This week's shows

I have so many antique postcards for Halloween and I didn't get to post any of them. And I was so buried in work and a hacking cold that I didn't even get around to posting a picture or a simple holiday greeting. Boooo. Sorry I'm late. Hope you all had a fun time celebrating. I pretty much missed it.

I'm still down with a bad cold and it's been a tough weekend to work. Much to my dismay (because I really can't afford to lose the money) I had to cancel one of the 4 shows I was planning on doing this week.

I will NOT be at Meridian Valley Country Club's show on Monday and Tuesday. I'm at half capacity the last few days, and couldn't pull enough together to do all four shows I had scheduled for this week, I couldn't possibly be ready to set up two shows tomorrow. So I needed to pull out of one at the last minute. I'M disappointed, I know THEY are disappointed, and I hope I'm not disappointing too many folks in Kent . . . but I know there will be some. I'm truly sorry.

Here's where I WILL be this week:

Starving Housewives at Echo Falls Country Club
20414 - 121st Ave SE
Snohomish, WA (Maltby)

Dates: Tuesday through Saturday, November 4 - 8
Hours: Tues-Fri 10am-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm

This is a boutique style show with a central cashier. Wonderful handcrafts and charming antiques. Look for one-of-a-kind holiday gifts!

Link: Starving Housewives

Red Ribbons & Reindeer at
The Hollywood Schoolhouse
14810 NE 145th St
Woodinville, WA

Dates: Wednesday through Saturday, November 5 - 8, 2008
Hours: Wed 3pm - 8pm, Thur-Fri 10am-8pm, Sat 10am-6pm

This is a boutique style show with a central cashier - a long standing tradition for Christmas shoppers. This is the 20th anniversary of this show!

Eastlake High School PTSA Holiday Bazaar

Eastlake High School, cafeteria
400 - 228th Ave NE
Sammamish, WA

Date: Saturday, Nov 8, 2008
Time: 9am-4:00pm

Artists are present at their own displays. Moms and kids are all volunteers and they put on a great holiday gift show each year! All of the participating artists donates a gift basket of their creative talents and a raffle is held all day long, with several winners every hour. Your chances of winning are pretty darn good, and an excellent way to pick up a freebie holiday treat!

Sniffles

I've got the flu. Or a cold. I can't tell the difference. They used to be 2 different illnesses when I was a kid. Flu you had stomach upset and threw up a lot. Cold was runny nose and fever. Now they are both snot. So who knows. It's just bad.

The shop is poking along, a bit slow. And the rest of my fall show prep and newsletter and whatnot is threatening to drown me. That's probably why I got sick. It's all so overwhelming.

But I'm taking it one day at a time and just doing what I can. Today I'm back at the shop all day. Patricia is there all day tomorrow with samples of stuff - her jams, caramels, lavender lemonade. And then it's over. Thursday (tomorrow) is the final day of the shop. So get it while it's hot.

We'll open the shop again Thanksgiving week, and be there through the first week of December. So if that's a better time, mark the calendar. Gotta run, gotta stock up on Kleenex and get going. I'm not used to having a schedule - and I don't want to be late to open.

Shop. Around the Clock.

Last week at the shop, Patricia and I were encouraged the first day, a little slow on Friday, and then discouraged on Saturday. A slow slide down hill.

In May, when we opened up here for the first time, I had so many requests from people to please please please have weekend hours so that other working folks could make it over to do some shopping too, not just the Group Health employees and neighbors. So this time, we made sure we were open Saturday. We had exactly 2 people stop in all day. It was deadly boring, and not worth the effort.

Maybe it was the gorgeous day. Maybe it was the time of year. Maybe it's just the way things will be this year. We're re-thinking our hours for the November/December schedule. Of course it's closer to Christmas and people will be holiday shopping. Isn't the day after Thanksgiving the biggest shopping day of the year afterall? But it's also a holiday weekend, and a lot of folks will be doing family stuff or traveling, and I'm not sure our little location will get any traffic. The big sales are at the malls. So it's a toss-up. We'll know more after this week is over, and have a better idea of what we want to do.

Of course I'm sitting in that little space dreaming big about hauling in lights and garlands and ribbons and trees . . . But I've got to be realistic too. As much as I love to decorate, it has to be practical. It has to fit in just a few car loads, not truckloads. And I've still got to leave room for our merchandise - not just the froo froo. And maybe we picked a bad week. Yikes.

Sunday is my day off. Except I'm working on a million things instead, just because it's that time of year. And tomorrow I'm back in the shop all day. Hopefully this coming week works out a little better. Do you need some extra special delicious caramels and caramel corn for Halloween treats? Do you need a little special something for a party hostess or a grownup trick-r-treater? We've got you covered!

Friday Shop

We had a great time decorating the shop this week, and yesterday was our first day open. Pretty good day - folks started to pop their heads in to see who the new folks were and what was going on. I'm hoping it will be a good week.

Besides the lovely caramels and caramel corn, Patricia has some fresh caramel apples, Jonagold apples, which are always so juicy. And I've got all the soaps, sprays, balms, bath salts etc. But there is a book shelf of soapmaking and craft books, practically new and all for sale - $5 each. Most of them are gorgeous picture books, and ones I collected earlier in my career for reference. So if you've got someone on your list who's always wanted to try making soap and wanted to know how to start, this might make a good gift. There are fall decor items too - candles, vases, brown satin hat boxes, miscellaneous vintage collectibles. It looks great - hope you can get a chance to stop by for minute. There's usually parking on the street right out front too. It's 1-hour parking, so the spots are always opening up.

Oh, and I've got some new hemp fabric bags for gifts. They are fully lined with white cotton and have a rope drawstring. They are that irresistible contrast of rustic and elegant, and hold a bar of soap and a cotton scrubbie just perfectly. A nice little bag for other uses also, any kind of small gift would tuck in quite nicely - $3 each. The natural hemp color is lovely for fall, but it would look really sweet for Christmas too, especially with a sprig of holly or greens tucked into the top.

Fall Shop

Usually I operate under the "why do today what you can do tomorrow" philosophy. But this time of year, I have to stop all the procrastination and really work ahead of myself. I had planned a full weekend of non-stop work. But the weather was especially beautiful and I had to go outside and revel in the sunshine and the magnificent fall color. Sunday we took a little road trip along Highway 2 to Leavenworth. That drive along the river and through the mountains is always so pretty, and yesterday was breathtaking. So nice to take a day off and just enjoy the view, watch the trees and rippling river sparkling in the sunlight.

