Some of you may notice that the webpage has changed a bit. I was waiting for the first of the year to incorporate shipping costs so they would be automatically included in the cart so when it switches over to Paypal for payments its all there. Now online customers won't be getting a separate invoice for shipping. I may have to tweak the pricing as time goes on but I think I got it!
January is my month for recuperating from the holiday rush of craft shows. As much as I enjoy being at them it is work. It means loading and unloading the vehicle with all the soaps and products so that inventory is taken after each show allowing me to replace the soaps that sell. And there are the tables and display racks to move in and out. I am very thankful that my grown kids don't mind helping me. I just put it on the calendar and a couple of the boys will meet me at the show and help set up and tear down. My daughters are awesome too... they like to help at the shows taking sales and helping restock. It is so nice! Thank you to them all.
Now is the time to start planning on the soaps to make for summer markets. With a 6-8 week cure time I need to start early to have them ready by May. Soap is ready to use as early as 2 weeks but the longer the curing time the harder the soap. And that is good for my customers since the soaps will last longer for them.
I will be signing up to do more soap challenges too. I love doing the challenges. They really do challenge me to think about trying new designs or patterns. The January challenge is the Butterfly Swirl... it even sounds fun!
And while I am thinking on new scents and old familiar ones... what would you like to see added to our summer soaps???.