Christmas Soaps

Since a lot of people are doing their Christmas shopping early, we've decided to go ahead and post our Christmas Soap line so you'll know what's coming. Soaps are mixed, in the molds, and curing.

Joy Noel - Mixture of pine, clove, orange, fir, and vanilla
Cozy Christmas - Blend of nutmeg, rum, cinnamon, ginger, and chocolate
Cookies for Santa - Yummy mix of brown sugar, vanilla, butter, and sugar cookie
Christmas Tree - Aromatic blend of bayberry, fir-needle, and pine
Holly Berry - Mix of raspberry, musk, and orange
Hot Chocolate - Smells like a cup of hot cocoa with a dab of whip cream on top
Carmel Latte - Energizing blend of sweet caramel and freshly brewed coffee
Three Wise Men - Blend of patchouli, frankincense, myrrh, and sandalwood
Gingerbread Cookie - The yummy smell of gingerbread with the added sweetness of sugar cookie
Pumpkin Bread - If you love pumpkin, you'll sure love pumpkin bread. Blend of pumpkin, white spices, maple syrup, and shortbread
Vanilla Bean - Smells like buttery vanilla and musk
Brown Sugar - Smells just like the name, sweet brown sugar

All the Christmas soaps will be available for purchase beginning November 1st at our Washtub & Friends Open House, 10am - 4pm. Not only will you have the opportunity to do early Christmas shopping, we have an entire day of fun lined up for you.

Here's the schedule:
10:00 am - OPEN HOUSE for browsing, shopping, and fellowship
10:30 am - Demonstration - How to make hair bows by Rylee B's Boutique (Maribeth Blackledge)
11:00 am - Demonstration - How to give yourself a facial at home by Indulgence Home Spa (Beverly Mooney
11:30 - Demonstration - How to make a microwave bundt cake by Pampered Chef ( Joy Pickering)
1:00 - Demonstration - Tips for great photos with your point and shoot digital camera by Amber Norris Photography (Amber Norris)
1:30 - Demonstration - Go from fall to Christmas with Southern Living at Home (Susan Karolyi)
2:00 - Demonstration - How to make your own soap by The Washtub (Suzanne Goss)
2:30 - Demonstration - Accessorizing with jewelry to create your own fall style by Cookie Lee Jewelry (Crystal Neal)
3:00 - Demonstration - Simply Susan's sterling Silver monogrammed jewelry and gifts (Rebecca Pope and Jenny Hudson)
3:30 - Drawing for door prizes!

Hope to see you there!

Suzanne Goss
The Washtub Handmade Bath & Body
http://www.washtubsoaps.com

Hummingbird Season

We've been building up to this time since spring and it's finally here - hummingbird season! No, this isn't the same thing as turkey season, deer season, or rabbit season. There's no gun cleaning or knife sharpening going on, and we're not out on a hunt. This is the month that the most hummingbirds pass through our area. Sure, they've been zooming and zipping through here since early spring. But, that's when those little guys are just grooming and preparing us, and giving us a small taste of the show we see in September.




I love watching these little marvels playing, and sometimes even duelling around the feeders. I used to try to plant certain types of flowers to attract them, but I don't have a green thumb. Soon I discovered, all you have to do is feed them - they'll show up!

All you need are a couple of hummingbird feeders and some homemade nectar. Some claim that the sugar water isn't good for them, but studies have shown that the sugar water doesn't harm the birds in any way. In fact, it gives them that extra power boost they need on their way to their winter vacation home. Another thing I've learned is the red food coloring that some put in the food, hoping to better attract the birds, isn't good for them and not needed to attract them anyway.

Nectar recipe: 1 part sugar to 4 parts water. Stir until the sugar is dissolved then pour into the feeder - that's it!

Leftover nectar can be kept in the refrigerator for 4 or 5 days. Don't put much nectar in the feeders until you see how much they are going to drink. The amount needed will increase as hummingbirds discover your feeders and then tell their buddies. Soon you will have bunches of little cuties zipping all around.

When the nectar turns cloudy it needs to be changed, or at least about every 4 days , maybe even less when it's really hot outside. Some people boil their water first, but that's not necessary because it's the hummingbirds dipping their beaks in and out of the feeders that causes the contamination. Try hanging the feeders in a cool shady spot instead of direct sunlight to make the nectar last a little longer.

I was told that you should stop filling the feeders by the end of September or the little birds might not fly south like they are supposed to and be stuck here for the winter. This also is not true. They'll leave when needed. So, fill the feeders as long as you have drinkers, and you can be happy that you gave them that extra little power boost they needed to be on their way.

Here's hoping your soap always bubbles!

The Washtub Handmade Bath & Body
http://www.thewashtub.net

What's eating the cat's food?

We aren't cat people, more like dog people. Not that I dislike cats, we've just always had dogs in the past. Even though we aren't cat people, we would never want one of God's creatures to starve to death. With that being said, we started feeding a stray black/white spotted cat, whose name is now, Cat. The poor thing's bones were showing. Every time I saw the cat's dish on the backporch empty, I would go ahead and fill it. After all, the guy had to make up for lost time.

Not being experienced in the eating habits of the feline species, I just kept putting food out, several times a day. But then I noticed, Cat ate like he was starving to death - every time. One evening, I walked by the bay window, saw black/white fur, and thought - oh, Cat is eating again! Then I took a better look.



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJ_DfEREjX4 target="_blank"

Instead of spotted, it was a striped black/white cat. A little bit of a difference. What could I do? I certainly didn't want to rush to the backporch and scare this one off! So, I let him eat and leave on his own time.