This week I am starting my first of two little holiday gift shops at Group Health. Patricia, my friend who makes Paige Lisbeth caramels, is joining me. We are "renting" their little retail space on Capitol Hill to set up our own gift shop for a week or so. A portion of all of our sales goes to their Patient Needs Fund, which buys supplies and necessities for patients there, part of their Volunteer Program. We're setting up the next couple of days, and we'll be open according to the following schedule:

Thursday, Friday and Saturday, Oct 23, 24 and 25 - 9:30am to 4:30pm
Sunday, Oct 26 - closed
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Oct 27 - 30 - 9:30am to 4:30pm

Location: Group Health central campus, Seattle
Address: 108 - 15th Ave E, Capitol Hill, half a block south and across the street from the big Safeway store at the corner of John St.

So that's the next two weeks, and we're open on Saturday for working folks to stop by too. I'll have all my fall products and full line. Patricia will have her caramels and caramel corn, as well as some fresh caramel apples. And we'll have other fall decorating and gift things too, so I hope you all can stop by.

Vasa Park Show

This week is the new autumn and harvest themed show at Vasa Park Ballroom on the shores of Lake Sammamish in Bellevue. It's not quite the same as the one that was there for years - sadly, Sue Van Gerpen had to shut down her schedule of shows early last year. But Sandy Roundy, who has been a show organizer here too for a gajillion years, is taking over that location to do her version of a fall craft show in the same location. There are a number of the same vendors, and a number of new vendors, so a little of something for everybody. It's a boutique style show, which means there is a central cashier and artists are not generally "working" their own booths, except for a few folks who are taste-testing their treats or personalizing something.

We set up the displays yesterday - lots of gift stuff and decorative home stuff for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Autumn occasions, plus little bits of Christmas stuff too.

Country Creations Home and Gift Show
Vasa Park Ballroom
3549 W Lk Sammamish Pkwy
Bellevue, WA

Dates: October 16 - 18
Hours: Thursday and Friday 10am to 7pm, Saturday 10am to 5pm

Link to directions: Vasa Park Resort

Wind on the Hill

Wind on the Hill

No one can tell me,
Nobody knows,
Where the wind comes from,
Where the wind goes.

It’s flying from somewhere
As fast as it can,
I couldn’t keep up with it,
Not if I ran.

But if I stopped holding
The string of my kite,
It would blow with the wind
For a day and a night.

And then when I found it,
Wherever it blew,
I should know that the wind
Had been going there too.

So then I could tell them
Where the wind goes…
But where the wind comes from
Nobody knows.

- A.A. Milne

Sunday afternoon

The National Debt clock has run out of numbers. It's been spiraling so fast and out of control lately, and now there's no room left on the sign for it to register the 10.2 trillion dollars of debt we owe.

Bankrupt. That's a bit how I suppose we're all feeling right now. Frustrated, angry, depressed, hopeless about the whole situation. I never would have imagined that smack in the middle of my lifetime I would be living through an epoch event as great as any in the history books, like the Great Depression. But here we are.

I faced my financial statement Friday - the small amount I've scrimped and saved for my entire adult life to retire on, and it's so meager and sad. I suppose I should be grateful that I even have anything at all - so many people are in such worse shape. Sure, it will eventually come back, or at least most of it. But that's not the point. By the time any of that happens, I've lost the big window where all that compound interest or whatever is supposed to happen that actually makes it worth doing. We were all taught to put in as much as we could early on, and that over time, the continued investment would grow. But now I'm back to where I was over a decade ago. Bleh. It's just paper money anyway. We're all in the same boat.

My intention wasn't really to whine about my own situation today, or rail in rage over the state of things, or wring my hands with worry about what's about to be either. It's all just so surreal. I have some of my biggest shows and sales in the next few weeks before the election even happens. Between October and December I usually do almost half my sales, half my entire business for the year during this time. And I'm facing a complete what the frack.

Do I just carry on as if things will be close to the same? Which, by the way, means investing in a lot of supplies and racking up some credit card debt? Because if it doesn't happen, and sales are really slumping, then I'm in trouble come January in more ways than one. Extra debt plus lack of funds. Or do I cut back and take it slow, seeing how the first couple of shows go and decide then? The trouble with that last one is that I can't. The first show is this coming week, and then I've got my little storefront the following week. But all at the same time, I have to put out the winter newsletter and do four more shows all in the same week - the major bulk of everything for November. It's either all there, or I cut back. But if I cut back inventory, then I can't spread out the smaller amounts of stuff among that many shows. I don't feel like I can cut a show, if I need every penny.

I'm going around and around with this. Basically trying to achieve as much as possible with as little investment as possible and making it all work. And then just waiting it out with fingers crossed. Again, bleh.

So I guess the bottom line is this: I will pretty much carry on business-as-usual and hope for the best. I write this blog so that outsiders, customers, etc. can know what it's like on the inside of this tiny business. And as much I would prefer to just sit silent and not worry out loud, I've kinda committed to letting it all hang out, warts and all. Putting on some smiley face that all is well and the factory is just humming away in blissful ignorance is not my style. I'll continue to do the sales-y blog posts about what's new and where I'll be each week during the next couple of months. But I'm going to also try to add a few starkers journal entries on how the business is actually faring in this new state of crisis as we head in to Christmas. Just because that's what I'd rather be reading if I was on your end. I think.

It rained again

Yes, another Salmon Days, another storm. All day Saturday it rained and the wind gusted and blew and tossed our little tents around. Rained sideways on and off, hard and then light misty rain. Everyone was wet. Umbrellas unloaded on the display of soap bars. Labels got soggy.

And it was chilly too. A storm front moved through all day, and by the late afternoon, when the tail end was blowing over, it got super windy. Banners blew off. Signs kept blowing over. Everyone was hanging onto their tents. Mine was a corner and the wind swept across the parking lot behind me and kept traveling the far corner out a foot or so with each gust. I thought the frame was going to end up all bent out of shape. It was anchored down well, but not enough on that one outside corner. And the velcro tabs on the back panel were too flimsy to hold either when the gusts came from straight behind. I spent half my time re-attaching the tent panels and straightening up the poles. It started to get super annoying. Just a couple of tiny leaks. And then some kind of stick which looked like a spear was impaled through the tent top in another gust. I just left it there. Patching will have to happen later. Next year. Unless I decide that I can afford a new tent. This one should probably not have to go another season, but probably will. Who can afford anything new now?

So the damp was miserable. The crowds were still impressive. And I had a pretty good day in sales, considering the state of the weather. In fact, it was better than a lot of shows this year, and under the worst conditions yet. Bad weather and crumbling economy. I still sold soap. Yeee haaah!

Sunday was much better weather. Still chilly and grey, but no wind, no rain. And sales were record-breaking for me. I sold out of probably 10 or more scents by the afternoon. More bars than ever. I'm not sure what it means, if anything. A sign of things to come? An anomaly? It's too hard to predict. And I guess it doesn't really matter. Except that I need to keep cranking out the batches of soap for holiday shows and sales.

Today was the big unpacking and clean up. I'm feeling a little slow and tired - all that weather takes a toll on a body, standing out in the elements for hours on end. I'm so grateful to have a bit of money to pay bills with. But worried about how much more I need to spend in supply orders this month to get me through the huge show season of November and December.

