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Garden Candle Tutorial

Filed Under: Home Crafts

April showers didn’t fail to deliver lots of May flowers. This clever Garden Candle is a fun way to bring the fresh scent of a spring garden inside. This candle features Sunny Herb Garden, which is May’s Sample of the Month. This fragrance performs wonderfully in cold process soap as it does not accelerate trace or discolor. It’s a sweet, floral scent, which makes it a great choice for fresh-smelling hair products or lotions.

And don’t forget, you can also use this project to participate in our Make It Month!

To participate, simple make a project using Sunny Herb Garden or Carnation Fragrance Oil. Then, post your photo on the Bramble Berry Facebook Page with the hashtag, ‘#BrambleGarden.’ We’ll post a collage of our favorite projects on the Soap Queen blog on June 9. Hurry, because the posting fun ends Friday, May 30. If you need a little inspiration, check out the photos that have already been posted here.

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Make it Month: Sunny Herb Garden & Carnation Fragrance Oils

Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

After a brief break from our Make it Month contest, we’re bringing it back in full force! Throughout the month of May, you’ll receive a complimentary .5 oz. sample of Sunny Herb Garden Fragrance Oil with every order. It smells like fresh picked herbs with a subtle floral scent. It holds up wonderfully in cold process soap, and it’s refreshing scent for scrubs body washes.

We’re switching this Make it Month up a bit because in addition to making projects with Sunny Herb Garden, you can also use Carnation Fragrance Oil, which was April’s Sample of the Month.

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#BrambleTart is Super Sweet

Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

So many fabulous photos were entered into our #BrambleTart Make it Month Contest that we decided to feature them all! This month’s sample fragrance oil was the delightfully sweet Cranberry Chutney, and it’s a wonderful holiday scent that pairs wells with other sweet fragrances. We received a variety of entries this month, ranging from intricate cold process designs to beautiful swirly melt and pour to some luscious looking bath bombs and a creamy lotion.

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Make it Month: #BrambleTart

Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

We’re continuing our Make It Month Feature using the Sample of the Month, Cranberry Chutney Fragrance Oil. With every order you place at Bramble Berry throughout November, you’ll receive a complimentary .5 oz. sample of this wonderful holiday fragrance.

Cranberry Chutney Fragrance Oil is one of our go-to fragrances oils because of its diverse fruity notes grounded by subtle spice. There are hint of apple, raisin and concord grape, and of course the robust scent of tart cranberries. It performs well in cold process soap, but note that it does discolor to a warm tan. In terms of other bath and body products, we like this scent so much that we use it (along with Santa’s Spruce!) in our Givember 2013 projects.

The guidelines for this Make It Month are the same as our Make It Month: Chai Tea Cybilla, but here is a quick refresher on how it all works:

  • Your project needs to utilize the Cranberry Chutney Fragrance Oil. Cold process, melt and pour, lotions, scrubs, home crafts and all other bath & body projects are all welcome.
  • Post photos of your creations on Bramble Berry’s Facebook page between now (November 4th) and Wednesday, November 27. Entries submitted after November 27 will not appear in the Facebook album.
  • Your entry must include the hashtag “#BrambleTart” in the photo caption. Without the hashtag #BrambleTart, your photo will not appear in our Facebook album (the hashtag makes it possible for us to search for just those photos for the Make It Month).
  • You can make multiple projects, but we will only consider three photos per person.
  • We will post a collage of staff favorite projects on Friday, November 29th. We’ll base our choices on how unique and creative the item is.
  • We encourage everyone to participate, from veterans to newbies! All photos submitted before the deadline that include the hashtag #BrambleTart will appear in a Facebook album on the Bramble Berry Page.

Ready, set, create! We can’t wait to see what kinds of projects you’ll create this month =)

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Make it Month: #BrambleChai Mashup

Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

So many fabulous photos have been entered into our Make it Month Contest and if you haven’t had a chance to submit your photos yet, remember that today is the last day! Just share your sample of the month (Chai Tea Cybilla Fragrance Oil) inspired bath and body product by posting a photo on Bramble Berry’s Facebook page with the hashtag #BrambleChai.  Be sure to check back next week when we announce the featured photos from the Make it Month. Enjoy the ones already submitted!

