An awesome little tool.

Every candle owner should own a wick dipper.

After burning your candle to achieve a beautiful fragrance, why would you want
to have that over powered by the smell of smoke?
Blowing out a candle to extinguish its flame can leave a room smelling like
smoke and possibly splatter melted wax on nearby surfaces. Using a wick dipper will eliminate that smoke and any splatter issues.

Simply use the hooked end of the wick dipper to push the burning wick into the
melted wax pool to extinguish the flame. Use the hook to retrieve the wick out
of the melted wax and recenter your wick. Now your wick is primed with wax as it
was when it was new. The wax coating makes the wick less brittle and will make
it easier to light. A wick that is too long or has mushroomed may spark and
sputter. Always trim the wick to ¼ inch length and remove any "mushrooming" that may have occurred.
If you notice that the wick is getting close to the side of the jar, extinguish
the candle and use the wick dipper to push the wick back to the center of the
glass. A wick burning too close to the side of the glass can cause the glass jar
to crack. Be sure to extinguish the candle and move the wick to the center of
the jar before that happens. This method of extinguishing your candle eliminates
wick smoldering and smoking, keeping your house free of smoky residue and odors.

This amazing little tool will extend the life and quality of your candle wick.
Wick dippers are for container and pillar candles only. Not for use on tapered
candles. Always follow the safety instructions on the bottom of your candle, read prior to lighting your candle.

You can purchase one here: http://www.elizagrason.com/accessories.html

Another reason to LOVE Wisconsin

I love Wisconsin for many reasons, one of them is that there is a Jelly Belly factory not too far from my house. We finally got to go and take the tour last week. I sampled many flavors but the Pomegranate and Raspberry top my list!

JellyBelly.com

Young entrepreneurs!

So far this summer, I haven't heard "I'm bored" one time.

Haley and Mason along with a few neighborhood friends decided to get creative and set up a Lemonade stand. They have all worked really hard, making signs, setting up the table and making the lemonade. At one point , they had three cars lined up waiting!
Haley has also included her "Poochie Paws" dog treats for sale. She makes and packages everything on her own. She is in the process of setting up her Etsy store that should be ready to go the first part of July.

After seeing how proud they are, I vow never to pass by a lemonade stand without purchasing/donating again!

Spring is here!

Now is the perfect time to update your look and your makeup bag with new Spring colors.

Sari of Sarimotley cosmetics is offering a generous 10% discount on all new purchases. As I mentioned in my last post, Sari offers a natural skincare line, mineral makeup and all of the tools you need for a flawless look. Sari can help you with color selection and application tips too.

Be sure to use coupon code newdsc when ordering.

What is "Natural"?

Following is an article written by my good friend Sari Motley of sarimotley cosmetics. This article was posted on her blog Pretty Amazing Skin .

Sari is a makeup artist in Houston, TX with many years of experience. Her online store offers a fabulous "natural" skin care line as well as mineral makeup, makeup brushes and some pretty amazing soy candles and bath treats (I just had to mention those).

Sari also offers special event makeup application, bridal makeup and makeup lessons as well as skin care coaching.

If you are in the Houston area, give her a call and make an appointment to visit her showroom. Sari is generous with her knowledge and is a very talented makeup artist.

"What is natural?

The idea of “natural” skincare has become increasingly popular. Some people are choosing natural products because they have a growing concern about ingredients they are putting on their skin. Or they like the way it feels. And others because, well, because it’s becoming increasingly popular.

A product may be touted as “natural”, yet still contain ingredients that are artificial, synthetic and non-renewable (meaning it cannot be re-made, re-grown or regenerated compared to its consumption). When you are choosing natural skincare, no matter what your reason, choose wisely. Here are a few tips that might help with your natural skincare selection.

• Look at the ingredient listing. The product should contain many natural ingredients.
• Do not be swayed by technical-sounding names. While they may be hard to pronounce, the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) requires product labels to contain scientific names. If you see Boswellia carterii in your moisturizer… eeek? No, this is the botanical name for frankincense, whose essential oil is helpful in rejuvenating the skin. So do not shy away from odd sounding names before you do your homework.
• Know your skincare company and what they believe. This may not be easy when you pop in to the supermarket or drugstore to pick up a moisturizer. But many companies have public knowledge available online.

Sarimotley cosmetics always welcomes your questions about ingredients, formulations, etc. For inquires send an email to sari@sarimotley.com.

Be wise and be well. Sari"

Thank you Cindy!

My friend Cindy over at Art Spectrum (artspectrum.blogspot.com) created a new banner for my Etsy store (ElizaG.Etsy.com).

I love it...thank you Cindy!

Cindy is an incredible artist and has many of her original pieces listed in her Etsy store (cinhesse.etsy.com). This is a great way to support a local artist if you live in Central Florida.

For those of you that do live in the Central Florida area, stay tuned she and her husband, Chef Christopher (symmetry-sauces.blogspot.com) will be opening a bagel shop in Lake Mary in the near future.

This is one very talented family!

Indie Music Love

This is Amy Dalley's new album. Amy is the niece of one of my best friends. I love her music and hope you will too.

To learn more about Amy and her music, visit the link on the right.

It's Time, Amy's first full-length CD is now available.