New Map

You probably haven't notice, but I added a new little widget thingamajiggy towards the bottom of the blog. It's under the the whole list of linky stuff on the right. It keeps track of where any visitors to the blog come from around the world and tracks them on a map.

It wasn't worth mentioning at first, of course, because I needed to have a few visitors log in first. I think it's been a week or so? I don't remember. But it's sorta exciting! I've got a bunch of people from around here. But there's others too - like Australia, someplace in the middle of the ocean off the coast of Africa (!?), the UK, a few Europe, one South America, and all over the US.

Anyway, just thought I'd mention it. I had almost forgotten to check it out again myself until this morning. Cool.

Salmon Days

These folks have the cutest slogans - this year it's "what a wonderful whirl!"

Welcome to the “whirled” of fish, fun and festivities!
Join the fun this October at the Northwest’s most-loved, award-winning community event!
The salmon are returning to our lakes, streams and our historic, downtown hatchery! The Issaquah Salmon Days Festival is 39 years old and we're celebrating with special fishy attractions: the Grande Parade, Foods of the Whirled, “whirled-class” arts & crafts, whirling live entertainment, whirledly-wild Field of Fun for kids of all ages, and a whirl of sporting attractions.
You're invited

Dates: Saturday and Sunday, October 4 and 5, 2008
Place: Historic old downtown Issaquah
Times: 10am - 6pm both days
Booth Location: Same spot as last few years! Booth #318, located on W. Sunset Way, at the corner of the driveway entrance to the hatchery.

Link: Salmon Days

They say don't bring your pets, but bring your umbrella. And don't miss the fun!

Turmoil

What now? What's next?

No matter what the government ends up doing here, the best possible predictions are for at least several more years of deep recession, which I thought we were already in, so isn't more of it an actual depression? I'm no expert but it all sounds bad and scary.

I feel like I should be doing something, like buying batteries or stocking up on provisions - sort of like we've gotten an advance weather warning of a huge storm coming in. It feels like I should be preparing somehow, but I have no idea how. It's a little surreal to keep going on business as usual during all this meltdown and crisis, but that's what we are all doing. Until we know something more.

At this point of the year I am usually full steam ahead in preparations for the huge holiday shopping season. I'm guessing it won't be quite so big this year. I should be placing supply orders for all the cool new stocking stuffer and gift packaging ideas I've cooked up. But I'm pretty sure I should be changing my plans and scaling back everything instead. However, I still need to be making soap - as much as possible - because I never quite have enough inventory by the time we get into mid-December. And time is short. Too short. My show schedule is huge and my deadlines are coming so fast. And yet I'm a little paralyzed by confusion on where I should be focused and what I should be doing proactively.

Are we all going to be living in Hooverville next year? People will still need soap, right? Even if I don't have to worry about losing my job, losing my business isn't a great option either. Well, I can't worry about all that today. I have to whiz up this batch of soap and carry on. This weekend is Salmon Days in Issaquah - one of the biggest shows around here. It will be a good signal of what the season will be like. And the weather is always iffy - this year will be no exception with rain, storms and wind predicted, even if today is supposed to be another sunny, warm, perfect day. Figures.

The bad weather has never hampered us in the past - with crowds coming out no matter what, and shopping happily. So I'm getting myself ready for a prosperous couple of days in the rain, with my boots. I'll get the links and details together and post those tomorrow, in case you're planning on going to the show.

Farm Day

Saturday was the Harvest Celebration here, where dozens of local farms were open for tours, special demonstrations, chefs cooking in the fields, petting of the animals and milking of the goats. Most of them are CSA's, which are community sponsored farms - you buy a share for a few months or a season, which makes you sort of an investor in the farm while they grow the crops, and you get a fresh box of produce and flowers weekly. That way they have funds to operate and a guaranteed market, and you get locally grown, organic, fresh food from folks you know. It's a great plan all around.

We've been wanting to do this for a while now, but just hadn't worked out which farm - there's so many it's hard to choose. And we needed a beautiful sunny day in the fields just to enjoy the final warm days of September. So we headed out, tramped around and bought veggies, cheese, and honey. We found one farm that we can volunteer hours as compensation for the CSA, which would be a whole lot more fun. You head over for 4 hours a week and work at the farm, receiving the same box of goodies each week. We're definitely going to do that next summer, but in the meantime, we're figuring out another farm to sign up with during the winter.

Such a gorgeous day. Cool to see all the families that brought kids out to see the animals and fields, do a little pea picking to see where the food comes from, and choose pumpkins and spooky gourds.

I would love to have my own little tiny farm - not a big one, but just someplace with a little more land than my postage stamp in the city. I'd love to grow more of my own food, but I don't have the space or enough direct sun in any one area besides a few tomato plants. At the moment I'm plotting a little corner for a worm bin. And maybe a raised bed over on the side for a zucchini plant or a row of carrots next year. I've grown them before, but it's more work than stopping at the farmer's market, which usually has a way better selection anyway. I don't know - with all this talk about recession and depression and economic meltdown, it makes me want to plant potatoes and cabbages in the front lawn and start canning stuff.

Hot tomato

Even with the cooler weather and rain we've had this past week, I'm still harvesting tomatoes. I just can't eat them all. Tomatoes for every meal. I don't want to start hating them, so I've given bags away to the neighbors and friends. I'm pretty sure we're getting close to the end here. It definitely feels like fall now, and the nights and mornings are darn chilly, even if we get a few hours of sun in the afternoon. The ripening is not going to be happening at that breakneck pace, and the little skins will be getting tough. So I'm just enjoying what I've got left, and dreaming about next summer's crop.

The votes are in, and the favorite soaps for this year's Puyallup Fair were: Vanilla Bean & Honey, Patchouli, French Lavender and Roses & Violets. Now, those are not the most popular kids in school at all the shows, or even in general. But they were a hit at the fair, and I sold more soap bars than ever. The coolest kid on the block of the new fall soaps was Apple Jack. I only brought the new ones towards the end of the show. My intention was to sell the remaining spring and summer ones first, and make sure that I had enough fall soaps for the mail orders that were flooding in from the newsletter. But for what it's worth, the Apple was the top seller.

In mail orders, however, the Moroccan Fig is the queen. It's been a favorite among loyal customers for years, and they can't wait for it to come out again so they can stock up.

If you're planning on ordering a few things in the next week, a couple of notes - I'm temporarily out of the aforementioned Patchouli, Vanilla Bean & Honey, and Lavender Pear soaps. I've got batches curing, and they'll be ready in a week or so. But the Fair wiped me out of what I had in stock right now. I'm not making any changes to the website however. You know why? Because I never remember that I made all those notes and inventory limits and coding. And I don't have time to keep going back and updating it either. So last time I did that, I found out that months later, I still had the cabosh on a couple of my fragrances and nobody could order them from the site. I just plain forgot to fix it again when they were ready. And I already know my mental capacities are sketchy, so I'm leaving the website alone.

