Bittersweet and the little soap company

That smells good!

Some of our home-keeping essentials are getting label makeovers. The laundry powder for example, a few minor nips & tucks here and there.

You may remember these vintage style labels that once appeared on our laundry powders.

Then this one.

This is the new label.

Tweak it!

Having a full line of lavender essential home-keeping products makes my heart sing.

Now the linen tea towels trimmed in soft floral add to the collection.

 
You may remember, the tea towels are made from salvaged vintage table cloths.

I've got to hop over to the web site to list the tea towels.

More soft blue coming later on the blog.

Enjoy caring and sharing days.

Warmly,

Jill 00 (two hugs are better than none)

Pretty Tea Towels

 More shades of that soft muted blue flowing through the shop. An obvious object of fancy considering my last post. The top portion of the utilitarian item is created using vintage linen tablecloths. I think of the linen cloths as diamonds in the rough. They're always included on my look-ie list when I'm out roaming the vintage markets.  

I can remember as a little girl,  my great aunt Enids dining room table dressed in linen tablecloths just like the one referenced above. The starched white article took on a pristine appearance while covering the large walnut table.

   Those are the thoughts I associate with the re-purposed textile and those feelings surround me as I cut, hem and sew the cloth into tea towels.

The apothecary cabinets are filling with fresh Bittersweets. I spy with my little eye ONE jar of Marula Smoothie in this picture. Not anymore, I nabbed it for myself! No worries, I've since made more.

Projects floating and soap manufacturing kicking again this week and next.

Hoping to get tea towels listed on the web site this week, sometime. They will be listed in our home keeping department of our site.

Have you been watching Downton Abbey? The series offers outstanding acting and I'm enchanted with the actors and actresses wardrobe. Aren't you? I see an award or two, three coming. Oh and the buzz about Shirley! Have you heard that? She will surely (no pun intended) put an entire different twist on the show, I'm sure.

The superbowl kind of comes and goes around  here. However, Lennis watches the game. I break from Downton Abbey for hafltime show and it's fun to pick a team you want to win. Both Lennis and I were rooting for the Giants!

Madonnas performance was fantastic! Don't you think? Not too much to say about Miss show off. Can't see any reason for that! What the heck?

Enjoy caring and sharing days.

Warmly,

Jill 00 (two hugs are better than one) 

 

 

Whipped Up!

I'd love to start this Friday's post with a BIG THANK YOU to the faraway friends that shop Bittersweet. My inspiration and passion to produce natural skin care products comes from YOU!

 
Soap Batons

Cutting and packaging the soap batons and slicing up some fresh new soap!

I'm formulating a new skin care moisturizer, Marula Smoothie and needing to begin work on labels and packaging. Marula Smoothie will be available in a 4 ounce size. Marula is quite unique and offers wonderful skin care benefits. It's high in vitamin c and an antioxidant. Not to mention it's intoxicating buttery pecan like fragrance is divine! Have I got you going? Good!

 
I've also added a new dry oil scent, champ des fleurs.

 
If you're looking for a yummy fall scented soap look no further!

Vanilla Musk fragrance is toasty and warm and exotic.

Enjoy caring and sharing days.

Warmly,

Jill 00 (two hugs are better than one)

toile de jute

 
A few years ago Bittersweet began creating a variety of handmade goods with burlap. Soap bags and  market bags seemed to be the perfect fit for the textured cloth. Soon after I began mixing linens and cotton calico's with the burlap.  

This new look appealed to me in many ways. The linen and cotton fabric seemed to compliment the burlap and add softness.

 
 
Working on new Fall Bittersweets. Can you guess which fabric I've chose?

Enjoy caring and sharing summer days.

Warmly,

Jill 00 (two hugs are better than one)

Cream Puffs for Father's Day, oops, what about the custard!

 
Attention all bakery chicks and cream puff girls!

Cream Puffs are one of my favorite deserts to make. They're actually quite simple to put together and take a minimal amount of time to whip up.

Oh I know, I know, you've heard the cream puff talk about how finicky and hard they are to make. Simply not true and how could you not at least make them one time so you could finally put an end to this intimidating puff talk!

There is however a secret to making plump, light and fluffy cream puffs and I'm willing to share darlings!

Bread Flour

CREAM PUFFS
Cream Puff  and Custard Recipe.

Ingredients for Cream puff  shells

• 1 cup water
   
• 1 cup bread flour
  

• 1/2 cup butter
  

• 4 eggs
  

 

Cream Puffs Instructions

Place butter and water in saucepan and bring to a quick boil. As soon as the mixture comes to a boil, remove pan to cool a little, add the sifted bread flour all at once and with a spoon stir or wire whip vigorouslyfor 2 or 3 minutes until mixture leaves sides of pan. Continue to let it cool a little more and then add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition, until the dough is smooth and glossy. Drop mixture by tablespoons, 3 inches apart, on a greased cookie sheet. Bake in hot oven 425-F for 10 minutes, then at 375-F for about 25 minutes. Cream Puffs should be puffed high and light golden-brown. Remove baking pan from oven and place it somewhere to cool. Slice each one in half and spread thick with cooled filling, sandwich like. 

