Happy Memorial Day from AnnaKate Soaps!

Although no sculptured marble should rise to their memory, nor engraved stone bear record of their deeds, yet will their remembrance be as lasting as the land they honored. ~Daniel Webster

We'd like to wish a safe and happy Memorial Day to all our fans, friends and family today!

No matter how you celebrated, we hope you were able to take some time to remember and honor all the men and women who have served and are currently serving our country in the nation's armed forces. It can be all too easy to forget the "memorial" in Memorial Day and let the day pass by without remembering what it's really for. If you haven't yet today, take a moment to remember all who have fallen for our country and the loved ones they left behind.

Put A Little Aloe On It

Growing up, my grandparents had an aloe vera plant that they grew in their home. I remember being so intrigued by the pokey looking leaves - only to find they were actually kind of squishy. Every time one of the grandkids had a cut, sunburn or any other skin ailment, my grandmother would walk over to the aloe plant, slice off a leaf, squeeze the gel out and tell us to 'put a little aloe on it". Although this is one of my fondest childhood memories, I never fully understood the broad healing capabilities or benefits of aloe vera.

Although most of us are use to buying aloe vera lotion in a bottle at the store, it is actually cultivated from a short stemmed succulent with thick, fleshy short leaves. When aloe vera leaves are cut, two different fluids with differing effects exude. One, a yellow, green sap containing aloin is an irritant, however, the transparent fluid exuded from the inner leaf is said to have soothing and healing properties. Aloe vera contains countless vitamins and minerals, enzymes, amino acids and agents which may be anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial. Many beauty products including lotions, cremes, body washes and soaps are infused with aloe to assist in including these great benefits in your daily beauty routine, check out our Massaloe and Refresh Your Senses - they both are infused with aloe.

With the official start of summer approaching in just a few short days, and sunburn season starting, it might be wise to make sure to have some aloe vera gel on hand...or if you have a green thumb, grow your own aloe vera plant to keep in your home!

The Power of Vitamin E Oil

During the research and development part of soap creation, AnnaKate Soaps seriously considers each and every additive we put in our soaps. From colors to scents to exfoliants, each addition to the soap is carefully planned.

One additive we particularly enjoy is Vitamin E oil, which is found in The Breakfast Bar and Massaloe. Vitamin E is found in many beauty products from soaps to lotions to hair products to body scrubs, do you've probably come across it before. Vitamin E oil is an anti-oxidant, meaning it helps stop oxidization of other molecules in the skin. Oxidization of molecules can lead to a buildup of free radicals, which can cause further damage to cells.

The four benefits that vitamin E oil gets the most attention for are anti-aging, sun protection, scar healing and moisturizing. During the summer months, using a soap with Vitamin E oil can really help prevent damage to your skin after a day in the sun. You can also use it to prevent sun damage before it happens. Some Vitamin E enthusiasts claim that adding some Vitamin E oil to sunscreen will help increase the sunscreen's effectiveness.

However you use it, or whatever you use it for, Vitamin E is a great treat for your skin!

Aromatherapy: What it Means to You

According to the National Association of Holistic Aromatherapy, Aromatherapy can be defined as the art and science of utilizing naturally extracted aromatic essences from plants to balance, harmonize and promote the health of body, mind and spirit. It is an art and science which seeks to explore the physiological, psychological and spiritual realm of the individual's response to aromatic extracts as well as to observe and enhance the individual's innate healing process.

Aromatherapy can be used as a daily practice, such as spraying lavender on your pillow to assist in falling asleep or smelling peppermint to ease a headache. The application of aromatherapy through essential oils can be administered in a variety of ways, including room sprays, candles, soaps or bath salts. Below are a few of the most popular essential oils and their purposes:

• Geranium: Helps to balance hormones in women, good for balancing the skin. Can be both relaxing and uplifting, as well as antidepressant.
• Lemon: Very uplifting, yet relaxing. Helpful in treating wounds, infections, and house cleaning and deodorizing.
• Ylang Ylang: Helps one to relax, and can reduce muscle tension. Good antidepressant
• Eucalyptus: Helpful in treating respiratory problems, such as coughs, colds, and asthma. Also helps to boost the immune system, and relieve muscle tension.
• Clary Sage: Natural pain killer, helpful s in treating muscular aches and pains. Very relaxing, and can help with insomnia. Also very helpful in balancing hormones.

