Scentimental Waxing by Crater Lake Company

Fingers Crossed...

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 03:33:00 +0000

So remember this glancing post about my Thailand trip back in March? I never really got to follow up and post more pictures here, though I did post a few on our Facebook page.

Anyway, since I left, I've felt a very strong pull to return as soon as I could. There's just something magical about Thailand and her people and I haven't been able to shake this yearning to return. Stat. My visit made me realise that Buddhism as a way of life was something I wanted to explore further.

So, realising that I actually had a window of opportunity to return and learn ways to deepen my practice, I finalised my booking back to Thailand in December. I'll be attending a retreat and then spending a few days in Bangkok revisiting my favourite temples and going to new sites I missed the first time around. I'm so excited I'm bursting at the seams. This is going to be an adventure folks! Just me, my backpack (note to self: must buy one) and my Frommers guide.

When I told my friends, while they were all supportive, I have a suspicious feeling that there's a bet amongst them to see how long I can last. Because the thought of Sharonn going on a retreat as in - sleeping on the floor in a hut, waking up at 4 a.m., meditating, chanting, studying, cleaning and taking my last meal of the day at 11 a.m. is something I just don't do. Especially the not eating after 11 a.m. I'm just having my second breakfast at this time! Heck I don't even go camping. "Sharonn doesn't camp," is what I always say. Anyway, I'm eager to push myself and see what I'm capable off. This is such a huge departure from what I would normally do, that yes, I can't fault my friends for placing bets on my latest adventure. As a matter of fact, I'd like to join in :)

Well, that's all I wanted to say. The title of my post is Fingers Crossed because I know life has a way of throwing curve balls and I may have to cancel my trip if something beyond my control comes up. That's why, they offer trip insurance...which I immediately added to my cart.

With that, I leave you pics of my favourite sites in Bangkok...

Pics of the Grand Palace

Homes along the Chao Phraya River

Spirit house - every home and business has at least one

Have I told you how excited I am to be going back? I cannot wait! Keeping my fingers crossed...

Making Green Tea w Envy Hair Conditioning Treatment

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 01:19:00 +0000

Starring:

Green Tea Extract
Banana Extract
Argan Oil
Olive Oil
Avocado Oil
Panthenol

Between its recent feature in the magazine known as the authority on hairstyles, 101 Hairstyles and our current 30% off sale, we've been consumed by everything Green Tea with Envy. So, I decided that the next time I made a batch, I would document the process to give you a peek at how we make this fabulous hair conditioner.

We make everything in small batches to ensure freshness so this batch was made earlier this week and will be depleted by Monday at the latest.

Mise en place

A French term that chefs now use to mean "everything in place." In my case, I am measuring out my oil phase so I have all the ingredients I need for this part of the process within my reach. See that scale? It's a highly sensitive scale that can measure up to 1/10 of a gram and I am in love with it. On top of the fact that, this scale cost me a couple of hundred dollars and my work would come to a standstill if anything happened to it.

Oil phase

There are two parts to making Green Tea with Envy. The water phase, which contains the extracts, water (of course), panthenol and other water soluble ingredients, and the oil phase. This is the oil phase in one pot, ready to be heated. It contains the oils, butters, waxes, emulsifiers and conditioning agents.

Putting it all together aka as Emulsification

In a separate pot, we're heating the water phase and holding it at a steady temperature for at least 20 minutes. When both phases are ready to be incorporated, we caaaarefully pour the water phase into the pot containing the oils. Like so...

Whipping It Good

Once the conditioner has cooled down, we incorporate the preservative and whip it to give it that nice, fluffy, spreadable texture. Without the whipping Green Tea with Envy would be a horribly thick and unspreadable paste that would require a lot of time and patience to work through your hair. Now it's starting to look like the Green Tea with Envy you know and love right?

Tah Dah!

And here we have a gallon batch ready to go. See all the paperwork tacked up on my board behind me? Those are my orders that I need to complete in 2 days. Yikes! Pardon the hair folks...I barely remembered to take off my bonnet and coat for this picture.

You Love It! You Really, Really Love It!

Green Tea with Envy was featured in the Summer issue of 101 Hairstyles and we couldn't be more proud. Work it, work it.

And while we never turn down a good press opportunity, nothing beats hearing from our customers about how much they love this conditioner. Since the launch of Green Tea with Envy, I've seen a steady increase of e-mails coming in singing its praises. I've heard from customers with curly, straight (as one customer put it - painfully straight), fluffy (yes, someone actually used the descriptor fluffy), coloured, damaged and uh-oh really damaged hair and there's a common strand running through all your feedback. That no matter what hair type, hair style or hair condition you have, Green Tea with Envy has improved the strength, health and general appearance of your locks. And that, my friends, is music to my ears. What's more, for those of you with damaged hair, continuous use of Green Tea with Envy has restored health, softness, shine and bounce to your locks. Yessss!!!

The fact that this one conditioner has such wide appeal and broad application is truly great. It conditions without weighing hair down, restores shine to dry, damaged hair, tames frizz and improves hair's overall health. I for one can't live without it...and I know a few of you who feel the same way.

Back To Work to Make More

Whew! This is the most I've written in a while and I quite enjoyed it. Thank you for reading and keep the feedback coming.

We love hearing from you.

What I Did This Summer

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 13:17:00 +0000

It seems like every one of my blog posts of late starts off with, "Whoa, time flies and sorry I've haven't been posting as much.

In an effort not to ruin my track record, I will start off with my now customary, "Whoa time flies and sorry I haven't been posting as much." There. Now that that's out of the way, here's what we've been up to at CLC.

Party over here!

Last month, we had the honour of attending the Best of Westchester party to celebrate our award. Dahling, I must say it was ultra-glam and oh-so-fabulous m

ingling with other Best of Westchester winners. That's me, not about to miss a photo-op for posterity, on the red carpet. Cheese!

Welcome to CLC family!