 

Chai Tea Latte Candle Tutorial

Filed Under: Home Crafts

For a quick and easy fall project that will fill a room with the scent of warm spicey Chai Tea, nothing beats this whipped candle tutorial using our Chai Tea Cybilla Fragrance Oil. As a bonus, all this month you’ll receive a free half ounce sample of Chai Tea with every Bramble Berry order. For this candle, we added straight Chai Tea fragrance oil, but we’ve got a number of fantastic blends to try here. Chai Tea Cybilla Fragrance Oil is a wonderfully warm and comforting scent that is sure to be a hit this season.

If you take photos of your project, be sure to share them with us on Bramble Berry’s Facebook Page with the hashtag “#BrambleChai” before October 30 for our Make It Month contest — check out the blog post for more details. You can also check out the Facebook album of submitted projects to get some inspiration. Happy candle-making!

What You’ll Need:

10.5 oz EcoSoya Advanced Wax
1 CK-16 Candle Wicks (or whatever size is appropriate for your cup)
1 Clear Glass Mug
1 Red Wax Dye Block
1 Orange Wax Dye Block
1 Black Wax Dye Block
7 mL Chai Tea Cybilla Fragrance Oil
2 mL Vanilla, Non-discoloring Fragrance Oil
Droppers

Buy-it-Now

Click here to add everything you need for this project to your Bramble Berry shopping cart!

ONE: Melt 8 oz. of EcoSoya Advanced Wax on 30 second bursts in the microwave. Color the wax with equal portions of Red, Orange, and Black Wax Dye Block (a cleanup tool works well for shaving bits off the block) and stir until the dye pieces are completely melted.

TWO: Add 7 mL Chai Tea fragrance oil.

THREE: Dribble a little bit of the wax into the bottom of the candle jar. Stick the metal disk of the wick into the wax and allow the wax to cool enough to hold the wick in place.

FOUR: Once the colored wax has cooled to 120 -130°F, pour the wax into the jars. Use pencils or chopsticks on the top of the candle jars to hold the wicks in place. Allow the wax to fully cool and harden overnight.

FIVE: Melt the rest of the EcoSoya Advanced Wax on 30 second bursts in the microwave. Add 2 mL non-discoloring Vanilla fragrance oil.

SIX: Using a hand-held mixer, whip the melted wax until it is thick enough to form slight peaks when manipulated with a spoon.

SEVEN: Moving quickly, spoon the whipped wax on top of the cooled candle. Allow the whipped wax to fully harden

Wait 4 – 5 hours for the wax to fully harden and then your delicious Chai Candle is ready to burn!

Clean Up Tip: I always melt some old melt and pour down in the microwave and allow the hot soap to melt the wax in the containers and my utensils. That’s the easiest way I’ve found to clean up after making candles. Do you have any tips? I’d love to hear them!

Make It Month: Chai Tea Cybilla

Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

As the leaves turn colors and the weather gets colder, there is nothing better than bundling up with a warm cup of Chai Tea. Throughout October, Bramble Berry orders will receive a complementary half-ounce bottle of Chai Tea Cybilla Fragrance Oil. To celebrate this sweet and spicy fragrance, we’re encouraging you to use the sample to create a unique bath & body product as part of our Make It Month.

This month’s Sample Page project features Chai Tea Cybilla. Take a look at the Sample page to learn how to make your own Chai Tea Candle.

Chai Tea Cybilla is a wonderfully warm and comforting drink that has welcoming, familiar scent. You can use it in everything from melt and pour soap, cold process soap and even our Sample of the Month project — a wonderfully whipped candle! With its traditional Earl Grey Tea base and sweet notes of Vanilla and Nutmeg , this delightful and spicy fragrance is fantastic in fall soaps.

