Beacon Creations

So, I have been working on some things...

One of the most important lessons I'm learning about being in business for myself is that I have to be on top of every aspect of business. Blogging is a very important aspect of  business, and I do appreciate and enjoy the feedback I get from my customers. I will make more of an effort to update my blog regularly. With that said, I do want you all to know I have been working very hard.  I've updated the website...again.  I missed the cherry blossoms, so they're back.  Check them out: Beacon Creations. .   I also added some brand new soaps to the line.  I hope everyone will be pleased. I look forward to you trying them out and telling me what you think! 

This is Lemon Verbena.  It has a very fresh scent that is the perfect blend of sweet & tart.  I like this so much I keep one in my dresser drawer to keep it smelling fresh. It smells soooooo good.

These two batches will be cut soon. They are both made using  Brambleberry fragrance oils. The first is Ginger Pear in the gel phase.  The second one is Pink Grapefruit; just poured and swirled. These two should be available in about 4-6 weeks. 

  

My soapmaking method (hot or cold process) is now determined based by where I purchased the fragrance oil.  If I use an oil from a company other than Brambleberry, chances are I'll be using it to make hot process soap.  That way I know I'll get a medium to strong scented batch.   I never have to stress about how Brambleberry's oils will turn out in Cold Process soaps.  I know before I even start if the oil will turn the soap tan or if it will morph into a different fragrance than what I smell out-of-bottle. I haven't had a bad batch using their oils yet.  They're a bit more costly than some of the other oils I have used in the past, but well worth it..at least I think so :)

Oatmeal and Honey Hot Process Soap

  For as long as I can remember, I’ve had severe eczema breakouts at least twice a year.  It would come every summer when the humidity hit and every winter.  It never failed.  I remember my mom sitting me down in the tub with oatmeal trying to soothe the itch or pulling pieces off of my Nana’s Aloe Vera plant to rub on my arms and legs. Of course there was the cortisone.  That NEVER worked.  I’ve read about the benefits or oatmeal and honey when used on your skin, so I decided to make Oatmeal & Honey hot process soap.  Actually, I made a cold process batch first. 

 

They came out great, but I came across a blog where the writer was making a hot process version.  Apparently, additives like honey and milk don’t always behave themselves during the soaping process. I feel pretty confident in my soaping skills (still working on those swirls though J ), so I decided that I was up to the challenge.

I melted and mixed as usual.  When the “applesauce” phase came, I added the ground oatmeal, aloe vera gel and honey.  This is where it gets interesting.  The soap turned from translucent tan to yellow, then orange (I had to run and get the camera).

   

The oils and butters separated into some sort of liquidy slop.  Does anyone know why this happens?  I’d be interested in your thoughts.  Anyway, I used the stick blender to try to mix it all back up again.  It wouldn’t mix.  At this point I’m starting to get a little nervous, but I maintained my cool.  I began really mashing the blender around to get the stuff to blend back together.

 

Much better.  Now it’s starting to look like mashed potatoes.  I finished mixing by hand and spooned the mixture into the mold.  I placed plastic wrap on top and mashed everything down.  It was REALLY hot!  

   

The next morning I removed…and sliced. (fingers crossed)

   

I LOVE this soap.  It’s been 4 weeks and the soap has a fantastic, moisturizing lather and a delicious natural Oats –N- Honey smell.  Yummy!

The benefits of all natural soap

If you’ve visited my website recently, you would have seen that I’ve made ALOT of changes.  Beacon Creations has gone natural.  My whole family has been using these natural products for the last month and now I can’t figure out how we ever got along without them.

Definition of Soap: The combination of fats or oils with an alkaline base to produce a substance which cleans. *Beacon Creations uses only Vegetable Oils*

Basically, to make soap, you mix sodium hydroxide (lye) with oils.  As you mix the two together, a chemical reaction occurs that transforms the lye and oils in something completely new-glycerin and soap!  This is very much like what many of us have seen our grandmother or great-grandmothers make.  However, unlike that soap, which was mostly used for laundry, our soap is super fatted.  That means that extra oils were added to help moisturize and make a nice lathering mild bar.

