Mea Culpa

Berm in June 2015

This blog has been sorely neglected. Every time I’d think about posting this summer, a long list of tasks and errands would pop into my head right behind it!

Garden Bench

A wet spring contributed to a bumper strawberry crop, which had to be harvested, cleaned and frozen. Of course, the weeds grew right alongside the beautiful crops and flowers.

Strawberries in Bloom

I did manage to take a few pics.

Sunshine Park Farmer's Market

Our Booth

We did two farmer’s markets for half the summer but cut it down to one in mid-July. That helped a little, but there was always soap to be made. New products developed over the winter constantly had to be replenished: body butter, (who would have thought it would be so popular in the summer?) and Stardust (dusting powder),

which everyone seemed to want to stay dry in the heat and humidity. The herbal mosquito repellent was a popular item also. The salves, especially the comfrey, have also necessitated making bigger and bigger batches. Before I knew it, I had ripe pumpkins.

Mr. Big Appetite

We had many visitors to the Garden of Nemesis, some of them four-legged critters who liked to eat from our abundance during a month-long drought in July. Skunks dug tunnels along the foundations of both houses and woodchucks staged attacks on the carrots.

Ground squirrels helped the skunks dig up the lawn.

Sammie the Guard Cat

Above is the “guard” cat who romped with the visitors.

Happiness is Sauce

 As the dog days of summer wind down, I know that this winter I will be grateful for every jar of grape juice, green beans and tomato sauce I retrieve from the pantry. Still, this is one senior citizen that will be glad to sit down on occasion and reflect.

Spring Has Sprung

Daffodils

Glorious spring! First the daffodils, then the tulips.

Yellow Tulips

May 3rd

The quince is a thorny mess all year, but in the spring, it is one of the first to bloom a delicate pink. Later, there will (hopefully) be those crazy apple-like fruits that make such good jam.

Quince

The violets are sending out their delicious perfume and are gathered for salves and tinctures.

Violets washed and ready

Added to the Bechard’s Botanicals line of new products are these:

Shampoo bars are joined by hair balm

Stardust Shimmer Dusting Powder for sweaty summer days

Healing Salves

Lip Balm

As I was working in the garden, I happened to look across to the park and saw my husband making the best of that irritating wind. He’s the only guy I know that will go fly a kite when his wife tells him to!

Go fly a kite!

Happy Easter

Soap Eggs

Finally, spring! It’s been a long winter and it’s so heartening to hear the birds singing, watch the crocus bloom and dig in the soil again.

Lettuce slowly germinating in cedar box.

The last month has been a raking marathon interrupted by soapmaking, tax prep and seed starting.

Here’s the future garden.

Set to germinate

I made two new soaps that aren’t new; they just experienced a name change. The theory is, if a customer doesn’t like the name, they avoid the product. “Hunk,” formerly “Wandugu”.

Men's Soap: Hunk (a Burnin Love) Mmmmmm

This is “White Wedding,” formerly “White Witch”. We’ll see if the changes pass the sniff test!

White Wedding

Mocha Cappuccino has a new design.

Mocha Cappuccino: Smells like the real thing

 Cucumber remains the same, batch after batch. That fresh scent and top-rate oils can’t be improved upon.

Cucumbers and Cream

Soap Making as an Art Form

Great Outdoors (Citronella Soap)

If the definition of art is: "the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power," then handcrafted soap is art.

CoCoCrazy Hand Soap

While enjoying a painting or a sculpture one sense out of the five, the visual sense, is engaged, whereas a beautiful bar of soap will also stimulate touch and smell.

Visions

Oh, the silky pleasure of sliding the bar over your skin while the scent wafts in the air…

White Winged Dove

Not to mention being rewarded with soft, natural skin and the knowledge you have avoided all those unpronounceable petro-chemicals contained in corporate "washes".  

Easter Egg Tree

 

Strawberry Dreaming

Dreaming of those luscious June berries!

 This new batch of Moonstruck has a "funnel pour" moon.

Really and truly, latest Moonstruck.

Not sure if I like it…I screwed up and made it a different fragrance from the first batch, which was apple. I must learn to refer to my notes on every detail, as my memory sometimes fails me. This one is tobacco bay leaf and lemongrass, the scent I generally use for men. Smells luscious.

Lavender Gift Pack

Lavender Gift Pack of 4

Here's the new packaging for the Cupcake Gift Packs. I think it looks really nice and it's recycled containers.

Rose Geranium Single Bath Fizzy

The singletons are packaged in 5.5 oz solo cups I ordered online. The lid is now the bottom.

 

Rosie is lonely no more

The Rose Body Butter now has two companions: Men's and Naked. The Naked has no color or scent for those with extra sensitive skin. I made the Men's as I have a couple of guys who love the Rose Body Butter, but preferred to smell masculine. I can't blame them!

This smells delightful

This is the first Dream Pillow, a prototype if you will, made from one of my favorite old pillowcases. It's stuffed with mugwort and lavender buds and scented with lavender. I'll try it out tonight and see if I can have some lucid dreams. At the very least, the lavender will make a lovely nocturnal buddy.

Easter is April 5th this year

If you've been watching me at bechardsbotanicals on you tube, you'll have seen me making these little buggers. I've complained about my egg obsession before, so won't bore you again. They are unique and beautiful and I have a few customers that insist.They really do fit nicely in the palm of your hand and are a great buy for $3.

Filtering Beeswax and Making Pet Soap

Local Beeswax

:Cappings"

I bought some beeswax and "cappings" from a local bee guy this week and set about to filter it.

Melting at low temp

I started with cheesecloth, but found a knee-high nylon stocking works better.

Two types of filter

It was messy business!

Honey oozing from wax ready to be rinsed

Before I do this the next time, I'm going to do more research, as I know there's an easier way than this.

Pure, clean beeswax

I am happy to have all this pure, unadulterated beeswax to put in my body care recipes. 

Goat's Milk Shampoo Bar

I made another shampoo bar, this one with goat's milk especially created for chemically treated and damaged hair. As soon as the PH tests neutral, we are going to test it. ***Contains only saponified oils of olive, coconut and castor, Shea Butter, cocoa butter, jojoba oil, essential oils and beeswax.

Moonstruck will be on website soon

I'm very happy with the design of Moonstruck, made with goat's milk.

 

Puppy Love Loaf

Puppy Love (dog shampoo bar) is on the curing rack, soon to be tested. I don't know how we can go wrong with these ingredients.

*** Saponified oils of coconut, olive, sweet almond, Neem seed and castor; goat's milk, oat milk, Bentonite clay and essential oils. 

Wild Cat

Wild Cat (cat shampoo bar) is also curing with these wonderful ingredient

***Saponified oils of coconut, olive, sweet almond, Neem seed and castor; goat's milk, oat milk, Bentonite clay, tea tree essential oil, beeswax and madder root.

Natural Pet Shampoo Bars

As soon as we receive the "A-ok," we'll make bigger batches and put our pet shampoo on bechardsbotanicals.com.

If you want to see the videos of us making these soaps, go to our You Tube channel.