Selling At Market

For the past three weekends I have been selling my soaps at craft shows. Selling my handmade soap is one my favorite things about my job. I love meeting new people and connecting with my loyal customers. I enjoy sharing information about my soap with my patrons. I love to strike up a conversation and spark a new relationship.

Over the last five years selling at craft shows I have made invaluable connections with fellow crafters and artisans. These amazing people have offered me valued advice, have always been available to lend a helping hand when needed, and have become my cherished friends. We all check on each other throughout the day and offer moral support. It's so nice to arrive at a show and see friendly faces that are conscious of the craft show world.

The last few weekends I have been setup at Hunsader Farm Pumpkin Fest in Bradenton, Florida. This event is crazy busy and my sales have totally rocked. Everyday is completely unpredictable, which can be both terrifying and exciting, but in its own way makes the whole experience that much more thrilling. Somedays I sell tons of soap bars and other loads of body scrubs. I never know what the day may bring, which to me is super exciting.

Happy Fall You All! Smiles, Paula

August Blog Giveaway Winner

It’s time to announce the winner of last month's giveaway.

This awesome giveaway includes two surprise dinosaur soap eggs,

which are sure to give any little one incentive to wash.

You will find a surprise dinosaur inside each soap egg.

Additionally this giveaway includes two fun dinosaur print washcloths.

This bundle of bath time fun is sure to put a smile on any little ones face,

and help keep them excited about bath time.

The WINNER is Jenna LaFevor

with Rain On A Tin Roof.

You won two Surprise Dino Soap Eggs

and two Dino Washcloths.

These amazing soap eggs are handmade with organic ingredients,

and they are infused with lavender essential oil

to help your kiddo relax at bedtime.

A prize with a retail value of $28.00.

If you didn't WIN this giveaway, you can still grab a marvelous prize

sponsored by Natural Garden Soaps.

Simply stop back by this week to enter September’s Giveaway!

My dino eggs and washcloths are also available for

purchase in my Etsy Shop.

Smiles, Paula

{ Follow Me on Pinterest } Paula Parrish

My Skincare Habits

I am sharing with you my skin care habits, that I believe keep my skin looking and feeling good.  Daily I cleanse, tone and moisturize my face every morning and night before bed.  Everyday I cleanse and moisturize my body.  Yes, I shower or bathe.  I steam, exfoliate, mask, soak, and hydrate my skin, these are five additional remedies that I carry out less often to keep my skin in good condition.

Steam

Three times a month I treat my skin to a steam facial to deep cleanse the pores, hydrate, and stimulate circulation.  Before I enjoy a steam facial I gently cleanse my face and neck with my handmade soap.  To create a steam facial, I simply add a few drops essential oil to a quart size bowl of steaming hot water.  I then sit comfortably at the table with the bowl directly in front of me.  I am very careful not to touch the water or bowl, I lean over it with my face about twelve inches above the water.  Make a tent with a towel, allowing the steam to gently kiss my face and neck.  I enjoy the steam treatment for about ten minutes, and follow up with toner and facial lotion.  Read my previous post featuring a Flower Petal Steam Facial.

Exfoliate

Once a week I exfoliate my entire body with a body scrub.  I use this awesome treatment to slough off dead skin cells and make my entire body super soft.  I love using my Body Scrub Cubes which gently cleanse and exfoliate.  I have shared many homemade body scrub recipes here on my blog.  Here are a few that you may want to try; Brown Sugar Body Scrub, DIY Cellulite Scrub, or Chocolate Honey Scrub.

Mask

Twice a month I treat myself to a facial mask to balance, feed and invigorate my skin.  I love using a mask made with clays, fruits, veggies and natural ingredients to nourish my skin.  Before I use a mask I pull my hair back from my face.  Then I apply a smooth thin layer of mask to my freshly cleaned, damp face and neck area, avoiding my mouth and eyes.  I wait for about 10 to 20 minutes, allowing the mask to work it’s magic absorbing excess dirt and oils.  I rinse my face with warm water, and gently pat dry.  I follow up with my organic facial lotion.  Here are a few mask recipes that I have shared here on my blog; Chocolate Face Mask, Mineral Mud Mask, or Banana Facial.

