How exciting it is to see my candles on other websites, in catalogs  and in stores!  Even more exciting is the fact that people are converting to sustainable, petroleum free, foreign material free, synthetic fragrance free candles!  I want the world to be healthy for a very long time.  Just thinking about the here and now doesn't work for me, especially since I have children so everyday I am reminded of what the future may bring.  I know that candles are just a little start, but how wonderful it would be if everything were sustainable and not petroleum based and full of toxins?!  Here are some amazing businesses, run by amazing people, that are devoted to selling only healthy, eco-friendly products.  They sell my candles and two

 

 

 

I am very pleased to say that I now have pillar votives available!  They are so much fun to make and, since they don't come in a container, you can use your own favorite containers for these natural soy, essential oil & essence candles.  You do need containers for these or else they will melt all over.

 

I have been experimenting with large pillar candles and tapers and wow, I have a whole new respect for those who succeed at this art form!  My large pillars aren't so hard to make, it's once I burn them that the fun begins!  They create a huge show of wax waterfalls and configurations.  My husband and children love them and get very excited to see what will happen next!  However, I don't know how well they will go over in the retail world?  

So, these Pictures are in backwards order, but I'll type forwards... #1 it started out nice, #2 Sixty Hours later....#3 only 10 hours later.  Entertaining, but not very practical.

As far as tapers go, wow, they are hard to make look even!  My first batch was received with glee by my sons because they said they looked like Shrek candles!  EEK!  Ear Wax candles was not exactly the look I was going for!  I'm working on it though and I am still hopeful that I will be announcing a new line of pillar and taper

 soy candles very soon!

NEW PRODUCT Trial SALE!! We now have flameless candles!  Just place your highly scented (with essential oils and botanicals) soy, wickless candle on the warmer and enjoy fire-free. healthy fragrance throughout your home or business for at least 2 months!  I love this flameless candle!  Because flames in candles burn hotter than the warmer, the scent lasts longer and is more true to form.  Unfortunately, we have yet to find a warmer that is both economical and Made in the U.S.A..  Any suggestions?  I REALLY need some Amercian Made warmers! 

So, I was at a local natural store and saw, what looked great, body butters.  The front labels said,"phalate-free, toxin free, petroleum free and all natural".  Awesome right?  I flipped it over and the ingredient list went a mile long. Parfum. Urea. and a bunch of unrecognizeable words.  Other butters had fragrance and mineral oil (petroleum) and synthetic dyes.  I came home and improved the butters I already have and begged Vintage Paper Boutique to design me more attractive labels.  And they are gorgeous!  Elise never fails to impress with her amazing talent at creating that image that I imagine but can't create.  Now my butters are not only the best available, but the labels alone make them collectable!

Being a candle maker, I am often checking out competition and one thing really drives me bonkers (well, not bonkers, but it bothers me!).  That is the majority of candles that claim to be "aromatherapy" or "made with soy" or

"all natural".   In order to be aromatherapy, a candle needs to actual have the true aroma (in other words, essential oils or essences) in the candle.  I am amazed at how many candles have absolutely no real oil in them!  Only synthetic fragrance derived from petroleum that is labeled TOXIC by the FDA (but candles and body products do not have to label it as so , they just have to put fragrance).  The FDA has said that due to the low percentage of the synthetic fragrance, it does not have to be labeled.  You will find synthetic, toxic, cancer causing fragrance in ORGANIC body products, Natural Soy Candles, Aromatherapy Candles/Body Products& Natural Home Products.  This minuscule amount of fragrance can kill me!  Or at least send me to the E.R.!   What kind of "aromatherapy" is that?!  Customers are becoming more aware of the dangers of burning paraffin candles but are still learning that most products still contain petroleum & phalates in the form of fragrance.  All it takes is for us to get the word out!  We like to trust our manufactures and the labels on items.  Just like you read the ingredient list on foods, I highly recommend reading the ingredients on candles.  If it doesn't say made of: 100% soy, Essential oils (or plant essences/botanicals), and a cleaner burning and sustainable cotton wick.......stay clear!  Your lungs are at stake!

Don't forget!  Tomorrow is First Friday @ Milepost 5!!  Come enjoy the festivities as artists throughout the complex open up their studios and let strangers in.  Everyone is welcome and the retail shops (including mine, JUST THE GOOD STUFF), will often have sales and workshops, while the artists throughout the complex dull out treats and love to talk about their work.  E.A.T. will most likely have a band playing  on their stage and will, ofcourse, be serving their out-of-this-world food.  See you there?

Milepost 5 is really easy to get to.  Just take I-205 to the Glisan exit and go west.  Turn right on NE 82nd Ave.. Go one block and turn left on Oregon St.. Find a place to park.

So, at my store's Grand Opening the Mayor, Sam Adams, came in and said, "This is the best smelling store in Portland!".  Well, he is right about that one!

The Grand Opening of JUST THE GOOD STUFF @ Milepost 5 (NE 82nd, just N. of Glisan) was a lot of fun.  Many wonderful people came in, browsed, oohed and aahhed & bought organic fragrance for their home & body.  If you have the chance to stop by, I also have a collection of upcycled home & garden art (tiki torches, hummingbird feeders, garden art), handmade chocolates, hand painted glassware, fused glass, jewelry, pottery faces made by my son, greeting cards and whimsies.  I hope to see you there! 

Every once in a while, I forget how truly allergic I am to synthetic fragrance.  After living for so many years not being able to be around fragrance and now, with my essential oils and organic, plant derived,natural fragances, being constantly surrounded by wonderful fragrance, I forget the affects synthetics have on me.  And then I enter a building with a synthetic candle burning.  Or perfume.  Or try a lotion. I instantly can tell if the fragrance is synthetic or not.  My throat starts to clam and tighten up, my breathing becomes labored, my head hurts and I feel sick.  How many people have this same affect?  I hope that my business grows expenentially.  Not because I want $$ (although I surely don't mind) but because I want the air we breath to be fresh and healthy.  I don't think most people understand what they are burning and putting in their air.  After all, if a lotion says natural or a candle says natural, doesn't that mean it