Google+ Now Allowing Custom URLs

Google+ is now allowing custom URLs, making it a lot easier for followers, friends, and fans to connect with us. You can find us at http://google.com/+youscentme

Stay Warm in Style

It's getting cold outside. Stay warm in style with our You Scent Me sweatshirt. Your choice of Ash Grey or White. Find this and other great items at the Official You Scent Me Logowear Store.

Great Story Behind Our Newest Facebook Fan

Great story behind our newest Facebook fan, Andee Howard Cui. At first, I didn't recognize Andee's name. Many of You Scent Me's fans are total strangers (which never ceases to amaze me and for which I am truly grateful!) A little digging made me realize that Andee Howard Cui is the same Andee who works for Majestic Mountain Sage (a wonderful soapmaking supplier, best known for their ground breaking lye calculator)!

Flashback to 2008. I called MMS in a frenzy because the bottle I thought was olive oil, turned out to be a blend of olive and canola oil. Soapmaking is a very exact science, and I was in a frenzy that my calculations were now totally off and my batch ruined. Tina in tech support was incredibly helpful and saved my soap from ruin. Once the batch was cured, I sent a couple of bars to "The Sage" (as it is affectionately known) as a small token of my appreciation.

A short time later, I was excited to receive an email from Andee -- my soap was being featured on their blog! (The email was simply signed 'Andee,' with no last name, and the "From" in the email only gave the company name.)

Welcome Andee! It is so nice to be able to put a face to the name!

Want to become a Facebook fan like Andee? Simply click "like" on our Facebook page. While you're on Facebook, be sure to visit and "like" Majestic Mountain Sage's Facebook page.

Make Your Own Movie on Twitter

Just made a movie of my Twitter. Let me know what you think, then make your own! #FollowMe #Vizify

For Your Favorite Grillmaster

That Fourth of July barbecue is just around the corner. Surprise your favorite grillmaster with our great new apron! It's made of 100% high quality cotton twill and is machine washable. One size fits all. Just slip the apron over your head, and pull the waist-level drawstring to tighten the apron around your neck and waist. Two big pockets hold utensils. Your choice of color in white, khaki, or yellow. Of course our favorite way to use it is while we're making soap. It makes a great gift for any soapmaker. You'll find our apron as well as the rest of our logowear at http://cafepress.com/youscentme.

Excerpt From Upcoming PBS Program on Handmade Soap

Unsolicited Testimonial

Great to come back from the long holiday weekend and find this in my inbox.

"I always look forward to the arrival of these products. Everything is professionally and individually packed, the soaps I've used are all long lasting, lightly scented and perfect for sensitive skin. The coconut body and hair wash is energizing, the milk and honey hand and body lotion is the right thickness (and smells awesome) and the smelly jelly gives my room an unobtrusive delightful scent."

                         Linda H.
                         New York, NY 

If It Fits It Ships -- Not So Fast There Perfume

We've all seen those commercials from the United States Post Office proclaiming whatever you can fit in one of their flat rate boxes (as long as it's under 70 pounds) ships for a low flat rate. This does not hold true when it comes to mailing perfume. Due to their flammable nature, fragrances containing alcohol, cannot be shipped via air (so no Priority or Express Mail). This also means that shipping perfume to Hawaii is not permitted since there are no ground shipping options to the islands. Packages containing perfume must also weigh less than 16 ounces. Recently, I shipped a package containing three one ounce bottles of perfume.  Between wrapping the bottles in bubble wrap, plus packing peanuts, the package was well over a pound. I was told I'd have to rewrap the package. The post office has advised that each bottle should be shipped separately. Also, perfume containing alcohol is prohibited in international shipments.

Featured Customer: Kathryn Janus

Kathryn with her adorable fur babies Daniel & Harry

Favorite You Scent Me products: Spray perfumes in Paulette's Pink Sugar, Kathryn's Kandy (our version of Prada Candy) & Angel for Men (Type).

A former actress, struggling with which direction to go, Kathryn Janus' deep interest in human beings, their stories, and understanding how these stories shape us, led her to a career as a psychotherapist. Kathryn, who has practices in NYC and upstate Beacon, NY has over 30 years experience as a psychotherapist. She is an advanced clinician in Imago relationship therapy (couples counseling). She offers individual, couples, and group therapy incorporating Gestalt and psychodrama. Her most recent interest has been in pet loss counseling. She saw a need in pet loss counseling that many therapists don't know how to address.

Affiliations: New York Association for Imago Relationship Therapists
                Pet Loss Professionals Alliance
                Association for Pet Loss & Bereavement

Kathryn's hobbies include antiquing, auctions, thrift store shopping, movies, and theatre. She lives in New York City with her husband Jeff and two Malteses. She is active in the Metropolitan Maltese Rescue.

Kathryn is available by appointment at her New York City office Monday-Friday (212) 222-5086 and at her Beacon, NY (Duchess County) practice Thursday-Friday (845) 831-5656.

Happy Holidays from the Dancing Snowmen!

Soapy Summer Sendoff

I always get melancholy when summer's over. Shorter daylight hours mean less time for outdoor activities. Fortunately some soapmaking classes hosted by Marla Bosworth of Back Porch Soap Company helped take the sting out of saying goodbye to summer. Our special guest instructors were Amanda Griffin of Lovin Soap and Holly Port of Lotion Bar Cafe.

