Transition Time at Leaf House….

We are currently in a time of transition at Leaf House as I will be closing the doors to the therapy side of our business by the end of April. 

This means I will be able to concentrate on creating more of our unique, hand made, luxury glycerin soaps.  We have received tremendously positive and enthusiastic feedback via all the lovely folk who visit our market stall in Bury St Edmunds, and now is the time to take that leap of faith.  Excitement tinged with a little bit of nervousness!  Also in the news is the fact that we will be extending our market appearances to the Wednesday market in Bury St Edmunds from the 13th April.

Look forward to seeing you there!  Vxx

Our first ever Saturday market in Bury St Edmunds

On the 5th March (last Saturday) we enjoyed a fabulous first day with our new stall at the Bury St Edmunds market.  We had a great time and met lots of lovely people – some old friends but many more new friends.  It was a lovely day.  OK, it was also a very, very cold day but the rain at least held off until the last hour or so.  Drizzle really, not ‘rain, rain’.

We were thrilled to receive an enquiry for quite a large order.  And subsequently even more thrilled when the order was confirmed just yesterday!

Leaf House Botanics will become a familiar site at the market.  We don’t know where our ‘permanent’ pitch will be yet and that could take a bit of time.  Newbies just have to wait their turn to be offered a permanent slot. We took the camera, but frankly the day was so busy that we completely forgot all about using the camera! Hopefully we’ll get some pics this coming Saturday.

Leaf House Botanics has also been experimenting with some new soaps.  Here is a pic of our new Baby Blue Polka Dot Baby Shower Favours… they come in a pack of 6 x mini soaps as shown.  They will be available in limited quantities at the next market – Saturday 12th March.  But the good news is that you can order more, and in different colours too.  Perhaps you might prefer pink (we’ll try to have some of those there too)… or yellow…  or whatever colour you prefer.  The Blue Baby Polka Dots are delicately fragranced with Baby Powder.    Here’s a pic of them…..

Pretty Baby Shower Favours in group of 6 mini soaps

Here’s a link to our website so you can take another peek at them – and even place an order for them!  http://www.leafhouse.co.uk/pages/shop/proddetail.php?prod=PolkaDotBabyShowerFavours

Do you have any thoughts on fragrance for some pretty little Pink Polka Dot Favours?  Strawberry perhaps? Soft and gentle Heather? Do tell us your ideas when you have a moment or two please.  Oh and see you at the market on Saturday 12th March.  Vxx

Art as Soap… or is that Soap as Art?

I *knew* I’d begun to write a blog about our commission from the Smiths Row Art Gallery here in Bury St Edmunds!  But for some inexplicable reason I would appear to have ’parked’ it in a so-called safe place.  Which means of course, that I’ve lost it somewhere in the ether. 

Pip and Pop are two rather amazingly talented artists from Perth, Western Australia and they created the most extra-ordinary art installation at the gallery.  They work primarily with coloured sugar, although they also use origami and miniature toys within their landscapes.  Here’s a pic of a part of the installation which was known as ‘sweet, sweet galaxy’.  You missed something very special if you did not get the chance to see this….

'sweet, sweet galaxy' by Pip and Pop at Smiths Row, Bury St Edmunds

 The gallery asked us to create 3 x soaps with different colours and themes to ‘match’ the art installation.  The soaps were sold as mementoes of this most fabulously ephemeral work.  When the exhibition closed, then all the sugar was swept away.  Gone. 

So here’s a pic of one of the soaps I made for the exhibition. 

Hope you enjoy the soaps… it was such a pleasure and honour to meet the artists at the opening for the exhibition.  And I’m just sorry that we can no longer just pop into the gallery and see that fabulous sight.

Nearly Christmas…

Yesterday, we finished packaging, wrapping and delivering our last orders for our Christmas customers… Phew! We made it.  Time now to finish the last client treatments for this year.  Leaf House Therapies will be closed from 6pm Wednesday 22nd December and will re-open on  Tuesday 4th January 2011.

In the meantime, Leaf House Botanics will be beavering away in the background to create the soaps for a very special custom order we have received.  At this stage, I can’t give you any further details, but will be able to tell you more in the New Year.  That oh so calm sentence belies the fact that I am hopping around with excitement over this one - 

We are having a quiet family Christmas this year – I hope that whatever you are doing, and wherever you are, your Christmas holiday time is one of happiness and peace.  May 2011 bring you health, joy and abundance.  Thank you all for the huge amount of support we have received over the course of this year – it has meant a lot to us and we are so grateful.  With love, Vxx

Time to blog again…

Well, it’s been a bit of a long time since I wrote anything here… time to blog again, me thinks!  So much has happened since I last blogged; I don’t intend to ‘play catch up’ and bore you totally senseless with it all, so please don’t worry! 

