Silly Soap Stories and Candle Craziness

When we started this blog we promised peeks "behind the scenes" at the Brown Barn Bath Company. This post launches a series of blogs by our staff that talk about their job at The Brown Barn Bath Company and anything else they would like to share. To kick things off I thought you'd enjoy some "soapy stories".

Learning To Make Bath Bombs...About four years ago I stumbled across a bath bomb recipe on the Internet. YUM! I thought, remembering my beloved fuzzy bear soap from childhood. I immediately invested over $100 in supplies and anxiously waited for the UPS man to arrive.

Several days later I set up the KitchenAide mixer my mother-in-law had given me many years before as a wedding gift (and which I had never used!). Back then I made everything from my home kitchen. I followed the recipe perfectly, heeding their warnings that the mix can be set off with inaccurate measurements. I mixed the dry ingredients and set the mixer to slow, then mixed the wet ingredients separately...confident I'd find success because I had ordered the exact ingredients in the recipe from the company who gave me the recipe. I then quickly dumped the wet into the dry, ramping my mixer up to full speed to avoid setting off the mix. 

WHAM!! My kitchen was suddenly COVERED in white dust from the dry ingredients. Coughing and Hacking, my face white with powder (I hadn't used a face mask or goggles either!) I backed away, recovered and came back to the mixer to find the mix had been set off!!

When you use one of our little bath bombs they come to you dry and hard. When you set off five pounds of mix in production it turns to foam, fizzing and spewing forth like an ooze monster. The foaming bath mix quickly foamed up and over the mixing bowl, down the counter, over the edge, down the front of my kitchen cabinets and onto the floor. On the opposite side, it was actually crawling UP my wall toward the electrical sockets. I yanked the plug hard, slamming my elbow into the mixer hard enough to cause the heavy mixer to fly off the cabinet onto my foot..breaking a toe! Jumping up and down I notice my Himilayan cat, Theo, licking the mix. I grab Theo, flinging him into the living room, come back into the kitchen only to SLIP ON THE MIX and land flat on my back covered in Margarita scented bath bomb foam! Our house smelled like Margarita mix for at least two weeks after that. 


My favorite bath bombs are these huge bombs but no customers wanted to pay $5 for a single bomb...this pic makes me think we might have to make some for the Christmas season! 

Word of warning...there are tons and tons of recipes for every possible bath item on the Internet. Some are good but many many are awful. And worse, some posted by companies who sell ingredients can include ingredients we shun do to their potential hazards. Research everything you use if you decide to make a product of your own and look over several recipes BEFORE you buy ingredients. The goal of these companies is to sell ingredients to home hobbyists, many of the recipe pages include disclaimers that say something like "our recipes are untested, we are not resonsible..."  Believe it!!

Stinky Soaps - When I decided to add Dog Soaps to our mix I wanted to be sure to make an amazing dog soap that was super healthy. Somewhere in my research I read that Neem Oil was a great additive to the soap as it soothed their skin and coated the dog hair to help repel pests. I found our cute paw print mold, poured a luxurious Aloe Vera base and added our essential oil mix followed by a generous dollup of Neem Oil. I then cured the soaps, knowing they'd be ready just in time for a big Christmas Show I was going to be a vendor at.

I was still working at home back then and had made the soaps late in the day. When making products my nose stops working around 1pm. It just gets overwhelmed and checks out around that time every day. That's why I measure all my scents! Back then I was just starting out and had not realized my nose was letting me down every afternoon. Also, our house back then smelled amazing..imagine all those scents in a small space, it was like walking into a garden every day.

I set up for the show, proudly displaying our new dog soaps right in there with all of our other pretty soaps. All day I sat at that show, people came and went, sniffing and oohing until suddenly abruptly walking away. At the very end of the day a very pregnant woman entered my booth, she picked up the dog soap, sniffed and immediately set it down. The woman then turned to me with a look of utter disgust and RAN to the bathroom!! My neighboring booth-mate said to me "Do you know her??"

I walked to the dog soap, sniffed it and GAGGED!!! The Neem Oil smelled HORRIBLE! Lesson learned: made at the end of the day sniff the next morning outdoors, away from all the other scents!  We removed the Neem oil from the soap and you now have a great smelling dog soap.

