Coming Soon To Lips Near You!

New Arrivals In My Etsy Shop
Aroma Fields Candles & Bath at Etsy - Natural Lip Balm

Who doesn't love all natural, lip nourishing, moisturizing and smoochaliciuous lip balm? Made with the very best natural ingredients including shea butter, cocoa butter and added beeswax for extra protection and staying power, my lip balms come in several flavors. I'm currently stocking Cherry, Honey, Coconut and Au Naturel (unflavored) and will be adding Vanilla, Peppermint, Chai Tea, Root Beer and Chocolate soon.



Avoid Lip Balms Containing Phenois
Ironically, as I booted up my computer this morning, ready to blog about my natural lip balms, a daily newsletter that I recieve from RealAge included the following interesting article:

If the cooler fall air has you reaching for your lip balm, flip it over and look at the label.

You might want to ditch it if you see this in the ingredient list: phenols. Why? These compounds actually strip the top layer off your lips, according to RealAge skin expert Dr. Amy Wechsler.

Peel Appeal?
Phenols are included in some lip balms (Blistex, for one) to help remove very dry, chapped skin off the surface of lips. But if you’re just trying to keep lips moist, the phenols can backfire by removing your lips’ natural protective layer. That may also explain why some people get addicted to them, Wechsler writes in her new book, The Mind-Beauty Connection -- the stripping effect can leave lips feeling raw, so you reach for more balm.

Careful Lip Care
To break this vicious lip-balm cycle, Wechsler recommends opting for a good moisturizing lip balm instead.

Article: RealAge Online

I actually intended this post to be a quickie but I thought the article was interesting and worthy of sharing. Thanks for reading!

www.aromafields.ecrater.com
www.aromafields.etsy.com

My Sunflower Afghan Is In A Magazine

My Lil' Moment Of Glory
Flip back a few blog posts and you'll find one I wrote after I finished crocheting a pretty sunflower design afghan for my older daughter. I also posted it on a website that I'm a member of called CraftStylish. I joined awhile back and
uploaded a photo of this afghan. Well, they must have liked it because they sent me an email last month and asked if they could feature it in their magazine called "Gifts to Make".
I couldn't wait to get the magazine and see! Well, it's here! My sunflower afghan appears in just a small corner of a page, but I'm just tickled to have this honor. My daughter is overjoyed (and proud of her Mom).

Sweet!

www.aromafieldscandles.com
www.aromafields.etsy.com

Destash - What a Great Idea!

At first glance, my wonderful, loyal customers are probably going to wonder what happened to the list of lovely candles and soaps they're use to seeing stacked down the first page of my Etsy shop. The candles and soaps are still in my shop but, for now, buried beneath some new listings of supplies that hog up the front page.
Yes, supplies! Woo-hooo! I've joined the "Destash" wagon! These supplies will only be there until each one sells as I only have one of each. That's why I'm not going to open a separate Etsy shop. Once sold...the supply item will not be back.

Over time, I've stocked up on an abundance of products that are now just taking up space. They're not being used...probably never will. And it's time to clean house!

If you're thinking about making candles or bath and body products, come and see my supply category. My prices and shipping are more than reasonable and you'll actually be saving when you compare the cost of product plus shipping the the original supplier charges. I still need to add a few more items but there's plenty to start the supply section off nicely.


www.aromafields.ecrater.com

Europe It's Not

But We Still Had Fun

One of these days, I plan to take a trip to Europe. That's the trip of a lifetime, to me and I will go (she said as she looked at her and hubby's crowded schedules). Until then, adventures are in abundance right here in my little home and in my surrounding area. Each season has it's own flavor of fun affixed to it and this Summer was no exception. Before we move on to what Fall and Winter will bring, I reflect on some of the things that made me smile during the past couple of sun-filled months:

The temperatures can get a bit out of hand . . . (okay, so my smile was dripping with sweat on this day!):


Grand daughters come over frequently and love to play softball in the backyard with their Uncle . . . (use tennis balls, please!):


Fishing trip...and my 23 year old son baited his first hook...a proud moment . . . (he never did like touching icky things. Use to put baggies on his hands to help clean out the pumpkin each Halloween):


Nephew playing the guitar and singing makes for some really peaceful afternoons . . . (Air Force plane mechanic, sings, plays guitar and piano, cooks, handsome...and single, ladies!):


We developed a family love affair with Rock Band . . . (eat your heart out, Ringo!):


Hot Summer days means lots of naps for fur people . . . (as does Fall, Winter, Spring...):


Many trips to the beach and lovely walks on the Balboa pier . . . (and some great lunches at the 50's diner called "Ruby's" at the end of the pier):


And as we leave Summer behind, I'm always grateful for it's beauty and the opportunities I'm given:

(The above photo was taken on our whale watching trip . . . didn't see any whales but the water and the weather were gorgeous!)

I'm ready for Fall now :-)

www.aromafields.ecrater.com

August - Lost In The Sand

Where did August go?
The summer months are normally spent doing things that we don't usually do throughout the year. (Do I hear a "Yes, same here!"?) I loved having the visitors...loved the summer fun...and really enjoyed the break from every day
routine. I did, however, keep up with my business but I wasn't able to attend to every aspect of my life. Therefore, my blog suffered as I wrote absolutely nothing last month. It's as if August was lost. And, boyyyy did it go by fast!