If you want to order them, go ahead. I'll take the requests as they come and let you know if I have to "back-order" a bar or two. But hopefully they'll all be ready for shipping pretty darn quick, and the glitches will be minimal.

Jitters

It's a deceptively beautiful day here in the Northwest. A cloudless blue sky, with warm sunshine glowing through the leaves on the trees. I'm trying to go about my normal routines and do my everyday tasks, but it's hard to be business-as-usual when the news is one meltdown after another crisis after another panic attack. It sounds like the entire world is crumbling around us.

But even as gigantic banks fall (does anyone still think that privatizing social security and having those guys manage our retirement funds was a good idea?) the fair is still pumping out scones and the rides are still spinning the kiddies silly. I'm packing up more soaps and sprays to take over there tomorrow. And sending out orders today.

It's all I can do. Just focus on what's in front of me, stop to admire the flowers and the sunshine, appreciate the life that is around us - all of this planet that we live on. The catch in my throat when I stop for even a second to notice the way it is so intricately, powerfully, beautifully alive from the tiniest molecules and cells to the splendor of the galaxies. Sometimes I forget all that when I get too caught up in the news, the blogs, the politics and the hype.

September 11

It's been 7 years since that day. I don't need to explain it. Everyone knows 9/11.

I've spent some quiet moments today thinking back to that unbelievable day. How awful it was to experience the unfolding of it all, hour after hour. Woken up by the phone, my Mom had just heard the report about the first plane on the radio and told us to turn on the tv. In my jammies, glued to my tiny little corner of the couch, huddled into a fetal position mostly, I watched the smoking buildings, the home video of the planes, the panic, the crumbling of the buildings, the chaos, the grief. Unable to take tear myself away from the constant news, I only left my spot to go to the bathroom, which I did about a hundred times. I peed so many times I didn't know how I could possibly go again - but that was my physical reaction to the complete horror. And I was a million miles away, totally unrelated to anything or anyone there, and just watching on tv. I can't even imagine how much worse it was for the victims, their families and people just living there at the time. I heard them. I watched them. And I still can't imagine how that felt inside. For me it was an emptiness and heartbreak larger than I've ever known, and still hasn't faded away completely. Not fear, not anger, just sadness and grief and devastation. Still.

I've tried to remember the hours, days and weeks that passed too after that single day that changed so much. Things were very different then from where we are now. The world is not the same place and we are still at war with people who didn't have anything to do with that event. So many more people have died. So many more lives are still at stake now.

So much can change in an instant. I'm heading outside for a minute to search the blue sky and listen for airplanes overhead. The eeriest thing ever was the total lack of sound overhead for all those days. I live under the flight path to the airport, you see. And there is the constant and regular little roar overhead of people coming, people going, life moving at a fast pace. But that day it all stopped. Everybody stopped and the silence was deafening. It's comforting now to hear the jets flying about on their regular schedules. Life goes on.

Still alive

Hiya! Just popping in to say that I'm still here. I'm still alive. Haven't keeled over. Yet.

[Beware: stream of consciousness rambling ahead.]

The fair is super busy. Seems like sales are a bit down this year - what else is new. But it's not going too bad either. Big crowds and lots of activity. I'm running back and forth for my work shifts, spending all my free time (what? what's "free" time?!) getting more inventory ready to bring back over.

In the meantime, whatever spare moments (again, what the heck is a spare moment?!) I can find are spent catching up with orders and trying to squeeze in "real life." Like the one cat who can't seem to kick the fleas even though she's getting treated regularly. So we had to do an extra dose of de-worming, de-flea-ing and the whole full-on cleaning of the house and a million loads of laundry to wash every single item that exists under our roof. And the other cat spent a very scary night away from home last night and gave us a heart attack.

I ate my first Elephant Ear at the fair. Those things are good. Too good. Because you know it's nothing but fried dough with more grease than a basket of fries, and then they slather on a half a pound of butter, and then a cup of cinnamon sugar. I shared it with someone, but I think I still ate a week's worth of calories and fat in that one piece of scrumptiousness.

I got home from working, super long day, and raced to the bathroom after the endless car ride home. The toilet flusher snapped when I pushed the handle. Argh. Who needs a late night race to the hardware store to sneak through the door two minutes before closing, purchase extraneous toilet plumbing pieces and then wade in elbow deep to repair a stupid flusher? I suppose there is never a good time for that kind of stuff to break. But dang. Now the shower faucet has started dripping. Head smack.

My tomato plants, once they started to ripen, have gone berserk. Maybe they took lessons from the zucchini. I'm eating tomatoes for every meal, giving away bags of the things, have bowls upon bowls in the fridge from yesterday and the day before. And still, there were a million news ones practically falling off the vine again today. I love them. I do. But I'm going to turn into a cherry tomato. I swear I will.

We've been having a pretty darn nice September. We usually do up here. It's sort of an extra month of summer. Except it's only warm for a chunk of the day, instead of day and night. Evenings and mornings are cool, and the dew is getting thick overnight. It's all good. The sunny afternoons have been extra gorgeous. I get to squint at the sky for a bit in between my fits of panic while I pet the cats frolicking in the sun spots out there. Or while I'm picking another bowl of tomatoes.

Everything feels really anxious-y lately. Like I'm right on the edge. I think it has a lot to do with the intensity of all the politicking in the final countdown to the election. All that lying and posturing, it makes me insane. The culture wars and the contentiousness of it all has us split into rabid teams (go, team, go) that inspires the absolute worst instincts in humanity. We aren't people any more, we are all stereotypes. Each hating the other side more each day that it goes on. I hate it. I can't wait for it to be over. Except that I'm scared to pieces about how it will turn out. So I'm alternating between hate, fear, disgust, terror, and plain insanity. I used to be hopeful. But that went out the window a while back. Now it's a constant loop of all the bad stuff, because that's what makes the highlight reels each day.

What are you doing for serenity?

eta: just a few corrections - because grammar still counts for something, even if telling the truth doesn't matter any more

Autumn Newsletter 2008

Autumn News

Autumn is ripe with possibility. The excitement and anticipation feels like the first day of school, with thumping chest, stiff new shoes, a whole new chapter ahead.  It’s a crisp sheet of pristine notebook paper and a stash of freshly sharpened pencils, ready to write your new story.  We have turned the page from sultry summer to the shorter days and brisk, cooler weather of fall.  With a fresh school year, new schedules and different routines, comes a chance to reinvent the way we live.  

