Happiness - Day Nine - The Challenge

This post is part of a multi-day series on fostering happiness in your life. Day Eight is here.

I've neglected this series with all the traveling I've been doing lately. This is the final day in the Happiness Posts. I hope you've enjoyed this longish book review.

Happiness as a Gift

“No pessimist ever discovered the secrets of the stars,
or sailed to an uncharted land, or opened a new heaven to the human spirit.”
– Helen Keller

Happiness, it seems, is a living thing. The particular way in which we think and act can determine a lot about how happy we are. What we focus on, in the past, present and future, makes a big difference to our happiness.

Happy people focus on the good things in their past rather than the bad things. They tend to be grateful and forgiving and they don’t believe that the past determines the future. In the present, happy people take pleasure in life, in their relationships, in their surroundings, in their day-to-day activities and in their work. Looking at the future, happy people are basically optimistic. If things don’t turn out, they readjust and keep going. They recover from bad things quickly and expect good things. They move forward.

“I am an optimist. It does not seem too much use being anything else.”
-- Winston Churchill

Happy people are generally positive, cheerful, pleasant, optimistic, upbeat. They see possibilities. They neutralize or sidestep strong negative energy forces. They are healthier not only mentally but also physically. And, you can have this too! You need to be systematic about building your happiness framework by:

Day 1- Decide to be happy. Happiness is a choice.
Day 2- Foster close relationships.
Day 3- Focus on a larger purpose.
Day 4- Move purposefully towards your goals.
Day 5- Find quiet, targeted time to reflect. Make "slow" time.
Day 6- Challenge and excite your mind.
Day 7- Work out five days per week & eat a clean diet.
Day 8- Feel grateful & focus on the positive.

When we are happy, our happiness is contagious. Our families and friends and community benefit from our good spirits, our optimism, our humor, our laughter, our ability to look on the sunny side of life. Don't you want this for yourself? Add any two of the ideas above to your routine for 30 days. In 30 days of mindful practice (for whatever your choices are), take an honest look and see where you are on your happiness scale. Did you move up? If you did, consider adding another framework and another happiness "best practice" until you work your way completely up the list. Won't it feel good to look back at the end of 2009 and realize how many positive changes you made in your life?

Mark Twain: “Whoever is happy will make others happy.”

Sarah Ban Breathnach: “Now be reassured. Optimism...can be learned. Start today with a little experiment. Smile at everyone you meet.”

Coming Soon - Cute New Molds

Cavities:

1 each

Ounces Per Bar:

4 each

Dimensions:

Oval: 1" x 3.5" x 2.75" Rectangle: 1" x 3.5" x 2.25" Round: 1" x 3" Square: 1" x 2.375"

Cavities:

3

Ounces Per Bar:

4.5

Dimensions:

1.25" x 3.5" x 2.75"

Operation: Hi Mom

Canvas on Demand supports our troops.

Canvas on Demand is a company that turns your family photos (or any photo) into a stunning canvas piece of art (check out their site here). I used them for several photos of me and my sweetie to decorate our home and recently recommended them to my newly married brother.

In appreciation of our deployed military men and women and recognition of Mothers Day, Canvas on Demand created "Operation: Hi Mom" and 500 lucky troops could score a beautiful 16" x 20" pixel painting for their mom.

Submit a canvas request by telling a little bit about your mom and your photo of choice here. Then 500 submissions are chosen at random and the pictures will be delivered to moms just in time for Mothers Day.

Read current submissions here

Easter Ducky Soap - Redux

In case you missed this adorable (adorable, adorable!) Easter soap project last year, the instructions are here.

Thanks Martha Radio Blog

We are so excited that the creative team from the Martha Stewart Radio show, Whole Living, tried our Eco Chic soap kit! Yippeee!

Their review is long and even includes photos. Here's an excerpt from the witty and useful review:

Can you make your own soap? First I thought--wha? Why take a step backwards? There's plenty of fine soaps out there. Should I start churning my own butter, too?

But I complied and thought, hey, it could be fun. If anything, it's a creative exercise---and it was actually sort of fun. Not to mention it’s cheap to do, and, if you decide you like doing it, you could have yourself a nice little business. Plus, the commercial products out there are often loaded with extra stuff you don’t want (artificial fragrances, harsh surfactants, parabens, need I go on?).

The rest of the full review is here, complete with instructions on making eco chic soap.