Soak

I try to soak my feet weekly in a foot bath filled with hot water to drown my worries away and relief stress.  This soak is wonderful to keep my feet clean, soft and touchable.  I add the treatment of my choice my Lavender Fizzy Foot Soak, a Fizzie Bath Bomb, or Soothing Footbath recipe.  I often toss in some fresh flower petals or prigs of fresh herbs from my garden.  I soak my feet until the water turns cold, then use my pumice stone and follow up with a Peppermint Foot Recovery Lotion.

Hydrate

I hydrate my skin from the inside out by drinking lots of water daily.  I mist my face periodically throughout the day with my Natural Facial Tone or Lavender Hydrosol to replenish moisture.  To make your own Lavender Hydrosol, start with four ounce of distilled water, add two drops of lavender essential oil, and one teaspoon of vegetable glycerin.  Pour your lovely mixture into a spray bottle, and vigorously shake before each application.  I always have my spray bottle on hand through the day to enjoy a wonderful pick-me-up, especially in the afternoon around 2 o’clock.  To apply Hydrosol or Toner, hold about six inches from your face; spritz once or twice.

I hope that you find this skincare information to be useful and helpful.

Smiles, Paula

{ Follow Me on Pinterest } Paula Parrish

Island Coconut Soap

Ready for Summer!

Hello my lovely friends!  Hope that all is well with you?

The end of the school year is around the corner.

Are you ready to hit the beach or pool,

one thing's for sure summer is almost here!

As the countdown begins for summer vacation,

I am giving away a bar of Island Coconut Soap.

How To Enter:

{ Follow, Comment and WIN }

Follow my Blog and leave a comment on any post

from now until the end of May.

Or simply do as many or as few of the following:

"Like" NaturalGardenSoaps on Facebook.

"Follow" PaulaParrish on Twitter.

Tell your friends on your Facebook/Twitter/Blog to enter this giveaway.

Post and Tweet the following:

"I hope I win the May giveaway on @paulaparrish blog

www.paulaparrish.blogspot.com.”

Good Luck!

Please remember to leave a way for me to contact you if you win,

I prefer an email address.

PLEASE NOTE: Must be US resident.

Smiles, Paula

{ Follow Me on Pinterest } Paula Parrish

DIY Dinosaur Washcloth

Being a Mom of four children I know all about bath time with kids.  Bath time was fun for my oldest son, but not all of my kids enjoyed taking a bath.  To this day I still struggle with my youngest daughter Destiny.  Lo and behold, often when she steps out of the shower I discover that she didn't even wash her hair, and who knows if she washed her body.  I often tell her you are a hot mess, and send her back into the shower with a smile.  I repeatedly want to let out a crazy Mommy scream, but I hold back as all of us Mom’s do.  Over the years I have attempted to make bath time more fun with toys, bubbles, bath crayons, and fun soap.  I remember that my oldest son Justin had a favorite dino bath mitt, and simply refused to take a bath without it.  I commonly overact at bath time with a excitement that is contagious, giving the feeling that my kiddos may be missing out on something Fun.  I’ll run the water, start playing in the tub, laughing loudly, letting my kids know just how much fun bath time is for Mom.  Works like a charm every time.  ;o)

You may have stumbled upon my previous blog post with a tutorial for Surprise Dino Soap Egg.  Head over and check out that post, surprise dino soap eggs are great to give the kids incentive to wash.  Each dino egg soap has a dinosaur inside of the soap.  As we moms know, new bath soap or fun washcloths can commonly make things exciting so that we can entice our little ones into the tub to wash.

Today, I am sharing with you a simple tutorial on how to make a Dinosaur Washcloth.

DIY Dinosaur Washcloth

Step ONE:

Cut one square 9x9 of a fun dinosaur print 100% cotton fabric, then cut on square from terry cloth or an washcloth.

Step TWO:

Pin the squares right sides together to prepare for sewing.

Step THREE:

Simply sew the square together using a straight stitch on all edges leaving an opening to turn the right sides out.

