World of Warcraft...Soap?

If you read my previous posts, you'll know that aside from soap making and graphic design, that I am a World of Warcraft fan. More of a weekend warrior, or a weekend Druid...I usually when absolutely nothing else is going on.  If you are not sure what World of Warcraft is, click here.


Anyway, I stumbled upon actual World of Warcraft soaps-- who knew?!  Seems like I'm not the only soapmaker who plays! :)

Hearthstone Soap (soap and shop no longer avail...boo!)

This soap will transport you to the inn of your choosing

Mana Potion/Health Potion Soap by DirtyAssSoaps

Drink (no, not really., It's soap) for health/mana rejuvenation

Horde Soap by ElizabethRoseSundry

Horde Sucks! Alliance Rules!   :)

Seeing Orange

 One of my favorite colors of the season, orange is a wonderfully striking color that calls attention. While not demanding as red, orange can convey the feeling of warmth, and in lighter hues, comfort.  

Originally a "fruit of the gods", orange was exclusively for aristocrats and the wealthy, as seen in the symbolic references in Renaissance paintings.   In the Tibetan culture, coral (which is a hue of orange) symbolizes success in life, while in China it is a symbol of longevity.  Eventually, the popularity of the color plummeted amongst the elite since the color was used in logos for fast food restaurants (Burger King or Mc Donald's anyone?).

Still, to me, this color is a wonderful reminder of the season turning. Seeing orange, instantly prompts my mind to brace myself for the crisp cool air of the season. The wafting of spices and sweets in the air and one of my favorite holidays, for which I never dress up for, Halloween!

Here are some orange (and Halloween) inspired soapy presentations.

Enjoy! 

Candy Corn Goat Milk Soap by WickedSoaps

Publish Post

"Dirty" Pumpkin Soaps from BathingBella's Etsy Shop

 

 Halloween Candy Scrub (look at that texture!) from Battybath's Etsy Shop

Sweet Orange Shampoo Bar from DressGreen's Etsy Shop

Back on the Soapy Saddle

It seems that late August/early September often inspire me to make soaps. I'm not sure if it's the cool, crisp air-- or the fact that summer is over and I can finally stand to work in my kitchen.  Either way, was totally inspired to make a couple of soaps for gift-giving.  Pictured above are cream cheese frosting scented cupcakes!

Woodland Pear-scented sugar scrubbies! (so upset that Brambleberry no longer carries it-- whaaa!) :(

Vanilla buttercream bars and hearts! (Waiting for them to fully turn brown)

This is just a small part of my inventory. Not sure if I'm going to build it up and sell on Etsy again. With a full-time job and furthering my education, I feel like I'm often pressed for time... but we'll see. :)

Heirloom Soap Works Review

These soaps are absolutely divine. The owner, Becky, was nice enough to let me choose my samples. Having never tried goat milk soaps before, I chose Cedar Trails and Oatmeal, Milk and Honey and I was really pleased! Her soaps are generously sized, hand-cut and really convey a rustic, homemade feeling. 
The soaps lather up nicely into creamy fragrant bubbles. The two scents I chose were more outdoorsy  in aroma. Oatmeal, Milk and Honey smelled like homemade comfort, while Cedar Trails reminded me of lathering up somewhere in the woods somewhere. Both soaps left  my skin soft and wonderfully clean and moisturized with a hint of scent. 
The best part? These soaps are made with natural oils and ingredients... so basically, no funny stuff!!
Heirlooms Soap Works definitely live up to their name.

Thank you, Becky!

Check out her artisan soaps here.

Red: It's the color of passion

Known as as a very emotionally-striking hue, red symbolizes many things from love and Valentine's Day, to blood and war. Phsyciologically, red stimilates the adrenaline glands and activates the senses.  This attention-getting color is strong-willed itself, expressing strong emotions to the viewer. It's even proven that wearing red improves confidence in the wearer and commands the presence of others. If you want to create a visually-exiciting, emotionally-striking soap, then red is your color. 

Red Cherry Bath Jello Soap from TemptationsBathNBody's Etsy Store

Raspberry Vanilla Shea & Cocoa Butter Soap from Simply Suds Etsy Store

Cinnamon Red Hots from CatherineFilippelli's Etsy Shop

Visual Catnip: Fresh Cut Soaps

These soaps from Fresh Cut Soaps are bright, glittery soaps and absolutely wonderful. One of my favorites is Hippie, for its contrast in colors and deep, crisp swirls.