Takes Surpising Inner Thigh Strength (video)

Our day has been packed full of amazing learning. I can't wait to share it with you ... when I'm more awake. It's bedtime for us! But, I wanted to share some of the fun with you. The video below is a short clip of me really putting those Pilates classes to work, trying to stay on a people-powered mechanical bull. It was surprisingly difficult and exhilarating fun.



Feedblitz subscribers: If you'd like to see the video, you need to click through to the blog

Key Things an A-Team Needs

Yesterday, I was privileged to hear Jim Collins speak on how companies go from Great to Irrelevance. One of the key factors for building a world class organization and keeping it great is the people.

Jim shared his key insights into what an A-Team needs. This is from his upcoming book (coming out in May), "How the Mighty Fall" and he gave me permission to share it with you.

1. You know the person is a great fit for your team when they fit with your core values walking in the door. You can train for skills. You can't train for values.

2. They don't need to be tightly managed. The moment you feel the need to micromanage an employee, you know you've made a hiring mistake.

3. The right people understand that they don't have a job - they have responsibilities.

4. The right people do what they say they will do. They are accountable in every action.

5. The right people have window and mirror maturity. This means that when something goes wrong, they look in the mirror and say "I'm responsible. Here's what I will do to grow and change." When things are good, they point out the window and share the success and accolades with their team. They look outside of themselves to share the praise and recognition.

6. They think that what you do is really cool and believe it is a privilege to work for you.

Everything kept coming back to the people and the team you surround yourself with. Another nugget I really appreciated from his talk was this one. He ended his talk with something the great Peter Drucker told him: "Stop worrying about your survival, your success and start worrying about how to be useful."

Did YOU miss out?

Did you miss out on the 5% discount Bramble Berry just offered its newsletter subscribers? If you subscribed to our newsletter, you would have also received the Bath Bomb Frosting recipe a full 2 days before blog readers. We send out our newsletter one to two times per month. It's always useful recipes, tips and alerts on new products. Don't miss out on the next one - sign up here.

On Martha Stewart Radio Friday, 7:30 a.m.

Welcome Martha Stewart Radio listeners! Thank you Regina and Shannon for phoning in questions live while I was on-air.

If you're looking for the Eco Chic Soap concept we talked about today and how you can use simple plastic containers like yogurt and tupperware for soap molds for your easy starter melt and pour recipes, you can find it here. Other resources for you: TeachSoap.com and the TeachSoap.com Forum.

Bath Bomb Cupcakes - Day Two - The Frosting

The frosting is my favorite part; so let's get to it!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups meringue powder
1 cup warm water
1 3/4 cup powdered sodium laurel sulfate (SLS)
8 tablespoons Jojoba oil
2 cups powdered sugar (plus more if needed)
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
1/2 ounce fragrance oil
a few drops of labcolor canary yellow

Tools:
Mixing bowl
Electric mixer or whisk
Piping bag, cookie spritzer, or knife for spreading the frosting

A few notes: The meringue powder is powdered egg white which gives the frosting body and also helps it to harden (which is why it's frequently used in royal icing). The SLS makes bubbles - so really you'll end up with a Bubble Bath Bomb. Using an electric mixer is the easiest way to make a smooth fluffy frosting - but you can also make this recipe with a whisk and some elbow grease!

Directions:
1. Blend the Meringue powder and water together and mix until you have a smooth lump free consistency.
2. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well until you get a smooth, stiff frosting. You can add more water or powdered sugar to adjust the consistency if necessary. The thicker the frosting, the easier it is to maintain a tall frosting swirl with a distinct pattern.
3. Fill up your piping bag (see instructions how on our sugar scrub tutorial) or try using a cookie spritzer gun like we did. Alternatively, you can always just use a knife to give your creations that authentic bake sale look.
4. Allow the frosting to harden for at least 24 hours before you sell, use or give away your fabulous creations. If you are shipping the product, shrink wrapping the entire bath bomb cupcake ensures a safe arrival to your destination.

Click here for Day one - the cupcakes - tutorial

Bath Bomb Cupcakes - Day One - The Cupcakes

Ingredients To Make 12 Bath Bomb Cupcakes:

1 Pound Citric Acid

2 Pounds Baking Soda

spritzer filled with Witch Hazel

Fragrance: Anything sweet - we like Hello Sweet Thang!, Buttercream & Snickerdoodle or Carrot Cake

Silicone Cupcake Mold (NEW!)

