More Lip Butter Testimonials

Posted on August 8, 2010 by Amy Warden

Lip Butters

I’ve received a couple of testimonials recently about the Great Cakes Soapworks Lip Butter that are too good not to share. They are actually quite similar! The first is from Jared Cash, a local friend of a friend. He says,

It seems that every time the climate changes even a little, I have to deal with chapped lips. I’ve tried many different brands, and most don’t work. Those that do, only seem to work to prevent chapped lips but not heal them. Great Cakes Soapworks’ Lip Butter is the only lip balm I’ve ever used that has no additives that irritate my lips further, always smells great, and actually helps my lips to heal in a day or two, instead of a week. I can’t use anything else anymore.

Yesterday, I received another testimonial via email that just made my day. This time from a customer who was visiting her son and came to our local farmer’s market two weeks ago.

I have so loved using your lip butter. My lips have stopped peeling…they have been peeling daily for years!!! So, you’ll be hearing more from me! God bless you!
-Joyce Ayers, Kokomo, IN

Ironically, I have been thinking about the lip butter a lot lately – trying to decide which new flavor to add for fall. If you sell lip balms, and don’t mind disclosing which fall flavors sell well for you, I’d greatly appreciate it! If you just like lip butter and have an idea of what you would like to see me carry, let me know that too!

And, if you need to purchase some Lip Butter, I have five flavors available, and one unflavored version.

P.S. I’ve done some looking online at what some others are charging for the same size tube, and I’m really on the low end at just $3.00 each!

Lotion Fragrance Poll Results

Posted on July 27, 2010 by Amy Warden

Final Results

It was such a close call! Almost Paradise was ahead from the beginning, and stayed that way most of the time the poll was open. There were a couple of times that it was tied with Moonlit Woods, and ended up just barely ahead! I really believe that any of the names would work well for this scent, but it was so great to hear your feedback. It would be interesting to know if the votes would have been different if everyone could have actually smelled it! (Oh, smell-o-vision, where are you?)

I bottled up the lotion last week, and am now printing labels, so I’m making it available for purchase. Just $7.50 for a full 8-ounce pump:

Click Here to Buy Almost Paradise Jojoba-Shea Lotion!

Last Day to Vote

Posted on July 26, 2010 by Amy Warden

This is it! Last day to cast your vote for your favorite name for the new lotion fragrance! Thanks to everyone who has already voted – we have 55 votes, and a near tie for first place. I may have to cast the tie-breaking vote if one doesn’t pull ahead by the end of the day! So exciting…

The poll takes about 30 seconds – if that. Please click the link below:

Click Here to Cast Your Vote!

New Lotion Fragrance Poll

Posted on July 22, 2010 by Amy Warden

I’ve spent some time pondering over all the suggestions I received for the new lotion fragrance. The creative juices started flowing and after putting together words that were suggested, I narrowed it down to my top three. I have set up a poll for you to vote for your favorite out of the three. I’ll be anxious to see which one will win!

The poll will remain open through the end of the day Monday. I’ll announce the winner on Tuesday, and make it available for purchase shortly thereafter. Thank you to everyone who made suggestions – it really helped!!

Click Here to Cast Your Vote!

Mystery Lotion Needs a Name

Posted on July 16, 2010 by Amy Warden

I’ve sent out some samples of a new “mystery” lotion to some of my customers, hoping that they would be able to help me name it. About a month ago I received a sample of this fragrance that was so good, I knew it had to be used. The problem is the name. It’s a duplicate of one of the Bath & Body Works fragrances. One – I can’t use the same name since they have the copyright for it. Two – I don’t LIKE the name because it hints at certain popular vampire movies. (Not so hard to figure that out!)

Here is the description from my supplier:

A most seductive fragrance reminiscent of a stroll through an ancient forest with delicate rays of the sun gently filtering through the trees as dusk approaches. This fragrance begins with bright sparkling top notes of mandarin and warm, sunny dewberry, giving way to a fresh breezy aura of plum, alluring moonflowers and honeysuckle. Deep dark oud wood warms creamy vanilla, with captivating musks and enchanted ambers to compose the rich base of this mysterious and inviting scent.

Feedback so far has been really great – everyone loves the scent! I’m going to take some more suggestions, then come up with a poll next week for everyone to vote on the top choice.

What would YOU call it?

Does Lye Soap Make Good Laundry Soap?

Posted on May 7, 2010 by Amy Warden

Lye Soap by Great Cakes Soapworks

That’s what Autumn of Autumn Asks Why set out to discover. I sent her three bars of my Old-Fashioned Lye Soap several weeks ago for her experiment. Autumn’s recipe is a combination of washing soda, borax, oxygen booster, and grated bar soap. She has tried four different types of bar soap for in her quest for the best laundry soap, and the results are now in! I may be tweaking the next batch just a little when I make it next week (yes, it’s currently out of stock!). Click here to read her review and find out what might need to change.

