My soaps made the Front Page of Etsy!

Soap Sale to Celebrate 3000 Sales in My Etsy Shop

I have reached a fabulous milestone in my Etsy Shop, 3000 Sales!!!!!   So I decided to have a SALE to celebrate.  All regular soaps will be 20% OFF starting today and the Sale will end Wednesday April 4th at 11pm.  Don't miss out on this great SALE!

Facebook Giveaway

I am having a Giveaway on my Facebook page.  All you have to do to enter is like my Facebook page.  The winner will receive 2 of my newest soaps, Sea Salt Spa Bar.  This is a really fantastic soap.  It is made with an abundant amount of sea salt, which is full of healing minerals and Cambrian Blue Clay, which is know for it's detoxifying qualities. 

Just follow this link to my Facebook page.  https://www.facebook.com/sweetsallyssoaps/app_149194385149202    Click on the Enter Giveaway button and make sure to "Like" my Facebook Page.  Also if you share the Giveaway with your friends you have a second chance to win.  Giveaway ends on Apr 08 at 11:59 PM ED.

Win $25.00 Store Credit

It has been quite a while since my last blog post.  Life just gets busy!  I am back today with a great contest where you could win not only a $25.00 credit from my Etsy Shop, but also $25.00 credits from 8 other Etsy Shops!  Sounds great, right!   All you have to do is visit 10xNine check out the great shops, pick a favorite item,  post a comment and you are entered to win a $225.00 Shopping Spree.

Don't wait, you have until Monday 11/7/11 at 2pm EST to enter.  10xNine

Etsy Treasury Team's Featured Artist of the Week

This week's Etsy Treasury Team's featured artist is Fuchsia Bloom Studio.  Rebecca has a stunning array of necklaces, bracelets, and my favorite earrings!  I'm a bit of an earring junkie, just can't have too many earrings and at Fuchsia Bloom Studios there are so many beautiful earrings to choose from.  Rebecca makes her lovely jewelry from sterling silver, gold, gemstones, crystals,  and vintage components. 

Simplicity Earrings

Garnet Vintage Sterling Necklace

Olive Pearl and Sterling Earrings

Lavender Glass and Antiqued Sterling Earrings

 Apatite Rondelle Citrine Teardrop Necklace

One World One Heart Giveaway Winner!

Just a little late in announcing the winner of The One World One Heart Giveaway!   So with no further a due the winner is Dot from Speedie Beadie!   Congratulations Dot and thanks to everyone who entered.  It was another great year for this blogging event!

One World One Heart Giveaway

One Heart One World is an International blogging event I am participating in for the second year. Last year was great fun. The event was started by The Whimsical Bohemian in 2007 as a giveaway to bring bloggers around the globe together. So here is how the event works, I am hosting a giveaway and so are all the other bloggers participating in the event. Click HERE to see all the other participating blogs.   All winners will be announced on February 17th.

For my giveaway I am offering one of my 9 Half Bar Sampler Sets giving the winner a wonderful selection of handmade soaps to try.   The set includes 9 half bars of Sweet Sally's Soaps. The soaps included are Coconut Milk, Lime and Shea, Patchouli Vanilla, I Love Coffee, Clove, Charcoal and Tea Tree, Rosemary Mint, Patchouli Orange, and Dead Sea Mud. For detailed information about each soap see listings in my etsy shop. Sweet Sally's Soaps

I have been making soaps for the past 6 years.  Last year I gradually made the shift to using organic oils in my soaps.  Organic products have become a very important issue to me.  I try to feed my family as much organic food as I can afford and use organic products for skin care and cleaning.  

To enter my giveaway please leave a comment at this post before Midnight EDT February 16th  and make sure to leave contact information so if you win I can contact you.  The winner will be announced February 17th.  Good luck to everyone and have fun blogging around the blogging World!

Etsy Treasury Team's Featured Artist of the Week

This week's Etsy Treasury Team's featured artist is Kim of The Apple.  Kim makes an eclectic array of fun and colorful jewelry using traditional and nontraditional materials.    She makes rings, bracelets, necklaces, and my favorite earrings (can't have too many earrings) from precious metals, semi-precious stones, colorful epoxy beads, whimsical charms, and old typewriter keys.

Typewriter Key Tie Tacks

Translucent Grass Green Earrings

 Ruby Red Swarvoski Crystal Earrings

 Cocktail Ring

Deep Coral Flower Earrings

 Vintage Corona Typewriter Key Ring

Kim also has a second shop called Kim's Crafty Apple where she sells heirloom quilts, fabric art, fashion bags, and kids clothes.  So take some time and check out both of Kim's wonderful shops, your bound to find something you will fall in love with. 

Etsy Treasury Team Challenge

Every month the Etsy Treasury Team has a challenge to make a treasury on a specific topic.  January's challenge was to make  a treasury that shows your life story, designed to help team members get to know each other a little better.  so I thought it would be fun to post mine so my reader's could get to know me a little better.  Hope you enjoy it!