I'll update you soon on some of the fun things we did through August. I've got to go blow dry my hair . . .


www.aromafields.ecrater.com

Thank You! . . . But What Is It?

Tarts . . . Melts . . . Melties. Whatever you want to call them, they are packed to the max with fragrance.


As a "thank you for ordering", I often include a scented soy Tart when packing an order for shipment. It's a great way to have my buyers try different fragrances that I offer. Recently, it's come to my attention that there are some who don't know what they are or how to use them. If you've never used a scented soy Tart (Melt, Meltie), you're missing out on a really fun and easy way to fragrance your home.

First, you need a tart burner, ("tart warmer", "oil/potpourri burner"). My absolute favorite is this candle warmer/tart burner combo (photo A below) as the wattage is such that it explodes the aroma quicker and sends it flying all through my home. Oil/potpourri burners (photo B below ) will melt the Tart by means of a small tealight candle. It serves the purpose but not as effective as the electric 24-watt combo.



As the wax melts, the aroma disburses throughout your home. If you did this daily you'd easily get about two weeks worth of scent from one of my soy Tarts. I had a customer tell me that fragrance of the Tart she ordered from me lasted an entire month. Not bad for a mere ounce of wax!

Clean up and handy dandy soy advantage:
Here's the benefit of using soy wax Tarts! If you are ready to melt another fragrance but the scent in the Tart you're currently using isn't all used up, simply stick the tart burner bowl (or entire oil/potpourri burner) in the freezer for about 45 minutes. Remove from the freezer, turn it upside down over a paper towel and tap the bottom of the bowl/burner. The soy wax Tart will plop out in one, nice piece. Wipe the bowl/burner just to make sure there's no remaining residue (and there normally isn't) and it's ready to be used again. You can't do this with paraffin wax. It simply will not budge (I've tried it). Store the used soy wax Tart in a baggie to use another time...or toss it if the fragrance is all used up.

Potpourri:
If you're not so inclined to want to heat and melt this fragrant little morsel, you can place it in a decorative dish and use it as potpourri. The aroma is still amazing!

One of my buyers used it to scent her drawers. She's adorable!


www.aromafields.ecrater.com

The Amazing American Idol Concert Tour

American Idol . . . love it or hate it? Hubby and I love it! We really enjoyed watching the incredibly talented contestants this past season so we decided to get tickets to the American Idol concert tour. Off to Las Vegas to the Thomas & Mack Center we went this past Saturday and the experience was terrific! The audience consisted of people from all age groups including a sweet group of some retired folks sitting behind us having the time of their life. (And we thought we'd be the oldest...ha!) Young and old, people were enthralled by the unique talents of each performer.

Each of the top 10 contestants performed in the order in which they were voted off, beginning with Chikezie who opened the show. Each had three songs to perform until it came to David Archuleta with 4 songs and David Cook with 5 songs and each gave their own special thanks for the opportunity given them.

Highlights were when David A and his piano were raised up from beneath the floor and a thick mist encompassed him. After his first song, he was given a standing ovation that could only be interrupted by the orchestra starting up the music for his next song. It appeard that was the only way this young performer was going to get out of a situation of repeated, "Thank you...you are all amazing." . . . and many giggles as the admiration of the audience was endless. What a cutie!

David Cook obliged the audience with a fabulous encore and performed his version of Billy Jean which left us knowing without a doubt that it was this kind of incredible talent that soared him to the very top.

Fun stuff!

Look, Maw! . . . No Hands!

California politicians passed a new law that went into affect today. People rushed out to purchase hands-free equipment for their cell phones because this new law states that we can no longer hold a cell phone while driving. We can talk on it...just not hold it. The California politicians seem to think this will reduce distractions, therefore reduce auto accidents. I say, "Poopie dust!" It's not the holding of the cell phone that's a distraction to drivers, it's the conversation itself. This law isn't going to prevent the car in front of you from driving 30 miles an hour on the freeway because they're into their phone conversation. If a difference is to be made, take the phone away completely. Politicians are idiots.

And get this: truck drivers will not be cited if they're talking on their CB radios. Uh...let me think about this. Hello? Did I say, "politicians are idiots"?

Plug In!

I noticed throughout the Internet a cute and clever way of getting one's business name noticed. It's called a Plugboard. They're everywhere! These plugboards are filled with cute little banners that are either static (don't move) or animated and when individually clicked on, take you to the respective websites. Each banner is no bigger than 88x31. The banners remain on the plugboard until they are bumped off, in which case, a person can return and plug their banner again. And the whole advertising concept is free.

So, I wanted one!...a cute little plug banner AND a plugboard. I had bittymoose at Etsy create a plug banner for me and what a great job she did! Then I located a site where just by a simple registration, a plugboard is obtained.

You can scroll down my blog page and see my new plugboard in the right hand column. I added my new plug banner to start things off. If you already have a plug banner, please feel free to plug in! If you don't have a plug banner but will be getting one, I'd love for you to come back and display it on my plugboard. Fun stuff!

Face Lift

Don't I wish! A little tuck here, a little tug there and I might just look like I did 5 years ago. But, I digress. Actually, it's this blog that gets a wee bit of a change. My old blog was green. In case you think you're in the wrong place, I placed a screen shot of the old blog. Recognize me now? Great!

Ah, white. More spacious. Breathing room and all. So what'dya think? Of course, there's a little matter of the blog below that looks like a silly salsa ad. Oh brother.