Shea Butter Feedback

Posted on May 5, 2010 by Amy Warden

Whipped Shea Butter by Great Cakes Soapworks photo from FuturePrimitive

As you may know, I made a new Whipped Shea Butter recently with some refined, high melt point shea butter. I sent out samples to nine women who responded that they would like to try it, and they have sent me their feedback. You’ll get a good giggle out of my friend Autumn’s feedback. We’ve never met in real life, but I sure do enjoy her blog, Autumn Asks Why about her life as a Christian military wife and mom. Added bonus at the end: feedback from Tiggy of FuturePrimitive whose photo I snagged from her blog.

Here’s their honest feedback. Notice how their different skin types make them want it more greasy, or less. Or like Goldilocks found Baby Bear’s things to be “just right.”

Mavette in Thousand Oaks, CA says:
It’s Fabulous! So Silky!!!! I was using it on my lips!

Kim in Kirkland, WA says:
Likes: Whipped texture. Nice shea moisture without the greasiness.
Dislikes: I’m a lotion hater and to me, this is like lotion because I have to reapply it or my hands get dry. For this reason, I prefer salve. But, yours is nice to reapply because, as mentioned above, it’s has the nice qualities of shea without greasiness.
Overall: Nice product.

Sheryl in Aiken, SC says:
OK – this Shea butter is wonderful. Hands down the very best thing for my poor heels in the world! Now that it’s flip flop season, we all want our feet to look fabulous. If you have cute painted toes but your heels look awful, it’s not a good thing. So – two thumbs up from me on the Shea butter! Thanks Amy!

Jodi in Olathe, KS says:
I loved the shea butter for my feet but it was a little too greasy for my hands. I hope this helps! Thanks for letting me try some!

Michele in Lubbock, TX says:
Superb product! Not greasy, grainy or waxy feeling. Great consistency! My skin felt great – I tend to be on the dry side so, I love the moist dewy feeling your shea left behind. Thanks for letting me be a part of your test group.

Sarah in Gardner, KS:
I just love the new shea butter! I loved the previous version, but this is way better!!!! I have horribly dry skin that cracks and bleeds and nothing has ever worked like Amy’s shea butter. This new version is AMAZING! It is not as greasy as the other, and absorbs much faster but still moisturizes just as long. It is easier to get out of the jar and distributes on your skin so much easier. I love the creamy new texture too! It’s like frosting! I will be replacing my old shea butter with the new and improved. Thanks Amy for making another product I can’t live without!

Naomi in San Diego, CA says:
1st impressions: No scent at all! White, fluffy, creamy, very appealing in the jar. Sinks right into skin without being greasy. Doesn’t leave palms of hands shiny and greasy like other whipped sheas I’ve tried. I like this a lot.

Holly in Belton, MO says:
I’ve been using the shea butter sample at night for the last three nights and I am very impressed. I haven’t been a fan of whipped shea butter in the past but I do really like yours. I didn’t feel any graininess at all, it was very smooth. I have had troubles with allergies and thought that shea might be a contributor but I actually have had LESS problems with my skin allergies. Go figure! So I am super-duper impressed…

Autumn in WPAFB, OH says:
I loved the whipped shea butter. The texture was really appealing. I tried it for several things and was most impressed on the job it did on my poor dry feet. I have weird sweating issues due to a thyroid problem, which in turn makes me try to keep them dry as much as possible and it causes this vicious cycle of sweaty wet then over dry. More info that you needed huh? Anyways, it handled the dry heels beautifully without being overly heavy. I didn’t even have to use it every day to keep the heels hydrated either.

And speaking of TMI….

I had a work-out pants epic fail while running on the treadmill the day the shea butter came in. Yep, the seam in the thigh unraveled…um…up one leg and over to the other. Porno pants. But I was at home and I didn’t want to stop running because I knew I wouldn’t get back on. To make a long story short I chapped my legs but good. Never done that before. So I went rummaging through the closets looking for something to put on the chapped parts and remembered your envie. Used the shea butter and I only had to not run one day. And I was seriously chapped. Way impressed with that kind of results without having to resort to Vaseline!

Thanks for letting me try the shea butter. Now I understand why everyone loves it so much!

Tiggy in the UK just posted what she thinks of my Whipped Shea Butter on her blog (along with photos of her new Vanillas in the Mist soap. It’s gorgeous – AND all natural!) Her review starts something like this…

I had been lusting over Amy’s whipped shea for a long while before asking her if she’d ship some to me in the UK. She came back with a proposal too good to miss.