While most of us can barely fathom the thought of snow and the Holiday season, now's the time that most spas start thinking about their Fall and Winter offering. To that end, we've been working with a few spas to come up with some delicious treatment protocols that's perfect for the Fall.

We recently had the pleasure of working with Janet of Addison Street Spa in Larchmont, NY to add some amazing body treatments to their current menu of services. Addison Street Spa is actually one of the first to carry one of our newest products. Stop by or call for a delicious Thai Coconut & Lemongrass Salt Glow body scrub. While you're there, make sure to stock up on Aloe Smoothie Lotion. We just delivered a fresh batch to them a week ago. Here's a picture of the bottles ready for Chris to pack.

Aww, look at the little lotions and packed tight and ready to go.

And for those of you in California, stop by Century Sports Club and Day Spa on W. Olympic Blvd. in LA. I heard they've got a take-no-prisoners body scrub treatment that will leave your skin smooth and glowing for weeks!

23 years later

To close off the summer and to get some much needed R&R before the mad-busy Holiday rush, I took a quick trip to the Cayman's to visit a childhood friend whom I haven't seen in (geez, I'm dating myself now...) 23 years. And you know what the best thing was? We picked up exactly where we had left off. Neither time nor distance really had an effect on the way we talked to each other. I love that. I have very few friends who go back this far with me and even fewer in whose company I'm absolutely comfortable. She brings the best of these two worlds and I consider myself lucky to have a friend like her. Besides...now I have a place to stay when I need a little bit of this...

Not too shabby eh?

So, that's pretty much my summer in a nutshell. We're gearing up for our busiest time of year. I expect our new Fall scents to launch some time next week and then our Holiday fragrances around the end of September.

Crater Lake Company Named Best of Westchester 2011

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Fri, 01 Jul 2011 01:39:00 +0000

It's been so busy here at the office lately that I haven't had a chance to update our press page. To date, we have 15, yes 15 magazine covers that are waiting to be posted. From the prestigious Les Nouvelles Esthetiques & Spa Magazine coverage of Crater Lake Company's Flutter Butter, to yet another shoutout for our Zambian Coffee Body Scrub in Woman's World (thanks Shavon!), we've had a great run of press coverage lately. These trade and consumer magazines have such wide, global coverage and I couldn't be more proud to be featured in them.

Nothing however, makes me really beam than being named Best Skincare Line in Westchester Magazine's Best of Westchester 2011 issue. I'm so proud and honoured to be recognized with this award. As you know, Crater Lake Company and I call Westchester County our home so this accolade really holds a special place in my heart. We've gone GLOCAL!

Funny how CLC has grown through the years. Come to think about it, how we've grown is truly a sign of the times and the world in which we live today. After much prodding and encouragement by my friends and family, who were CLC's initial customers, I launched the online store not really expecting to see much action. Then word of mouth spread - blogs wrote about us and drove traffic to our site, people reviewed our products on forums and next thing you know, I'm shipping 700 # of CLC love to Singapore, meeting a customer from France in NYC and calling a bunch of sassy, gorgeous gals from Australia and New Zealand my friends. Then Good Housekeeping wrote about our Honeysuckle Fizz Sugar Cloud (thanks April!), Real Simple recommended our Creamy Lavender Milk Shower Smoothie (thanks Sarah) for sleek legs and now, we just got named Best of Westchester 2011. CLC's products have found their ways into the homes of beautiful women all over the world - Greece, France, Hong Kong, Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, Japan, Estonia, Portugal, Spain and Israel to name a few. And now, with this most recent recognition, I'm excited to finally share the gospel of exfoliating with my fellow Westchester County residents.

Many thanks to Karen for writing such a superb article. She turned an afternoon of excited babbling over coffee and pastries into a wonderful piece about CLC's humble beginnings. And of course, the gorgeous Nancy Claus for bestowing Crater Lake Company with this honour. See you at the party Nancy! And be prepared to get tackle hugged!

What do tigers dream of???

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 01:11:00 +0000

If you're a Hangover fan, you'll know the rest.

Here are some long overdue pictures of my trip back to Thailand and Cambodia. These pictures were taken in Chiang Mai and according to Chris, "it was the best day ever." Why? Because he got to ride an elephant in the morning and spoon a tiger in the afternoon. Then ended the day with a delightful foot and leg scrub, reflexology and an hour and a half long Thai massage. Seriously. Best. Day. Ever.
Here goes...

We visited an elephant camp during our stay in Chiang Mai. They are amazing, soulful animals. Thailand is trying to save their elephants from the abuse that man has put it through. Elephants are seen as beasts of burden and are used to harvest teak. Some are drugged with opium so they can work longer hours. Picture above: Elephants and their mahout during their morning bath. Below: Elephants showing their mad skillz rolling logs into a pile. I wish I had an elephant to push a car that's taking up 2 parking spots.

And we're off on our trek through the jungle...

In the afternoon, on the way back to our hotel, we stopped by a tiger camp. Though it wasn't in our itinerary, our tourguide was gracious enough to indulge us. You get a choice of 2 pictures - one with a baby, small, medium or large tiger. Chris & I chose small & medium. Believe it or not, it's more expensive to get your picture with a baby tiger. Probably because of the high incidence of theft as tourists shove the cubs in their backpacks!

Here's me hugging the medium tiger. I asked if they were tranquilised or drugged in some way and I was told they were not. They were just full and sleepy. It was the middle of the day and the heat was really intense and that's the time of day they like to sleep. Fresh off my elephant ride, with a belly full of Thai food, I decided to take a nap with the tiger! Chris can attest to this: better to approach a napping tiger than a napping Sharonn.

Below: Chris goofing around with the tiger. I'm glad this was the worst he did . At one point, I thought he was going to hump it Hangover styles. I don't think the tiger was very happy about his bunny ears.

At one point, I thought Chris was going to give the tiger a zerber belly.