Autumn Seasonal Soaps

Autumn’s cool, crisp air crystallizes our senses.  The whisper of wind, the crunch of dead leaves and twigs, and the light patter of raindrops welcome us back indoors to the comforts of home.  This year’s Autumn Harvest soaps are loaded with our favorite fruits and spices, taking the best of the season and celebrating the bounty.  ($4.00 each or 4 bars for $15.00)

Pumpkin Spice :  A little different blend this year, more fresh pumpkin and less sweet brown sugar.  Freshly cooked pumpkin custard, a dash of vanilla, and sprinkled liberally with cinnamon, sugar, spice and everything nice.

Moroccan Fig : Our most requested fall fragrance.  Dark, rich, ripe and fruity fig blended with an air of mystery — sensual, exotic, earthy and irresistible.

Apple Jack : Autumn and apples are inseparable partners.  This soap is an irresistible blend of baked apple, orange peel, and spice notes of cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg, finished off with just a kiss of vanilla and a splash of brandy.

Cinnabar Oatmeal: A creamy oatmeal soap with the unmistakable scent of rich spicy cinnamon blended with a petal or two of ylang ylang and a nip of sandalwood for an exotic, lush and nourishing treat.

Autumn Aromatic Sprays

The Autumn aromatic sprays, used for home fragrancing, will add a festive and cozy feel to any home.  Unlike potpourri or candles, these sprays can be used to spritz table linens, a quilt in a guest room, freshen bathrooms and closets, mist a note card or gift box, and a million other ways too. This season’s flavors are much requested scents, a tribute to my wonderful customers who know what they like.  ($6.00 each)

Apple Harvest : Tart, juicy green apples with a light sprinkling of cinnamon.  It's the quintessential scent of Autumn, and one whiff transports you to nostalgic memories of apple orchards, cider presses, the cracklesnap of crunchy leaves, and bobbing for apples.

Vanilla Spice: Vanilla, first grown in Mexico, was considered a gift from the gods. The world’s only edible orchid, vanilla grows on a vine and can only be pollinated by special small bees, hummingbirds or by hand in order to bear fruit – the vanilla bean.  It’s intoxicating scent is both calming and an aphrodisiac.  This fragrance spray is delicate vanilla blossom with just a subtle hint of toasted spice.

Rose Petals: Very traditional and simply lovely, it’s a bouquet of delicate fresh roses.  This is a single note floral of the finest, lushest rose blossoms.

New Lip Balms

Just for the Autumn season, I’ve added Pumpkin Spice, Chocolate Mint and Carrot Cake flavored lip balms to the menu du jour.  Who can resist these treats?  It’s the same nourishing, natural lip balm base that I carry in a dozen lip—smacking flavors, but the perfect flavor for Halloween treats, Thanksgiving celebrations and Christmas memories.  See the enclosed brochure or the web site for the full list of flavors – Cupcake, Vanilla Tangerine, Root Beer, Raspberry Soda . . .mmm

Dead Sea Bath Salts

More of our big, beautiful jars of bath salts that we’ve had all summer, but with fragrances that harmonize with Autumn.  These  rustic, chunky salts come directly from the Dead  Sea.  Pure salts with a mineral content that is much greater than other types of sea salts, they work wonders on purifying and detoxifying, improving circulation and moisturizing skin, soaking away stress, and relaxing muscles, aches and pains.  These bath salts dissolve in water almost instantly, with a lush, silky feel – no gritty bottoms.  What we know for sure is that when you finally drag yourself out of these glorious bath waters, you are left with unbelievably soft, silky smooth skin that seems brand new.  For little foot baths or long evening soaks, these are the best bath salts I’ve ever tried.  * New:  now in plastic bottles for safer tub sports – same size, same design, just easier to handle.

Inspired by the season, the two new scents are scrumptious, edible Almond Ginger and beautiful, classic Vanilla Lavender (16 oz plastic bottle - $8.00)

Berry Basket Sets

We’ve found the sweetest little vintage-style wire berry baskets with wood handles.  They are 5 inches square and perfectly sized for gift basket making.  Adorable with a bar of a soap and one of the little cotton scrubbie accessories.  And they can be used for almost anything later – collecting keys on the front table to holding towels on the bathroom sink, to decorating up your fall home.  Check out the photos on the web site!  (Set - $12.95)

Tax Savings

The state of Washington has changed the way they charge sales taxes.  Mostly it’s a headache for mail order businesses.  But for customers (YOU!), it has benefits.  For anyone ordering by mail or internet, you will now be paying the tax rate of your own town, not mine.  This saves you money if you are outside of Seattle, because you no longer have to pay the highest rate in the state.  The very best of all – if you are ordering a gift to be shipped to family or friends out of state, there is no sales tax levied at all.  It’s a great time to think about your holiday gift lists.  I can package it all up, add messages and greeting cards and ship it all off for less expense than ever.  Just to celebrate the change, I’ll have more gift boxes, gift bags and special packaging introduced Nov 1st with the Winter Holiday announcements.

My Own Shop  – 2 More Guest Appearances

I’ll be repeating my little temporary Group Health storefront two times this fall.  I will have my own little retail shop for two weeks at the end of October and another two weeks at the end of November – and this time we’ll be open weekends for all the regular working folks who couldn’t stop by in the Spring.  Group Health has a tiny little jewel of a storefront that I am “renting” to have my own temporary shop space.  They loan it out to artists from time to time, and a percentage of our sales funds their TLC Guild, which helps with patient's needs.  It’s designed to be a gift boutique, especially focused on fall and winter holiday gifts. It’s located at 108 – 15th Ave E, kitty-corner from the Safeway on John St.  Dates are October 23 thru 30, and November 25 thru December 4.  Hope to see you there!

The next few months are filled to the brim with craft shows, fairs and festivals too.  I’m making an extra effort to bring the goodies to you – so check the enclosed calendar, and log onto the website to get even more details on the “Calendar” page.

As always, I sincerely appreciate your loyal business throughout the year, and wish you a brilliant and abundant harvest season!

Puyallup Fair 2008

I set up my dispay at the Puyallup Fair Tuesday. It is located in the Artists in Action space, which is on the ground floor under the Grandstand. We have a little handcrafted artisan boutique -- a mix of pottery, fiber arts, painting, basketry, jewelry, clothing and a bunch of other stuff, which is my category.

New at my display this year: my brand new bags from India arrived this morning, so there is a new variety of gift bags - some with just a soap and scrubbie, some with the addition of the cool back scrubber brush. Also new is lip balm. I've made the little tins of lip balm in lots of yummy flavors for years. But I was hesitant to bring them to the fair because they are so small, and stealable, and hard to price and pack for the masses. For this year's show they are packaged in sleeves of 5 tins, a variety of flavors, even the new fall ones - carrot cake, chocolate mint and pumpkin pie. I've also brought singles in the round english screw top tins - cupcake flavor only - in case somebody just needs one and not the whole variety pack.

Anyway, I wanted to post the details on the Puyallup Fair gig, in case anyone's headed over there in the next two weeks. It's like the biggest thing that happens all year for some folks, even if they are just going one night for an onion burger and a concert. Lots of great entertainment in the line up.

