Pumpkin and Clove

 Nothing says "Fall" like the combination of Pumpkin and Clove-beautiful!

 

 'pumpkin and clove' by arch190

Rust scarf shawl, orange bro... Baymut $80.00	Organic White Pumpkin Seeds ... cubits $3.50	1940s Leather Suitcase // Vi... adVintagous $45.00
Beige bulky wool blend yarn Muza $4.80	Modern baby quilt, lap size ... IssabellaTheCa... $85.00	vintage BEIGE leather heels ... vintagemarmala... $24.00
Balsam fir needles with clov... kookyhandbags $12.00	Flowers Bow Wall Door Arrang... LeatherAndRose... $19.99	Plaid Infinity Scarf in Must... JANNYSGIRL $19.50
Clove Shaving Round TierraVerdeSoa... $5.50	Miniature Car - Pumpkin Car ... murmurfremo $32.00	Pumpkin Cup Cozy, Coffee Cup... natalya1905 $17.50
house brooch blue grey chimn... anlizz $10.00	Rust Double Breasted Faux Fu... Lightwitch $45.00	antique wooden clogs - his &... wretchedshekel... $48.00
Salt & Pepper Shakers, Arabe... BeauMiracle $16.00

Treasury tool supported by the dog house

Let's Step Things Up a Bit-With a Little Giveaway

The 50th person to sign up for the Tierra Verde Handmade Soaps Newsletter will receive one (1) free soap of their choice. Winner will be announced in the very first newsletter. One entry per person- of course.

Hurry,Hurry! Sign Right Up

Be the first to take a sneak peek at the very latest "earthly delight" news...promos,new releases,juicy tid-bits,and plenty of eye-candy for the soap lover in you.

Signing up is easy-just see the "Sign up to our mailing list" to the left of the page under my profile, and I'll take care of the rest. :-)

Wowza! What a Lovely Treasury

  Honored to be a part of this gorgeous collection. Thank you!

 

 'Mean Green Earthy Goddess Machine.' by TendaiDesigns

Lovely Natural gifts for fall!

Bonsai Tree of life, Peridot... FawnAnselmoArt... $28.00	Limited Offer Rustic Burlap,... TheCreativeGyp... $58.00	Russian Serpentine Bracelet ... heversonart $44.00
Succulent Centerpiece, Rusti... SucculentsGalo... $28.95	Brown Ombre Brooch embroider... bstudio $50.00	Green Earth Gardners Soap TierraVerdeSoa... $6.50
Celeste Earrings- citrine, v... amyolsonjewelr... $38.00	Green Earth Goddess Pendant ... earthdeva $11.50	Rustic Metal Letters heavymetals123 $7.00
Wedding hair accessories Gre... AmoreBride $25.95	Mini Leather Journal, Fores... DancingGreyStu... $17.00	Organic Wedding band. 5 rust... SundayOwl $1285.00
10- 4"mini twig pencils inkkit $10.00	Vintage Green Ruffled Wavy E... OneDecember $11.50	gypsy bangle stack - tribal ... crankypants $20.00
Icicles . Rustic Quartz Cry... Chymiera $45.00

Treasury tool supported by the dog house

Husbands Hide Your Shave Soap

Husbands hide your shave soap.


This is what one wife had to say about her husband's Tierra Verde Handmade Soaps-Lavender shave soap.

"I admit, I "stole" a lavender shaving round of yours intended for hubby and use it for my legs! Loving it!"

One happy wife=one dismayed husband. lol!

I Have a Confession to Make

It's been a rough few months. I've teetered on the very precipice of letting all my soapy love go to the wayside- it isn't that I don't love making soap- I do, I do, I reealllly do. It's that I'm afraid. Up until the past few weeks and days I didn't have a clear picture of where I was heading, or how I was going to get there. I'm terrified of the "business" aspect, it's not my comfort zone at all.