Full of bravado at first, that's me when I came face to face with the large tiger. That's the trainer who holds nothing more than a drumstick to keep the tigers well behaved. In this picture, the trainer is telling me to spoon the tiger and I'm like, "What? Spoon the tiger? Does "spoon" mean something else to Thai people or do you seriously want me to hug that beast from behind and whisper sweet nothings in his ear?"

Above: From this perspective, you can really appreciate the size of these gorgeous creatures. That's me in the very far background asking Chris if his life insurance is up to date. But seriously though, aren't they just breathtaking in their beauty?

We ended our day with a trip to the local spa. That's us getting a foot and leg scrub before entering the main area of the spa. The scrub they used was - in a word -divine! And yes, I'm working on a CLC version.

Thanks for reading. I hope you enjoyed these pics. Now I have to post Cambodia pics.

New Summer Collection

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Tue, 31 May 2011 13:00:00 +0000

Here in NY, it feels like we went from damp, high 50 degree weather for weeks on end to muggy 85 degree days. We didn't have a spring. We technically went from late winter to mid-July in a span of 3 weeks. Not that I'm complaining mind you. But somehow, I can't help but think that this is exactly what happened to me!

One moment I'm launching our runaway hit Kiss & Make Cupcakes Collection for Spring and then WHAM! It's summer and we're days away from launching our summer collection. Speaking of which...I'm really quite proud at how this collection turned out. It has a little bit of this and that and a whole lot of character. There isn't really a particular theme to this collection. It's just a well edited collection of scents that speak of warm days, balmy nights and laid-back 'tudes. I think my favourite part about this entire collection is how we managed to take a traditional note, yes even one as ho-hum as vanilla and give it an unexpected treatment. The mango note we use in Horizontal Mango, for example, is not your run-of-the-mill scent you've ever smelt before. Large inspired by my recent trip to Thailand and Cambodia (and I really need to post more pics of my trip), I created a green mango accord that's absolutely mouthwatering, but in unexpected ways. There's a certain tartness to the blend not normally found in traditional mango scents. Plus the sweetness is bold, robust and multi-dimensional. And seriously, if this scent does not find its way in your shopping cart, I'll be putting a sample of it with your order because you're going to want it once you've tried it. Trust.

I'm working on finishing the scent descriptions and adding them to our dropdown menu. Don't forget to join Crater Lake Company's page on Facebook. That's where we announce all the goings on at CLC first!

Before I sign-off. Here's some love from the amazing people at Cravings Magazine.

It's Open Bar!

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 15:44:00 +0000

Okay...the Fbar is finally open! Whoo! Just a few things to note as you fill up your shopping carts:

1. We've changed our jars to the low profile kind as pictured below. This type of jar tends to look underfilled, but please note that fill weights remain the same. With the increase in shipping costs, switching to low pro jars allows us to fit a bit more into the flat rate boxes. Besides, we think they're absolutely adorable. Also, note the change in our labels. Product labels and directions are on the top lid, ingredients are on the bottom and the scent label is on the side.

2. The hair lotion. I know, I know...it really needs to launch like STAT. But here's the deal...we can't come up with a name and so we can't make a label for it! So...we're leaving it up to you to do so. For those of you who've tried this fabulous potion, please post your suggestions on our Facebook page. We're awarding 2 - 2 oz. bottles of this fabulous stuff to the winner.

3. Speaking of product names, the lovely Justine, our super-talented collaborator in the scent-mixing department pretty much came up with the name of our new lip balm. We'll be including samples of our final formula in select orders. If you'd like to be a tester, please let us know in the notes section at checkout. Note that the formula contains beeswax and is not vegan. After taking a few tubes to test on my recent Thailand and Cambodia trip where temperatures got as high as 90F in the sun, I've finalised the formula. It's now a bit harder to withstand hotter climes, but with the same glide (read: no drag) and moisturising power that our initial testers raved about. We're soooo excited about this new product!

4. Fbar pages are a work in progress. We've updated the master page, but over the next few days, we'll populate the category pages. Okay, I think that's about it in terms of an update and details regarding the sale. Don't forget to join our Facebook page for the latest updates and exclusive offers.

Time Flies...

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Wed, 30 Mar 2011 19:57:00 +0000

when you're busy:

1. re-formulating a product - like our new and improved Aloe Smoothie Lotion now packed with the anti-oxidant goodness of tea extracts. Of course, I'm so far behind I haven't had a chance to go into more detail about this, but I will, because this new version is even better than ever and it deserves a nice, juicy post so I can tell you all about it.

2. developing new products - we're in the process of testing 2 new products that's scheduled for an early summer release. Our much anticipated lip-balm and hair lotion are final. We're just adding the final touches to make it perfect and oh yeah...we still have to come up with names for both of these babies.

3. filling orders from our wildly popular Kiss & Make Cupcakes Collection launch. We knew the collection was going to be popular, because hey...who doesn't love cupcakes right? But the overwhelming response was a pleasant surprise. All told (and if I remember this correctly), we made 3 gallons of Green Tea with Envy, 2 gallons of Shower Smoothie, had to make an emergency batch of hair lotion because we ran out of samples and depleted pretty much our on-hand stock of raw materials, cremes and butters.

4. traipsing across the globe to go temple and spa-hopping in Thailand and Cambodia. While it was a business and pleasure trip, when researching ingredients and local spa treatments count as "working", how un-pleasurable could the business part be?

I have many pictures to post from this trip, but for now, it's back to work for our next collection and rotation. Right now, it looks like we'll do 2 rotations of new collection launches for the summer season. Exciting right? And in one of these rotations, we're going to have our entire Fbar open. If we have the capacity, we're toying with the idea of having the entire Fbar up for the summer months or at least for an extended period of time. But again, we're still in the planning stage and there's a lot of logistics that need to be addressed if we were to do this. As you know, we live and die by our turnaround time and most of our decisions are centered around our fulfillment time target.

Anyway, boring business stuff I know...so I leave you with something more exciting...

Reclining Buddha - Bangkok, Thailand

The Hermit statue at the Grand Palace - Bangkok, Thailand

Okay, enough. Only 2 days since my return and already, I want to go back.