Rainbow Rockstar is a sweet, cotton candy-like soap that's a visual, rainbow delight. Very psychedelic! It's a combo swirl of what looks like 6 different colors (yes I counted) Not an easy feat with cold process soap.  I love how they keep the texture of the swirls.

Herbal-  A beautifully, rustic-looking soap. The beauty in it, is it's simplicity (a great reminder sometimes in this fast-paced city).  Herbal reminds me of Provence and the French Countryside. Very shabby-chic!

Bewitching- because I had to include an awesome pink one. I love the glittery top.


All of Fresh Cut's soaps are truly wonderful and they really have a large variety of cold-processed soaps.  Check them out here.

Blue: the color of calm

According to color psychologists, blue is relaxing to most people and can inspire creativity. Besides it being one of my favorite colors, I've also read somewhere that blue can be an appetitte surpressant and is not the ideal color to paint your kitchen (lol).

Here are some products that are sure to stimulate the creative senses:

Celtic Blue Heart Dish

image from Artyard Studio's etsy store

Summer Breeze

image from lestreasure etsy shop

And lastly, because the Cuban in me couldn't resist... 

 

Havana Soap Bar

image from Epically Epic Soap etsy store

Inspired by a Havana perfumery, this unisex soap is scented with patchouli, sandalwood and a hint of tobacco leaf.  I can't get over it's beautiful Caribbean ocean color. Check out their other cool wares here.

JerseyCats-- Yay!

Most of you don't know, but my real job is actually graphic design/photo-retouching for a well-known magazine.  Just recently, I was contacted by a friend of a friend to custom design a logo for their organization and their site just went live a few days ago!  I'm super-excited!!!


JerseyCats is a Northern NJ-based animal society that focuses on rescuing cats/kittens and finding suitable homes for them.  A great cause!  If you are looking for a cat, or two, and are in the tri-state area, I encourage you to check out JerseyCats first. You can check out their site (and my logo) here.

And, if there is anyone out there who needs any kind of design or retouching work done, feel free to email me directly at:  janiceventura (at) gmail.com

:)

Visual Catnip: Soaptopia!!

This is a great, hand-made soap site!  Soaptopia is a California-based company that specializes in handmade, junk-free body products.  Made with essential and organic oils, these colorful soaps are not only good for you, but they visually stunning!  I also like that they come with ultra-cute names like Petalmint Patty, Staying A-lime, and Somewhere Over the Bathbow  Check out their wonderful, no-frills site here.

 

Blue Pearl Jam from Soaptopia's Website

Oatmeal and Clover Over and Over from Soaptopia's Website

 

 Petalmint Patty (CUTE name!)  from Soaptopia's Website

Gifts for Her: Tampon Case

image from http://www.uncommongoods.com/

As a woman, I find this to be very appealling especially since the building security likes to rifle through all our bags.  As an act of difiance (and sometimes laziness), the bottom of my bag is littered with stray, indiviudally-packaged tampons (hey if they are going to be nosey...).  My problem is trying to fish one of them out quickly.  These cases are not only stylish and discreet, but are also an organized way of traveling with your tampons.  Can I get an AMEN!

You can get them here at uncommongoods.com

Need a Pick-Me-Up?

Image from cheezburger.com/

I'm a huge, huge, HUGE World of Warcraft fan.  I'm more of a weekend-warrior when it comes to video games, since my full-time job, hobbies and other responsibilities tend to keep me busy during the week, but I do love some all-day, weekend sessions with my Nightelf Druid.

These energy drinks are AWESOME-looking!  Fashioned from the game's mana (magic) and health drinks, these high-caffinated babies are just the thing to keep you awake during late night dungeon-runs. Each tiny shot is the equivalent of two Red Bulls or four weak cups of coffee.  While that's too much caffeine for me, I'm sure there is someone out there who needs the pick-me-up after playing for 24 hours straight. Talk about EPIC drinks!

You can find Mana and Health potions at www.thinkgeek.com

For World of Warcraft info go to: www.worldofwarcraft.com

Visual Catnip: Pie Soaps

I'm always amazed to see soap makers take their creativity to new heights. These beautiful, and realistic-looking, dessert soaps are 100% guilt-free.  Indulgence without the calories, now that's what I'm talking about!
Below are Apple and Banana Creme pie:

All images from soapcafe.com

Crystals, Gems and Stones (Oh my!)

