First, let me say that I am NOT a financial adviser. In fact, far from it, this is one of the most difficult areas for me to navigate. I’m not dumb, don’t have issues with math, and I understand the basic principles involved. But the plain truth is I abhor, to the core of my […]
Retirement – Even a Good Thing Can Be Stressful
In my last post, I mentioned how surprised I was by my feelings around retirement. Right up to the day I walked out the door – and into my first week, I’ve been shocked at the level of anxiety and tears that seem to spring from nowhere when least expected. This was something I NEVER […]
Retirement – It’s a good thing. Right?
18 years ago I retired from the University of Oklahoma after 30 years of service. At the time, I was wrapping up a three-year role as the Assistant to the Editor of The Journal of Marketing. It was an awesome job, working with Dr. Robert Lusch. He was the perfect boss and, frankly, every leader […]
March Already???
Wow, wow, wow – 2017 is rip-roaring along! I have been getting a bit of soap ready, but now it is time to POUR IT ON and get some product ready! I have two shows coming up in April. I love cold process best of all, but I’m going to have to focus on hot […]
Life Gets Complicated
In August, my husband was diagnosed with a kidney tumor. Since many of these turn out to be cancerous, we had to prepare for the worst while praying to God and trusting Him for all that would follow. After undergoing a difficult surgery, the tumor turned out to be benign. There were complications in the […]
Natural?
One of the things I’ve been pondering for my business is how to communicate/educate potential customers about my concept of what makes good soap. For many years I have worked in, been mentally engaged with the world of science, computers, logic, and analysis. While growing up, I was obsessed with reading anything I could about medicine, […]
After the Show
This past Saturday I had a booth, along with my best bud Anna, at the Irving Main Street Festival in Irving, Texas. It was hot, hot, hot – and not in the “wow what sales” way. As someone who spent a number of years following my husband (C.J. Bradford – www.thought-full-art.com ) to art shows […]
Moroccan Mint Swirl
This was my first attempt at a true “swirl”. This soap is made from primarily unsaturated vegetable oils so it is very soft and took quite a long time to firm up enough to cut. I’m happy with the chosen colors. The chips I set aside to sample leave my skin wonderfully soft. The bubbles are small […]
A Soap Story
Before I was thirteen, soap wasn’t something you purchased in our house to smell nice or improve your complexion. It was all about getting off the dirt and lasting as long as possible. With a four or more people living in our house at any one time, and one bathroom, bars were shared by all. […]