Saturday, December 29, 2012
Fingerless gloves
Well, I was going to post that we finally have a listing for knitted fingerless gloves at our Etsy shop... but someone bought them! When I relist them, I'll update. Keep in mind that a listing for fingerless gloves with a scalloped edge will also be coming soon! :-)
Friday, December 14, 2012
Soaping101's Champagne Bubbles Column Pour technique
I thought I'd share Soaping101's video on the Champagne Bubbles column pour- I thought it looked really easy and I already have an idea to use it for our next project! I hope any soapers out there who see this will try it too!
Enjoy!
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Friday, December 7, 2012
New item... Chocolate Peppermint Lip Balm! And a stock update
I'm happy to say that Chocolate Peppermint Lip Balm has finally arrived in the shop! In addition to our usual mix of shea butter and apricot kernel oil, this lip balm also has cocoa butter and REAL Ghirardelli chocolate, as well as a healthy dose of Peppermint Oil. We hope you'll try some!
The "Earl Grey with a Slice" Lip Balm samplers are also back in stock... but who knows for how long? Half of them were snapped up by the end of the first day they were back! (Not that we're complaining! *grin*)
We also have two soaps to add to the shop- Almond, and Red Clover Tea. As soon as we get some good photos (cloudy day) they'll be added as well.
Take care, everybody! :-)
The "Earl Grey with a Slice" Lip Balm samplers are also back in stock... but who knows for how long? Half of them were snapped up by the end of the first day they were back! (Not that we're complaining! *grin*)
We also have two soaps to add to the shop- Almond, and Red Clover Tea. As soon as we get some good photos (cloudy day) they'll be added as well.
Take care, everybody! :-)
Friday, November 2, 2012
New items coming soon...
I spent the day perfecting Mint Chocolate lip balm (with real Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate!) and it's awesome, with the perfect minty kick. Mom says it smells just like Junior Mints. :-) They'll be in the shop soon, and I'll be sure to make plenty of samplers when I get the mini tubes next week.
I also worked on a solid perfume stick with light and vitamin-rich oils- the prototype is fragranced with Gardenia and it smells SO good. The fragrance seems to stick around a lot longer than spray perfume, and it just takes a small swipe to apply. Very convenient! The next fragrance will probably be Red Clover Tea- we've got some family members and friends who just can't get enough of it, but it's such a light fragrance that it can get lost on the skin. We're hoping that in a perfumed oil form it will have more staying power. I also shouldn't forget the solid colognes we'll be making for the gentlemen! We'll update when they're out of the experimentation stage and in the shop. :-)
I also worked on a solid perfume stick with light and vitamin-rich oils- the prototype is fragranced with Gardenia and it smells SO good. The fragrance seems to stick around a lot longer than spray perfume, and it just takes a small swipe to apply. Very convenient! The next fragrance will probably be Red Clover Tea- we've got some family members and friends who just can't get enough of it, but it's such a light fragrance that it can get lost on the skin. We're hoping that in a perfumed oil form it will have more staying power. I also shouldn't forget the solid colognes we'll be making for the gentlemen! We'll update when they're out of the experimentation stage and in the shop. :-)
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
I almost forgot to mention- you can now follow us on twitter: @CanfieldCrafts
Don't forget that we have a Facebook page as well- pictures of new items have already been posted there, so feel free to check it out.
Don't forget that we have a Facebook page as well- pictures of new items have already been posted there, so feel free to check it out.
More Sample sizes coming soon!
The "Earl Grey with a Slice" lip balm samplers have all but vanished, and there are a few more kinds that are completely gone; but don't worry! By next week we will have more tubes in stock and we're going to be working on getting larger numbers of samples in stock, including "Sampler Boxes" of lotion, soap, and fragrance samples. We'll let you know when we have more news! :-)
Friday, October 19, 2012
Items out of stock...
Just a quick note to let you know that the
Bergamot Lemongrass Samplers are out of stock (they found homes in
Georgia and Singapore) and the Pure Vanilla and Cucumber Melon Lip Balms
are out of stock (they found a home in Brazil).
