Versatile Blogger Award

I was checking my emails on Thursday, April 21, 2011 and was SO surprised. The Versatile Blogger Award is my very first award and I am so grateful for this award!!

Thank you Rachel from Our Creative Hands Blog and Lisa from My Colorful Treasures Web Design Blog for presenting me with this award,
I appreciate it very much. If you haven't stopped by to visit Our Creative Hands blog and
Website you really need to do so.... Rachael is such a talented lady and very generous with her
time and friendship. Her wooden products look SO cute and let me tell you her Raggedy Ann
and Andy dolls are Absolutely Adorable!! Seriously, stop by and say HI and be sure to check out both Rachel's blog and website


The rules after excepting this award:
Thank the person who awarded you.
Divulge 7 things about yourself.
Award 15 discovered bloggers.
7 Things About Me:1. I have the sweetest dog in the entire Universe. Sierra will be 6 in August and considers
herself to be my protector, best friend, best snuggler and the worlds best bunny hunter :o)

2. My Grand-daughter, Kyra is the smartest little girl in the world. She is also going to be 6 also
and has already learned to speak some Spanish. Imagine being bi-lingual at 6.

3. I have a wonderful "boy"friend who is very supportive of my business and helps me with
setting up and tearing down my craft shows.

4. I am from the beautiful state of Pennsylvania and live in Williamsport which is known for
being the Birthplace of Little League and every August we host the World Series.

5. I am a total Movie Hound, from oldies like Casablanca to the Harry Potter Series I love almost
any movie except for the Slash and Trash stuff like Saw, Halloween etc.

6. I am also an avid reader and have my Kindle DX that I take everywhere. It is nice to carry
100+ books on the plane and never have to worry about what to read and when I am waiting
in the doctors office I never have to read 6 month old magazines.

7. My life's dream is to be a professional tourist....I love vacationing and visiting new places.
Washington State is lovely and Mt Rainier and Mt. St. Helens are a must see! So is
Yellowstone National Park, Glacier, Zion and Bryce Parks. Take advantage of this beautiful
country of ours and see some totally amazing sites.

OK Now for the hard part 15 blogs to choose and honor.

And The Versatile Blogger Award goes to..................
1. My Colorful Treasures Web Designs
http://www.mycolorfultreasureswebdesign.blogspot.com

2. The Soap Bar
http://thesoapbar.blogspot.com

3. Little Lady Bug Design
www.littleladybugdesignsblog.com

4. The Sample Shoppe
http://www.thesampleshoppe.blogspot.com/

5. The Soap Queen
www.soap-queen.blogspot.com

Unfortunately, these are the only blogs I read and don't know any others yet.


Website: http://www.bryassoapbox.com
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Soaps, Handmade or Store Bought?

OK hears the deal on SOAP, everybody uses it, from liquid hand soap, body wash to bars. Most people purchase their soap from a grocery store, I used to before I got into making my own. Have you ever read the packaging on your soap? Yeah I know, I have to remember to read the packaging on everything else I purchase, do I really need to read the information on my box of soap?? The answer to that seemingly foolish question is YES! Most of what is in these products are chemicals meant to prolong the shelf life. Listed below are the ingredients in Dove Soap (bar)...

Dove Soap ingredients: Sodium Cocoyl Isethionate, Stearic Acid, sodium Tallowate, Water, sodium Isethonate, Coconut Acid, Sodium Stearate, Cocamidopropyl Bethane, Sodium Cocoate or sodium Palm Kernelate, sodium Chloride, Titanium Dioxide, Sweet Almond Oil, Rosewood Oil, Tetrasodium EDTA, Trisodium Etidronate, BHT, Cedarwood Oil and Rose Oil. It may also contain Disodium Cocamido Mea Suflosuccinate, Cetyl alcohol, and Tocopheryl Acetate.

Just a little more info: Sodium tallowate: basically lye, steam and Animal Fat.

Why would you use all of these chemicals on your body's largest organ??? Yes, that is what your skin is, the largest organ of your body. Your skin is put through enough during the course of a day, it filters all the yucky stuff in the air for a start and when you perspire (ladies do not sweat or so my Gram used to tell me) your skin gets rid of lots of internal toxins. So start using a quality handmade soap (of course I am going to say like I make here on Bryas Specialty Gift Baskets) here is a list of ingredients you will find in my Vegan (absolutely no animal products used), (No Parabens, sodium lauryl sulfate (or similar), no petroleum products or unnatural preservatives) hand made soaps...

Brya's Basket's Handmade Scented Soap ingredients: saponified (meaning heated to mix and bond together lye water and oils) vegetable oils (olive, rice bran, coconut, organic palm and shea butter) fragrance, color (turmeric, iron oxide and/or red clay as in our Cherry Almond soap), rosemary extract (acts as a preservative) and/or natural vitamin E.

Please check out my website for a wonderful selection of handmade, cold processed scented soaps or for those with sensitive skin try my Super Shea soap the only scent this soap has is of the oils used.

Support Independent Soap Makers and wean yourself away from the chemical based soaps


Website: http://www.bryassoapbox.com
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Craft Shows and Cancer Donation

Well my second craft show is over and the total for Bryas Specialty Gift Baskets donation to Breast Cancer Research is now over $56. Yes, I know in the long run, this is not a huge amount; however, the way I look at it every little bit helps. I have another show in 2 weeks so after that show I will be sending in the check.

We have to get behind the fight against this terrible disease. I bet if you asked every one you know they would all say that they either know someone who passed away from some form of Cancer or they know someone who is fighting/just diagnosed with some form of Cancer. The time to fight is NOW. My wish would be for people all over the country to raise money for cancer; lets get our kids involved also, need ideas? How about the traditional Car Wash, Bake Sale, a Pet Wash, a Lemonade Stand, or if you do crafts donate a portion of your sales.

With health care skyrocketing, we can no longer just talk about finding a cure. It is now becoming the responsibility of every American to figure out ways to raise money for the fight against Cancer. I have chosen breast cancer as my best friend has just been diagnosed Stage 2. I lost another friend 2 years ago and a co-workers 46 year old sister just passed away several months ago. I lost my Mom to Ovarian Cancer, so while I am raising money for the fight, I am also going to make sure that I do self breast exams, get annual mammograms and pap tests done. We also have to make sure we are pro-active in our fight also.

Please make sure that you do all of your tests and get all the necessary exams.


Website: http://www.bryassoapbox.com
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