CREAM PUFF CUSTARD FILLING

Cream Puffs filling Ingredients

• 2 cups milk
  

• 3/4 cup sugar
  

• 3 tablespoons flour
  

• 1 tablespoon corn starch
  

• 1 teaspoon vanilla
  

• 3 egg yolks
  

Cream Puff Instructions

Warm milk, add sugar which has been mixed with the flour and cornstarch, beat egg yolks and add to the milk and cook until it coats the spoon. Cool and beat occasionally to prevent crusting. Stir in vanilla well.

 

Pile some cold custard mixture on bottom half of cream puff shell, then gently place other pastry shell half on top, sprinkle with confectionary sugar.

I'm making cream puffs filled with custard for Father's Day.

Enjoy caring and sharing summer day.

Warmly,

Jill 00 (two hugs are better than one)

Snowiness and a home keeping recipe to share...

 
This is what is looks like in my neighborhood. Snow and lots of it! You know how I feel about snow, right?

The boys are home and I'll be completing several on going projects, soap cutting needed, and lots of relaxing for them. That's the way it usually is during snow days around here. Patrick has requested brownies. I'm looking outside at the street seeing the snow plow left a narrow band of packed snow for sledding. It's pretty cold , but my body is telling me it might be good to get some exercise in. Isn't it cool how your body tells you those things?

Oh yeah, the home keeping recipe. The secret one! 

I've been keeping an eye on the mixture for almost two weeks now and I believe this prototype recipe will work just fine. I've been using it too and absolutely love it! I ordered spray bottles but made a mistake in ordering trigger sprays and those just won't work. A find mist is needed for this product. Have I got your curiosity up? GOOD!

I also believe this would make a nice Valentine gift along with a pair of pretty vintage pillow cases or tea towels.  

This is a great winter project. Follow the directions completely.

 
Enjoy caring and sharing winter days.

Happily,

Jill 00

 

Wrapping & Creating

 
The Christmas gifts have been wrapped simple with white paper and jute bows. Will clip a few branches of white pine from the backyard trees.

I spend a great amount of time wrapping bars of soap, especially this time of year. Needless to say, I love a pretty decked out present, but not fond of the process getting there.

Trying to focus on little caring and sharing moments during this time of year.

Like preparing an extemporaneous extra dinner plate of food and delivering it to my elderly friend Evalyn.

I made pulled pork burritos. Cooked the pork all day in a dutch oven on the stove, lots of herbs and spices, lots! Then cut pork into small pieces, added rice, fresh tomatoes, black beans and rolled up in a tortilla. Top with sour cream, yummy! Trying to duplicate Chipotle burritos, cause I love them.

There are a couple of friends of Bittersweet Cottage Design I would like to introduce you to.

Just completed a blog makeover for the talented Tara. I love her new banner! I incorporated photos of her work into the banner and color matched the background.

Then I created a new logo for Kellys new bistro, "The Peacock."

 
I absolutely love this vintage photo, perfect for Kelly. Kelly will have a boutique next to her bistro, Farmstead. Still working on this prototype, but here's a preview.

 
So as you can see, busy around here creating, wrapping, cooking, watching holiday movies in between and enjoying the little caring and sharing moments set aside special.

Enjoy caring and sharing holidays.

Happily,

Jill 00

Two hugs are better than one

 

 

Headache Stick

A fresh batch of headache sticks hot off the assembly line

You can order on web site, $4.95 each.

 
Enjoy caring and sharing holidays.

Happily,

Jill 00

Two hugs are better than one

Design by mood, or is it mood by design?

I'm really not sure which the first statement or the latter because that's how I feel when I begin a graphic design project.

Thank you for the banner love Carla.

Quite often when  I sit down to create something for a client I never know what I'll come up with. There are usually no ideas or visions and I always begin with a blank canvas.

 

I can spend an incredible amount of time on something as simple as choosing font or a particular color for a project and sometimes I just can't seem to connect and feel that yin and yang but eventually, big bang... it happens....

I pull together this and that and over and under and back and forth and, yes, then when I lest expect it and I'm not trying to hard, it comes and I say, that's it!

I'm on this pink and red kick during the holidays.

 
My friend Julie's holiday postcards. Not the normal look I usually give her, but flashy and bold hopefully to stand out to her customers.

Julie requested a pink, red and black postcard.

So you see that's how it sometimes begins....

In the weeks to come I'll be putting together a sheet of printable christmas tags, some pink, some red, some, well I don't know yet!

I'll keep you posted on that. I would suggest printing them on white card stock. If you don't want to print them you can make one copy and then have more copies made.

Enjoy caring and sharing holidays.

Happily,

Jill 00

Two hugs are better than one holiday hug.

 

 

 

Saturday Studio and Fresh Peppermint Lip Balm

 

I finally made a fresh batch of Peppermint Lip Balm. It's packed with peppermint essential oil! There is a plan to have it listed on the web site soon, and I promise will do, probably first of next week!

 
Enjoy caring and sharing holidays.

Happily,

Jill 00

Two hugs are better than one