I'll update as soon as they're in stock again! :-)
I'll update as soon as they're in stock again! :-)
Monday, October 15, 2012
Shop update
There have been a bunch of new items added at the shop, and I wanted to give you the rundown here. Just a quick note- if you do decide to add our shop to your favorites, or to "like" us on
Facebook, we'd like to send you a "thank you" in the form of 10% off
your first order! Send us a note and we'll send you the coupon code!
Now for the new additions:
Aromatherapy Balms: Basil (also comes in a sampler size), Lavender & Ylang Ylang (also comes in a sampler size), and Bergamot Lemongrass (also comes in a sampler size, but they flew out of stock very quickly!)
Lip Balms: Cucumber Melon (in Oval, Black, Clear and Sampler tubes), Earl Grey with a Slice (in Oval, Black, Clear and Sampler tubes), and Pure Vanilla (in Oval, Black, Clear and Sampler tubes).
 |
| Tea. Earl Grey. Hot. "Earl Grey with a Slice" lip balm! |
Now for the new additions:
Aromatherapy Balms: Basil (also comes in a sampler size), Lavender & Ylang Ylang (also comes in a sampler size), and Bergamot Lemongrass (also comes in a sampler size, but they flew out of stock very quickly!)
Lip Balms: Cucumber Melon (in Oval, Black, Clear and Sampler tubes), Earl Grey with a Slice (in Oval, Black, Clear and Sampler tubes), and Pure Vanilla (in Oval, Black, Clear and Sampler tubes).
Monday, October 1, 2012
Waterproof Paper Comparison - Part 2 - OnlineLabels.com
Part 2 - OnlineLabels.com's Matte Weatherproof paper
The biggest "pro" for me was that the colors were dead-on exactly as they looked in Photoshop. Green, Red, Tan. Like I said, I can do color tests all day, but to have them come out right the first try is really nice too! :-) The price for buying these in bulk would also be cheaper than BB's paper- not by much, but it's a consideration when you're starting out.
Now, unfortunately, several "cons"... As you can see, compared to the crispness of the text from BrambleBerry.com's paper, this text looks cool but rather blob-like. It made the small text almost impossible to read (even though I knew what all of it said).
On top of that- see the little nicks and scratches on the label? Those are not intentional... the ink on the paper doesn't soak in, but sits on top. It doesn't take much of a bump to take off the layer of ink and leaves behind a bright shiny white layer beneath. These two sticks in the picture above look pretty abused, but really they've just been sitting in a baggie with other sticks... objects that have no pointy bits shouldn't scratch each other up that bad! Can you imagine how horrible they'd look after a day's jostling in a pocket or purse? Ouch! And worst of all... when you want to take a label up to reposition it a bit- which will happen with pretty much every label- the ink just clumps where it was bent backward and falls off. When this happened I actually yelled "Noooooooo!" like when Vader told Luke he was his father...
I went back and checked to see if I had gotten the right paper for our printer, and indeed I had. It's disappointing that it can look SO good but perform rather badly. It kind of made me wonder if I had gotten paper for the wrong purpose- maybe these labels were supposed to be for something more temporary or stationary (like a bottle that would stay in the shower or cupboard for the most part)?
Well, that's a review of the two kinds of paper I've tried so far! I hope if someone out there finds a brand of label paper they like that they'll share! :-)
The biggest "pro" for me was that the colors were dead-on exactly as they looked in Photoshop. Green, Red, Tan. Like I said, I can do color tests all day, but to have them come out right the first try is really nice too! :-) The price for buying these in bulk would also be cheaper than BB's paper- not by much, but it's a consideration when you're starting out.
Now, unfortunately, several "cons"... As you can see, compared to the crispness of the text from BrambleBerry.com's paper, this text looks cool but rather blob-like. It made the small text almost impossible to read (even though I knew what all of it said).
On top of that- see the little nicks and scratches on the label? Those are not intentional... the ink on the paper doesn't soak in, but sits on top. It doesn't take much of a bump to take off the layer of ink and leaves behind a bright shiny white layer beneath. These two sticks in the picture above look pretty abused, but really they've just been sitting in a baggie with other sticks... objects that have no pointy bits shouldn't scratch each other up that bad! Can you imagine how horrible they'd look after a day's jostling in a pocket or purse? Ouch! And worst of all... when you want to take a label up to reposition it a bit- which will happen with pretty much every label- the ink just clumps where it was bent backward and falls off. When this happened I actually yelled "Noooooooo!" like when Vader told Luke he was his father...