Teenage Waistline

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 02:05:00 +0000

So my friend Jaynee and I were talking yesterday and she laments on the any direction, but north her body has started to take. With a husband, 2 kids and a menagerie of animals to care for, Jayne is a busy full-time mum and can't carve out the time to exercise.

We were talking about how in our late teens and early 20's we used to eat and drink whatever we wanted and still maintain our skinny figure. Now in my late 30's, I've packed on 15 pounds in the last 5 years and I cannot seem to shed them pesky lbs. Jayne's weakness is pizza. Mine is...well mine is food. Sure, the nightly Cheetos (puffy, not crunchy) don't help. Nor does the the weekly Carvel sundae (Wednesdays is BOGO...you think I'm gonna pass that up)? Or the bi-monthly weekend lunch buffet (for $10 you get an entree and unlimited soups and salads). Whatever. The point is, I'm still eating like a 20 year old and it's time to face the ugly truth. To quote Whoopi Goldberg in Ghost, "Jayne, you in trouble girl."

So Jayne's decided to write a blog chronicling her weight-loss journey. Me? I don't know what I'm going to do yet. I don't know whether to accept my weight gain as just part of getting older or to try to shed at least 5 pounds. The thing is, I work out. I do. But I think my metabolism has finally caught up to me. I'm still eating like a 20 year old, but in order for me to work off all that I eat, I'd probably have to work out 8 times a week. And run 30 miles a week. Right now, I'm clocking in less than 20 per week. What? It's freezing out and treadmill running is boring.

I purposely did not post about weight loss anything last month because I knew it it was going to feel too resolution-y and I for one, don't believe in making them. At any rate, here's a picture of my high school friends, 20 years after we graduated. We're older and we've all put on some weight (some more than others.) But you know what? I think it's good weight. We've filled out and we're no longer gangly kids. 20 years ago, my friend Brian - the immature dork who gave me bunny ears - was like a head stuck on a stick. Now his body finally grew into his head.

Here's a picture of me beside my suuuper petite friend Myrna. Notice how next to her, I look like The Hamburger Eating Champion of South East Asia? And folks, just so you have a point of reference and perspective here...I'm 4' 11". With my heels, say I'm like 5' 2" and I'm towering over her! And look at the difference in our girth for crying out loud. Look how she's leaning away from me as if to say, "Oh help me Oprah Winfrey, I think she's gonna chew on my arm!"

Anyway, I don't really know what the point of this post is. I don't know if it's meant to have a point. Ah yes, I think it does. Here it is. The point is, I don't know what I'm going to do with my weight. Part of me wants to come to terms with it and accept it as part of getting older. Another part of me is still holding on to those "really cute clothes that I'm sure I'll fit into one day if only I could lose a few pounds."

I'm not as brave as Jaynee. I'm not going to chronicle my journey to weight acceptance - stay as is, lose a lot, lose a few or eff it...gain a few more. I honestly don't know what I'm going to do. All I know is that tomorrow is Friday and every Friday I treat myself to an India buffet lunch. But Friday also means it's the day I work out the hardest. So tomorrow, after Indian buffet, I'm running 5 miles and working on my delts and biceps.

Till next post. I have a bag of Puffy Cheetos waiting for me.

Open Heart & Boundless Optimism

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Wed, 19 Jan 2011 01:33:00 +0000

I don't know where I saw the above, but it struck a chord. I think the entire phrase was something like, "May you face the new year with an open heart and boundless optimism." So, that's my wish to you. I have a good feeling about this year. I don't know why and I can't quite put my finger on it, but I just do. Maybe because the New Year booze I consumed has yet to work it's way out of my system. Or maybe because we're only 18 days into the year and honestly, how bad can it be after 18 days? Or maybe because 2011 is a prime and an odd number and the mathematician in me loves these numbers. Whatever the reason, I have a good feeling about this year and I hope this optimism carries me through to the next 11 and 1/2 months.

Speaking of booze...so much for drunk blogging eh? Let's just say that wine at the airport tasted good. Really good. And before I knew it, it was time to board. Then when I was in the Philippines, I tried posting a few times, but every time I tried to upload pictures everything would just freeze. So in the end, I just gave up.

Now I'm going to bore you with the longest, make-up post in the history of Scentimental Waxings. Actually, I'll just post some pictures with captions. No particular order. Just whatever I find interesting in my memory card.

Here goes...(Remember this, and I say this over and over again. I take the worst.pictures.ever.)

The market stand where we shopped everyday. Ingredients for the day's meals are bought daily. What you'll be cooking that day largely depends on the meats, fish, vegetables and other ingredients the vendor was able to procure. Check out how big those carrots are. And right next to the carrots are guavas. Here guavas sell for upwards of $3 each. There it's probably a quarter each.

How meat is sold blows my mind. There are slabs of meat just hanging in the open air and a tiny fan going to keep the flies away. Same goes for the fish pictured below. Thank goodness I'm a vegetarian. Though way back when I wasn't, this never bothered me.

Okay, switching topics - check out these pictures of Singapore's Changi Airport. Definitely one of the best airports in the world. Check out the orchids in the middle of the terminal, the koi ponds and meditation room. Whaaat??? Maybe if we had any of these features in some of our airports, we'd have less irate passengers and flight attendants joy riding evacuation rafts.

Check out the luggage cart to the right! It just seems so out of place. But then again, it's an orchid garden in the middle of an airport. What's really out of place here?

Ah yes, the meditation room. I went in and tried to do a sitting, but I just couldn't do it. My mind was jumpy and anxious and no matter how hard I tried, all I kept thinking about was hitting the duty free shops and trying all the skincare stuff>>>a sure sign of an addiction to bath and body products.

Okay, last picture before I end this post. People wonder how I spend 16 plus hours in the air (and that's just the first leg.) Here's your answer...

