Essential U Blog

Unveiling New Essential U Site!

In January of 2011 I was contently climbing my own personal mountain face with goals, plans and aspirations.  A few weeks into the year life threw me off balance.  By February, I found myself flailing in the wind.  When my mother died I felt as if the ground I had been climbing was disintegrating in my fingertips.  Thankfully, I was tied into faith, family, a business community and friends.  They acted as an immediate response search and rescue crew and to this day continue to support me. 

Out of adversity one can often find blessings.  Now I’ve always been impressed with the caliber of people we have been blessed to work with at Essential Wholesale over the years.  We truly have the most amazing team.  But in January and February of 2011 the Essential Wholesale team stepped up to the plate and carried Essential U blog when I was preoccupied caring for my mother.  Their diligence and hard work was astounding and you the reader greatly benefited.

What came out of that time was the uncorking of a new era for the Essential U blog, as my guest bloggers brought such a vast array of talent, experience and education to our readers that we couldn’t go back to the way things were without losing momentum.

Today we are unveiling the new and improved Essential U blog, which features the team of educators at Essential Wholesale.  In business moving forward is crucial and I believe that had we taken one more step, without continuing to tap into the talents of our team, it would have been a move backwards.  And so in June we started the groundwork for what you see before you today – the new, improved and updated Essential U blog platform. 

Please welcome our team of educators: Alex Badcock, Rick Hume, Laura Badcock, Steven Borden, Kathy Steinbock and of course, me.  You will find many guest posts and a growing team of educators as we expand our Essential U(niveristy) to bring you the most up to date educational material in the fields of business, aromatherapy, cosmetics, legislation, purchasing, skin care, spa and so much more. 

You will find our new blog platform easy to navigate and to search for topics.  Thank you to our creative Director Alex Badcock who supervised the project and everyone who put the entire summer into building this new and exciting Essential U blogsite. 

Now tell us what you think of our new site!

Indie Beauty Business :: Leading the Way

It has been said that word of mouth advertising is one of the best and most elusive form of advertising. Word of mouth advertising requires that the person spreading highly about a company put their own reputation on the line every time they make a recommendation.  There is no other business leader that I would more gladly put my reputation on the line for than Donna Maria Coles Johnson of the Indie Beauty Network.   

       

Through years of experience working with Donna Maria, I know that each and every person I recommend to her will be treated with honesty and transparency.  She will freely share her vast collection of valuable tools, ever growing knowledge base, and wealth of resources to help them build their businesses.  

Donna Maria was a complete stranger to me when she showed up to speak at an Essential Wholesale customer appreciation event many years ago.  I made all the products back then, and was very much behind the scene at Essential Wholesale.  Dennis and Donna Maria formed a business relationship that was filled with laughter, knowledge exchange, and respect.  

       

Over the years, Donna Maria has become one of my most trusted friends, mentors, cohorts in fun (like our Soaprah skit where we played first-time soapers -- including ear phones to protect our ears from lye fumes), legislation, and business.  I know I can depend on Donna Maria for accurate information, to speak the truth to me if I need redirecting, and she will be my cheerleader when I need it.  What is awesome is that I know she will do the same for all of her IBN members.

Let Us Never Forget

The ringing phone pierced my dreams and pulled me out of a deep sleep.  Dennis and I had worked late through the night and clear into the morning hours.  My exhausted body screamed in rebellion as I clumsily reached to silence the ringing.  Caiden was only 3 months old so I had only slept in 2 hour increments.  I wondered who could be calling knowing our chaotic schedule. 

            

My question was quickly answered when mother’s tense voice came through the phone.  “Kayla, I have good news and terrible news,” she said.  I tried to wrap my mind around the possibilities of both bits of news but the weariness fogged my brain so I allowed the quiet to beat out the seconds as I waited for the news.  “Your bother and Yihung just had the baby and everything is fine.”  With the good news out of the way I braced myself for the bad news.  “Go turn on your T.V., “ she said. 

Legislation in New York

Donna Maria of Indie Beauty Network, Lela Barker of Bella Lucce and Lisa Rodgers of Personal Care Truth recently alerted me to Assembly Bill A05059 The Safe Cosmetics Act of 2011 in New York.  I haven't broken down all the details yet, but this looks like the work of Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.  The language in this law is very close to what we have seen in Colorado, Massachusetts, California and Congress.  

      

The scary thing is that I found lots of pending legislation in New York that in one way or another may impact our industry.  

Here is everything I found in New York:

A.B.5059: The Safe Cosmetics Act 2011 creates an "authoritive body" to identify chemicals that can cause cancer or reproductive toxicity.  Requires that any manufacturer of a cosmetic provide a complete list of the cosmetic products they sell in the state of New York that contains any ingredient that is a chemical idenified as cancer causing or toxic to reproductive system to the Department of Health by January 1, 2012.  