I went back and checked to see if I had gotten the right paper for our printer, and indeed I had. It's disappointing that it can look SO good but perform rather badly. It kind of made me wonder if I had gotten paper for the wrong purpose- maybe these labels were supposed to be for something more temporary or stationary (like a bottle that would stay in the shower or cupboard for the most part)?
Well, that's a review of the two kinds of paper I've tried so far! I hope if someone out there finds a brand of label paper they like that they'll share! :-)
Waterproof Paper Comparison - Part 1 - Bramble Berry
I wanted to show you a comparison between two waterproof labels- one from BrambleBerry.com, and one from OnlineLabels.com. They each had pros and cons, so if you're thinking of making the change from plain paper labels to waterproof hopefully this will be helpful. :-)
 |
| The labels side by side. On the left, BrambleBerry.com, on the right, OnlineLabels.com |
The cons are small but worth mentioning- First, the colors aren't true from what they looked like in Photoshop. The two different label styles above are exactly the same colors, believe it or not! It may have to do with the paper itself (maybe how it makes the ink waterproof) or the way the colors translate from the way they look on my monitor to the paper itself ("PEBKAC", they call it. Always something to consider when doing graphic design!).
Does it make the labels look bad? No- when someone buys your product they won't know the color you were aiming for, so that's okay. You'll look at your labels with your critical graphic designer/printer eye, but everyone else will just think they're beautiful. :-)
Would it prevent me from buying these labels? No- I can color test all day if need be to get the colors the way I want them... (and I do that anyway!) and adding a few minutes for print testing is no problem. I learned that it's important to do print tests on the paper you're actually going to use for the labels- these labels were color true to what I wanted when I printed them on regular printer paper, back in the day when I had one sample label sheet and wanted to save it. (Tip: I always have strips of paper left over from sheets of labels- if you stick them well to a plain sheet of paper they can be used for color tests, or printed on to make nice looking "tamper evident" strips for lotions and scrubs, etc. Just make sure you orient them from top-to-bottom rather than side to side... I don't want to be responsible for a major paper jam!)
Second, (which is actually... mostly a "pro") the paper is very thick- not card-stock thick, but noticeably thicker than plain paper, so if your label ends on the curve of a product it'll take a bit of clear packing tape or a dot of glue to make it stick down. If you don't want to deal with sticking the ends down, just make them large enough so the ends overlap slightly. 5 minute fix. :-) Another "pro" worth mentioning is that if your labels' ends slightly overlap, like on a tube of Lip Balm, that paper will be stuck FOREVER. Trust me. After noticing a broken-brain typo on a mini lip balm label I had to remove a couple and they did not go without a fight.
Stay tuned for part two... OnlineLabels.com's Weatherproof paper!
Thursday, September 27, 2012
Cucumber [Canteloupe? Honeydew? Watermelon?]
Just finished pouring 18 tubes of Cucumber Melon lip balm (plus samplers) and our kitchen smells delicious! I was wondering though- what kind of melon in Cucumber Melon is it supposed to be? I've tasted ones that were distinctly Honeydewish- this one tastes slightly Watermelonish. It's good. (I wonder if it depends on the supplier you buy from...)
Now I've just got to make labels, photograph them, and get them on the site...
Now I've just got to make labels, photograph them, and get them on the site...
Tuesday, September 25, 2012
Blog Post Batch - Conditioner
Conditioner has been the most daunting craft yet for us- with soap, any tried-and-true recipe will give you great results, and you can easily learn the qualities of the oils and what they will do for you. Lotionmaking is a snap once you learn a few basic principles. And you can add as many things as you like to either without worrying too much about messing them up. But conditioner... we really learned how to formulate with conditioner! Each person's hair is so different, and needs different things according to their habits and location (a person who dyes their hair and lives in Florida will need a very different conditioner from someone who lives in New York and doesn't dye, etc.) and even the season.