And yes, they are soaps!

I've actually tried figuring out this process with a large hunk of melt n' pour soap and failed miserably.  While I don't have pictures of my wanna-be, ruin soap gem (It looked like a wadded up of coal with iridescent mica), I do have some lovely exhibitions of what true soap gems should look like!

Images from amethystsoap's Etsy Store

The question that comes to my mind is "how is it done"?  The amethyst facets and the polished turquoise stones look amazingly realistic.  Though the technique may  forever remain a secret, you can purchase your own amethyst or turquoise soap here.

Kitty Cat Ring Holder

So excited! I just snagged this adorable silver cat ring holder from chickything's etsy store.  I love this store! Their theme is very Marie Antionette.  They also have some amazing-looking, and no doubt amazing-smelling, vintage-themed finds!

Check out their cake perfume that smells like butter cream and their"Let Them Eat Cake" room spray.  C'est delicieux et tres chic!

All images from chickything's etsy store

Couture Soaps

I love, love, LOVE Gianna Rose Atelier for their amazing soaps!  I think they are truly inspirational.  Fashioned in cute and sophisticated packaging, these french-milled, vegetable-based soaps are visually stunning and make beautiful gifts! 

Below are some of my favorites:

Le Chat Sophistique (The Sophisticated Cat) soap is gently scented with tulip and hyacinth fragrance-- makes the purrfect gift for the ailurophile in your life.

If you are not a cat-lover, they also feature dog-shaped soaps in several different breeds.  My favorite is the Maltese (if you can't tell by now, I'm total sucker for anything pink).

And finally, Robin's Egg Soap (my second favorite color).  These little guest soaps are perfect for the bathroom or in the kitchen!

All images are from giannarose.com

Simple Food (and other) Delights!

Just wanted to unveil my newest blog that reflects my other passion, FOOD!

Simple Food (and other) Delights is a blog about simple culinary pleasures for the gourmand on the go!
Check it out here:  www.simplefooddelights.blogspot.com.

Bomb Alarm Clock?

Image from thinkgeek.com

Imagine waking up to a ticking time bomb? Well, that's exactly what this "Danger Bomb Alarm Clock" does.  As if mornings weren't hard enough, this alarm clock starts its count down, a minute from the assigned wake-up time (yippie).  To diffuse it, you have to (groggily) unplug the right color wire that's indicated by the flashing LED light.  Talk about a nice dose of stress right before you start your day!

While this is seems like a great novelty gift, I could never use it.  Somehow I could see myself hurling this against the wall, but for those who have trouble waking up, or are craving some good ole MacGyver adventure, it's perfect way to start the day.  Makes a great "evil" gift! Get it at www.thinkgeek.com.

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A Cat Mouse?

Image from GeekStuff4U.com

What a cute little invention! This Neko (Japanese word for cat) Mouse is simply adorable. It's laser mouse is shaped like a furry cat paw complete with left and right click buttons. While I'm not sure if I can fully get accustomed to a furry mouse, I think it's a great novelty gift for the cat-fancier in your life!
It retails at $2,500.00 yen which is about $25.00 USD. Check it out here at GeekStuff4U.

I Heart Green Tea!

Green tea is truly a wonderful substance. As a tea, it's antioxidant properties that help ward off cancer and inflammation. Topically, it's been documented that it can rejuvinate skin cells, increase elasticity and reduce the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Lately, I've just been crazy about green tea (must be my Japanese kick)! Check out these wonderful artisan soaps made with REAL green tea:

Image from SimpleTraditions Etsy Site

This handmade soap from SimpleTraditions looks wonderfully scrubby. It's a jasmine green tea soap with actual green tea leaves added for extra exfoliation! Talk about heavenly! The bars retail at $5.00 and can be found here.

Image from Dugshop's Etsy Store

I can't get over how neat this soap design is! Made from (yup you guessed it) Green Tea. This lovely castile soap contains other skin-nourishing elements like colloidal oatmeal and white kaolin clay. An exclusive mold, created by the soap company, Dugshop, guarantees that you won't find anything else on the market like it. They also create custom-scented soaps! Check them out here on Etsy.