MARIO BROTHERS BABY! And the best thing is? It's the original version! I didn't get very far in spite of all the hours I spent playing because apparently, too much wine does not make for good finger dexterity and hand-eye coordination.

Don't lie. Noow you have that Mario Brother's song stuck in your head right? Toot, toot, toot, too doot too doot too doo doo doo doo doo doot. Toot dee doot. Boing! Boing!

Okay, more pics in my next post.

Where am I? How did I get here? What happened?

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Fri, 12 Nov 2010 19:55:00 +0000

This is exactly how I feel. One day it's the beginning of October and I'm planning on the re-opening of our F-Bar, next minute that I come to, I'm staring down the barrel of the Holiday Shopping starting gun.

Here's the sad thing. I have so many topics listed in my notebook that I'm dying to write about. The half-marathon I ran in October. The new scents we have in the works for Spring (yes, Spring.) New products we're launching next year. All the press we've been getting lately and haven't had time to post on our Buzz page (Parade, New Beauty, Beauty Store Business, 101 Hairstyles, Max Fitness & Tampa Tribune to name a few.) And the even sadder thing is that I don't think I'll be able to devote any time to posting as much as I'd like on this blog until I'm en route to the Philippines. I do, after all, have 21 hours to kill. And that's just the first leg of my trip! Besides, blogging is better when you're good and drunk on airplane wine non?

So okay, on to the important stuff. Pictured below are the products that will be available in our Signature Holiday scent - Cranberry Sparkle. It's different from last year's version. It's not a sweet, candy-ish or tart cranberry scent with which we're all too familiar. This is a sophisticated, airy fragrance set against a subtle citrus background. I think what makes this scent so different is the addition of fig, which adds depth to the scent. I've been in love with this fragrance since the summer and have actually been wearing it as a perfume since July. I love it that much.

So here's how our Holiday Shopping schedule is shaking out. Our limited edition holiday fragrances will be available for 2 weeks plus or minus a day or two. I'm really, really hoping to have this up by Sunday, November 14th. We're still working our way through the last of our October orders and I'm hoping these will be done by this weekend. This will free up just enough time for me to set up our store for the LE holiday scents. They'll be up for a very brief window and then we're taking them down on Thanksgiving day and that'll be it for custom orders till next year.

Then we'll have a Holiday sale of some sort, offering holiday gift sets, all items in our Signature Collection and our Signature Holiday scent.

I wish I could make the window of opportunity a little longer for custom orders, but they do take a bit of time and I want you to receive them in a timely manner. We're learning as we go and while I understand this is all part of growing pains, it's painful nonetheless, especially when I thought we'd have more time to offer for customs.

But speaking of growing pains, I can't believe how far we've grown. I look back on this year and marvel at how far we've come, passing one milestone after another. Our partnership with Camfed, our support of Kiva entrepreneurs, gracing the pages of prestigious consumer and trade publications, registering our manufacturing facility with the FDA and so much more. This alone is another blog post in and of itself.

Guess I'll put this on my list of topics to write about.

Did I Miss Anything?

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 15:40:00 +0000

Drive-by posting...

Listed below are the fragrances slated for return in the upcoming rotation. Please review and post a comment on our Facebook page if I've missed anything. Next rotation is scheduled for mid-October. Sorry gals. I know you've all been waiting for when the entire bar opens up, but things have been hectic. This is our busiest season and we're right in the thick of it. I promise that I'll make it worth the wait with a good sale. (*cough* up to 30% off *cough*)

Alkamara
Aloha Cake
Amber Rose
Americana
Angel Whispers
Apple Jumble Cookies
Apple Mango Chutney
Apricot Vanilla
Avalanche Cake
Balinese Tea
Bamboo Musk
Banana Buttermilk Waffles
Bittersweet Pumpkin
Black Sand Beach
Black Tea & Cucumber
Black Vanilla Pumpkin
Blackberry Breezer
Bloom Moon
Blueberry Breeze
Breezy
Bright Pink
British Royal Tea
Buttercream Daydream
Calabria
Calypso Lime
Candied Boutonniere
Catch Me a Dream
Cherry Berry Swizzle Candy
Cherry Pumpkin Puffs
Coco Breeze
Coco Cutie
Cocoberry Passion
Coconut Bavarois
Coquette
Cotton Candy Candy
Creamy Caramel Mocha Cake
Crumb Topped Pumpkin Loaf
Dark Pink
Dark Pumpkin Vetyver
Dolce Moccha Biscotti
Dutch Pumpkin Crisp
Effervescent Pink
F-Bomb
Fig Tea & Cardamom
Fig Tea & Cucumber
Fluffy Candy
Garden Cilantro
Grandma's Kitchen
Hawaiian Lei Fizz
Heavenly Grace
Honey Child
Honeymoon Sweet
I Don't Pink So
I Donut Care
I Love Yuzu
Island Jazz
Island Lemonada
J'adore le Cacao
Kimono Dragon
Lady Middle Finger
Lemon Blueberry Frosting
Lemon Drops
Lemonade Rose
Light Pink
Linen Sugar
Madame Buttercream
Mandarin Mambo
Mary Contrary
Matcha Lookin' At
Melon Cooler
Melon Pucker Candy
Midnight Pumpkin
Mint Blossom Tea
Muddled Lime Freeze
My Blue Lemon
No Tan Lines
Nothing But Grace
Nude Musk
Orange Blossom Tini
Orange Dream Cake
Orange Linen
Origami Heart
Papaya Boat
Peach Fizz
Peppermint Cream Torte
Pharoah's Tea
Pineapple Apple Candy
Pink Fluff
Pink Pajamas
Pistachio Rose ala Mode
Pomegranate Rose Tea
Pop Star Candy
Rain Petals
Raspberry & Lettuce Leaf
Red Tea-Liscious & Ginger
Roibos & Vaniglia
Roses are Red(Apple)
Shanghai Noon Tea
Sheer Blueberry
Soul Kitty
Spice Cranberry Peach Pie
Sublime Lime
Sugar Fairy
Sugar is Sweet(and Sour)
Sugary Rush
Sunny Violets
Sweet Bamboo & Cucumber
Sweet Lemongrass
Sweet Pear & Candied Amber
Tahi-Tea
Tangerine Breeze
Tea Ceremony II
The Gilded Lily
The Princess & The Pumpkin
Tokyo Rose
Tropic of Candy Corn
Tropical Mango Lassi
Twisted Candy
Vanilla Isle
Vanilla Lace Cupcakes
Violet Cream Puffs
Violets are Blue(berries)
Walking on Moonbeams
Watermelon Retention
White Peach & Tiger Lotus Tea
Yuzu

Where the Magic Happens...