(Aside: It really surprises me that there is such a huge market for high-quality personalized perfumes, but nothing of the kind for conditioner! I guess it's because with conditioner, it takes a couple of tries to get the formula just right. And in this world where people have little time for experimenting with something over and over, it is all too easy to lose a customer over something not working out the first try. Sad!)
That said, I would definitely recommend making your own conditioner. When you buy supplies in a larger quantity you end up with bottles of shampoo that cost a fraction of store-bought, even if it takes a bit of "that batch was nothing like I though it would be, back to the drawing board" experimentation expense up-front to get there. You'll save money in the long run, and better still, you will know exactly what you're using down to the last ingredient.
Here is a collection of Susan Barclay-Nichols' Point of Interest blog posts that helped demystify the process and get us started- it took us three tries to get a recipe that wowed us, but I am happy to report that we won't be buying conditioner from the store ever again.
Conditioner: What's That Then?
Let's Make Conditioner!
A simple beginning recipe
What's the difference on my hair between BTMS-25 and BTMS-50?
You made conditioner! Bragging and questions! (newbie success stories)
Biggest surprise of the process: I found that it's easy to say "I have normal hair" but that's just what I thought before I made a conditioner for myself, formulated for normal (not greasy, not dry) hair, and ended up with haystack hair- I needed something really moisturizing, as it turned out! Never would have guessed!
Have fun experimenting!
(Aside: It really surprises me that there is such a huge market for high-quality personalized perfumes, but nothing of the kind for conditioner! I guess it's because with conditioner, it takes a couple of tries to get the formula just right. And in this world where people have little time for experimenting with something over and over, it is all too easy to lose a customer over something not working out the first try. Sad!)
That said, I would definitely recommend making your own conditioner. When you buy supplies in a larger quantity you end up with bottles of shampoo that cost a fraction of store-bought, even if it takes a bit of "that batch was nothing like I though it would be, back to the drawing board" experimentation expense up-front to get there. You'll save money in the long run, and better still, you will know exactly what you're using down to the last ingredient.
Here is a collection of Susan Barclay-Nichols' Point of Interest blog posts that helped demystify the process and get us started- it took us three tries to get a recipe that wowed us, but I am happy to report that we won't be buying conditioner from the store ever again.
Conditioner: What's That Then?
Let's Make Conditioner!
A simple beginning recipe
What's the difference on my hair between BTMS-25 and BTMS-50?
You made conditioner! Bragging and questions! (newbie success stories)
Biggest surprise of the process: I found that it's easy to say "I have normal hair" but that's just what I thought before I made a conditioner for myself, formulated for normal (not greasy, not dry) hair, and ended up with haystack hair- I needed something really moisturizing, as it turned out! Never would have guessed!
Have fun experimenting!
Friday, September 21, 2012
Finally fixed the background...
...thanks to Cute and Cool! (found it at the old site, http://itkupilli-cutencool.blogspot.com/)
It was just one simple line of code after the address of my bg image:
...png"); background-position: center;
That easy! But it took me this long to find it! In any case, now the blog will be viewable on widescreen and squarish monitors without scrunching the background. :-)
It was just one simple line of code after the address of my bg image:
...png"); background-position: center;
That easy! But it took me this long to find it! In any case, now the blog will be viewable on widescreen and squarish monitors without scrunching the background. :-)
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Etsy reshuffle!
Spent today rearranging our Etsy page to sort our soaps not only by shape, but also by fragrance. Check it out! :-) Lip balms are coming soon, as I am now the proud owner of 300 tubes... I recently had the chance to compare two different types of labels, and will let you know what I thought of both, probably tomorrow.
The reshuffle got me thinking- has anyone out there noticed what works best for them as far as how they organize their Etsy listings or webpage? I'd love any ideas!
The reshuffle got me thinking- has anyone out there noticed what works best for them as far as how they organize their Etsy listings or webpage? I'd love any ideas!
Thursday, September 6, 2012
We finally joined Facebook, so if that's your social network site of choice please stop by! :-)
Saturday, August 4, 2012
Scents For Cents listing updated
Just finished updating our Esty Scent Sample listing with all the new fragrances we've added:
- Cedar and Saffron - Cedar combined with smoky scents of patchouli, sandalwood and vetiver, with Eastern spices to give it a kick.