Mica or La Bomb Colorant

Labcolor (we used Canary for the bright yellow frosting)

Soap & Body Safe Glitter

Cupcake Liners

1. Place the Citric Acid and Baking soda in your mixing bowl. Use your fingers to break up any clumps that might be in the mixture. The goal is a smooth and small grained mixture.

2. Add fragrance. Since each bath fizzy needs to scent an entire tub, you'll want to use a good amount of fragrance. 1/3 ounce is a good place to start all the way up to 1/2 ounce per pound of mixture.

3. Add four to seven drops of color. If you are using LaBomb (FD&C based colors in glycerin) the color will immediately bead up and clump. Work this around with your fingers to break up the clumps or use a sieve.

4. Mix the color and fragrance in thoroughly. This is important as clumps of fragrance or moisture can turn into wart-like protrusions on your bath fizzy.

5. Spritz the mixture with 6 squirts of Witch Hazel. Mix in well. Grab some of the mixture and make a fist around it. Does the mixture stay together? If it does, it's ready to mold. If it does not hold its shape, do 3 more Witch Hazel spritzes until the mixture forms a shape in your hand when clenched.

6. Turn to your cupcake mold. Are the liners in? Make sure they are firmly in the mold. Take a handful of the dry mixture and press firmly into the molds. The more dense and packed the fizzies are, the longer they will last in the tub.

7. Unlike most fizzies, having an even back is not needed nor recommended. Ideally, you'll want to mound up the middle of the cupcake because it will help to give your frosting a good base to wind up around.

8. Let the fizzies harden inside the mold. You'll frost the cupcake bath fizzies while the bath bombs are still inside the cupcake baking sheet.

Check back tomorrow for our super duper improved frosting recipe. It has SLS in it to fizz, whirl and easily melt away in the tub.

Ready for the frosting? Click Here

Soapy Sneak Previews!

Click here for SWI 2009 details!

Don't miss the second annual Soap Weekend Intensive in Bellingham Washington. Join me and special guest teachers like Debbie Chialtas from Soapy Love, Jill Heuser from Northwest Scents and Lori Nova from the Nova Studio.

Sign up here!

Learn how to make these Soapy Cookies and Soapy Plaid by Soapy Love herself!

Karma Soaps & New Loaf Molds

We're ecstatic! Our new 2.5-3 lb loaf molds are finally here! We couldn't wait to try one out so we took a mold straight to our soaping lab and created an earthy and colorful Karma Goodness soap. See our instructions below to make your own "good karma".

Here's What You'll Need
3 lb Loaf Mold
3 lbs Clear Melt and Pour
1.5 oz Karma Synergy Essential Oil Blend
Ultramarine Purple Oxide
Heavy Metal Gold Mica
Gold Sparkle Mica
Cellini Blue Mica
Microwave safe bowl (pyrex)

Layer 1: Melt 12 oz of clear melt and pour (30 second intervals in the microwave). Add fragrance oil and a pinch of ultramarine purple oxide. Pour soap into loaf mold.

Tip: Mix your micas or oxides with a little rubbing alcohol first to eliminate spots and speckles. Then add to soap base. Give it a final spritz to eliminate bubbles.

Layer 2: Melt 12 oz of clear melt and pour. Add fragrance oil and a pinch of heavy metal gold mica. Spritz the first layer with rubbing alcohol (to make sure layers adhere) and pour your second layer. To achieve the texture in this layer, stir the soap in the mold until it cools (2-3 minutes), creating a chunky type layer. Give it a spritz with alcohol 2-3 times during the cooling process to eliminate bubbles.

Tip: Before pouring your second layer, make sure the melted soap has cooled to 120 degrees. If it's any hotter it will melt the bottom layer of soap.
Layer 3: Melt 12 oz of clear melt and pour. Add fragrance oil, a pinch of Gold Sparkle Mica and stir. Spritz the textured layer before pouring the soap and spritz again with alcohol to eliminate bubbles after pouring.

Layer 4: Repeat step 3 using the cellini blue mica. Remember to give the soap a final spritz to eliminate bubbles.
Final: Once the soap has cooled, turn your soap mold upside down and pull the edges away from the soap to break the air lock. Once the air lock is completely broken your soap loaf will fall out of the mold.