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Wed, 29 Sep 2010 18:44:00 +0000

By overwhelming popular demand, here are some pics of our studio located in historic, downtown Peekskill. The neighbourhood has such historic significance that HBO's Mildred Pierce filmed right outside our building for a few weeks earlier this spring. The Paramount Theatre, pictured below is directly across the street from us. It definitely makes working late into the night less painful when the view from our office is of the theatre's marquee. Sorry about the really crappy picture. If you know one thing about me, it's that I take the worst pictures. Ever.

Here's some of pics of where the magic happens and where the craziness thrives :)

This is what you'll see as soon as you enter the production area. That's me in my oh-so sexy production garb. The wall above the desk is where I tack all the orders I'm working on. The board behind me has my most recent recipe ideas...including a slight formula modification to the Green Tea with Envy condish, but that's for another post.

Speaking of Green Tea with Envy, that's me filling GTWE orders. See the board in front of me with all the orders? Basically, I try to lump all the product orders into batches - so I work on all lotion orders first, then say conditioner, then EDPs. The drawers under my desk house my equipment and empty containers. Chris' and Gina's work space isn't set up as elaborately as mine. Once I fill all the Green Tea with Envy orders, they go into their respective order box pictured below.

Orders with a folded paper in the box signals that it is complete and ready for the next step. That's when Chris or Gina take over and throw in all the accoutrements that make up an order. Samples are pulled from the little cubby-hole thing behind the boxes, business cards are put in each box and products in the box are checked against the order form. I don't think you can see it, but each box has a blue sticky with the corresponding order number. So once I'm done making all the conditioners, I walk around the table dropping the right product into the right box. Sometimes, I get distracted because I'm thinking about ice-cream and I drop the wrong product into the wrong box. That's why I have Chris & Gina checking after me. This is a very long table in the center of our production room. We set it up so we can walk around the entire table to make the fulfillment flow run much smoother. There's a rule that you can only walk around the table clock-wise though so we don't bump into each other.

One way we expedite the fulfillment of Signature Collection only orders is that we pre-make our most popular products. Called our Retail Ready Shelves, the one pictured above house most of our scrubs. Zambian Coffee Body Scrub is in the back left, our popular Lemon Vanilla Cream and Creamy Lavender Milk Sugar Cloud is in the middle of the frame. The box with the bow on the right is a gift-set that one of our wholesale stockists carry. Oh and look!!! Our Warm Pumpkin Bread Scrub and Pumpkin & Oats masque is also on the shelf.

That's me pulling a Signature only order (that's your order Jeanne!)

Once orders have been checked and double-checked, all the samples are in, shipping labels and invoice printed, we take them to our packing area. That's me packing a wholesale order. Notice the box? Whenever possible, we recycle all the packing material we receive. This is where we pack all our orders. Chris is normally the guy in charge of this and I'm usually in the production room, but that's me pretending to do his job.

And last, but not least, here's our wall o' FOs. If you look closely, you'll see that each shelf and row is numbered. We organize all our items using a grid method so everything's easy to locate. The big boxes you see up top hold our overstock containers and packing peanuts. BTW, see the bottom right corner? That's a wood box that used to hold clementines. I found they make great holders for when I need to pull a bunch of FOs. They're sturdy and can rest on your hip comfortably.

Well, so there you have it. Hope you enjoyed the tour. Pardon the disorganization. As I said, we were smack in the middle of receiving and putting away a bunch of supplier orders that came in at the same time when we were taking these pics.

Thanks again for coming with me on this tour. Hope you enjoyed it.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 17:47:00 +0000

...and I'm beginning to get a little panicky. Or actually, more like brimming with nervous energy. As you know, the Holidays are the busiest time for us and it's fast approaching. Before we go into full-blown Santa mode, we have the following events scheduled:

The full Fragrance Bar returns one last time in 2010 - mid to late October

Return of the Pumpkins on Parade Collection, with some new additions - mid to late October

Limited edition holiday fragrances - early November and only for a very limited time.

After this, we go into our Holiday mode. Depending on order volume and the number of elves we'll have working, we may have to turn off the Limited Edition scents as early as mid-November. Then for the Holidays , we're offering some wonderful gift sets that take the hassle out of shopping, but not the joy out of giving.

Also, after numerous requests, we're going to launch our Chocolate Truffle Scrub early. How early? Well, this scrub was slated for a January 2011 release, in time for Valentine's Day shopping, but we've decided to launch it in the next month or so. We've been sending out samples of this truly decadent scrub for a few months now and I guess it wasn't fair to subject our beloved customers to prolonged torture by making them wait till next year. So...here it is in all it's chocolate glory.

Putting the "gorge" in gorgeous, this decadent chocolate scrub is made with fair-trade, organic and non-Dutch* cocoa powder. Rich, dark-brown in colour and fragranced with pure cocoa absolute and the natural aroma of cocoa butter, the scrub's scent is bound to make your knees weak and your willpower non-existent. So yeah - it really wasn't fair to tease you now was it?

*The Dutch-process means that the cocoa beans have been washed in a potassium solution to reduce the bean's natural acidity. The process also gives the powder a dark brown colour. While more a baking ingredient preference, we tried to stay as close to natural as possible by using just good ol' cocoa beans that have been roasted then ground to chocolatey perfection.

