Apricot Freesia Hand Cream

So these are from a batch of our freshly made Apricot Freesia Hand Cream. I blogged about our ingredient choices for our creams and butters here and here earlier in the week.



This recipe includes jojoba oil, sweet almond oil, and shea butter. We also add a "secret" ingredient- liquid silk! Liquid silk is simply silk proteins that make the finished product, well, silky! It goes on light and smooth, and is very moisturizing without any oily residue. And the Apricot Freesia scent is fresh and lightly lingers without being overbearing.

I keep a tube by the sink and use it every time I wash my hands... as you can imagine, in this line of work, that happens a lot!

Choices, Choices- Butters

Earlier in the week, I shared some of our favorite oils, as well as why & when we use them. In addition to these oils, we also use butters, which are solid at room temperature. Our top four faves:

Shea Butter- Shea butter comes from the pressed nuts of the karate tree. It naturally has an interesting odor, so we use shea butter that has been refined and is essentially odorless and white in color. It is very emollient and a great skin softener. We use shea butter quite often, especially in our body butters.

Pistachio Butter- Pistachio butter has a light green tint and a slightly nutty scent. It’s very moisturizing, and we use it in some of our balms.

Cocoa Butter- Cocoa butter comes from the cocoa bean, and unrefined has a sweet, chocolate scent. It’s a very hard solid at room temperature, but melts upon contact with skin. We use it in our lip balms, and hand balms.

Coffee Butter- Coffee butter comes from coffee beans, and retain that wonderful coffee aroma. It’s great for body butters.

Pretty yummy stuff, huh?

Travel Tuesday- NYC

A couple of years ago, we had one day to spend in New York City (that's right- one day for all of the Big Apple)- so we booked one of those cheesy sightseeing tours. We actually saw quite a bit: Rockefeller Center, Times Square, Ground Zero, St. Patrick's Cathedral, the Museum of Natural History, and of course, the Statue of Liberty.



We have plans to go back someday and take the 2 day tour!

Choices, Choices

I was hard at work this weekend perfecting some of our hand creams and balms… I thought I’d share some of the process with you.

In making our creams, balms and body butters, we have so many wonderful ingredient choices! We begin to create our recipes by choosing oils and butters that provide the particular properties we want each product to have- a light and moisturizing hand cream, a thick and luxurious body butter, a protective and healing balm.

Here are some of our favorite oils to work with:

Sweet Almond Oil- Sweet almond oil is extracted from the almond seed. It’s a very versatile oil, good for all skin types. It gives complexions a healthy glow, and is moisturizing and lubricating (so it makes for a great massage oil!) We use sweet almond oil in products such as our sugar scrubs.

Jojoba Oil- Jojoba oil is very unique- it’s actually a liquid wax! It’s expeller pressed from the jojoba seed and is a deep, clear yellow color. It behaves much like the oil our skin naturally produces, so it absorbs readily into and moisturizes our skin. Jojoba oil can also be used in shampoos, improving your hair’s smoothness and shine. Jojoba is one of my favorite oils, and we use it in our hand creams and body oils.

Avocado Oil- Avocado oil is made from the fruit (the yummy part!) of the avocado. It’s a thicker, waxier oil, rich in Vitamins A, D & E. We use avocado oil in our balms and creams.

Apricot Kernel Oil- As the name implies, this oil is extracted from the kernal of the apricot. High in Vitamin A, this oil is lighter in weight and texture than some of the other oils such as sweet almond oil, and is excellent for oily to normal and mature skin.

Coconut Oil- Coconut oil is refined from the meat of the coconut palm, and retains some of that sweet, tropical flavor. It’s very useful in body butters and lip balms.

Later on this week, we’ll talk about some of our favorite butters, and I’ll show you some of the finished products!

Chile & Salsa Festival

Just got back from the Wildseed Farm 3rd Annual Gourmet Chile Pepper & Salsa Festival!

Live Music, Kabobs, Mint Limeade, and lots and lots of Salsa!

