Welcome to October 2023!

Welcome to October! We have a lot going on this month – well, a lot for us, anyway. It’s little Sasja’s 7th birthday today – holy cow, I still think of her as a puppy! – and Raymond’s birthday on the 11th. Tomorrow, on the 2nd, we’re going to see Iron Maiden in Vancouver, which will be most exciting. Then, of course, Hallowe’en on the 31st.

After months’ long drought, the rain has finally arrived, and our lawn has erupted into a cacophony of all kinds of different mushrooms – white, brown, tiny, ginormous – something I’ve never seen in 30 years of living in this house. It’s not just us: So many homes in our little neighbourhood and larger community as well as the new trail behind our house near the creek are enjoying this fungal explosion, so it’s safe to say there’s a fungus among us.

What happened last month in September 2023? 

Last month, $10 subscribers received my newest e-book, Bath time fun: Too many bubbles!, a 107 page e-book on how to make all kinds of super bubbly bubble baths!

If you’re a $10 subscriber this month, you’ll receive a download code for this month’s e-book near the end of the month. (Topic is yet to be decided.) These tend to range from 15,000 to 30,000 words, as much as I write on the site each month. It’s like getting a whole other month of bloggy goodness for a few dollars more!

Want to know what you get for $10 a month so you can subscribe or upgrade your subscription? Click here for more information! 

Click here if you were a $10 subscriber in the month of September 2023 to get the coupon. It will not work unless you were a $10 subscriber in that month, even if you can see the coupon code.

What else did we do in September? Oh right, we had a long discussion about why this program – Let’s talk about making and selling easy-to-make products while looking at this program called “Start a 6 Figure Beauty Business” and why I don’t suggest it! – was a terrible idea.

Fun fact: This post is the second longest post on the site at 6,612 words with my epic master Q&A on shampoo bars in first place with 7,339 words and in the top 3 lengthiest post on the site with this one – This recipe looks terrible! Analyzing “influencer” Caroline Calloway’s anhydrous face & body oil, “Snake Oil” from a formulating and regulatory perspective – in third place with over 5,800 words. Funnily enough, these are all free posts on the site.

And we learned Why you shouldn’t be using spatulas to mix emulsions with all kinds of examples, including LUMOROL K 5229 shower oils!  Short answer, it’s all about the enormous fails!

What can you expect in the month of October? 

Honestly, I’m not sure at the moment. I’m still working on the first part of the cold emulsifier series in which we’ll be using three different cold process emulsifiers to make at least three different lotions. The problem is that I need to finish all the posts for the series before I know what the shopping list will be, then I have to make sure the ingredients are available in a few different countries – thanks for those contributions! – then I can share it. I hope this’ll be done for the end of the month so we can start the series near the end of November.

I have more Q&A I’m answering, and I’m hoping to have some non-greasy, lighter feeling, emollient emulsion formulas coming shortly.

As we do every month on the site…

If you’re in need of supplies, $10 subscribers to the month have three discount coupons this month for Lotioncrafter, Windy Point Soap Making Supplies, and  Voyageur Soap & Candle. Thank you for this lovely gift out of the goodness of your hearts, lovely suppliers!

They’ll be updated as we receive them. If you don’t see them today, please check back tomorrow or the next day, they will be there eventually. It’s a long weekend in Canada with Saturday as a holiday that may be commemorated on Monday. 

If you’re a $3 subscriber or higher, click here to see the duplication request post!

Please note that requests for duplication are only considered if they’re posted in the duplication section as this is part of the $3 and up subscribers benefits and not if they’re emailed, direct messaged, or suggested in comments on social media. I cannot possibly re-create every single formula suggested as this blog would be nothing but duplicated products — and how boring would that be? – so I can only choose a few a year to create. I go into detail about my process for choosing formulas in both the duplication request post and in this post. Thank you for continuing to share them in that post. I have been getting loads of ideas from it the last few months, and there will be more to come soon, I hope. 

And don’t forget that you have access to the formula directory! The formula directory is constantly being updated to include even more formulas from around the blog, so if you’re looking for a formula, you’ll find it in the formula directory! (That word has lost all meaning now…)

Also check out the latest addition to the monthly posts – Ingredient substitution ideas post ($3 and up)! If you have an ingredient you’re trying to find or need help substituting for in a formula, please share your thoughts over there!

If you’re a $5 subscriber or higher, click here to see the month’s Q&A post! I check this post every day, and it’s my priority to answer your questions or help with your formulas – it’s the best way to get in touch with me and guarantee an answer!

Right now, this is the only way I can answer questions or analyze formulas because I have such limited time, so please make that your first stop if you have something you simply have to know! 😁

I’m sorry I’m a bit behind with the Q&A. As you can see, there’s been a lot going on. It’s my first priority again this month! 

And don’t forget about the monthly Super happy fun member-to-member post for October 2023!, which is available to all levels of subscriptions, so please feel free to share your thoughts on this post or others on the blog!

You can always find the links to these monthly posts in the pinned post section, which is found to the right of just about every page on the blog on desktop and most mobile, or the bottom of every page for the odd mobile device. Or do a search for “Q&A” or “duplication” to find them. I’m afraid I don’t have time to do searches for you if you write to me as I’m swamped and my arms and hands are still in minor spasm, so doing one of those two things will find you those posts very quickly. 

Thanks for joining us for the month of October! What are your plans this month? What products intrigue you? Which new ingredients are you eager to try? Did you get any wonderful packages with loads of supplies lately? Share your thoughts in the comments!