PS - I'm traveling today to sunny Arizona to go listen to Jim Collins (from Good to Great fame) speak. He'll be talking about how to build a company to last the ages. I'm excited and will definitely be blogging as I can.

Bath Bomb Cupcakes - New Recipe Tomorrow!

I am soooooo excited. We've figured out a new recipe for Bath Bomb Cupcakes with a frosting that more easily melts and fizzes in the tub. Though I am traveling to Arizona in the morning to learn from the great Jim Collins about how to build a company with lasting significance and legacy, there will be time tomorrow (at some point, in between airports or hotels) to post this exciting and new recipe. It's the next evolution of our original fun recipe and I can't wait to share it with you.

Click here for the bath bomb recipe
Click here for the frosting recipe

New Brushes and Soap Boxes. Oh Boy!

Shaving Brush- The old fashion shaving method is coming back! This brush lathers any shaving soap brilliantly and is gentle on the skin. Give the man in your life the smooth shave that he deserves! The diameter of the brush handle is 1 1/4 inches and the height measures 4 1/2 inches. $4.00

Blush Brush- This brush is made with real goat hair and is perfect for evenly applying rouge for that sophisticated and glowing look. The diameter of the brush handle is 3/4 of an inch and the height measures 3 3/4 inches. $5.50

Foundation Brush- DIY mineral makeup is all the rage these days. Apply your handmade foundation or bronzer with a brush that's made with real goat hair, soft to the touch and will help you create an even skin tone or sun-kissed look. The diameter of the brush handle is 1 1/4 inches while the height measures 3 3/4 inches. $9.00

Soap Box 2- This soap box is a fabulous find and fits our log mold soaps perfectly. This white, one piece box is easy to put together and will hold a bar that is 3" x 3.5" x 1". It's a blank canvas for your custom label! 12 boxes for just $4.00

Disaboom: Live Forward

Connecting the Millions touched by Disability

I just wanted to share this cool site I came across via my fabulous father. Disaboom is an online disability community to "share stories, learn from others and create a supportive network of friends." This site also has some great information on health in general. Check it out and read some amazing and inspirational stories!

Saint Cupcake Bliss

Saint Cupcakes is located in Portland Oregon which is about a 4-5 hour drive for me. So to get my cupcake fix I ordered online using their "fancy cupcake choosing technology". I ordered 3 different cupcakes, 3 different types of frosting and 3 different types of sprinkles. The ordering experience in itself had me ear to ear. I could hardly wait to receive my $21 order. No, that's not a typo, people. I paid $21 for just 3 cupcakes. Was it worth it?

Well, today was the day. I walked into the office only to see a single ray of light beaming down on a cardboard box. I dropped my purse, squinted at the box and made out the word "cupcake". I could hear the faint sound of angels singing in the background, "aahhh". Then reality set back in as I quickly ripped the box to shreds. I was over the top excited!

The overall marketing scheme and presentation of the cupcakes was a 10! Brilliant! I honestly don't know if it could get much cuter than this. The pink box came with individually wrapped cupcakes, tiny containers of frosting, sprinkles and spreading utensils- it's a full meal deal!

Now for the taste test. I delicately spread the caramel frosting on the vanilla cupcake. Because the frosting was cold it was tough to spread, but I forged ahead and got the job done. The cupcake was okay ...6 out of 10. It wasn't the best cupcake I've EVER had but it did in a pinch. And whatever, the whole unwrapping, cute packaging and action oriented project made up for the so-so oily cupcake. I am still in high spirits with my purchase and I would totally send this as a gift in the future. The whole concept is right on the money.

Here I am blissfully tasting the costly treat. Yes, the experience was worth it!

It's Easy! I Swear!

We did our first-ever DIY Mineral Make Up class at Otion. Throughout the 3 hour class, I kept telling the class attendees that the process was super simple. At the beginning of the class, they looked dubious. But, by the end of the class, everyone agreed and was excitedly chatting on about what they were going to make next. Blush was on most attendee's to-do list.


The biggest success of the day was definitely the foundations portion of the class. Mixing a truly custom blended foundation can be absolutely daunting and take up to 45 minutes. An intricate understanding of the Color Wheel is essential for a successful foundation match. Thankfully, fabulous Johanna co-taught the class with me and she is pure genius with mixing and matching.