The next day, I bought new food dishes. (I don't know why, maybe thinking that a different dish might discourage the same visitors.) After about a week, I realized that Cat was still eating every meal like he hadn't eaten in days, when reality, he was being fed several times per day. But, Cat is still skinny!


A few nights later, while I was right by the back door where the dishes are just outside. Then there, in plain view, not scared one bit - comes the new culprit! Digging in with both hands.... paws.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4JVaYeabUBA target="_blank"

I wasn't sure what I was seeing at first, being the strange looking character it was. And not frightened one bit! So, we scared off the raccoon and started picking up the dishes after Cat eats.


Now Cat is FAT and HAPPY!!




Here's hoping your soap always bubbles!

The Washtub Handmade Bath & Body
http://www.thewashtub.net/

P.S. I send a free bar of Southern Hospitality Made From Scratch Soap to the first person to put in the comments about what was strange about the raccoon.

Are you facing giants?

I just finished watching the movie "Facing The Giants," again. I think I could watch it 100 times and cry every time. In case you haven't seen it, it's about a coach who feels totally defeated. The team can't win any games, the player's parents are turning against him, and the townspeople are plotting to get him fired.

He admits to the pastor that he's been praying to God for help, but just doesn't see God working at that school. The pastor reminds him of the story of two farmers, each praying for rain. One of the farmers goes ahead and prepares his fields for the rain. The pastor then asked him which farmer's prayers does he think will be answered. The one that goes ahead and prepares his fields by faith, of course!

The coach commits to give God everything he's got, then whatever happens, happens. Once he has his heart right, the team comes aboard, and an entire town is transformed because of one man's witness.

Here's a clip of the movie : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vB59PkB0eQ

Are you facing some giants in your life? Are you praying for rain? Nothing is impossible with God. Give Him everything you've got, give God your best. This includes every part of your life, at home with family, at school with friends, even at work. Then, leave the results up to Him. Praise God if you win, praise God if you lose. Go ahead and prepare the fields, He WILL send the rain.

Here's hoping your soap always bubbles!

The Washtub Handmade Bath & Body
http://www.thewashtub.net

Time For A Staycation

Today is the first day of my "staycation." Defined as time off work but not going away - staying home. Sometimes I like staycations better than vacations - sometimes. We seem to have a tendancy these days to work so hard building a beautiful home and a wonderfully peaceful homelife, that we don't have time to stay home and enjoy it. Don't get me wrong, I love visiting other cities and seeing things I might only see once in my lifetime, taking in other cultures and scenery. But, I'm also one of those people that just loves to stay home. It might be different if I were home all the time, then I would probably be jumping at the chance to get away. But not at this time, not this day. Plus, we get lots of visitors during the day when I would normally be away at work, and I hate missing good company. Look who came to visit today!

What about you? Do you prefer vacations or staycations? We would love to hear from you.

Here's hoping your soap always bubbles!

The Washtub Handmade Bath & Body
http://www.thewashtub.net

Three Minute Chocolate Mug Cake

A friend of mine sent out this recipe today. I couldn't wait to get home and try it out. Besides, testing the recipe before posting it gave me a good excuse to veer from my diet, if only for a moment.

Use a large mug, a coffee cup might run over in your microwave while cooking. Also, using a coffee cup instead of a mug would make it a . . . . . . cup cake. :)

In your mug put 4T plain flour, 4T sugar, and 2T cocoa powder. Stir these together. Add 1 egg and stir. Add 3T milk, 3T oil, a dash of vanilla, and mix well.

This recipe called for cooking in the microwave at 1000 watts for 3 minutes. I couldn't figure out how to set my microwave to cook at 1000 watts so I just set it to med power. I ended up cooking the cake for an additional 30 seconds. Setting at 75% power would probably have been just right. Nevertheless, the results were tastefully sinful and superbly rich and Y U M M Y!!!!

If you are in the mood to share, this cake is so rich it could easily be enough for two. And, if you're really feeling adventurous, top with some whipped cream or a little chocolate syrup, or both. For cooking variations, stir in few chocolate chips or chopped pecans.

MMMmmmmm.

Have you tried one of these before, or even heard of them? Do you have a superb topping choice you would like to share? We would love to hear from you.

Here's hoping your soap always bubbles!

The Washtub Handmade Bath & Body
Natural Skincare for Natural Beauty

Visit us at www.thewashtub.net

My First Blog Post

It doesn't matter who you are or what business you are in, if you have started a blog, there had to be that dreaded "first blog post." According to my level of stress, my now elevated blood pressure, and the new wrinkle on my forehead, you would think I was writing a thesis or something!

What is it that makes the very first post so difficult? Is it because there can only be one "first blog post?" Once you click on the big button that says "publish" is that it? Are you somehow out there floating around in the world wide web's cyberspace waiting for everyone, anyone, to make a comment - or even notice? No more "first blog post" chances. Did you you make a good "first blog post" impression? Will the "second blog post" be so dramatic as to warrant nerve medication?


I can see the long list of "firsts," that are usually documented for all of prosperity to use as ammunition to tease and taunt at every family get-together, changing as I press each key. My first step, first bike ride without training wheels, first day of school, first date, first kiss, first love, first job..... now, first blog post.

How painful was your first blog post? No problem? Like having a tooth pulled? I would love to hear from you.

Hoping your soap always bubbles,


The Washtub Handmade Bath & Body
Visit us at www.thewashtub.net