Wall Love: The Constant Reader

The Constant Reader by matouenpeluche. What are you reading this Spring?

Wall Love: My Alter Ego by Printmakerjenn

As a lover of all things watercolor, this beautiful colorway just captivates me! I love the use of such intense shades of color on a light background, the perfect introduction to a vibrant Spring. It is titled "My Alter Ego" and was created by the fabulous Printmakerjenn, whose shop is full of many other treasures.

The Try-Outs: Perfume Samplers!

A long time in the making, I finally have sample packs of my perfume oils available for purchase! You can try out three, six, or even have me surprise you! The vials themselves are a bit larger than your usual itty-bitty samples, so you can get a good couple of uses out of them or use them to lightly scent a relaxing bath.

Head to Toe: Simplicity

$118, Shredded Long Sleeve Tunic, by UrbanRevisions
$34, Large Swirly Hoops, by AUNALIAArtisanMetal
$14, Knot Ring 14k Gold Fill, by AutumnEquinox

New Summer Lip Balms

Confession time: my frivolous love of shoes is surpassed only by my love of lip balms and shimmery glosses. You may have noticed a few new balms appearing in the Etsy shop over this week, Green Apple and Raspberry Lemonade specifically, and they are delicious. There are a few more incoming, so keep an eye out. Oh, and about those shimmery glosses- those are simply awaiting their close-up!

Wall Love: Gentle Blossoms by dabblelicious

Spring is finally here (or there is, at the very least, a brief pause between rainstorms) and this beautiful duet of original ACEOs is the perfect way to celebrate the occasion.

Head to Toe: Free Spirit

$40, The Reversible Strapless Top, by InnerEvolution
$68, Lotus Mary Jane, by HydraHeart
$95, Mellow Necklace, by AllThingsPretty
$189, Birds of a Feather Bag, by GinaMichelleEco

Head to Toe: Mint Milkshake

$65, Ivory Handknit Scarf, by Phydeaux
$75, Romantic Wrap Top, by Lirola
$41, A Row of Teal Necklace, by stellaandlux
$48, Vintage T Strap Heels, by MillsDesignCo
$59, Classic Pencil Skirt, tasifashion

Nose Hair is Cute

So I was taking a picture of a luscious berry mix from my local Farmer's Market for use on my Raspberry Vanilla Soap label, and this is what I ended up with:


But while I was taking these pictures, this is what I started to see through my viewfinder:


Kitty was not amused with non-tasty food in "her" space:

But she eventually settled down and posed pretty for me:

Ingredients and the Safe Cosmetics Act of 2010

If the "Safe" Cosmetics Act of 2010 passes, my basic soap ingredient label will be required to look like this. This is without any colors or fragrances, just plain natural soap. Thanks to Kayla Fiorvanti for the information on the trace elements of water.

My current label looks like this:

Palm oil, coconut oil, olive oil, safflower oil, distilled water, sodium hydroxide, castor oil

Under this legislation, it will be forced to look like this:

Elaeis Guineensis (Palm) Oil (glyceryl laurate acid, myristate acid, palmitate acid, stearate acid, oleate acid, linoleate acid, and linolenate acid)
Cocos Nucifera (Coconut) Oil (lauric acid, myristic acid, palmitic acid, caprylic acid, capric acid, stearic acid, caproic acid, arachidic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid) Olea Europaea (Olive) Fruit Oil (oleic acid, palmitic acid, squalene, phytosterol, tocosterols, tyrosol, hydroxytyrosol, oleocanthal, oleuropein) Carthamus Tinctorius (Safflower) Seed Oil (palmitic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid [ω6]) Aqua (lead, acrylamine, alachlor, alpha/photon emitters, antimony, asbestos, arsenic, atrazine, barium, benzene, benzo(a)pyrene, beta photon emitters, beryllium, bromated, cadmium, carbofuran, carbon tetrachloride, chloramines, chlordane, chlorine, chlorine dioxide, chlorite, chlorobenzene, chromium, copper, cyanide, 2,4-D, dalapon, o-Dichlorobenzene, p-Dichlorobenzene, 1,1-Dichloroethylene, cis-1,2-Dichloroethylene, trans-1,2-Dichloroethylene, Di(2-ethylhexyl) adipate, dinoseb, diquat, endothall, endrin, ethylbenzene, fluoride, glyphosate, hexachlorocyclopentadiene, mercury, radium, uranium, vinyl chloride, xylenes) Sodium hydroxide Ricinus Communis (Castor) Seed Oil (ricinoleic acid, oleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, stearic acid, palmitic acid, dihydroxystearic acid)