- Earth - Smells like clean, rich, fresh-tilled soil straight from the garden center. (Can you have clean dirt?) It has also been said that this smells like the earth after a good rain.
- Eucalyptus Spearmint - Very fresh and energizing! Very true to the real Eucalyptus and Spearmint essential oils, with nothing added.
- Fresh Cut Grass - Smells like fresh cut and watered grass in spring. (It makes us think of spring because it has a hint more sweetness than some Grass fragrances.)
- Kentish Rain - A rainy, salty, "green" fragrance with added notes of muguet lily, rose and jasmine, and a touch of violet. This fragrance definitely makes you think of rain by the ocean!
- Lettuce - Crisp, clean, and very green, like a well-tended bed of romaine or iceberg lettuce. No, you won't smell like a salad- this is a very refreshing unisex fragrance.
- Mocha - A deep rich combination of coffee and chocolate. Not as sweet as some mocha blends.
- Spiced Mahogany - A deep, rich, "woody" scent featuring Patchouli, Cedarwood, and Oakmoss. Spicy notes of Cardamom, Vanilla Bourbon and allspice round out this fragrance.
- Sweet Pea - Very floral and sweet. Just like the real thing!
- Tangerine Tulip - This fragrance is popular in shampoos and conditioners because it is a fruity floral with more depth than sweetness. The tangerine notes are tart, just like the real thing, and the Tulip notes are rich. A very well-balanced fragrance.
- Wasabi - Sweet when you first smell it, this scent then takes on a clean and spicy fragrance. It’s completely unique, with notes of eucalyptus, ginger, peppermint, and thyme. Everyone who has smelled this so far has said “Wait, let me smell that again!” or “What a fun fragrance! It has a definite kick to it!”
- Woodberry - Woodberry has notes of fresh air, spicy blondewood, moss and mixed berries. A winter forest scent *without* any pine or evergreen notes.
I also got smart and put spaces in between the sections of fragrances in alphabetical order. I hope that makes it easier to navigate around the listing and see what you've already tried. :-)
COMING SOON: A new listing with all of our essential oils available to sample on test strips!
- Cedar and Saffron - Cedar combined with smoky scents of patchouli, sandalwood and vetiver, with Eastern spices to give it a kick.
- Earth - Smells like clean, rich, fresh-tilled soil straight from the garden center. (Can you have clean dirt?) It has also been said that this smells like the earth after a good rain.
- Eucalyptus Spearmint - Very fresh and energizing! Very true to the real Eucalyptus and Spearmint essential oils, with nothing added.
- Fresh Cut Grass - Smells like fresh cut and watered grass in spring. (It makes us think of spring because it has a hint more sweetness than some Grass fragrances.)
- Kentish Rain - A rainy, salty, "green" fragrance with added notes of muguet lily, rose and jasmine, and a touch of violet. This fragrance definitely makes you think of rain by the ocean!
- Lettuce - Crisp, clean, and very green, like a well-tended bed of romaine or iceberg lettuce. No, you won't smell like a salad- this is a very refreshing unisex fragrance.
- Mocha - A deep rich combination of coffee and chocolate. Not as sweet as some mocha blends.
- Spiced Mahogany - A deep, rich, "woody" scent featuring Patchouli, Cedarwood, and Oakmoss. Spicy notes of Cardamom, Vanilla Bourbon and allspice round out this fragrance.
- Sweet Pea - Very floral and sweet. Just like the real thing!
- Tangerine Tulip - This fragrance is popular in shampoos and conditioners because it is a fruity floral with more depth than sweetness. The tangerine notes are tart, just like the real thing, and the Tulip notes are rich. A very well-balanced fragrance.
- Wasabi - Sweet when you first smell it, this scent then takes on a clean and spicy fragrance. It’s completely unique, with notes of eucalyptus, ginger, peppermint, and thyme. Everyone who has smelled this so far has said “Wait, let me smell that again!” or “What a fun fragrance! It has a definite kick to it!”
- Woodberry - Woodberry has notes of fresh air, spicy blondewood, moss and mixed berries. A winter forest scent *without* any pine or evergreen notes.