To make things just a little easier, we had each of the foundation base mixes in the "Making Mineral MakeUp Guide" pre-mixed for everyone. There are 12 different blends in the book. Amazingly, everyone left with perfectly blended foundation and only 2 people needed some extra oxides added to the basic bases to get the perfect blend. So, perhaps that need for a truly custom blended foundation is nil because most everyone found their perfect match in our handy pre-made recipes.

Eye Shadow was the big crowd pleaser. It's the easiest to make and of course, with eye shadow, anything goes so there were some fun and crazy colors that were made.


Everyone left with 4 eye shadows they made in class, 1 custom color match foundation, make up applicators and the Mineral MakeUp Guide. More importantly, they left with the knowledge on how to create all of these goodies for themselves at home.


If you want to do this yourself at home, you can! It's easy (I swear). Buy the book here. Check out the Starter Foundation Kit here or the DIY Eye Shadow Kits here and have yourself a DIY Mineral MakeUp party.

Your profession is not what brings home your paycheck. Your profession is what you were put on earth to do. With such passion and such intensity that it becomes spiritual in calling. --Virgil

Squeaky Stroller Shout Out

Squeaky Stroller is an online magazine resource featuring the latest and greatest products for moms and kids. We enjoy their "smart and simple take on daily life." This month they featured our Mineral Make-Up Kits for moms to play with on their indoor playdates. Hey, playdates aren't just for the kids right?

Read the full article here.Our mineral makeup kits are a great excuse to get the girls together! The kits come with everything you will need to make 10 pampering eye shadows in vivid colors or neutral and metallics. One kit will be perfect to share with your friends on your next playdate. Get your Mineral Make-Up Kit HERE.

Happiness - Day Eight - Bumps

This post is part of a multi-day series on fostering happiness in your life.

The Bumps Along the Road

This is my "depressed stance." When you're depressed, it makes a lot of difference how you stand. The worst thing you can do is straighten up and hold your head high because then you'll start to feel better. If you're going to get any joy out of being depressed, you've got to stand like this.
-- Charlie Brown

Everyone has down times and our challenges to overcome. We all walk the path of life’s ups and downs and sometimes the up path can be steep.

This is where friends, family and community come in again. People with close friends, family and a strong community recover faster from down times, failures and sadness. Studies show that isolation exacerbates unhappiness whereas friends and family and community lift our spirits.

The I in illness is isolation, and the crucial letters in wellness are we. ~Author unknown, as quoted in Mimi Guarneri, The Heart Speaks: A Cardiologist Reveals the Secret Language of Healing

With friends we share our achievements, failures, strengths, and vulnerabilities. Good friends are there in good times and bad. We participate in each others’ lives. We share our feelings. We don’t go it alone.

When we’re going through our troubled time, we have our daily plan. We don't have to think about all our decisions because we've done the roadmap - our goals and our vision for our life. So, it's easier to eat well, exercise, spend time in nature, write in our gratitude journal, and spend time with positive friends. All these things nourish us and we recover faster.

Finally, there’s laughter. Laughter sends endorphins into the bloodstream and relieves pain, both physical and mental. Laughter has been described as “inner jogging”, “respiratory gymnastics”, “the stress fighter”, and “a tranquilizer with no side effects”. Well, it all sounds good! Hurray for those great giggles we’ve had at the craziest times and hurray for our friends who make us laugh!

Sure, we find ourselves in the doldrums sometimes, but we don’t have to dwell there.
We can just choose to shift gears. Helen Keller said, “When one door closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has opened for us.”


Happiness tips for the doldrums:
-Smile, even if you don’t feel like it. Smiling automatically triggers your endorphins. And if someone smiles back at you – presto! more endorphins.
-Help someone else who’s having difficulty.
-Do something productive to take your mind off your problem.
-Decide to stop worrying.
-Make lists of the things you’re grateful for in your life.
- Count in for five, count out for five as you breathe. When you're counting, you won't be able to think of your negative or worrisome thoughts
-Remember, happiness is a choice. Look in the mirror and say, with enthusiasm "Happiness is a choice and I choose to be happy!" with a big grin. Do this five times and I guarantee, though you may feel silly, you'll also improve your mood.

PS - This overview post above is meant for those of us that have normal bouts of anxiety or sadness. If you are clinically depressed, these are good and helpful tips to consider in conjunction with vising your doctor for a more serious chat.