The original offender.

Candle Campfires - This story happened just last week!  Erika, our Formulary Manager, had been familiarizing herself with the many bottles of synthetic scents in our lab. When she stumbled across a scent called "Campfire" she exclaimed excitedly, "Oh Wow! I have a friend who was telling me he wants a campfire scented candle, do you think this would work in a candle?"  The outside of the bottle claimed it was good for candles, soaps and body items. I told Erika to take it to the store sometime and have them try it in a candle.

I spent the following week in Tomahawk helping open the store. One day I got a phone call from Jessica, our Director of Operations. She told me that Erika and Brenda (our store manager) had decided to give that campfire candle scent a try. Full of anticipation they had melted the wax and poured in the scent only to find the scent was far too strong for candle-making and once ignited, the scent had a distinct burning Italian sausage scent to it. It didn't take long for the manager of the bank next door to stop in to make sure the store wasn't on fire. The store and bank had to open its doors to air out the spaces!

And one last candle story.... Something else we've been giggling about for the last month is that since starting making soy candles I've been frustrated by the development of "Frost" between the candle wax and jar. I would spend an entire day pouring the most beautiful candles only to find Frost all over them the next day. I've researched and researched, trying everything I can think of to get rid of this Frost. Throwing my hands in the air I had marked all the candles down to the lowest possible price when we opened the Holcombe store and then been surprised when they sold and people told me they loved their candles.

When we moved the candle making operation to the store the employees joined me in this quest for Frost-Free soy candles. A few weeks ago we took a road trip to set up our store in Tomahawk. Several of the stores on Wisconsin Ave. offer beautiful soy candles, we were so HAPPY to see many of the candles had similar frost on them! One of the store owners told me that was the sign of a quality soy candle and that was how you knew you had a genuine soy candle!!!  Oh My Gosh! We've been trying to remove the sign of a quality soy candle from our quality soy candles and I'd even given some of them away as "rejects"!!

Hoping you have a safe and great smelling weekend!  Chris Untiedt, CEO, The Brown Barn Company llc

The Perfect Facial Care Routine

Greetings!  It's great to be back on The Brown Barn Blog. 

Katie Giencke



There are four steps to basic skin care which includes cleansing, toning, exfoliating, and moisturizing. These four steps should be done both morning and night. Other products to enhance the status of your skin can be used as well, some morning and night, some one time a day and some every few days. Below is a reference to help you to know what each product does for your skin.

Cleanser: Removes impurities and prepares the skin for following products. Some cleansers exfoliate as well. Cleanser should be used morning and night.
Toner: Corrects the PH balance of the skin. Toner should be used morning and night.

Exfoliate: Removes dead skin cells, there are two types of exfoiants, liquid and granule, a liquid gives a chemical exfoliation which dissolves away dead skin and a granuler exfoliant gives a mechanical exfoliation rubbing away dead skin as well as bring circulation to the skin. Exfoliants should be used every other day or every three days.Serums: Treat the skin. Serums are usually used morning and night but sometimes once a day. Serums each have different purposes.

Eye Cream: Treats the delicate eye area differently then the rest of the skin. Eye cream should be used morning and night.

Moisturizer: Moisturizer should be used morning and night. Moisturizes and sometime treats the skin.

Masks: Masks treat the skin. Each mask has a different purpose. Masks should be used one time a week. 

  　

How to choose a perfect routine for you and how to use the beautiful Brown Barn Facial products. The following are suggested combinations available, there are other options in the store as well as these and all work well.  All of these products are available on the The Brown Barn Bath Company Web-Site: http://www.brownbarnbath.com/ and in the stores. If you have questions please feel free to ask!

 

(Duplicate numbers indicate steps where you have a choice of products to choose from.  Choose of the products from any number group.)

Anti-Acne- If your skin is oily with frequent blemishes.

1. Grapefruit and Lime Cleansing Gel Use morning and night, use two to three pumps on damp skin, work into skin with upward circular motions, rinse with water.