I also got smart and put spaces in between the sections of fragrances in alphabetical order. I hope that makes it easier to navigate around the listing and see what you've already tried. :-)
COMING SOON: A new listing with all of our essential oils available to sample on test strips!
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
What to do if Etsy Mini doesn't display on your blog
I figured out a work around for Etsy Mini that Adblock won't
block! Here's what you do:
1. Open the Etsy Mini javascript. It's the web address inside the quotes after scr= in the first <script...> element.
* If you're displaying items from your shop, go here: www.etsy.com/assets/js/etsy_mini_shop.js
* If you're displaying items from your favorites, go here: www.etsy.com/etsy_mini.js
2. Copy EVERYTHING you see.
3. Paste what you copied in the Etsy Mini code inside the first set of <script> </script> tags.
4. Delete the src='...' property from the first <script...> tag.(Your opening tag should be <script type='text/javascript'> )
5. Save your widget or webpage or whatever.
This *should* work. I did it on my blog, turned adblock back on, and everything was still displayed. Now, if Etsy ever makes changes to the Etsy Mini widget, you'll need to re-do this to get your widget to work like the new one. But this should get you around that pesky adblock issue until something else is done about it.
Thank you again, Sarah!
1. Open the Etsy Mini javascript. It's the web address inside the quotes after scr= in the first <script...> element.
* If you're displaying items from your shop, go here: www.etsy.com/assets/js/etsy_mini_shop.js
* If you're displaying items from your favorites, go here: www.etsy.com/etsy_mini.js
2. Copy EVERYTHING you see.
3. Paste what you copied in the Etsy Mini code inside the first set of <script> </script> tags.
4. Delete the src='...' property from the first <script...> tag.(Your opening tag should be <script type='text/javascript'> )
5. Save your widget or webpage or whatever.
This *should* work. I did it on my blog, turned adblock back on, and everything was still displayed. Now, if Etsy ever makes changes to the Etsy Mini widget, you'll need to re-do this to get your widget to work like the new one. But this should get you around that pesky adblock issue until something else is done about it.
Thank you again, Sarah!
Monday, June 11, 2012
Mr. Rogers remixed- "The Garden of Your Mind"
This video has gone viral on YouTube, and it's easy to see why! Enjoy!
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Your last chance to get a daisy that doesn't smell at all like a daisy!
I noticed that, although people go crazy over the daisy soaps in person, the poor guys have been getting kind of a non-response on Etsy. I had been planning to post a link to the daisies in the hopes that they'd get a bit of love... but in the past 24 hours three more people came along, fell in love with them, and bought all but one up!
So here's a link to one lone daisy-shaped bar of Red Clover Tea scented yogurt soap. It's the last one in stock (until I make more...)!
So here's a link to one lone daisy-shaped bar of Red Clover Tea scented yogurt soap. It's the last one in stock (until I make more...)!
Monday, January 23, 2012
Scent samples a hit!
I just wanted to stop in to say how happy I am that everyone is so pleased with our scent sample offer! We've had great responses from everyone who has tried it in person and from our Etsy page. So, here's a HUGE "thank you" to everyone who has tried them and given us feedback!
If you're thinking of trying a set of 10, please remember that we also recalculate the shipping for every order to make sure our estimate is correct. So if you order a set of scent samples with a soap or lotion you'll end up paying less than the cost of a stamp for the scent samples.
Remember, too, that if you decide you like one of the scents you order, the first time you order an 8 oz lotion from our shop made with that scent you will receive a discount equal to the amount you paid for the 10 scent strips. If you're in the US, that will be 65 cents off the price! Here is a link to the 8 oz. lotion.
If you're thinking of trying a set of 10, please remember that we also recalculate the shipping for every order to make sure our estimate is correct. So if you order a set of scent samples with a soap or lotion you'll end up paying less than the cost of a stamp for the scent samples.
Remember, too, that if you decide you like one of the scents you order, the first time you order an 8 oz lotion from our shop made with that scent you will receive a discount equal to the amount you paid for the 10 scent strips. If you're in the US, that will be 65 cents off the price! Here is a link to the 8 oz. lotion.
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