I put tons of work into formulation of my product,packaging,product photography, copy, marketing and on and on... I taught myself enough photography to get by, I do my own copy for the most part because I can't pay anyone to do it-that doesn't even begin to touch the amount of blood, sweat and tears that have gone into websites over the years. Grant you, my husband does the actual coding, but I direct him as to every design detail that I can(sometimes I get a bit of input and advice here and there)- but for the most part, it's a true collaboration of talent and hard work.

The long and short of it all- is that I let my fear take over, I fed fear Wheaties for breakfast. I fed that fear until it regurgitated all over me,and I had to face "calling it quits." I've spent the summer devastated at the whole idea-all the work, all the trial and error, all the faith my family has in me..all the faith my family has in me- that's what keeps me hanging in there. The very thought of letting them down has motivated me to re-evaluate my direction, seek out others who can help me in my weak areas,and support me when I'm fearful. I realize that the business end is something I am certainly capable of learning with some guidance-I mean after all I did learn to make soap on my own didn't I? I can re-think my offerings to include some higher end gift baskets etc.I can re-vamp my marketing and find someone to coach me in that area. I can cut out relationships that don't serve me-people who are back biting or would like to see me fail.

I can move forward feeding my vision courage,strength and happiness. I can do things that feel right for me, I can make mistakes and learn from them, I can acknowledge that I am afraid as long as I don't feed that fear too awfully much-I can  have a do-over-to change a few things,to evolve,it's okay to not have ALL the answers. For another great read about starting over-check out this Truthy Tuesday blog post over at Miss Modish.

In Other News...

I am currently working on the logistics of what will be the first Tierra Verde Handmade Soaps Newsletter-be on the lookout for discount codes, exclusive promotions for newsletter subscribers only, informative tid bits as they relate to handmade soap, be the first to know about new releases, new gift set ideas and upcoming events. Subscription information available soon.

In Praise of Round Soap

I really love round soap, the way they fit in the hand, they way they are so easy to rotate to obtain the optimal lather. Awwww-they are just right. I've been working on a smaller version. I have a few special projects in mind for them.They will need to be cut at a different size than my bars, so it means making some sort of wire cutter-but it will be sooo worth it. Here is my first experiment with the smaller size-I'm loving them!

Doh'

Made a couple of research batches today-and I hate it when  your soaps seeps out of the bottom of the mold just a bit-just sayin.

A Couple of Juicy Tid-bits ;-)

If you're an Etsy shopper this is GREAT news-now you can pick up your Tierra Verde goodies while you're hanging out on Etsy. The Tierra Verde Shop is up and running-it's a small and personal neighborhood shop-(I like to think of it as comfy and cozy-the kind of place you can peruse with your hot tea in hand)pop on by, and show some neighborly love by adding Tierra Verde to your circle or as a favorite place to hang out. Stop on by-we'll leave the light on for you!

In other news-just part of a large order of Lavender Rustica taking up much real estate on my kitchen table, the rest is hanging out over on the curing rack-soon there will be lots of Orange Honey Drizzle soldiers to take up the slack. Lots of soap and so little room-such is the challenge of working out of your kitchen. ;-)

I'm Still Here(Warning Pic Heavy Post)

The beautiful and wonderfully warm Gulf of Mexico

Entrance to the Texas State Aquarium

A "Laughing Seagull" taking a break from his mockery

Brown Pelicans are as plentiful as Seagulls on the Texas Coast

Shrimp boats go out every morning

The "Harbor Bridge" links Corpus Christi to Portland Tx.

Beautiful pottery at Wildseed Farms-Fredericksburg Tx.

Pink Zinnia happily growing in the sun at Wildseed Farms

Colorful birdhouses all in a row-Fredericksburg Tx.

I took a little whirlwind vacation-just a wee little break, but as it turns out even a small break can be so cathartic and for me this trip was about accomplishing a few firsts and ticking some items off my "bucket list."