When using Essential Oils it is paramount to use proper procedures because most need to be diluted properly with carrier oils - please visit the NAHA website for more information on using aromatherapy and Essential Oils correctly.

Happy smelling!

Suggestions Needed and Appreciated!

As AnnaKate Soaps grows and begins to transform as a company, we are so thankful to have customers, friends and colleagues that are so supportive and willing to share advice and information. We appreciate your honesty regarding our products and hope you will continue to share your opinions in order to help make us a better company. After all, our main purpose is to provide you with soaps and other products that fit your needs.

AnnaKate soaps is gearing up for a busy summer with a booth at the Fargo Street Fair, displaying our soaps in stores in the Fargo-Moorhead and lakes area stores and working on expanding our product selection. We hope you will continue to provide suggestions for ways to improve our product selection, give you easier access to our products and become a better company for both our customers and the community. Our new summer line will be debuting before we know it and we still need your help in creating a well-rounded line with scents, colors and designs that appeal to you. Please continue to post suggestions on our facebook page, comment on our blog or email your suggestions to annakatesoaps@gmail.com - and don't forget to take our survey on how important natural products are to you.

Thanks again!

New Survey! How important are all natural products to you?

When we were in Denver there was a lot of discussion about all natural and organic products. Some people were extremely passionate about manufacturing and selling only products that could be legitimately labeled as "all natural" or "organic." That got us thinking about how much people care about all natural and organic products.

I can admit that while I support the main causes behind natural and organic materials, I'm not the person who shops in all natural stores and only uses all natural products. And to be honest, I'm not sure how many people in my area (Fargo, N.D. and the lakes area of Minnesota) are like that either.

So our new poll is for you to tell us just how important it is to have that all natural or organic label on your beauty care products. Feel free to leave a comment below and explain further or let us know if there's another point of view we missed in the selection of answers.

Thanks!

"We are the Change We Want to See in the World" - Ghandi

Many of the presenters at the Handcrafted Soapmakers Guild Convention advocated the importance of overcoming objections, turning failures into opportunities and the power of positive thinking. I was truly inspired to approach life from a different direction and have since been trying to look at all aspects of my life from a more positive angle. Our local chamber of commerce listed the following positive attitude starters to help us improve our attitude and thinking:

• Do your best every day and let go of the rest
  
• A setback is not a disaster, it is a setup for a comeback


• Kindness is never wasted, show someone you care


• You cannot control other people's behavior, but you can determine your response


• Strive each day to do one think to foster positivity in your life

I hope you are able to implement a few of these in your daily lives and experience the power positive thinking can have on your life.

Shaping the Future of AnnaKate Soaps

The Handcrafted Soapmakers Guild Convention has been an unbelievable learning experience - opening our eyes to the entire world of handcrafted soaps, lotions, baths salts, scrubs...the possibilities are endless. After attending the liquid soap making seminar yesterday, I think it's safe to say AnnaKate Soaps will be adding liquid soaps to their product line soon. In addition to liquid soaps, watch for more product line additions, including bath salts, scrubs, bath fizzies and more.

We have been so fortunate to be able to attend this convention and have met many other soapmakers from around the country who have been more than willing to share their stories, experiences and offer suggestions to help AnnaKate Soaps reach it's full potential. The Handcrafted Soapmakers Guild Convention has definitely played a major role in shaping the future of AnnaKate Soaps, helping us to define our goals and plan for the future. Expect great things from AnnaKate Soaps, we do!

Marketing, Branding, Telling a Story

Today we really concentrated on marketing our business and telling our story. Kayla Fiorvanti from Essential Wholesale discussed how every business has a story and your branding and marketing should tell consumers that story. It should help them connect with you and your business. You can tell your story in many different ways like packaging, slogans, logos, brand names, and social media outlets like Facebook, Twitter and blogs (like this one!). The key is to make your story short and condensed so it will reach customers.

She also talked about the stages of a business and how this cycle often mirrors the cycle of life. Each business goes through the stages of birth, infancy, childhood, teen, adulthood, midlife crisis (possible), and legacy. She said that so many mistakes are made in the infancy stage, which is a little scary to think about since AnnaKate Soaps is in that stage now. Mistakes are a natural and important part of the growth process -- in both life and business. We look forward to growing AnnaKate Soaps, even if that means it's uncomfortable and we stumble along the way. If we can learn from our mistakes, we'll be better in the end!

Read more about Kayla and the Essential Wholesale team at their Web site, www.essentialwholesale.com.