My Life

Esty Treasury Team's Featured Artist of the Week

This week I am featuring a very talented photographer from the Etsy Treasury Team, her shop name is Leapinggazelle.  Lauren's nature inspired photographs all have a soft, romantic, dreamy quality to them.  I have been a fan of Lauren's even before joining the Etsy Treasury Team. Her floral pictures have a rather unique quality, almost reminiscent of antique botanical illustrations.  I also really enjoy her sea shell series.  Please take some time to browse through Lauren's lovely shop!

  

Poppies

 

Columbine Flower

Morning Poppy

Nautilus Sea Shell

 Dark Sea Shell

Ocean Whispers

Back to Blogging and a Feature

Happy New Year to everyone!  I know I'm a little bit late with this but I have been on a blogging hiatus.  I had an amazing Christmas season and I hope everyone else did too.  But it left little time for blogging.  The beginning of the New Year is always a time to regroup, rethink, and reorganize for the coming year and that is just what I have been doing for the last couple of weeks.

Last September I joined a wonderful Etsy Team called the Etsy Treasury Team.  The main focus of the team is to create beautiful treasuries and help promote your fellow teammates.  I am really happy that I joined this team because all the team members are so supportive of one another plus I have learned quite a bit about promoting, making treasuries, and SEO. 

Since joining the team I wanted to start a weekly feature on my blog spotlighting a different member each week.  I thought the best person to start with would be Lynn of Midnight Coiler our team founder and leader.  Lynn's Etsy shop is filled with hand-carved gourds, coiled baskets, and an array of other amazing items all crafted from natural elements. She is not only a talented artist, she is also a fantastic team leader. 

Banana Gourds

Gourd Bowl

Egg Gourds

Turtle Box Gourd

Coiled Gourd Bowl Basket


I really enjoy Lynn's work and I hope you do too!

Black Friday Sale

I am having a BLACK FRIDAY to CYBER MONDAY SALE in my Etsy Shop!  Everything in my shop is 15% off for the duration of the SALE.  The sale will run from November 26th until November 29th. 

                                   Coffee Butter Sugar Scrub

                                 Lemongrass and Sage Handmade Soap

                                    Handmade Soap Gift Basket


Visit my Etsy shop at http://www.etsy.com/shop/SweetSallysSoaps

Exciting News From Sweet Sally's Soaps

After much contemplation, I finally decided to take the plunge and make some major changes in the production of Sweet Sally's Soaps.  I am now making all of my soaps with organic base oils.  The base oils for all of my soaps are olive oil, coconut oil, and palm oil. 

I have been using organic sustainable palm oil in my soaps since the beginning of this year.   My decision for switching to organic sustainable palm oil was based on environmental issues.  Late last year many articles about clear cutting methods used to harvest palm oil were brought to my attention.  I became aware of the devastating effects this had on the environment.  At first I thought to stop using palm oil in my soaps but the results were less than satisfactory.  So instead I found that one of my major suppliers offered organic sustainable palm oil.  My suppliers reputation is very good and their organic oils are certified and they also supply information on harvesting techniques of their sustainable palm oil. 

My decision to switch my other oils to organic was more of a health and value issue.  As we hear over and over lately that produce grown without pesticides is better for us it is also true for products we put on our skin.  I try to eat as much organic food as I can afford so I thought it only right that the products that I produce should be as organic as I could afford to make them.  So by making all of my base oils organic this makes my soaps roughly 80 to 85% organic depending on the soap.  I feel that my change not only offers a healthier product for my customers but also adds value to my soaps in that the customer is getting a better product for their money.


I have been working on this change for the last few months.  I wanted to make sure I had sold most of the soaps made with non organic oils before I started advertising my soaps made with organic oils.  I am now working on changing ingredients on labels and listings on my website and Etsy shop.


I am very excited about this change and I am hoping my existing customers and all of my new customer will be pleased with the new and improved Sweet Sally's Soaps!

September's Soaps of the Month Winner

The winner of September's Giveaway is Beth of BPR Designs.  Congratulations Beth!

September's Soaps of the Month Giveaway!

I missed having a Giveaway last month because I was just too busy!  I am trying to get back into the swing of things with blogging.  I actually have lots of new things to talk about but just haven't' had the time to write.  Anyway on to September's Soaps of the Month Giveaway!

The Soaps of the Month for September are Carrot and Lavender Swirl.  Lavender is a rather traditional soap where Carrot soap might not be so traditional.

The Carrot Soap is one of my very favorite soaps.  It is  made with nourishing carrot juice, packed full of Vitamin A, oatmeal, lavender, frankincense, and carrot seed essential oils.  It is very moisturizing and makes a wonderful face soap.

Carrot

Lavender Swirl is scented with everybody's favorite (or almost everybody) lavender essential oil and has a beautiful purple swirl. 

Lavender Swirl

OK, now you know what you can win this month, now here is what you need to do to enter!

