Thursday, March 31, 2011

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Raw Milk

We have Raw Milk from Butter Patch Farms and Free Range Eggs.

New in store

Here are two of the new "Soap by the Slice" fragrances. Amber Ginger and Strawberry.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Be warned...this is a Rant

Back in June I found that my store website had been hacked. Didn't put anything in to steal credit card info or monitor emails. Just a bunch of annoying pop-ups and links to sex sites. Well to be on the safe side, I decided to start fresh. I Started with a new up to date OS (operating system) for the site. CRE Loaded, a great premium OS. Great shopping cart and easy one page check-out. Updated my template to the new OS. And finally after multiple and multiple testings, trying this and that. Tweaking everything I could find to tweak. Then... tweaking stuff I didn't need to tweak and testing some more. Tweaking and testing, testing and tweaking. You get the point. I loaded it with products. Pat was a happy man. It went LIVE this past week. Two and a half months of work. I was tickled.
Sunday I am at home sick, trying to enjoy some soup I couldn't taste and I get a message from a fellow twitter er that my index page (front page on site) was hijacked. Some yahoo that is unhappy with our government and President posted a picture of the Iranian president on my front page with a caption. WTF is that! What the hell is going on! I get hacked, then hijack my page. I must be on a list to mess with or something. The site is clean again, thanks to backups. New security measures are in place. This makes me want to exercise some of the skills I learned 20 years ago when I was in the military. With extreme discretion. But I digress. Looking on the web, I see lots of people and businesses are having there sites hit. All I can hope for is to be left alone. hhhmmmm I feel better now.

Monday, July 6, 2009

27 other uses for handmade soap, by Patricia Mills, The Soap Guru

I found this very useful infomation by The Soapguru, here is a link to her site

All natural handmade soap is not just great for washing your body. Here are 27 other uses for your wonderful bar. I have tried many myself, but not all. Feel free to share other uses you have come across.

1. Prevent soot build-up on your cast iron camping pots/pans. Rub a bar of soap over the bottom before cooking over open fire.

2. Use as a fabric marker when sewing. It will wash right out.

3. Deoderize your car, luggage and drawers. Just put peices of soap in a mesh bag and store/hang to keep things smelling fresh.

4. Get stuck zippers moving again. Rub a bar of soap over the offending zipper to lubricate it.

5. Detect leaks. Make a spray be melting 1 cup shredded soap into 1 cup of water. Spray the solution onto gas pipes, tires, air beds, etc…if you see bubbles form, you found your leak.

6. Remove a broken light bulb. Shove the corner of your soap into the base and twist.

7. As a plant spray to get rid of or ward off insects: 1 cup shredded soap melted into 2 cups of water. Spray all over and let dry.

8. To remove wall paper and/or it’s glue make a solution soap 1 cup shredded soap in 1 cup water. Sponge over the area.

9. To get old drawers moving, rub over the metal runners.

10. To make metal move through wood easier, lubricate screws by driving them into a bar of soap first, or rub a saw blade with soap.

11. Easy pun cushion. Cover a bar of soap in fabric. The pins will be lubricated by the soap as well, preventing snags.

12. Clean dirty window sills by running the wet edge of a bar along them and wipe with damp cloth.

13. Snap siding into place easier by lubricating the zip tool with soap solution.

14. Repell rabbits and deer from garden. Make sachets with strong smelling soap: like peppermint, place around garden.

15. Pre-treat stains. Wet area and rub soap into it before laundering.

16. Keep your finger nails clean when gardening. Scrape your nails over a bar of soap before digging in the dirt. It will keep the dirt out and make washing up after easier.

17. Relieve the itch of a bug bite. Rub a wet bar of soap over the bite and let dry.

18. Use as a shave lotion. Make a solution of 1 part grated soap melted into 1 part water.

19. Rid your house of fleas. Put a solution of 2 parts shredded soap melted into 1 part water into a dish. Place the dish under a lamp over night. The light will attract the fleas and they will drown in the soap.

20. Make your own foaming sponges. Shove soap slivers into the holes.

21. Use as a handwash for your delicates.

22. Make a great all natural pet shampoo. Melt 1 cup shredded soap into 1 cup of water.

23. Make your own fruit and veggie wash. Melt 1/4 cup shredded soap into 2 cups water and add 1 tablespoon of vinegar. Wash and rinse well.

24. For a great window cleaner use the above solution in a spray bottle.

25. Clean your jewelry by soaking in a solution of 1/2 cup shredded soap melted into 1 cup water. Gently scrub with an old tooth brush and rinse.

26. As a mild antisceptic wash: wash scrapes with soap. As an antisceptic paste, make a gel by soaking 1/4 cup shredded soap in 1 tablespoon water until gel-like. Add enough white sugar to make a paste. Put a little on a splinter or boil, cover with gauze.

27. To ward off poison ivy rash make a solution of 1 cup shredded soap in 1/2 cup water. Apply over exposed skin that may come into contact with the plants. It will act as a barrier to the rash causing oils.

By: Patricia Mills, The Soap Guru

Monday, June 29, 2009

Organic Bug Killer




I have been trying to grow a Stevia plant. Its in a little pot, and doing ....mmmm ok. It shot up to about two feet very quickly. I did some massive pruning to get it to bush out. Its starting to sprout on the sides. (Thats what those ugly black line are showing) Now I have a pest. The Egg Lady told me they are called Leaf Hoppers. Little light green, grass hopper looking things, about inch long. I have been manualy killing them, the pinch and squeeze method. Very effective at killing them, but others follow. They also like to have a snack on my smudge sticks and other dried goodies I have in the store. I can't put anything on the dried items in store because...I dont want to contaminate them. But the Stevia plant is up for experimentation. I found some "Organic" bug killer. Made with Thyme Oil, Clove Oil, Seasame Oil, Water, Soybean Oil, Wintergreen Oil and Lecithin. Brand name is Green Light, Home and Garden Spray. With these ingredients it sounds like a "cool pick-me-up" oil blend that I could use for a massage. Have to see if it gives the stevia a spicy-bite taste. So far...no new bugs.