Be aware that this fragrance will discolor, so take that into account when you’re formulating your cold process recipes. To learn more about how to use the fragrance’s natural discoloration to your advantage, check out this FAQ blog post, ‘Why did my soap turn brown?’

Ready to show off your Make it Month creation? Check out the full details and helpful tips below: 

  • Your project needs to utilize the Chai Tea Cybilla Fragrance Oil. Cold process, melt and pour, lotions, scrubs, home crafts and all other bath & body projects are all welcome. 
  • Post photos of your creations on Bramble Berry’s Facebook page between now (October 7th) and October 30th. Entries submitted after October 30th will not appear in Facebook album.
  • Your entry MUST include the hashtag “#BrambleChai” in the photo caption. Without the hashtag #BrambleChai, your photo will not appear in our Facebook album (we use this hashtag to easily find the photos; the hashtag makes it possible for us to search for just those photos for the Make It Month).
  • You can make multiple projects, but we will only consider three photos per person.
  • We will post a collage of staff favorite projects on November 4th. We’ll base our choices on how unique and creative the item is.
  • We encourage everyone to participate, from veterans to newbies! All photos submitted before the deadline that include the hashtag #BrambleChai will appear in a Facebook album on the Bramble Berry Page.

This is an excellent way to show off your creations, and it’s a great source of inspiration for your upcoming holiday projects. In the past, we’ve hosted Make it Months with a variety of themes, including 4th Of July, Oatmeal Milk and Honey Cybilla Fragrance Oil and creative packaging.

To give you a few ideas, here are a few photos from a recent Make It: 4th of July challenge:

We’ve given you the instructions, and now it’s up to you to start crafting, creating and soaping. We can’t wait to see what you’ll come up with!

Make It: #WoodlandElves

Filed Under: Bramble Berry News

With the July Sample of the Month, it truly is Christmas in July. Throughout this month, every order at Brambleberry.com (excluding soap-base-only orders), will receive a complementary half-ounce bottle of Woodland Elves Fragrance Oil.

This scent includes notes that are hallmarks of the holiday season: hearty Siberian Fir, fresh White Pine, spicy Clove and festive Mistletoe. This fragrance performs beautifully in cold process soap, and works wonderfully in melt and pour, lotions and scrubs. Although the holiday season seems far off, it’s never too early to start preparing for seasonal gift giving.

To jump start your holiday crafting, we’re hosting another Make it Month featuring the Woodland Elves Fragrance Oil! Full details and helpful tips below: 

  • Your project does not necessarily need to be holiday-themed, but it does need to utilize the Woodland Elves Fragrance Oil. Cold process, melt and pour, lotions, scrubs and home crafts are all welcome. 
  • Post photos of your creations on Bramble Berry’s Facebook page between now and July 29. Entries submitted after July 29 will not appear in our collages.
  • Your entry MUST include the hashtag “#WoodlandElves” in the photo caption. Without the hashtag #WoodlandElves, your photo will not appear in our Facebook album.
  • You can make multiple projects, but we will only consider three photos per person.
  • We will post a collage of staff favorite projects on August 5. We’ll base our choices on how unique and creative the item is.
  • We encourage everyone to participate, from veterans to newbies! All photos submitted before the deadline that include the hashtag #WoodlandElves will appear in a Facebook album on the Bramble Berry Page.

This is an excellent way to show off your creations, and it’s a great source of inspiration for your upcoming holiday projects. In the past, we’ve hosted Make it Months with a variety of themes, including 4th Of July, Oatmeal Milk and Honey Cybilla Fragrance Oil and creative packaging.

To give you a few ideas, here are a few photos from a Make it Month: Christmas that we hosted last year:

We’ve given you the instructions, and now it’s up to you to start crafting, creating and soaping. We can’t wait to see what you’ll come up with!

PS – Many of the Bramble Berry holiday fragrances are coming back into stock this month. Find the full list HERE.