Puyallup Fair

The Fair is open September 5th through the 21st. Sunday through Thursday 10am-10pm. Fridays and Saturdays 10am -11pm. Yes, it opens tomorrow. And it's free admission from 10am-noon tomorrow. Tip: most people line up super early before work, get through the gate and get their hand stamped, then head off to work for the usual routine. Then they come back later for dinner and rides and whatever else on Friday evening. So that's the insider's way to work free Friday. The weekend starts the rodeo which kicks things off in case you want to stalk some cute cowboys.

I am a part of the "Artists in Action" area, which is in the Merchants Building -- the lower level of the Grandstand, at the west end, next to the Fisher Scone windows. It's a boutique style craft show, with lots of pottery and fiber arts, demos every day with artists demonstrating their techniques and craft. It's a central cashier style thing, with all of us artists in baseball caps milling around on the floor, meeting and greeting our guests. Oh, and stuffing our faces with fair burgers, scones, chili cheese fries and um, greasy type stuff during our breaks. Yipes.

The website (www.thefair.com) has more info about maps, directions, parking, concert and event schedules, ways to get discounted tickets, the works.

Updates

Just a quick drive-by to update y'all on the fall stuff.

Everything is happening at once this week, and it's a little overwhelming. I'm setting up the Puyallup Fair and stuffing the mailing and updating the web site and and and.

So in case you're anxiously awaiting anything, here's how it's going to happen this week. Tomorrow I'll post full details about the Fair - it starts Friday and goes through Sept. 21. I think Friday is the free day so it should be a madhouse over there.

I'm picking up the newsletter from the printers today and will stuff and send it out by Friday. It will be in your mailbox either Saturday or Monday. And the electronic version will happen probably Saturday or Sunday as I get all the links in order. I'll be putting it all up on the web site over the weekend, but may not have all the new photos posted until early next week. I'll do my best. It's a pretty big undertaking, getting all the ducks in a row with web, email and printed stuff, at the same time I'm working on getting the Fair up and running, whew.

So Soap of the Month Club shipments, which usually would go out like today or yesterday, are postponed until next Monday when I've got a day to package them all up.

Still waiting on my specially couriered shipment of super cool bags from India, and biting my nails that I get them by tomorrow afternoon so I can run them over to the Fair by Friday when we open. The lip balm flavors that were back-ordered just arrived yesterday so I need to make those too, both for the show and for the fall newsletter debut. Tomorrow will be lip balm production. It's all so last minute again. But this time I really planned, really I did. I just didn't expect such delays in the shipment of some of my supplies. It's always something.

Anyway, it's all in the works as we speak. More later -

Back from Holiday

Just came back from a long weekend vacation up to the Sunshine Coast in BC. It's so gorgeous up there, and we were lucky to have nice weather for a day or two - missing the rain and storms here.



We stayed in these amazing treehouse tents that looked out over the Strait of Georgia - sitting on the deck and watching the boats go by, the sunsets change a million colors. Super cool, so luxurious and a really special treat.









And the jetted spa tub with a view was unbelievable. Wish I could have stayed forever, but it was nice just to have a few days off to recharge my batteries before the next slog of shows and fall/winter busy-ness. The fair sets up in a week, and there is so much to do before then, plus the fall newsletter to be finished up. So I'm back to work today, but dreaming of the sound of waves lapping the rocky shore below while I lounge in the treetops.

Summer Clearance Sale

I've just added a whole bunch of new stuff to the Clearance Sale page - it's lots of great deals but it won't last long.

Summer seasonal soaps, discontinued sprays, bath salts in the glass jars, scented body oils and incense wands, pretty pots . . . . have at it. I need space for all the new fall stuff - coming soon.

We melted

Oh my gosh it was so hot over the weekend. All three days were a sauna out there in that field. It felt like my tent was an oven roasting bag and all I needed was a little shake-n-bake to be cooked to perfection.

The high in Seattle was 90 on Friday, but it was 98 in Redmond, where we were setting up. I love, love, love the guy with the fancy copper sprinklers just a couple booths down on the corner. He had set up one of his sprinklers to shower out in the open grass, and most of the folks at the show spent the day prancing in the spray. It was roasting hot the entire time. Saturday may have been 2 degrees cooler, and I don't know about Sunday, but it was so muggy and thick that it was miserable for everybody - sellers, customers, dogs and babies. And of course sales were crap, so that didn't help.

But the good thing? the good thing is that all that heat gave me TOMATOES! I was convinced that we were never going to get a single tomato this season because a week ago it felt like fall already and most of the day - mornings and evenings were cool and nighttime lows were darn chilly. But those few days of hot, super hot, blasting hot started turning those little green lumps to red and gold. Sugary little morsels of tomato goodness. My very favorite thing - cherry tomatoes off the vine. I'm actually making a salad of them today. I harvested a whole bowl, yum.

Did I leave it in here?

It's been smelling a lot like fall around here lately as I am in full swing of cooking up the new autumn seasonal products - pumpkins, apples, cinnamon spice, figs and vanilla. It's yummy, even if it's a little out of whack.

Yep, my nose is back today and all is well. I have no idea why I just went blank yesterday, but it was a leeetle bit scary.

My head is swimming though, so much going on behind the scenes. The bulk of my day today is packaging soap bars for the show. I have a bunch left to do, just to make sure I have enough of everything everyone wants. But here's what else I am doing today (and sort of all week long too):

starting a batch of soap to whiz up this evening
working on the autumn mailing - one piece at a time, like envelopes yesterday, stamps today
updating the web site with new products and new sale stuff (more on that next week)
ordering supplies generally
ordering supplies ahead for the Puyallup Fair (it's 3 weeks away!)
designing labels and packaging for fall products
making a couple of experiment thingies for winter and spring
sending out a handful of mail orders
finishing up a couple last minute show applications
doing more research for a special project, taking copious notes
working on my inventory for the fair
a bunch of random other stuff, like bookkeeping and filing
and writing this blog too.

There will be emails and phone calls today. Plus packing up the rest of the show stuff. Grocery shopping and real life too. It starts to feel like the brain is whizzing around so fast that little pieces fly out and disappear into the atmosphere. If you see something fly by today, it's probably another little task I was trying to remember to do that just took flight as I start to lose my marbles. I'll come get it later, maybe next week.

Whew it's hot today. And going to be a scorcher this weekend. That means 90 for us. And believe me, that's like 150 for true Northwesterners.

Best of the Northwest - Marymoor

Another show this weekend. I'll be at the Best of the Northwest's summer show in Marymoor Park.

