal Ramblings

I love reading soap blogs. Scratch that last sentence. I’m addicted to reading soap blogs. While doing my daily reading on Craft Gossip.Com I stumbled upon a Blushie Soap give away. Sweet! Naturally I entered the contest and to my astonishment, I won. I actually won! And not just a bar of soap, I won a years worth of soap (that’s 24 bars). My friends and family are reaping the benefits of my win as well. Thanks Craft Gossip & Blushie for the windfall!

My favorite fragrances were the Kadota Fig, Butterfly Garden and Sun & Turf and I loved the colors and layering of the Fresh Cut Grass and the Appletini (which were both fabulously scented as well).

Check out more of Blushie Soaps here!

New Bramble Berry Soap Swap

October 5, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

Hi Team Soap Queen,

We’re pulling together a Bramble Berry fragrances soap swap. We’re still getting the groups together so we’re not sure if it will be 12 or 15 soaps or something in between but if you’re interested, we’d love to have you on board! If you’re up for it, email us Amy(at)BrambleBerry(dot)com with your name, address and what you make (CP or MP) and the fragrance you’re going to do and she’s organizing everyone into groups.

1. Everyone makes 12 bars of the their choice of Fragrance Oil (Bramble Berry)
2. You make the same fragrance for your entire batch
3. You label everything as if you were selling it.
4. Bars must be 3.5 oz. or above
5. Deadline for getting bars to Bramble Berry would be December 4th.
6. Bramble Berry sorts and sends all the swap boxes out by December 15th
7. We’ll use Flat Rate boxes so shipping will end up around $9’ish, I’m thinking. I’ll know for certain when we know if it’s 12, 13, 14 or 15 soaps. =)

This is a great way to get to know your fellow Soap Queen’ers better and also sniff many of the Bramble Berry fragrances at one time.

Questions? Just ask! =)

Run of Hope

October 4, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

My weekend was a perfect mixture of lethargy (Saturday) and movement (Sunday). My book club is reading the new Jonathan Franzen book, Freedom. You may have heard of the book because it’s Oprah’s latest pick. His previous book, The Corrections, was also critically acclaimed but it’s been about a decade since that book came out so interest in this book is high. And, for good reason. I could barely drag myself off the couch until 2 p.m. on Saturday because I was so enthralled with the book. I did make a bit of a productive comeback in the afternoon, cleaning the house and doing laundry but I could have stayed parked on that couch all day. The book is that good.

We headed down to Seattle Saturday night to stay overnight for a very special Sunday – the Run of Hope to benefit Children’s Hospital Pediatric Brain Tumor Research. You may remember my friend Kyle? He lost his fight with his brain tumor last February but his Mama has been doing an incredible job raising money to benefit the hard-working researchers at Children’s Hospital who both cared for Kyle and are still researching childhood brain tumors. She’s still fund raising for Children’s (information here). Bramble Berry was a proud sponsor of the Run of Hope this year and we were thrilled to participate in the event as well.

One of Kyle’s strongest supporters during his fight was Husky Quarterback Jake Locker. Jake did so much behind the scenes, coming over to play video games with Kyle, helping with fund raising and publicizing Kyle’s plight to help defray medical expenses. And, he hasn’t quit helping. Despite getting home at 3 a.m. yesterday morning from the Husky’s incredible win over the LA Trojans, he showed up bright and early to sign autographs, t-shirts and babies (yes, he signed babies; it was the cutest thing). An additional cool factor to his presence was that ESPN is covering his every move, in anticipation of the NFL draft. There was speculation that had he gone pro last year, Jake would have been the No. 1 draft so ESPN has a camera following him everywhere in preparation for this year’s draft.

Overall, the day was a fantastic experience for Team OOO-UM-GOW-AH and the more than 2000 participants in the Run of Hope. Of course, we all wish that there was no reason for the Run of Hope but it was fun to meet, walk and remember Kyle while helping the team at Children’s that helped him so much.

Me ‘n’ Jake Locker

Always Better With Age

October 2, 2010 Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

2010 Fall Project Mash-Up

Let’s take a look back at our favorite SoapQueen Fall projects from years past, including some yummy (food) recipes that would be great for Thanksgiving appetizers!

Flexy Fast Fall Pumpkins
Pumpkin Puree Cold Process Soap
Pumpkin Shimmer Eyeshadow
Thanksgiving Turkey Soap
Butternut Squash Turnovers
Fig and Stilton Square Recipe
Almond Biscotti Fragrance Blends
Pumpkin Seed Exfoliating Face Mask
Soapylove Leaf Wedding Favors

Stewed Green Beans & Zucchini

Oatmeal Melt & Pour Soap

Fiery Energy Bar

Single Use Leaves

Glitter Cut Out Soaps

Stenciled Glitter Soap

I’ll Have the Honey Ale (Soap), Please.

October 1, 2010 Filed Under: Melt & Pour Soap

Honey Ale Melt and Pour

Ingredients

25 oz Honey Melt and Pour

Honey Ale Fragrance Oil

Silicone Tray Pan

5 Tablespoons Liquid Soap

8 oz White Soap Base

Get everything you need for this project in the click of a button!

ONE: Melt 25 ounces of Honey Melt and Pour soap base in the microwave and mix in .5- .75 ounces of fragrance oil.

TWO: Whisk the melted soap until you have frothy bubbles on top. Switch between whisking and stirring the soap. The goal is to suspend the bubbles in the soap (to look like carbination). Stir until the soap is gelatinous and pour into the mold. Do not spritz with rubbing alcohol. We’re keeping the air bubbles this time!

THREE: Once the soap has cooled make your frosting recipe for the “foam”. Combine, 5 tablespoons of liquid soap, with 8 ounce of White Melt and Pour and .25 ounces of Honey Ale Fragrance Oil and blend on medium/high with an electric mixer (or super strength elbow grease). See this Soap Queen TV episode on Soap Cupcakes with Whipped Frosting to learn more about soap frosting.

FOUR: Once the beer soap is completely cool and the frosting recipe is frothy, spritz the first layer of soap with rubbing alcohol and pour the soap frosting on top. No spritzing alcohol on the frosting. You don’t want to deflate the beer froth.

FIVE: Once the soap has cooled, carefully release from the mold and cut into adorable cubes and give them away or keep them all to yourself.