For someone like me, who suffers from eczema, this is a BIG deal.  My skin is already naturally dry and I usually have my worst breakouts during the winter months.  After switching to natural soap, I haven’t had a single breakout this winter! 

I switched to natural soap and noticed a huge difference.  After just a couple of baths with real soap you'll begin to notice a positive difference in your skin as well because the nourishing oils penetrate into your skin to keep it soft, supple and moisturized like nothing you've ever used before.

 

 

Peppermint Poppyseed - Cold Process

A few days later I made a batch of Peppermint Poppyseed.  The result was a bar which is invigorating, but the fragrance is not overpowering This is thanks to the Peppermint Essential Oil.  This bar is all natural, i.e. no colorants or fragrance oils were used. Remeber, there is a difference between fragrance oils and essential oils.

                                 

                                     

Black Raspberry Vanilla - Whipped

I decided to give the whipped method another shot, so I made a Black Raspberry Vanilla batch.  I had much more success this time around. This soap is airy and light. The scent is great. I got good swirling throughout the body as well as a frothy top.

                               

                                    

Oatmeal & Honey - Cold Process

I decided to try the cold process next.  This batch was more successful.  I made an Oatmeal & Honey batch.  It was surprisingly very easy.  It took maybe 20 minutes from start to finish.  It’s still curing, but it smells great.

                               

Adventures in Soap Making (cue theme music...)

So, I'm sure you have been wondering where I've been and what I've been up to : ) Well I’ve spent the last month revamping my entire website (Long story short: I accidentally deleted MAJOR files and had to redo the entire website from scratch. A very frustrating process...)  I also decided to make Petals into an all natural Bath and Body line.

My next few blogs will be about my many adventures in soap making interspersed periodically with some about some of my other products and additional info about the soap making methids.  You'll be able to follow my progress and try these natural products as I add them to Beacon Creations and to my Etsy account.

Again thanks to everyone who has shown me support over the last few months. I really appreciate it! That support pushes me to continue creating great products, not to mention the high standards I've placed on myself : ) And noooow on to the soaps!

Chocolate Decadence-(semi) Whipped

My first batch was half success, half failure.  I found a website full of beautiful pictures by an amazing soap artist named Nizzy.  I decided to start there.  Somehow, I didn’t get enough air whipped into my batch and ended up with normal heavy bars.  Which is fine, they lather up great and smell good, but I wanted them to be whipped...

                                 

 

Leogistic Creations, artistry at its best.

Since I’ve become a member of Etsy, I've come across some really great crafters.  One of them is a young man named Lawrence.  He has some really unique items in his shop.  One of them is this item which is cleverly named the Barack O' Bottle

He takes some unique and interesting facts about our new president and places them on handmade sheets of parchment paper. The parchments are then rolled, placed in a clear glass bottle, and tied with a red, white and blue ribbon.  I really love the idea!  I don’t normally display alot of keepsakes around my house, but I like the idea of having all of this information inside of a decorative bottle displayed and readily accessible. I can pull out the parchments occasionally to show guests or my children and then put the parchments back into the bottles for safe keeping. It makes a really great conversation piece!

   

 

You can find Lawrence here: www.leogistic.etsy.com Be sure to visit and support this young artist!! He is doing some great things.

My Etsy shop is now open for business!

I have an Etsy shop!

I have recently embarked on yet another venture.  I’ve decided to open an Etsy shop.  I’m really excited about this because it gives me the opportunity to offer some of my products at a lower cost and lower shipping rates.

I’m just starting so there are only a few items listed.  As interest accrues, I will begin to add more items.  So, please come on over and have a look.  I look forward to hearing from you. – Kia J

www.beaconcreations.etsy.com

Oatmeal Milk and Honey Soap

The benefits of Oatmeal come from its ability to bind to the skin.  It acts as a moisturizer by attracting and holding water on the skin’s surface. In addition, protein components, such as cellulose and fiber, anchor moisturizers for long-lasting action. The result is softer, more elastic skin.  Ground oatmeal also acts as a soothing agent that helps reduce redness, itching and many minor skin irritations.

Goats Milk is moisturizing and is packed with vitamins A, B, C & D as well as protein, calcium, potassium and magnesium.

 Honey also offers incredible antiseptic, antioxidant and cleansing properties.