Art at Marymoor Park

Dates: August 15, 16 & 17 ~ 2008
Hours: Friday 12-6, Sat and Sun 10-6
Location: King County - Marymoor Park
6046 West Lake Sammamish Parkway NE
Redmond, WA 98052

This outdoor show is in beautiful Marymoor Park, located two miles from the Microsoft Campus. 'Art at Marymoor' picks up a forty year tradition of celebrating community, art & recreation. With 120 juried artists, this event tailors to a sophisticated, optimistic and humanitarian audience of four to six thousand. An intimate event with a relaxed atmosphere. Bring your friends and take a moment to discover your creative side. Take a look at the map of bike trails and be green for the day. Not to mention get some exercise, expand your mind and maybe even taste some wine. We look forward to seeing you.

Last year it rained cats and dogs - Sunday was a swamp in the park. So this year promises to be oodles better - a heat wave of sunshine is predicted. Oodles is my new favorite word today. I'm using it for everything. Trying to get a million things done at once, and get ready for the show too. And I've lost my sense of smell this week, but especially today. I can't smell anything. Maybe it's hormonal. I'm just assuming it's temporary - it hasn't been great for awhile though. Maybe I just overused my shnoz and have burnt it out altogether. I'm frustrated as hell though. There are several bars that look almost the same and I can't tell them apart. The colored ones are obvious and I've got no problem. But I wanted to package a bunch of Verbena, Cucumber, Rosemary Orange and Bergamot - all of them are so close in color and my nose gots nuthin'. I keep trying, giving up, heading outside for fresh air. Coming back to those later and sniffing again. Maybe tomorrow. I'll let it slide for today because otherwise I'm going to need a straight jacket too.

Bring your dog out to the dog park at Marymoor and let 'em run. Stop by our little tent city and see the art too. We're sort of in the middle of everything, out in the field. There should be signs. It's just on the main road so you'll see the sea of white tent tops if you're driving through.

Summer Day

The Summer Day

Who made the world?
Who made the swan, and the black bear?
Who made the grasshopper?
This grasshopper, I mean-
the one who has flung herself out of the grass,
the one who is eating sugar out of my hand,
who is moving her jaws back and forth instead of up and down-
who is gazing around with her enormous and complicated eyes.
Now she lifts her pale forearms and thoroughly washes her face.
Now she snaps her wings open, and floats away.
I don't know exactly what a prayer is.
I do know how to pay attention, how to fall down
into the grass, how to kneel down in the grass,
how to be idle and blessed, how to stroll through the fields,
which is what I have been doing all day.
Tell me, what else should I have done?
Doesn't everything die at last, and too soon?
Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?

- Mary Oliver

(courtesy of D. who gave me the loveliest
hand-printed card with this poem on it - thank you)

Apple Harvest Afternoon

It's apple eating time, or so says the racoons who came out to play today. There are actually 4 little ones in the tree next door this afternoon, play fighting on the branches, scratching and scritching, racing up to the top and back down, and chowing down on dozens of ripe apples, mostly knocking them to the ground with just a few bites in them. The air smells like a fresh cider press over there, so many apples crashing to the ground below and collecting in mounds and piles all over the place.

I'd love to do a little eating myself, but they are hard and bitter, more like crab apples than anything tasty. But the little guys seem to be having a fine time cavorting around and staring at the stranger with the camera staring back.

I've taken the week to sort of rest up a little bit. I say sort of, because it wasn't so much. Just a little less pressed and on deadline than the last couple of months. A few extra hours to play with new labels and packaging prototypes for the fall products. A chance to mull over some ideas for winter holiday products. Nothing is truly set in stone yet, although I've started on some soap production for fall. Depending on how they turn out, I'll pick the best ones and do another bunch of batches in the next week or so. I only hope the apple one smells as good as the tree next door.

More legal stuff - Tax Free!

Two posts today. I'm catching up on things and I've been meaning to post this info for a while.

Mail orders and the new sales tax. That's the issue. If you've been reading along, I've mentioned the BIG SALES TAX CHANGE of July 1st. What happened, in case you missed it, is that sales taxes have changed in the state of Washington - in a really big way across the board. Everyone now pays the sales tax rate at the place they receive goods, instead of the sales tax rate from where it was shipped. Destination-based they call it.

Up until now, people who mail ordered from me had to pay the Seattle sales tax rate, because that's where I am located and from where the goods were shipped. Now you pay whatever sales tax rate you have at your house, if it's going there. Which is generally a bonus, because there are few places who have the same high rates as me, nobody has it any higher, and most people are paying less. Ok, it's only a few cents here and there, but it matters.

The whole thing is a royal headache for me. Because reporting it is going to be a nightmare and tax dollars are headed all over the place. Some places are going to be rolling in it, and some towns are going to be hurting badly. For instance, Kent is warehouse heaven. The entire city is comprised of industry, manufacturing and warehouses where things are stored and shipped. The old way: you live in Kirkland, buy a couch in a Bellevue showroom, but the furniture is located in a warehouse in Kent and trucked off from there to be delivered to you. You were paying Kent tax rate and the money went to Kent municipality because that's where it was shipped from. Kent survived on those tax dollars. Now they will have vastly less money coming in, because people are paying taxes to their own city whenever something is delivered. I have no idea how this will all shake out, but there will be reverberations.

What it means for me and you however, and I'm always looking for a silver lining - this is going to be sweet for out of state shipments. Whenever you order from me and have something delivered to family or friends out of state -- NO TAX at all!!! Think about that. It's one of the major reasons internet sales were so good anyway. Lots of times it was tax free because the company was located out of state. Now it applies to me and you both in Washington, but sending a little special something to your pal in California, your Mom in Florida, the sis in New York and the aunties in Missouri. All those shipments are tax free, even though we are located here. It's good.

I hate taxes too. Hate. So I wanted to mention this new tax free bonus which came out of the new legislation. So you can give it some thought before the holidays roll around.

ETA: to be more clear, in case it all went too fast. It is written in the U.S. Constitution that no taxes can be collected across state lines, so I don't think that's going to change any time soon (no matter how badly those politicians want to collect on internet sales). So all shipments going to someplace outside of Washington state will not have taxes charged. Period. Make sense? No? Call me.

Red Alert

There is panic in the indie beauty business right now. There is new legislation in the works that could put us all out of business in one fell swoop. It's called the FDA Globalization Act and it's on its way. Basically, it regulates the food business, but there is a small section that covers cosmetic manufacturing, and under the guise of making cosmetics safer, it decrees that any business, small or large, that makes any kind of bath or personal care product needs to now register all their recipes and formulations with the FDA and pay astronomic fees each year in order to do so. The red tape is going to be insane. And the fees are not manageable for anyone with a home business. It will put us all out immediately. There will only be grocery store soap and corporate beauty products from here on out if this actually takes place.

That's the panic. If you are interested in learning more, watching a video about what is happening, or signing a petition, go here. There is a group of local women headed to Washington DC to petition the new regulations, and Anne Marie of Brambleberry in Bellingham explains it all here. Their big meeting, with Senators and bigwigs is tomorrow. Fingers crossed. Pretty scary stuff.

