Gone Pro

So if you've been reading this blog or have poked around the website, you've seen photos of our products.  They're not bad, if I do say so myself.  I took 'em, after all.  I'm using a Fujifilm Finepix Z that Eric got me for Chanukah last year, and I love it!

It's a point-n-shoot, but it's a good one.  Plus, it's that awesome shade of blue!  My favorite color.

I've tried to get the best lighting possible for our photos so you can see true colors and what the soaps and things really look like.  Of course, the optimal way to do this would be outdoors in the morning or early evening, when the light is soft... but we live in northern NJ, and it is cold out these days, especially at those times!  Sorry, I'm dedicated, but I'm not that dedicated, even for you.

Indoors, we've got incandescent lighting with funky light fixtures that throw off odd-colored glows.  Not the best lighting when you're looking for true colors.  So I've had to resort to flash photography.  That is why you've been seeing photos like this:

Remember that little blast from the past?  That's the coffee soap.  Eh.  The stuff may be terrific at absorbing scents, perfect for chefs, and help to reduce the appearance of cellulite (no, really!), but it doesn't look really pretty in that photo, I'll admit.  And it is a pretty soap, but since those of you who are online shoppers don't have the opportunity to see and handle it in person, how would you know that?  I'll show you how!

That's how.  We have invested in a lightbox and lights, you see.  Now you can see what things look like despite not being right there handling them.  That's not the only one.  Remember our Clean Cut shaving and bath soap with the nifty fir setting?

It's not really that pale.  It really looks more like this:

That When Life Hands You Lemons sugar scrub?  This is what that should really look like:

The site, therefore, will be changing soon.  You'll get a more accurate picture of things, and hopefully enjoy viewing them more.  And we'll be able to have more fun taking the photos!

By the way, the camera we're using?  My same Fujifilm Finepix Z!  Nope, not kidding.

So for those of you who have your own eCommerce websites, and who need to sell your products, I highly recommend investing in a lightbox setup.  You can see how how much it's worth.

Shh... Don't Tell Eric

So we  have the one shaving soap, Clean Cut (which also works well as a bath soap).  It's got a pretty masculine scent.  I mean, I imagine some women will like it, but it's not my style.  I'm a fan of the fruits and flowers, more than the patchouli and fir.  As a result, a friend of mine suggested that we do a female shaving soap!  

So... for testing purposes, and without him knowing, I swiped Eric's bar of Clean Cut and used it yesterday in the shower when I was shaving.  It rocks.  No, I mean it, it's great.

We need a feminine (or unisex, for that matter) shaving soap.  Expect one on the horizon.

Know what else I like about this soap, though?  It makes Eric want to shave.

He hates to shave.  And I hate it when he's prickly.  It was always pulling teeth to get him to finally shave, even though he knew he should, if only for work.

This shaving soap, though, spurred him to ask for an old-fashioned straight razor for the holidays.  I got him one.  And now, as he put it, shaving is an event.  He loves it!  He actively likes to shave!  All because of soap!  And I didn't even have to spring for commercial shaving soap with the razor, which would've been crazy expensive!

Meanwhile, I've got a secret weapon for keeping Eric clean-shaven... just keep the stock of shaving soap replenished!

One for the Boys

We have come up with our first soap for men - a shaving soap!

When I say "we," mind you, I'm speaking loosely. I really should be saying Eric, since he did this one nearly solo. He researched it and worked out the recipe, he chose the scent, and he actually made it nearly all himself.

We started to make it, you see, mixed the basic ingredients, got them into the crock pot, started to cook them and stir... and then I got the call that my sister was in labor and had been for several hours. Yes, labor.

So at a quarter to 11 the other night, I dashed off to the hospital while Eric continued to make soap. My sister had the baby at 2:47 a.m., and I stayed with her and her husband visiting until 7:30 a.m. or so. I was demolished by then, and Eric was just getting up for work as I climbed into bed for a few hours.

The soap was already in the mold and curing.

Scented spicily with fir, rosemary, lavender, and patchouli essential oils, this is also our first round soap!

It lathers like crazy from the combination of oils used, perfect for shaving.  Plus, it's made with Rhassoul Clay, which has been used for over 1400 years as a natural beauty treatment for skin and hair, and shea butter, which also makes it a wonderful bath bar.

Personally, I love that we tried round bars too.  They just look so nifty!  They were... interesting to work out, though.  Removal from the mold was a heck of a process that included lots of trial and error, freezing the soap and a hammer.  There were times we might have looked like an Abbott and Costello routine, in fact.  But the result is definitely worth it.