I've been married for over 20 years and I can count on one hand the number of times I have driven anywhere out of town by myself, as a rule- my husband always drives when we go out of town whether it's 2 hours or 10 it's just a given that he will drive(I think he's afraid for me to drive.) This time a few special circumstances came into play that caused me to have to step up to the plate and drive 10 hours to the Texas coast. Ummm, I have never driven farther than the 6 hours to Dallas, and after my Dallas experience I have been a little less than enthusiastic about navigating about in busy metro areas, but this time it was about 1) a daughter who desperately wanted to see the ocean 2) a  husband already at the coast waiting for us 3) desperately needing to get out of town at least for a short break.....so off we went. I am happy to inform you that with the aid of my daughter,Google maps and a Garmin we made it thru San Antonio and on to Corpus Christi without a hitch. Bravo!! A huge accomplishment for me-it made me wonder why I had been afraid of venturing out on my own- gah, all the time wasted.

Let's see, there were also a few other "firsts" with some being "bucket list" items. Upon arriving in Corpus Christi we ventured out to find not just the Bay, but an actual ocean and ended up at the Gulf of Mexico,and not to travel all that way and never get my feet wet-  I immediately waded in clothes and all. You CAN NOT go to the Gulf of Mexico and not get in-so I did. I didn't really realize this was a "bucket list" item at the time, but in fact it most certainly was.The Gulf of Mexico is incredibly beautiful and amazingly warm-perfect!

On the first full day of our trip to Corpus Christi my daughter and I went the Texas State Aquarium where my daughter goaded my into touching a Stingray and a Shark, and well you can't let the 12 year old out do you. So, for the first time ever I touched a Stingray and a Shark. What do they feel like you ask? Because Stingrays are scavengers and feast on dead things they are covered in mucous-so you can just guess how that feels-right? Sharks are very different they are slightly bumpy like used sandpaper. Very interesting!

The evening of the first full day we allowed ourselves one very nice meal-of course at a restaurant where seafood was the fare as I was very excited to try my first " oyster on the half shell." Yes, I know it's hard to believe I have reached "midlife" and had never had a raw oyster-it's absolutely sinful. However, living in Lubbock,Tx. we aren't exactly privy to fresh seafood, and so I refused to try them until I was somewhere coastal.Oddly enough,trying a raw oyster was an item on my "bucket list" and so I was determined to make this happen. I am happy to report that I did try them and found they do in fact "taste like the ocean"-you always hear that, and it's true-they taste just like the Gulf of Mexico smells-briny and fresh.

Needless to say, we packed as many experiences into the few days we were there-we made another trek out to the Gulf of Mexico where once again I played in the ocean in my clothes (I don't own a bathing suit). I left soaking wet and satisfied even though I had to travel back to the hotel in soaking wet clothes-I wouldn't have missed it-for me this was a trip about accomplishing goals and experiencing firsts.

Freshly Cut

Beautiful Lavender Rustica re-stock

Perfect Olive Oil and Goat's Milk bars all in a row...

Recent re-stocks-with miles to go to go before I'm done, but  I'm off to a great start. New oils just arrived at the door and I'm on my way to tackling lots of re-stocks over the next few days. Don't you love freshly cut soap all lined up in their neat rows?

Whew! What a Relief.

My most challenging batch, Lavender Rustica a blend of  Lavender and Vanilla came out juuuuust right! Other than a little sticking to the freezer paper(Ummm, I might have been to eager to check on the status of the sides and peeled the paper back while it was a bit too warm-just maybe) this batch is perfection. Yay! I've got 3 more blocks to make of Lavender Rustica and this certainly is getting things underway on a good note. ;-))

Woot!!!

Ladies and Gents, I give you a perfectly pristine block of Olive Oil and Goat's Milk. Woot!!!

If you heard a big  loud Woot!!! at 3:30 a.m. this morning-it was me. I was up checking on my first block of Olive Oil Goat's Milk that I've made in a very long time and it was flawless. Yay!!Yes, I have re-stocks to get up and underway and I was just a tad bit filled with dread-but it seems the soap faeries have moved on for now and I couldn't be happier. My confidence is guardedly boosted as I delve into one of my more problematic batches next...cross your fingers.

What I've Been Up To..

Besides taking lots of photos- throwing together a few very nice special order gift baskets and putting together a private label order here and there. A nice blend of soap type work and play-just right. Today, I will be cranking out a few batches of soap in an effort to stock back up.