Anacortes Arts Festival

I know, I hardly blog anymore. It's bad. But I'm just so darn busy with my little hamster wheel over here, that I haven't been able to carve out even 5 minutes to blab. There's nothing exciting to say, anyway. It's just all work, work, show, show, work, show, work, show. That's my life in the summer. After this week's Anacortes show, I've got a week off before I have to start in on the next one - Best of the Northwest in Marymoor the following week.

But hoo boy, that week is gonna feel good. I'm going to sleep and sleep some more and generally sit around and stare at the sky, along with a few little summer activities for fun. So I'm really looking forward to that little window. Not that I'm counting, but I haven't had a single day off for what, like a month?

I would be remiss if I didn't post at least the details to this next big show. It's always my biggest of the summer, so I'm working doubly hard this week to bring massive amounts of soap and sundries to my little tent in the sunshine.

Anacortes Arts Festival

This is one of the largest and most popular art fairs in the entire Pacific Northwest, with a juried fine art exhibition, over 250 juried booth artisans, two music stages, international food court and beer garden, a hands-on youth area, fiber show at the Depot, working artist area, poetry reading at the port and more.

Dates: August 1, 2 and 3
Times: Friday and Saturday 10am-6pm, Sunday 10am-5pm
Location: Downtown Anacortes, on Commercial Ave between the port and 10th

Soapworks Studio booth location: same location as last year, directly in front of La Vie en Rose Bakery, near the corner of 5th street, on the West side. Booth # 419W. Stop by! Get a cookie or a piece of their yummy pizza.

Gotta get back on my little wheel and keep squeaking away . . . hope all you dears are enjoying a deliciously decadent summer of adventure or sloth. And if so, come by my booth and tell me all about it so I can live vicariously through your stories. ;)

Bellevue - 6th St Fair

Another week, another festival. It's the 3rd in a row of 3-day fairs, so maybe it's especially lucky? Fingers crossed.

This coming weekend is the Bellevue Arts Fair extravaganza. It's actually three different shows, all going on simultaneously in downtown Bellevue. The Bellevue Arts Museum ArtsFair, is the fancy pants show in the garage of the Bellevue Square Mall. It's completely fine art and is the biggest draw for national artists to travel here. Another one, called Bellevue Festival of the Arts, is located in the Cost Plus parking lot across the street from Bell Square. Also only traditional fine art categories and lots of lovely folks there.

And then there is the Sixth Street Fair. Now, this is not the poor cousin of art shows - it's just an extension of folks who show locally, and they in fact allow some other categories too, like traditional crafts, which are not allowed in the other two shows. Soapmaking is obviously not high end fine art. So the only show that me and others like me can even participate in, is Sixth Street. And believe me, there are some very lovely artists in our show too. All kinds of things, from furniture to glass, pottery, jewelry, woodworking - but also soap, candles, fabric arts etc., gift items that don't require a year's worth of salary to invest in. There are 120 artists, food booths and music stages over our way. If you've got time, it's nice to visit the whole entire hullabaloo and see everything. The weather is supposed to be perfect - sunny and 70's, which can't be beat for wandering around being wowed by the creativity and beauty.

Details: 6th Street Fair

Friday, July 25: 10:00 am - 8:00 pm
Saturday, July 26: 10:00 am - 8:00 pm
Sunday, July 27: 10:00 am - 6:00 pm

Soapworks Studio Booth Location: I am located in #C-3, on 106th near the corner of 6th, right in front of the California Pizza Kitchen, facing east towards the Bellevue Galleria complex. Same spot as last few years!

Check the above link for more information on parking deals, shuttles, artist list and locations, etc. See you there -

Uncorked

What a beautiful evening in Kirkland last night. The perfect summer night, with everyone spilling out on the patios and decks of the restaurants, meandering around the park and shops. This view is mainly the big wine tasting area, which was full of live jazz and sippers last night. The art fair portion is spread out all over, a little bit is next to it on the beach, and winds up the street in front of the Market Street Grill - that's where I am. I'm in the middle of the block directly across from the Market Street Grill on Kirkland Ave. And there is another little section of artists set up on Park Lane too - across Central Way from the rest of the festival.

There's a mini boat show on the docks of the marina. It seemed a little small, and the only boats showcased are pretty small little power boats too - no big yachts. Everything is on super clearance sale. I guess the boat business is hurting. Not many want to buck up for gas to motor around any more. The folks who already have boats? They were just sitting on the boat at the dock, having drinks and feeling the breeze but going nowhere. The lake has been looking pretty empty lately. But last night was so pretty, it was hard to resist. Everyone heading out was in sailboats though, see?



Show officially starts at 11am today and tomorrow. I'm sure it will be hopping early though. I need to water the yard and catch up on a couple of things this morning quick before I head over. Just wanted to pop in and let you know that there is no prettier place to spend time than Kirkland's waterfront on a sunny day.

Summer day

Dream Variation

To fling my arms wide
In some place of the sun,
To whirl and to dance
Till the white day is done.
Then rest at cool evening
Beneath a tall tree
While night comes on gently,
Dark like me–
That is my dream!

To fling my arms wide
In the face of the sun,
Dance! Whirl! Whirl!
Till the quick day is done.
Rest at pale evening . . .
A tall, slim tree . . .
Night coming tenderly
Black like me.

- Langston Hughes

Goodbye to Collage

Today is my last day at Collage - the little shop in Kirkland at Carillon Point. I'm headed in this morning to work my shift, but then pack it all up and take it home.

It's been a difficult decision to leave, because the gals there are truly wonderful and have been so supportive. But it's been a tough fit for me. The work shift requirement is becoming increasingly more difficult as I schedule more shows and try to keep up with the mail order side of the business too. I just keep running short of time to be in the studio making products.

And I realized that stocking a little gift boutique is not the same as stocking a show. Customers were looking more for gift wrapped goodies and specially packaged items to give as gifts. The plain old bars of soap were not as popular. Since that's what I do primarily, it was frustrating to see it sit there on the shelf, especially when I needed it at a show were I came up a little short on one scent or another.

I do like a challenge, and so I was constantly brainstorming a new way to do it, to make it a big success. Different gift sets, different types of bags and bows and packaging. Moving it around and bringing in new things. Making special little things just for the shop. It's been over a year and I finally just decided that I'm chasing my tail, running circles and not getting anywhere.

Oh, the sales weren't bad. They were fairly consistent and most customers seemed to enjoy my products there. But it wasn't quite reaching what I needed it to for all the extra effort and attention I had to give it. It was a special project, and I had to be honest with myself that it was a distraction to my regular business, rather than a bonus.

I need my time back. I need my mental (and physical) energies to be more focused on what I have committed to for the rest of the year. So I'm saying goodbye today. I wish them the best success in the future and hope to stay in touch.