Third Thursdays at the Beehive

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 14:49:00 +0000

Third Thursdays are back! Join us tonight at the Beehive for some fabulous shopping in a cocktail party environment. Mingle with designers over good wine and cool tunes; and of course, where there's wine, there's me! Chris & I will be on hand to introduce our new Pumpkin line.

Festivities start at 7 pm. See you there!

Introducing CLC Collaborations - an Interview with Justine Cheynet

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 01:18:00 +0000

Back in June, I had the pleasure of meeting one of our beloved customers, Justine. We had tea and scones at Alice's Tea Cup (good food, mediocre service) and got to talking about the collection I was working on for the Fall. I told her I'd been toying with this idea of a collection comprised of baking scents. After all, nothing's more comforting on a brisk Fall day than the scent of warm bread fresh out of the oven. Somehow, the simple notes of sugar, yeast, cinnamon, butter and cream coming together create a delightful symphony for the nose. Our little jaunt to Alice's Tea Cup solidified my idea, as we feasted on scones, biscuits, fingers sandwiches and rich jams.

The Autumn Hearth Collection is days away from its launch. Justine had her hand in some of theblends in this collection and they are all delightfully delicious. I interviewed Justine (pictured below - isn't she gorgeous? Hate her.) to get her thoughts on how she came up with these blends...and the colour of the lipstick she was wearing the day we met up.

Me: What inspired you to create these blends?
JC: They combine two of my passions: traveling and food. Make that three passions, actually, if you count my bath & body obsession and my love of fragrances! To me, any scent that we wear is in its small way a mental journey to a place, a memory… I like how something that is a part of our everyday life, like perfume, can both be a comforting routine – a ritual – as well as at a bottle-sized escape from the daily grind. - Have you ever been to any of these exotic places? I was lucky enough to go to Venice, but India and Morocco are dream destinations of mine, so they remain more of a fantasy for now. I do hope to someday be able to take some Kashmiri Krispies scented products to the bathroom of one of these Rajasthan hotels where you can see the Taj Mahal from your tub!

Me: What's your favourite out of the entire collection I sent you to sample?
JC: I’m partial to Piazza as white chocolate panna cotta with raspberry coulis is one of my favorite desserts to make. Not to brag, but I think mine tastes as delicious as the CLC blend smells! I was also very pleasantly surprised by the more gourmand Kashmiri Krispies. This scent is exactly what I would expect a day at a Goa beach to smell like. And because I need to stop tooting my own horn – and also because it’s a truly yummy scent – I also need to give Cornbread Graham a special mention.

Me: If you were a scent, what do you think it would be? (Note to the reader: I know, I know, stupid question. I was feeling all Barbara Walters like.)
JC: Obviously, for me, it would have to be foody! I’m a very ambivalent person (I think to some extent all human beings are), so I think something like a marble cake scent could be a good metaphor for black-and-white tendencies (chocolate and vanilla) trying to reconcile and blend in with each other so they can reach a happy medium! (Note to Justine: Have you tried a Black & White Cookie yet? I think this is so up your alley, taste-wise and scent-wise of course.)

Me: What CLC product can you not live without?
JC: Haircare! I’ve been using the various CLC shampoos and conditioners non-stop for months. I love how beautifully the foody scents come out in the Green Tea with Envy conditioner in particular. But I'm also a big fan of the Comforting Creme. No other moisturizer gives my skin the same powdery finish.

Me: What makeup item can you not live without?
JC: I’m a mascara junkie – I own over half a dozen tubes at the moment and always use at least three whenever I’m doing my lashes! As for the OT questions, the lip stain you mentioned is Lip Envy by Urban Decay. They have it in red, but the one I bought was the Greedy shade.

Our Autumn Hearth collection, along with our wildly popular Scary Movies collection and customer request scents are scheduled for release in the first week of September. Stay tuned.

Huge Thanks to Our Local Customers!

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 17:55:00 +0000

We've had an amazing showing of support in just the few short weeks that we've been at The Beehive - and even selling out of a few items! We'd like to thank our local customers for their support. Stop by next month when we update our stock with warm Autumn treats for the body, including exclusive products you'll find only at the Beehive. Pumpkins anyone?

Recent Kiva Loans

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 19:23:00 +0000

We've added 2 more entrepreneurs to the Crater Lake Company loan portfolio.

We're one of 17 people/organizations who funded Cristita Alaano's loan request to establish a (sari-sari) store in her neighbourhood. Ms. Alaano is from Antipolo, Rizal, Philippines and come to think of it, Antipolo isn't very far from where I'll be for Christmas so I may stop by for a visit. A sari-sari store is kind of like a deli/bodega but on a much smaller scale. They're everywhere in the Philippines and they sell pretty much everything. What's interesting is that they sell pretty much everything in the smallest denomination possible. Need just a small sachet of dish detergent? Got that. How about an ounce of cooking oil? Yup, they got that. Oh, and in case the mood strikes, how about a cigarette? No, no, not the whole pack. I mean, just one cigarette. Got you covered.

The thing is, most families don't have enough of a financial cushion to buy items in bulk. So sari-sari stores function as distributors on the smallest scale possible where you can buy just what you need for today and maybe the next. I love them. Like I said, they're everywhere in the Philippines and integral to the country's identity. Sari-sari stores are as Filipino to me as the kalesa (horse-drawn carriage that's slowly becoming extinct) and the jeepneys that clog the streets of Manila. These, and my love of shoes. Gotta represent.

The second loan we made was to Cristina Yunsal of Morong, Rizal, Philippines (no clue where this is.) Cristina sells orchirds and requested a loan to buy more inventory and possibly expand her business by selling other types of flowers. She hopes that her business will flourish and generate enough revenue so she can put her 2 kids through college. Filipinos truly value education. We see it as the greatest equalizer and a way to get out of poverty - move up in the world. It is not uncommon to have the oldest sibling help pay for their other sibling's tuition, and so on and so forth. I did it. That's why I'm my brother's favourite sister. At least I'd better be or he'll soon be geting an invoice. I kid Glennie. You know I love you. You know you're my favourite brother. Oh wait. You're my only brother.

