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|  This is a photo of the North LA wildfires, taken from my balcony. It looks fairly close, but its still 6 or so miles away according to Google maps. A shift in wind direction could lead to an evacuation of this valley, which we are of course praying will not happen. I have so much soaping to do! Speaking of which, the deadline for orders is fast approaching. Id love for everyone to have their orders in by December 15th. I leave for a much-needed vacation on the 18th. This weekend Im catching up on some business things I have neglected over the past week or so. There is a serious illness in the family and we're all having a fairly tough time dealing with it. I continue to be thankful for the blessings bestowed upon me, including my wonderful business. When I let myself, its easy to get lost in all the little activities that make the business run. Its been a great distraction, and at the same time lots of progress has been made. New products, new photos, new ideas. Everyday new orders flood in and for that I am grateful as well. In fact, I think Im going to have to set aside tomorrow for just soap work. I love that idea, and I hope it happens. For now Im keeping my eye on the fires, and gathering my emergency supplies. I hope all my California blog-friends are safe! | |
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| Hope everyone had a LOVELY Halloween! After running errands I made myself some dinner and meditated for a good long while. These past few weeks have been very stressful, and I was in some dire need of ME time.
This weekend Im working hard on Christmas orders. Let me remind everyone that the last day to order is December 15th. I leave for vacation three days later, so its imperitive that you get your orders in before the 15th.
Im also going to be sending out my newsletter again. Thank you Google Docs for being way more helpful with this than the backend of my website. Now I can include pictures and links and other such glory. If youre not already signed up, feel free to create an account on the website, www.evermoresoapfactory.com, or comment with your email address and I will add it to the list.
Thank you again to everyone who commented on my give-away post. I will surely be doing another one very soon. | |
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|  GiveawayWinner
Originally uploaded by evermoreartCongratulations to fellow Etsian Celtic Crossing! I picked names out of my sweet little leaf bowl, and Celtic was the winner. Thank you to everyone who entered. I loved reading your stories! | |
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| My last post was in fact my 100th, so to mark that milestone Im doing a give-away! Halloween is coming up in just two weeks, and even though its still 90 degrees here Im trying to get in the spirit. I have so much fun making these Halloween soaps, and really they came out a bit more morbid than I expected. How nice!  If you'd like to enter the contest please leave a comment telling me about your favorite Halloween costume, or maybe just what youre going to be this year. Whats your dog going to dress as this year? Whatever you want to say, just say it and I will put your name in the drawing! The winner will get the two soaps pictured above and the three pictured below, all in this cute Halloween take-out style giftbox. A nice alterantive to candy, no?  Drawing will be Thursday, October 23. I will annouce the winner and mail as soon as they respond with an address. These are also available on the website! Click to be taken to their pages. | |
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| Fall weather, California style: 61 degrees and WINDY! Outside my window here I can see a tree with technicolor leaves, bending and swaying while the wind rushes past. Im a huge fan of Summer, but the change of scenery is nice.
Today is a great day for opening the windows and letting that wind blow all the negative energy out of your home and out of your mind. Of course I had to throw a heavy sweater on, but it feels great, and Im just loving the choir of windchimes happening outside.
Im taking a break between classes, trying to clear my mind and replace scattered thoughts with focused ones, ugly thoughts with beautiful ones. What better way to relax than to puruse Etsy for autumn's pretty things!
"Autumn Leaves", lovely and enchanting bracelet. From EarthEssences, a member of our EAST team.
"Autumn Fire", and original painting. From gentryart, another EAST member.
Adorable crocheted cuffs to be worn under a jacket or what-have-you. From whiletheyplay.
Lots more enchantment to be had but now its time for class! | |
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Before I was even fully awake this morning I knew it was going to be a lovely day. I had a sense that the sun was in fact NOT shining down on Southern California, and that it was quite cloudy. When I mustered the energy to wake up and look outside I found that my intuition was correct. Its extremely overcast and cool, but not actually very cold. I LOVE IT. I needed a break from the constant sunshine; that gets stressful sometimes! Now if we could get a little thunderstorm I would be in heaven.
This has been a very long week and I havent had much time for soaping. Thank God its Saturday, because I will be spending all day in the lab. Today my priorities are taking photos of my Halloween goodies as well as a few other product that still need photos: tea tree face wash, solid lotion, face scrub, and my newest soap scent, "The Wooded Path". What are you up to today? | |
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Tomorrow is the first day of October and its still 100,000* outside. I know I should expect this, but it still amazes me. God Bless Los Angeles.
And while shes at it, I hope she blesses the postal service! I sent out (read: resent) more packages today and could use some divine intervention. In the studio tonight working on Halloween soaps for pictures. As I was drifting off to sleep last night I had the greatest idea for the photo, but Ill never get to that point if this bar doesnt start cooperating! I managed a voice lesson from a friend, and thats going down tonight at 630 so Ill be checking out of here early. Music has taken a back seat lately and thats just not acceptable! AC is crankin' now, so back to work. | |
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..get it together!
It seems Im not the only one who thinks this either. I dont know if its because of the storms or because LA is insane to begin with, but the postal service has really been having problems lately. So far Ive had 3 packages come back to me, 2 of them wet with some items inside destroyed. One was going to Texas, but the other two were going to Indiana and New Jersey, respectively. Folks in line at the post office are all very vocal about this, but Im wondering if this is happening in other parts of the country. Any feedback on that, blogfriends? Im quite embarassed and all-around upset by this... unpleasantness. Thank you to all my customers for being understanding. Im praying this clears up soon. | |
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|  RitualOil
Originally uploaded by evermoreartAnd just in time too! Today (Monday) is the Autumn Equinox, a day when dark and light are in balance. Here in California, folks waking up from a hot, sleepy summer and looking foward to the (slightly) cooler days. Lots of changes in the air and energy swirling!
Ive designed a set of anointing oils to aid in meditative and ritual practices. These are made very much like my other Perfume Oils in that they are made with a Jojoba oil base and scented with high quality essential oils. They also come in the same glass roll-on bottle. So in addition to being used as anointing or candle-dressing oils, they can also be worn as purfume.
Right now my favorite is the Purification oil. Im a huge fan of this because it is relaxing and at the same time really helps the mind focus. Lavender and Thyme essential oil bring such peace and calm, and we all know that we work our best when we are at peace. The Rosemary and Peppermint oils help focus our thoughts so we can make the best use of that peaceful state.
The Purification oil also coordinates with our Purification Bath Brew. In addition to the herbs listed above we also mix in Hyssop, Vervain, Basil, Fennel, and just a teeny tiny bit of Valerian for relaxation.
I have so many spooky-cute Halloween soaps in the works right now that will be unveiled very soon! | |
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|  AliceBook
Originally uploaded by evermoreartI love reading your blogs. There arent many artists around here for me to meet with in real life, and if there are, I cant find them. Thus, blogs have become an invaluable resource for inspiration and community, among other things.
A few days ago I noticed that my blog friend, Sarah Blank Studios, posted a picture of her vintage copy of "Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass". I picked up my own copy a few years ago, so I thought Id share mine.
Thank you to my fellow bloggers for the constant stream of love! | |
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