Step FOUR:

Finish off the washcloth with a straight top stitch around all edges, and whala you are done.

I hope that you enjoy this tutorial for a fun washcloth to help keep the kids smelling nice.

This dinosaur washcloth and my handmade soap eggs are available for purchased on my website {here}.

Have you struggled with your kids to take a bath?

Smiles, Paula

{ Follow Me On Pinterest  } Paula Parrish

April Giveaway

Happy Thursday!

As many of you know I love giving away things here at

Paula Parrish Living A Blessed Life.

I have another lovely giveaway to share with you today,

and just in time for Mother's Day which is May 12th!

OMG enter to WIN a bar of handmade soap

and body scrub cubes in this

fabulous, refreshing scent of Rosemary Mint!

This giveaway has a retail value of 25.50.

The perfect Mother’s Day gift for Mom.

How To Enter:

{ Follow, Comment and WIN }

Follow my Blog and leave a comment on any post

from now until the end of April.

Or simply do as many or as few of the following:

"Like" NaturalGardenSoaps on Facebook.

"Follow" PaulaParrish on Twitter.

Tell your friends on your Facebook/Twitter/Blog to enter this giveaway.

Post and Tweet the following:

"I hope I win the April giveaway on @paulaparrish blog

www.paulaparrish.blogspot.com.”

Good Luck!

Please remember to leave a way for me to contact you if you win,

I prefer an email address.

PLEASE NOTE: Must be US resident.

Smiles, Paula

March's Giveaway Winner

Happy April Fools Day!

I hope that you have a fun day full of

Pranks, Jokes and many Smiles.

It is time to announce the monthly giveaway winner for March.

You have WON a amazing handmade organic skin care kit

by Natural Garden Soaps.

The winner of March’s Giveaway is Kathy Moody at

www.lifeonlakeshoredrive.com.

Thank you to everyone who took part in my March Giveaway!

I have a sweet new giveaway planned for April

so check back in a few days to enter.

Smiles, Paula

DIY Seaweed Facial Mask

I love sushi topped off with a slice of yummy ginger.

I often enjoy salmon, snow crab, and avocado wrapped

with seaweed and rice.

Seaweed is great to eat, and it is also wonderful for your skin

because it is packed full of rich vitamins and minerals.

The essential vitamins and antioxidants in seaweed include:

A1, B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, C, E, K, pantothenic acid,

folic acid, ascorbic acid, niacin, and beta-carotene.

This is why I add it to my handmade Mucky Seaweed Soap,

and other skin care recipes.

Seaweed is also known to help repair damaged skin cells,

helps protect the skin from free radical damage,

fight skin inflammation and irritation.

Because of its nutritional properties,

and the 54 trace elements found in seaweed,

this amazing ocean wonder has been said to

help slow down the aging process of the skin.

Seaweed also protects the skin from harsh everyday elements.

The minerals in seaweed help release toxins from the skin,

making it great for detoxifying, or as a natural exfoliant.

I am sure that you would love using rich seaweed on your skin

to rejuvenate, prevent wrinkles, hydrate, and brighten your skin.

I am sharing with you a simple rejuvenating facial mask recipe,

I hope that you will give it a try.

DIY Seaweed Facial Mask

1 Tablespoons of Sea Kelp Powder

2 Tablespoon of Warm Water

1 Tablespoon of Aloe Vera Gel

A Few Drops of Honey

5 Drops of Rosemary Essential Oil

Place the seaweed into a small bowl, add warm water and mix.  Add aloe vera gel, honey and stir until well mixed.  Mix in about 5 drops of Rosemary essential oil to cover up the fishy smell.  Feel free to add more water or clay, if needed, to reach your desired consistency.

Apply the seaweed mask to your face, leave on for up to 20 minutes, then rinse off with warm water and soft cloth.  Use this seaweed mask up to twice a month as part of your typical skin care routine.

My face feels SO soft and refreshed after I use this mask.

Beware, that you kind of look like a swamp monster with this mask on your face.

Do you use seaweed in your normal skin care routine?

Smiles, Paula

{ Follow Me On Pinterest  } Paula Parrish