S.B.525: this bill establishes that no itinerant vendor, except for a manufacturer, an authorized manufacturer's representative, or an authorized distributor, shall offer for sale baby food, non-prescription drugs, cosmetics, or batteries.

Weekly 25% Discount Coupon Codes for Kitchen Chemistry

This week on Kitchen Chemistry, Kayla makes a DIY Mint Chocolate Whipped Butter! You can watch the video here. 

       

Use coupon code: BACKTOSCHOOL25 to get 25% off Clearance! 9/7 - 9/13

Go to our CLEARANCE now!

Kitchen Chemistry :: DIY Mint Chocolate Whipped Butter

Use coupon code: BACKTOSCHOOL25 to get 25% off Clearance! 9/7 - 9/13

Go to our CLEARANCE now!

Interview Voluntary Cosmetic Registration Program (VCRP) and Safe Cosmetics

Recently Lisa Rodgers, co-founder of Personal Care Truth had the opportunity to interview Don Havery with the FDA Office of Cosmetics and Colors in regards to the Voluntary Cosmetic Registration Program {VCRP}. I asked permission to guest post her interview here on Essential U. 

       

Here is what Don had to say:

What is your role in regards to the VCRP?
I am the administrator of the Voluntary Cosmetic Registration Program (VCRP) program. I am responsible for daily operation, answering questions, troubleshooting the program when issues come up, and making changes to the program that improve its operation.

What is the VCRP?
The VCRP is an FDA program that collects information on cosmetic manufacturing establishments (facilities) and cosmetic products and their ingredients that are in commercial distribution in the U.S. The program has been in operation since 1973. In 2005 the program was modified to allow submission of information electronically over the internet which has made participation in the VCRP much easier.

Speak Out About Massachusetts HO2361

Massachusetts public hearing with the Joint Committee on Public Health on HO2361 is scheduled for September 13, 2011 at the Massachusetts State House, located at 24 Beacon St., Boston, Massachusetts, 02108.  

     

You can find the schedule for two cosmetics bills schedule in Massachusetts clicking here – you will find one listed as number 14 and the other as number 19 on the agenda .

If you are able, we would encourage you to get to Boston for this hearing to testify or go in numbers as a show of opposition.  We have passed this information on to several of the trade groups who are planning to be there as well.  Please don’t let this opportunity to stand up for your business go by. You can find how to get there by clicking here.  

The hearing begins at 10:00 a.m. and if you want to participate you must sign up at the beginning of the hearing to testify. You do not have to register in advance. Prepare for about 3 minutes or less of remarks and be prepared to answer lawmakers questions. If you cannot appear to testify in person, you can submit a letter with your position and send it to the chairs of this committee. (See list below)

You can also request meetings in advance of the hearing with the sponsor and/or any member of the committee.

Lovely, Lovely Hydrosols by Kathy Steinbock

In my last post, I wrote up a very short and sweet description of Essential Oil Steam Distillation.  Recall that the essential oil contained in the plant is actually absorbed into steam, and once in the condenser, the steam/oil is cooled and thus reconstituted as liquid to be collected in the essencier.  The oil is lighter and floats on top of the water for easy extraction, thus leaving the wonderful 'hydrosol' or 'distillate' water.

       

This brings us to today’s subject, hydrosols.  Hydrosols are by-products of the distillation process; they’re the pure 'distillate' water that remains.  They are relatively clear with the consistency of water and an aroma similar to — but not exact to — the essential oil.  Hydrosols contain very small amounts of the essential oil, as well as soluble components of the plant material, and they offer an opportunity to use a well-diluted potency of a plant's essential oils.

We offer several hydrosols — or distillates, as we refer to them here at Essential Wholesale — and we sell sample sizes of all of them.  We recommend that you purchase samples to be sure that the scent is agreeable to you.Here are some of the many uses for our distillates:

    Add to your bath water for a lovely bath treatment

    Use in your formula for the water phase in soaps, lotions and crèmes

Since many essential oils are contraindicated for cats and small dogs, distillates are gentle enough to be used on or near them as an ear wash, or to soothe hot spots

    Wonderful as a room spray or added to your humidifier

    Use as a compress for wounds, bruises or other injuries

    Great to spray on your tired and sweaty feet

    Use distillates to wash your yoga mat

    Use as a mist or toner after cleansing, or to cool skin on a hot day

Ahhh, lovely, lovely hydrosols.  Enjoy!

Kitchen Chemistry :: DIY Herbed Guest Soap

Use coupon code: GUESTSOAP10 to get 10% off the following products! 8/31 - 9/6

Ingredients:

Basic Soap Base Kit (Melt & Pour)

Crystal Clear Soap Base Kit (Melt & Pour)

White Soap Base Kit (Melt & Pour)

High Sudz Soap Base Kit (Melt & Pour)

Your choice of herbs and spices.