2. Clear Complexion Corrective Toning Mist Use morning and night, spray two to three times.

3. Anti-Inflammatory Facial Serum Use morning and night, use about a pea size and pat onto face an neck.

4. Revital-Eyez Eye Cream Use morning and night, use about a pea size and dab around eyes in upward motions.

5. “Problem Solved” Moisturizer Use morning and night, use about a dime size and pat onto face and neck.

Anti-Aging- If your skin has signs of aging or want to begin prevention of aging.
1. Radiance Glowing AHA/BHA Face Wash Use morning and night, use two to three pumps on damp skin, work into skin with upward circular motions, rinse with water.

2. All Natural Fresh Complexion Corrective Mist Use morning and night, spray two to three times.

2. Glycolic Toner Use morning and night, spray two to three times.

2. Floral Facial Toner Use morning and night , spray two to three times.

3. Revital-Eyez Eye Cream Use morning and night, use about a pea size and dab around eyes in upward motions.

4. Replenish Anti-Aging Moisturizer Use morning and night, use about a dime size and pat onto face and neck.

4. Anti-Oxidant Protective Morning Moisturizer with Vital Night Repair Use morning and night, use about a dime size and pat onto face and neck.

　

Increased Radiance- If you have balanced skin and need to maintain.

1. Radiance Deep Refining Face Wash Use morning and night, use two to three pumps on damp skin, work into skin with upward circular motions, rinse with water.

2. Dew Complexion Corrective Toning Mist Use morning and night, spray two to three times.

2. Citrus Twist Toning Mist Use morning and night, spray two to three times.

3. Balancing Facial Serum Use morning and night, use about a pea size and pat onto face an neck.

4. Revital-Eyez Eye Cream Use morning and night, use about a pea size and dab around eyes in upward motions.

5. Intense Hydration Cream Use morning and night, use about a dime size and pat onto face and neck.

5. Replenish Anti-Aging Moisturizer Use morning and night, use about a dime size and pat onto face and neck.

5. Anti-Oxidant Protective Morning Moisturizer with Vital Night Repair Use morning and night, use about a dime size and pat onto face and neck.

　

Dry Skin- If your skin is dry.

1. Orange and Geranium Cleansing Facial Cream Use morning and night, use two to three pumps on damp skin, work into skin with upward circular motions, rinse with water.

2. Floral Facial Toner for Dry Skin Use morning and night , spray two to three times.

3. Balancing Facial Serum Use morning and night, use about a pea size and pat onto face an neck.

4. Revital-Eyez Eye Cream Use morning and night, use about a pea size and dab around eyes in upward motions.

5. Intense Hydration Cream Use morning and night , use about a dime size and pat onto face and neck.

　
Sensitive Skin- If your skin is sensitive to the touch or to products.

1. Cucumber and Chamomile Facial Wash Use morning and night, use two to three pumps on damp skin, work into skin with upward circular motions, rinse with water.

2. Floral Facial Toner Sensitive Skin Use morning and night, spray two to three times.

4. Revital-Eyez Eye Cream Use morning and night, use about a pea size and dab around eyes in upward motions.

5. Intense Hydration Cream Use morning and night, use about a dime size and pat onto face and neck.

Exfoliation: Facial Scrubs should be used two to three times a week.  Cover entire face and neck with product and use upward circular motions to manually exfoliate skin for about one minute, rinse with water and finish with your hydration routine.

• Royal Jelly Moisturizing Facial Scrub
• Honey Oats Gentle Facial Scrub
• Bamboo and Green Tea Facial Scrub

Clay Scrubs and Masks:

• Ylang Ylang and Lime Clay Facial Scrub: Use two to three times a week, cover entire face and neck with product, leave on for about three minutes, allowing the clay to dry a bit and detoxify the skin, gently use upward circular motions to manually exfoliate skin for about one minute, rinse with water and finish with your hydration routine.
• Orange and Ylang Ylang Mineral Mask and Stinky Dead Sea Mud Mask:
Use one time a week, cover entire face and neck with product, leave on for about ten minutes, allowing it to dry, rinse off with water and finish with your hydration routine.

As usual, I am available for free private consultation for Brown Barn Bath Company customers.  E-mail postmaster@brownbarnbath.com if interested.  Have a great Labor Day Weekend! ~Katie