Indie Beauty Review: Haus of Gloi

It's been a while, but I've still been buying indie cosmetics and beauty products for years and always will. 

I've been a customer of Britton's since probably 2008. That's almost ten years! Ah!
Haus of Gloi has grown a lot since I started ordering from them and they offer a lot more than just soap and scrubs!

A little about Haus of Gloi:
From their website:
"Handmade from Scratch."
"Small Batches."
"Vegan Friendly."
"Unique."
"Beautiful high quality products."
"Locally sourced whenever possible."
"Welcome to the Haus! We are a small vegan business owned and operated by two individuals dedicated to bringing you the highest quality handmade bath & beauty goods and perfumes. All of our products are made in small batches to ensure quality and are made from scratch, never from a base. Our fragrances are intriguing blends inspired by seasonal tides and whatever else might catch our fancy."
Britton has worked very hard for a long time to make her business successful while also keeping her batches small, locally sourced, and vegan. I admire all the work she has put into her products, and that she has kept at it for so long. Truly admirable! 

I've bought custom perfume, lip balm, soft bubbling scrubs (my absolute favorite), pumpkin butters, emollient scrubs, bath bombs (my second favorite item they make) and I'm sure I've bought other things, too.
I'm here today to cover a few of their Yule offerings, and one in their general catalog.

Soft bubbling scrubs are my favorite thing they make and it used to be (when I had more money) that they were ALWAYS in my shower. Well, I made a Christmas purchase and I am so happy!
The scrubs are light, fabulous at sloughing of dead skin and then giving back moisture to your skin, while leaving a lovely light scent that lasts at least a few hours.
I bought 6 ounce jars of Rosy Cheeked (Yule) and Honeysuckle Lemon Curd (general), and a small 2 ounce jar of Three Treasures (Yule). 

Rosy Cheeked is a little like my old favorite scent which was called Zazz (a lovely semi sweet citrus scent). This new one is "pink grapefruit, fir needles, juniper berries, rosemary, a sprig of parsley and bright winter lilies." It sounds like a gin cocktail!! I love it already.
I showered with it and oh man, fir! I love this masculine note with all these other lovely ones. I may need to see if it is still in stock because I love this scent. 

Top: Honeysuckle Lemon Curd, Bottom Left: Three Treasures, Right: Rosy Cheeked

These scrubs rinse clean, also and are about the consistency of refrigerated cookie dough. (Specific!)
Three Treasures is described as "sacred gifts of frankincense, myrrh and gold. Smouldering with warmth and brightened with a touch of mandarin rind." I am so not usually about frankincense and myrrh, but this is a great combination. A little sweet, nice and warm, and sparkly! Smells like Tenzing Momo in the Pike Place Market in Seattle. Wonderful memories, though this might get gifted since I often get headaches with these notes. Oh well!
Honeysuckle Lemon Curd is sweet, floral and very springy. Described as "Rich and lemony with a touch of Honeysuckle."

I bought the soap and the scrub, soap for my Mother in Law and scrub for me. She loves the soap!
On first sniff, it is very lemony and sweet with only a hint of Honeysuckle. This scrub has a much lighter sillage than the first two. It's nice and light, not overly floral. I'll keep this one for myself!
Another thing I picked up from the Haus was a lipbalm! Peppermint Vanilla. I was emailed by Matt that it was out of stock, I told them my sub, and waited... And waited... When my package showed up, it had the right one in it! I'm so glad I am patient because I love this scent/flavor. Not overly mint or sweet. Feels soft on the lips. It is coconut oil based, with Shea butter, too, so it feels really nice!

Go check out their sale section, I certainly am!! 

http://www.hausofgloi.com/

(I purchased all items with my own money and was not compensated in any way for posting this!)

Unicorns Everywhere!

Unicorns!!! Hooray!

 Something took hold of me last weekend, and I had to make these adorable little unicorns. I mean fierce. Totally fierce unicorns. (They get kinda huffy if you call them adorable.) 