Someone asked me recently what our criteria was for making loans. As we've made loans, I started refining our criteria to somewhat reflect Crater Lake Company's values. Here it is in bulleted form:

-Must be female or a group of females. It's hard being a woman. Sure, we can get away with not paying tolls, cry our way out of a speeding ticket and convince grown-men to carry our most flamboyant pocketbooks, but we still have it hard. I imagine it's even harder if you're a woman in a developing country where opportunities are scarce and birth control is not an option.

-Must be engaged in a non-livestock business. I'm vegetarian. 'Nuff said.

-Must be from the Philippines? Not sure about this one. I think it's an optional criteria. I'm all for supporting women, whether or not they're Filipina. Being one myself (Mabuhay!), I am of course drawn to supporting my peeps, but it doesn't preclude us from loaning to women from other countries.

As the busy holiday season approaches, sales will be more brisk and we'll have more $$$ in our coffers to loan out. See. And you thought your B&B addiction was a selfish indulgence. So remember that with each scrub, swipe and spritz of Crater Lake Company's goodies, a woman in a far-away land is thanking you for your addiction. You crazy American you.

Our ears are ringing!

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 20:34:00 +0000

I know it's a little late, but we've been busy cranking out orders and getting ready for the launch of our Fall collection. In case you missed our Facebook post, our super-fabulous Sugar Cloud is featured in the August issue of Good Housekeeping. Oh yeah, oh yeah, it's my birthday, oh yeah!

In other news, we're busy finalising 2 seasonal scrubs, our Fall collection and the staggered release of our face masques. We have so many things in store for you I'm bursting at the seams with excitement (that and I think I ate too many Cheetos.)

Till next post.

Creamy Lavender Milk Shower Smoothie Featured in Real Simple

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 18:11:00 +0000

We keep getting e-mails from customers and seeing posts on Facebook about how much you love our Shower Smoothie. Naturally, we agree with you...and so does Real Simple, which recently featured this much-loved product in their Daily Finds - 7 Products for Soft Skin. Summer is in full swing and this has become my go-to product. Apply all over on damp skin, let sit, shave, sing a song, then rinse off. Pat dry and marvel at how smooth and silky your skin feels. Seriously.

Crater Lake Company Featured in Canadian Hairdresser Magazine

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 00:18:00 +0000

Our new Signature Collection was recently featured in Canadian Hairdresser Magazine's Beauty Beat section. Check us out! Pictured below and working it something fierce are our Triple Action Body Buffers.

Westchester Magazine Beauty Buzz Feature

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Wed, 05 May 2010 18:56:00 +0000

Speaking of our Zambian Coffee Body Scrub...

Westchester Magazine just featured said scrub in the Beauty Buzz section of their blog. Our scrub is fast gaining the attention of java-junkies and magazine editors alike since its launch last month and I have a feeling it won't be long till it finds fame and notoriety. (Then it will fall from grace when it gets caught cavorting with 18 other non-Crater Lake Company scrubs - the bastard.)

Read the article here.

Zambian Coffee Body Scrub

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 15:01:00 +0000

Gah! Has it really been month plus since our last post? Sorry, so sorry, but we've been busy launching new products and getting ready for our move. I'll post more about the move later, but for now, let's talk about one of our newest products - Zambian Coffee Body Scrub.

Made with Zambian coffee, pure white cane sugar, coffee oil and a decadent blend of butters and oils, this body scrub is sure to get your skin unbelievably smooth and your heart-a-racin'. This is a rich, thick and densely packed scrub emulsifies into a decadent cream once it comes into contact with warm water and your skin. Have cellulite? Anti-oxidant rich coffee has been said to have a diuretic effect, dehydrating fat cells, thereby making skin look smoother (read, less bumpy and lumpy.)

But here's the best part. Crater Lake Company has partnered with Camfed to help win the fight against HIV/AIDS and poverty in southern African nations. 20% of our profits from the sale of each Zambian Coffee Body Scrub goes to this wonderful organization. Camfed is an amazing organization that educates girls and empowers women to become leaders of change in their community. Research has shown that when you educate a girl in Africa, she'll be three times less likely to get HIV/AIDS, earn 25% more income and have a smaller, healthier family.

As a woman fortunate enough to live in the United States, I know that I have more opportunities to succeed and better options to consider than my counterparts in developing and impoverished nations. Camfed seeks to change the lives of women living in impoverishd southern African nations like Zambia, Tanzania, Malawi and Zimbabwe through education. It's a wonderful cause that deserves your support. Camfed places transparency at the core of their operations and there are just two transactions between the donation and the beneficiary.

So buy a jar and help a good cause. Better yet, buy a jar and make a donation. You'll be glowing inside and out.

Look what I've been up to...

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 02:37:00 +0000

Has it really been 3 weeks since my last post? Sorry, sorry, sorry. I've been busy working on the Signature Collection launch (photography, copywriting, product prototype making, etc.) and about 2 weeks ago, our Facebook page went live (thank you Jill.) Speaking of Facebook, daaayummm, we have some good looking customers :) It's been fun putting faces to the names.

Anyway, so here's a sample of what we've been up to at CLC.

It looks like our Signature Collection will launch in early April. Stay tuned because we're going to have one helluva sale to celebrate!

There's a lot of stuff brewing (note: this is a hint to our Facebook contest) behind the scenes, but I'll save them till my next post. All you need to know is we're going to have one amazing summer!

Worldly Wednesday - Alaska!

noreply@blogger.com (Crater Lake Company) — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 02:45:00 +0000

Since we're on the topic of snow. Here are some pictures from our Alaska cruise.

Top & bottom picture: What we saw from our balcony. Check out how glassy and still the water's surface looks.

The Hubbard Glacier below:

Check out the boat getting up close and personal to the glacier.

A close up of the glacier:

Till next time...