PLEASE leave separate comments for each entry.  (This makes it so much easier for me to count up entires at the end of the contest.)

1. The first way to enter is to visit my etsy shop and tell me your favorite item, come back and leave a comment on my blog. SweetSallysSoaps Please make sure to leave a way I can contact you if you are the winner.  

2. The second way to enter is to follow my blog and leave a comment telling me you did so.  

3. The third way to enter is to become a fan of my Facebook Fan Page and leave a comment on my blog. 

4. The fourth way is to follow me on Twitter and tweet about my giveaway and leave a comment on my blog. 
5. The last way to enter is to make a purchase from my Etsy shop (during the duration of the contest) SweetSallysSoaps  and it will count as 10 entries.  After you make a purchase come back here and leave a comment telling you did so. 

The contest starts today and runs until Sept. 30th  Midnight EST.   Winner will be announced Friday October 1st.  The winner will be picked by a random number generator.  Good luck everybody!

August's Featured EtsyBlogger

I am sneaking August's featured EtsyBlogger in a wee bit late, but better late than never.  August's featured EtsyBlogger is Patch and she has three Etsy shops.  A jewelery shop    http://www.etsy.com/shop/patchfirstshop featuring  some very lovely Swarovski crystals and bridal jewelry.

Elegant Pearl Necklace

Patch's second shop features some wonderful vintage clothing.  http://www.etsy.com/shop/patchvintageshop

Vintage Blue Flora Linen Blouse

And her third shop sells crafting supplies.  http://www.etsy.com/shop/patchsupplyshop

Back to School

This month's EtsyBlogger's Blog Carnival is about back to school memories.  Yesterday my 16 year old son went back to public school for the first time since second grade.  I felt both anxious and melancholy all day.  I pulled my son out of public school at the end of second grade because he was having a great deal of difficulty learning to read and the school system really had no answers for his problem.  We home-schooled from 3rd grade until 8th and in 9th and 10th grades he did cyber school.  A mutual family decision was made that public high school would be the best for his last 2 years of school. 

I know my son was both nervous and excited when he left yesterday morning to go to school.  Fortunately I had a very busy day of work, otherwise I would have probably sat around worrying all day.  I sort of felt the same way a parent feels when they first send their kid to kindergarten.  When he finally got home in the afternoon I was relieved to hear he had a pretty good day. 

EtsyBloggers 3rd Anniversary Weekend SALE!

EtsyBloggers Team is having a big WEEKEND SALE!  The Team is celebrating it's Third Anniversary, so what better way to celebrate than having a great big SALE!  Over 50 team members are offering some kind of sale in their  ETSY shop.  Check out our team blog for details on the SALE. http://etsybloggers.blogspot.com

Here are just a few samples of shops participating.  

 Blackbird72

 Gilliauna

joeyandaleethea

My shop is offering FREE SHIPPING on anything in my shop! SweetSallysSoaps

July's Soaps of the Month Winner!

I'm a little bit late posting the winner for July's Giveaway, but better late than never!  The winner is Jenny B.  Congratulations Jenny!

I will be posting about about some exciting new changes at Sweet Sally's Soaps very soon.  I will also be listing a bunch of new products. 

July's Soaps of the Month Giveaway

Summer is such a busy time for me that I almost didn't have this month's Giveaway.  I sell my soaps at 3 farmer's markets a week all summer long plus craft shows and internet sales so my blogging time becomes very limited. 

July's Soaps of the Month are Mint Swirl and Green Tea. Since I have started this month;s give away so late the deadline for entering will be extended until August 6th. 

Mint Swirl is the perfect summer soap.  It is scented with peppermint and spearmint essential oils which leave your skin with a tingly cooling refreshing feeling and it also is quite beautiful! 

Mint Swirl

Green Tea  offers a more meditative scent and the amazing benefits of green tea.  It is made with brewed green tea and green tea extract and an abundance of grapeseed oil to make it super moisturizing. 

Green Tea


OK, now you know what you can win this month, now here is what you need to do to enter!

PLEASE leave separate comments for each entry.  (This makes it so much easier for me to count up entires at the end of the contest.)

1. The first way to enter is to visit my etsy shop and tell me your favorite item, come back and leave a comment on my blog. SweetSallysSoaps Please make sure to leave a way I can contact you if you are the winner.  

2. The second way to enter is to follow my blog and leave a comment telling me you did so.  

3. The third way to enter is to become a fan of my Facebook Fan Page and leave a comment on my blog. 

4. The fourth way is to follow me on Twitter and tweet about my giveaway and leave a comment on my blog. 
5. I decided to add one more way to enter this month.  If you make a purchase from my Etsy shop (during the duration of the contest) SweetSallysSoaps it will count as 10 entries.  After you make a purchase come back here and leave a comment telling you did so. 

The contest starts today and runs until August 6th Midnight EST.   Winner will be announced Saturday August 7th.  The winner will be picked by a random number generator.  Good luck everybody!