I draw them onto paper, glue the paper down to clean metal, cut them out with my saw. 

Like this: 

Tangent: My amazing friend Dana, proprietress of Urban Utopia Photography, is super fun, wonderful to get along with, and just all around fun. I had hired her for my wedding photography in September 2014 and also boudoir photos last year for Valentine's Day. Dana provides the most comforting, beautiful and relaxed environment for these shoots and is an absolute pleasure to work with. 

Oh look, we're adorable, and drink coffee!
One of our engagement photos.
 (C) Urban Utopia Photography

 Unicorns, woman!

 Right, unicorns!! These are sterling silver, except the pinback which it nickle. The clutch is stainless steel, and pulls open to release the nickle pinstem. It's about a half inch long, and will likely snag your nice silk, so try something with a heavy weft, denim or something you know you won't be taking it off of any time soon.

The "C(star)B" is my maker's mark (for now), the 16 refers to the year it was made, and .925 is the hallmark noting that it is indeed sterling silver, which must be at least 92.5% fine silver, with the remaining amount consisting of copper. Poor alloys will include other metals like tin, zinc or nickle, but mine come from recycled, certified alloyed in the USA sources, so they do NOT contain any of those nasty metals that most people are allergic to (mainly nickle).

I've applied a patina using liver of sulphur gel and used steel wool to remove it selectively. These are $86 each, please ask me about getting a pair of earrings made! These make great post earrings, too. 

Find me over on Instagram @handcraftedcaro for more pictures of different unicorn designs (plus gratuitous selfies)! I'm going to try to do photos this weekend. Hubby and I are babysitting the little sister this week, so no studio time this weekend! 

Don't forget that the entire WISHES section of the Etsy shop is 30% off for a limited time until February 6th! 

Enjoy!! <3 br="" nbsp="">

Wishes to Fulfill My Wishes

Hey there... Grab a cup of tea, maybe a cookie, or toast with that jam you made this summer... I have a little story to share with you.

I created the Wishes series after I found this adorable stamp, had to have it, and barely could afford it at the time. I bought it anyway. I reminded me of the wishes I would make as a kid. "I want a new puppy!" or "I wish I was better at running the mile!" Both things didn't happen, but I'm a believer in "Hope" as a tactic to motivate you to get done what must be done! Hope isn't always helpful, or useful.

Hope can hurt if you rely on it as your only source of anything. If you are only hoping you'll make better choices tomorrow, but not changing anything about your circumstances, then you're not really going after your dreams.

Sterling Silver Hand Stamped Dandelion Wishes Earrings on Kidney Wires
https://www.etsy.com/listing/158161284

I'm talking about getting to bed earlier, so you can take a leisurely walk with your dog, instead of staying up late watching Making a Murderer on Netflix. Or arranging your outfits the night before instead of rushing around in the morning, all in an effort to give you more time during your day to do better.

My wish is to go to grad school, make a lot of really awesome art, and then become a jewelry teacher. I'm currently finishing up and sending out my materials for grad school applications to three schools all across the country. Each is different and special in their own way. Each can offer teaching assistantships, which are necessary to grow my experience as a teacher.

Sterling Silver Hand Stamped Dandelion Necklace 18"
 https://www.etsy.com/listing/156420135

I'm trying to fund my Wishes, and I'm asking for your help.

It takes a village, they say, and my success is your success.

Handcut Sterling Silver Dahlia Necklace 18, 20, or 22 Inches
https://www.etsy.com/listing/97988806

I'm offering my Wishes line, which will include new pieces that I'm dreaming up right now (like a ring and bracelet), at 30% off, for a limited time only, from now until February 1, 2016 at 12 pm. 

Thank you for taking the time to read my story. It really means a lot to me. Any support, even if you can't afford to buy something, is very much appreciated.

xoxo

Carolyn