In the first class I attended, Amanda and Holly showed us how to make soap cupcakes, salt bar smoothies, and soap lattes.

After class, a New York City Beauty Meetup was held for industry professionals at Calle Ocho.

The next morning, Amanda and Holly showed us how to do a peacock swirl, hearts, and flowers.

A very special thank you to everybody's favorite Teaching Assistant, Angela Carillo of Alegna Soap.

Introducing Mojito Soap!

Inspired by the cocktail of the same name, our mojito soap is a perfect pick-me-up from the dog days of summer. It's naturally fragranced with lime and spearmint essential oils.

Sparkle Up!

I was really touched when I went to visit Mom at the nursing home over the weekend, and saw the enthusiastic staff of Sparkle Up doing hair, makeup, and manicures for the residents. Sparkle Up specializes in glamour parties and has a full skin care and makeup line for special events.

Sparkle Up is located in New City, New York. Sunday was the first time they have done an outside event. The idea for the event came from co-owner Deborah Spagnoli who feels that "beauty is ageless."

Mom loved having her hair done. Another resident who was having her nails done, said that she loved having the opportunity to be pampered.

Mackenzie gives a manicure

Deborah gives a resident a new 'do

In Memorium

Arthur Nadel
1928-2012

On Thursday, May 31, my father-in-law Arthur Nadel passed. He was 84. Through his actions, Artie raised the bar on what it meant to be a good husband. His love and devotion to his wife Mildred is the stuff they make movies about. While Artie was in a nursing home on a rehab floor for a broken hip, he voluntary moved to spend the rest of his days in an Alzheimer's ward so his Millie would not be alone. Through 61 years of marriage, Artie and Millie were deeply, madly, passionately in love. Throughout his illness, he never cared about his own declining health, only about the well-being of his beloved Millie.

In addition to Millie, he is survived by the three sons he was so proud of, Michael, Steve (Sue), and Gary (Denise), and the grandchildren he adored, Adam, Matthew, Daniel, and Lauren.

Artie's funeral was on Friday. When we arrived home, there were a couple of messages on our answering machine asking if Artie had anything to do with Johan Santana pitching the first no-hitter in the history of his beloved New York Mets. We like to think he did, and if there's a heaven, he's holding court playing cards and telling his jokes to a whole new audience.

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Chocolate Lovers Rejoice!

Now you can enjoy your chocolate with none of the calories! Friends and family have loved our Loco for Cocoa soap, and now it is available to you! Cocoa butter adds to the wonderful chocolate scent of this luxurious soap. To learn more and buy this heavenly soap, click here.

And the Winner Is...

Congratulations to Diane Franchi-Scuoppo on winning a copy of My Memories scrapbook software as part of our Facebook event.

Everybody's a winner! My Memories has generously offered $10 off the price of the software plus a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store. Use code STMMS36813 to save!

 

I've never created a scrapbook before. For one, I’m not very artistic. I can’t cut a piece of paper in a straight line if my life depended on it.  I’m having a hard enough time finding space for my soapmaking supplies, let alone finding room for special papers, punches and other materials that are needed for scrapbooking, but when I received an email from the makers of My Memories digital scrapbooking software, asking if I’d review their software and host a giveaway for a free copy of the software, they had me at ‘free giveaway.’ My customers and blog readers are the best and if someone wants to give them free stuff, who am I to argue?

On the plus side, My Memories was very easy to set up and install. The program comes with a bunch of templates for a variety of occasions.  If you don’t like the templates that come with the program, you can purchase additional templates on the MyMemories website, or design your scrapbook from scratch. Adding photos is easy. Simply drag & drop your photos onto the page. Like a traditional scrapbook, you can print out your digital masterpiece and save it in book form. For something really cool, you can share your scrapbook via iTunes Video iPods, iPhone, Apple TV, or compatible devices.

As a first time user, I did not find the software very intuitive. I found a template with the perfect sentiment for the scrapbook I wanted to create, but hated the colors. Unfortunately you can't change the colors of the templates. Another major drawback is when I wanted to save my scrapbook as a video. I had to download and install additional (free) software. I found this to be very time consuming.

Here’s an example of a video scrapbook I made of an Indie Beauty event held in January.

You be your own judge. We're giving away a copy of My Memories digital scrapbook software. To enter, use one or all of the following methods by 12:01am EST March 26, 2012 

1.  Subscribe to this blog. Comment on this blog post to enter.
2.  "Like" the You Scent Me fan page on Facebook and leave a comment to enter to win.
3. Tweet about the giveaway & make sure to mention You Scent Me in your tweet.
4. Add us to your circles on Google+. Share the news about the contest on your Google+ stream.

As a special reward for our readers, My Memories is offering those that didn't win, a discount on the downloadable software. Use our Share the Memories code, STMMMS36813, for a $10 discount off the purchase of the My Memories Suite Scrapbook software and a $10 coupon for the MyMemories.com store - a $20 value! Because we know you like a good deal as much as we do, feel free to share this discount code with your family and friends.

Good luck! Hope you win!

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Closing February 4-19

You Scent Me will be closed February 4-19.