Head to Toe: Simply Soft

$55, soft leather ballet flats, by lunashoesuk
$59, Summer Cardigan, by MyLolaFashion
$39, Mix of Colors - Set of Seven Stacking Rings, by indiaylaluna
$18, Flower Hair Pins, by mnhince

Wall Love: My Sweet Valentine by thepaintedlily

A beautiful combination of mandala art and horror vacui imagery, this lovely piece is titled "My Sweet Valentine" and is available on Etsy by thepaintedlily.

New Soap Pics: Fresh Cut Grass

I love this bar, it's such a great embodiment of everything that's wonderful about spring and summer. It truly smells just like a freshly mowed lawn with just a touch of cool, after-sun aloe. The varying shades of green topped off with purple add interest and intensity to the soap, and with my new lighting set up I was finally able to capture the colors properly! Check out my Fresh Cut Grass listing on Etsy for more pics.

Tied Together: Tea Time

$35, Large Herbal Tea Kit, by purposedesign
$45, Tea Time Mini Wall Clock, by LAMdesigns
$16, Tea Lover's Mug Knit Cozy, by KnitStorm
$40, Tea Time Earrings, by asecondtime
$3.25, 1oz Pineapple Papaya Green Tea, by dreamweavershop
$50, The Tea Factory, sollinero
$20, Tea Time Towels, girlscantell
$120, Ghost Leaf Teapot, by patspottery
$6.99, Earl Grey and Lavender, by ToppersTea

Tied Together: Vintage Heels

$21, Metallic Golden Spike Glam Heels, by zwzzy
$54, 1970s Suede Leather Boots, by allencompanyinc
$34, Strappy sequin heels, by DearGoldenVintage
$34, Flirting With Lace, LapineOurs
$89, Tall Black Leather High Heel Oxford Boots, italianpostcards
$25, Bows, by littlegreenbirdxo
$34, Sky high green stiletto pumps, by treeandkimballmarket
$29.99, Powder blue pip toes, AdrianCompanyVintage
$89, 1950s Vintage Purple Plum Satin Pump, starletvintage

Head to Toe: Bermuda Splash

A pretty summer garden skirt is softened with the ultra feminine soft top by Ureshii, and then played up with a bit of sparkle from the always fabulous Glitz Glitter. This look is defined by the use of a large, contrasting accessory- such as the beautiful cranberry bag featured.

$95, Large Cressier Bag in Burgundy, by iragranteco
$56, Soft Top - Long Sleeve, by Ureshii
$18, Oracle Earrings, by GlitzGlitter
$60, Garden Party Skirt, by ellainaboutique

Wall Love: Cat in Window Print by rochelle31

I saw this seller grace the front page of Etsy on June 24th and just fell in love with her work. This print, "Cat in Window" is particular is lovely. It's a kitty, and it's in watercolor and ink- and the print is only $15! Go get yourself one now!

New Soap: Key Lime Pie

Things are finally starting to warm up here in the bay area of California, except for last night of course, which was cold and windy! (confusing much?) To celebrate summer, I've re-done my popular Key Lime fragrance as Key Lime Pie. It's a refreshing scent, heavy on the lime with just a touch of sweet cream and graham cracker crust. The natural vanillin in this blend makes the soap turn darker over time, so I've isolated the discolored portion and topped it off with lots of fun green soap curls and fresh white soap. The old Key Lime fragrance is still available for a limited time, and on sale until it sells out!

Head to Toe: Garden Stroll

An elegant outfit centering on neutral colors inspired by nature and different textures.

$138, White Bias Pin-tuck Top, Silk Charmeuse, by prizysebastian
$28.99, Giselle Necklace, by BGBJewelry (currently on sale!)
$29.50, Tan Leather Peep Toe, by thepuddingstorevint
$70, Viridiflora Tulip Skirt, by oneaviandaemon

More Fun With Copper

Some of you will remember my recent post about oxidizing copper with ammonia. It went over pretty well, and I love that it was able to help some of you out! Lately, I've been playing a lot with merging filigree and wire-wrapping techniques and came up with this pendant-style necklace the other day. It was oxidized using the ammonia method, and the smallest beads you see there are 15 seed beads, very tiny!