And at dusk, they inflated the hot air balloons-

Lots of fun! And if you're in the area, the festival continues through Sunday, July 26!

Soapy Inspiration- The Fuzzy Navel

Our latest soap takes its cues from fresh, citrusy oranges...


...and ripe juicy peaches...


Introducing the Fuzzy Navel Shea Butter Soap!


All of the fun, without the hangover! ;)

Orange & Peach pics courtesy freedigitalphotos.net

Travel Tuesday- Grand Canyon

Sunrise on the South Rim of the Grand Canyon.



Yes, that's snow! We were there in January, and it was 20 degrees F that morning as we strolled along the rim. Breathtaking!

Birthday Goodies

This gift basket was custom made for a birthday girl... whose birthday is TODAY!

Filled with Carrot Cake Cupcake Fizzies and Stripey Daisy Soaps, she should have a squeaky clean day.

**Happy Birthday, Lizzy!**

Sugar Cube Scrubs

I'm in love with our newest creation- Sugar Cube Scrubs!

Take one (or two!) of these super-handy little sweeties into the bath or shower, add a little water and crumble them into your hands, and scrub away!

They're full of olive & avocado oils to moisturize, the pure cane sugar exfoliates, and it rinses clean with no oily residue- just soft, smooth skin!

This particular batch is in our soft and fruity Passionfruit Rose scent, which means it matches up perfectly with our Passionfruit Rose Soaps. Love it!

You Know, for Kids!

So this one's just for fun-



A rubber duckie swimming in a bubble gum scented soap!

Travel Tuesday- Rome

So last week, in honor of our wanderlust, we started Travel Tuesdays here at Bean Street. Today's I-Wish-I-Were-Here is Rome, Italy!



This is a great little sidewalk cafe, not too far from Trevi Fountain, if I recall.

The Eternal City has been on my mind- this week we have one friend returning from two years of study there, and another friend leaving for two years of study!

It's a Fizzy Cupcake!

We're in love with our latest creation- the fizzy cupcake!



The "cake" part is a water softening, moisturizing fizzy, carrot cake scented. The "icing" is a cream cheese frosting scented shea butter soap...

So you toss the whole thing in the bath, the fizzy dissolves and works its magic, and then you're left with a soap for a luxurious bath!

Two bathtime goodies for the price of one... great value from Bean Street Market! :)

Stripey-Daisy Energy Soap

A friend of mine was headed for vacation in Colorado and needed some soap to take with her- so we whipped this little cutie up for her!


It's about palm sized, so good for travel, and scented with Energy- a bright, citrusy, and well, energizing scent. Making the stripes was an experiment, but it worked out well, don't you think? Anyway, Kacey, hope you have a great trip!

Travel Tuesday- The Florida Coast

So, it seems like everybody's on vacation right now... except me! So I thought I'd start Travel Tuesdays at Bean Street- a sort of Wish-I-Was-Here virtual vacation. If you're stuck at home too, feel free to daydream along with me...


A perfect summer day on a secluded Florida beach between Jacksonville and St. Augustine. Can you feel the sand between your toes?

Passionfruit Rose Swirl Soaps

Experimenting with a new scent- Passionfruit Rose!


We colored these a mouth-watering melon color to match the rich, fruity scent. And during the photo shoot, we came up with a great packaging idea... a couple of these sweet little guest soaps in a Ball canning jar, tied with a pretty ribbon would make a great hostess gift!

Happy Birthday, America!

Today, let's remember what this country stands for: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.

This pic was taken by my talented husband at Epcot last year... one of our favorite places to be!

We'll be watching some hometown fireworks tonight. Hope you have a wonderful day with family and friends, and Happy Independence Day!

Indie Beauty Featured Product!

We're so proud! Our Polka Dot Shea Butter Soaps were the featured product yesterday at the Indie Beauty Network!





(You have to be a member to view the page, so I included the photo above if you're not a member.) Founded in 2000, the Indie Beauty Network is a great resource community for Indie manufacturers of soaps, cosmetics, fragrances, candles, aromatherapy products and jewelry.