But I will tell you that we’ve introduced a range of the most beautiful glycerin soaps, along with some divinely decadent bath treats with which to spoil yourself.. or someone else.  It’s an ongoing process, with some Limited Edition products being introduced to match the seasons or the various festivities in the year’s calendar. 

To whet your tastebuds, here’s a picture of our ‘Tis the Season Limited Edition glycerin soap we introduced for Christmas 2010… we’ve nearly sold out and when it’s gone… it’s gone.

The soap has a fresh fragrance; imagine a lovely walk on a winter’s day, through a pine forest; crisp, clean and invigorating. And I think it’s just right for all members of the family too.

Display of Leaf House Botanics products…

Yesterday morning we enjoyed a very successful marketplace via the Best Of Bury St Edmunds at Benson and Blakes in St John’s Street.  We took along our products from the Leaf House Botanics Mother and Baby range together with a selection of products from our Body/Skincare range.

We mingled with the lovely people there, met lots of new people and caught up with old friends.  We even ate cupcakes!

Better still was the interest shown in our natural, organic products by so many of the visitors.  Products were sold and a lot of questions asked about their ingredients.  

Leaf House Botanics Product Display at Benson & Blakes 23.3.10

We were also given our certificate in recognition of our 3rd Most Loved Business in Bury St Edmunds – thanks once more to everyone who voted for us in the 14 Days of Love competition!  You can see the certificate on the right hand side of the table display.

Take a Bath in the Sunshine!

If this grey, wet, cold winter weather is starting to get the better of you, why not try a lovely bath of Sweet Orange essential oil to lift your spirits….   just put 4 drops maximum of genuine Sweet Orange essential oil into your bath water, then swish the water around to disperse the oils before getting into the bath.  Enjoy the uplifting and cheering effects of this lovely Sunshine oil.  It’s guaranteed to put some sun into your day!  Remember the maximum amount of 4 drops though as this oil can irritate sensitive skin when used in this manner.  It’s because the oil is just ‘floating’ on the bath water and so can come into direct contact with your skin.. if you know you have sensitive skin, start with just 2 drops and disperse the oil thoroughly by agitating the water before you get into the bath.

Spa Sunshine Bath Time!

Roses are red, Violets are Blue…

Roses are red, violets are.. Valentine’s Day is coming and to celebrate, The Best of Group have come up with an absolutely brilliant competition for clients and fans of Leaf House Therapies.. write a testimonial for us and you will automatically be entered into the daily prize draw for fab prizes such as an Apple iPad (wow!), an Apple iPod, dinner for 2 at Gordon Ramsay at Claridges, and much more… competition ends 14th February … You do need to either Login if you are already a member or Register if not… it only takes a few seconds and you could win a fantastic prize… Thank you!

Here’s the link….   http://www.thebestof.co.uk/local/bury-st-edmunds/business-guide/feature/leaf-house/56089/review#write  

Wonderful News!

We are simply over the moon with the news that Winch & Blatch, the gorgeous and upmarket independent store in Sudbury, Suffolk are to stock Leaf House Botanics products.  As soon as we have more information regarding dates/products/ranges etc, we will put the information onto this Blog for you.

Variation upon a Theme…

Here’s another idea to help moisturise your skin … and as the title of this blog suggests, it’s a variation on the Milk Bath theme… 

Milk and Honey Bath  ~ starting with the 600ml of milk in the previous recipe… 

Add 2 x tablespoons of Manuka honey to the milk, then 1 x drop of Chamomile essential oil (probably Roman Chamomile as German or ‘blue’ chamomile is very ‘medicinal’ in aroma and may not be quite as romantic as you’d hoped!), 1 x drop of carrot essential oil and 4 x drops of Rosewood essential oil.  Pour the mix under running water and then relax in this lovely bath.  For extra smooth skin, you can rub extra honey on your elbows, feet, knees and breasts before getting in the bath… 

Bath time

 

 

NB:- if you are allergic to bee stings, then this is probably not the bath for you as it is not unusual to also be allergic to honey in this case… 

 A patch test on the inner skin of your elbow will let you know how your skin is going to react. Just place a tiny amount of honey on this sensitive skin area, cover with a plaster and leave for up to 24 hours… if your skin begins to itch, go pink/red or develops little pink/red blotches, immediately wash off with cold water … keep flushing the area with cold water until reaction subsides.  This patch test method is relevant for all new products you want to use on your skin.  And if you notice any change in how your skin reacts to products you’ve been using for some time, you can still use this method to check and see if you are developing sensitivities/reactions.