Click here to read the rest while I go blush in the corner from all this great feedback!

Oh, and I almost forgot – if you’d like to get your hands on some of this Whipped Shea Butter, you can get the 1.5 oz jar for just $7.00 here, or the 3 oz. jar is $12.00 here. Both are unscented. Hopefully I can add the Vanilla Hazelnut again soon!

Bug Off No More – A Contest

Posted on March 25, 2010 by Amy Warden

As you might know, I make all-natural insect repellent products in the form of soap, solid stick, and sprays. They’re called the “Bug Off” products. Seems like an appropriate name, right? Apparently, another large company thinks so too, only they actually have the rights to the name.

Lynn Inglima of 1846 House Soaps & Handmade Gallery recently received a letter from the lawyers of S.C. Johnson & Sons, Inc. respectfully telling her to cease using the name “Buzz Off” for her insect repelling products because they own the name “bugzoff” and “bugoff” and all variations thereof. I figure I probably ought to preempt such a letter, and just change mine ASAP.

Here’s where I’m going to need a little help. I’m going to borrow Lynn’s idea to run a little contest to see if you guys can come up with a good replacement name for these products. I’d like to get several to choose from, then let the readers vote on their favorite one. The winner will receive a $25 gift certificate to Greatcakessoapworks.com. How exciting is that? I’m going to post the contest here, as well as my fan page on Facebook, then send everyone to one location for the final vote.

Please submit as many entries as you like, all in one comment is fine. Or if you come up with more later, you can always add more. Comments will close on Monday, March 29 at midnight CST. I’m going to take a day to sort through the entries, then you will have a couple days to get your vote in, and the winner will be announced on Friday, April 2nd.

Get those creative juices flowing!

Lotion Fragrance Survey Results

Posted on March 8, 2010 by Amy Warden

Thank you so much to everyone who participated in the Lotion Fragrance Survey! I received 59 responses, and felt that it was a huge success! Random.org picked participant #53 as the winner of an 8 oz. Jojoba-Shea Lotion, which just happens to be Angie P.! Congratulations!!

Capture lotion survey Lotion Fragrance Survey Results

Winner Announced

And now, the results you’ve all been waiting for. There were two ways I could interpret the data I received. I can tell you which fragrances received the most 1st place votes, and I can tell you which fragrances received the most overall votes. So I will do both. And then tell you which fragrances I plan to make into lotion.

Here they are in the order of the MOST 1ST PLACE VOTES:
Almond Milk – 12
Lavender Meadows – 10
Pink Grapefruit & Sugar Cane – 8
Caribbean Diva, Patchouli, Stress Relief – 6
Black Raspberry Creme, Sweet & Sassy – 5
Lavender Lemon, Sandalwood – 4
Antique Lilac, Fragrance Free, Lily of the Valley – 2
Cucumber Mint, Strawberry Lemonade – 1
Green Apple – 0

And this is the order of the most OVERALL VOTES:
Almond Milk – 39
Caribbean Diva – 30
Stress Relief – 29
Black Raspberry Creme, Pink Grapefruit & Sugar Cane – 25
Lavender Meadows – 24
Lavender Lemon – 23
Sweet & Sassy – 21
Cucumber Mint, Patchouli – 17
Sandalwood – 16
Strawberry Lemonade – 15
Green Apple, Fragrance Free, Lily of the Valley – 12
Antique Lilac – 11

Clearly, Almond Milk came out the overall winner in both categories. It has been a well received scent in the past. In fact, I received a peppy cheer in the comment section from one of the Almond Milk fans: “Almond Milk, that’s the way. It’s my favorite any day!”

Based on the overall totals, I will be stocking the following scents in both the larger 8 oz. pumps and the smaller 2.5 oz. purse sized tubes in the next few days:
Almond Milk
Caribbean Diva
Stress Relief
Lavender Meadows
Black Raspberry Creme
Pink Grapefruit & Sugar Cane

It’s very difficult for me NOT to offer all the scents that have been requested. However, I’ve learned that unfortunately you can’t please everyone all the time. I received some really great ideas for other scents to consider for the future in the comments section. Thanks again for all your feedback – it is very much appreciated!

Lotion Fragrance Survey and a Giveaway

Posted on March 1, 2010 by Amy Warden

Jojoba-Shea Lotion by Great Cakes Soapworks

It’s time to start thinking about which lotion fragrances you would like to see offered at Great Cakes Soapworks! I have been making Jojoba-Shea Lotions for three years now, but my inventory was completely depleted over the holidays, and it’s time to re-stock for this year.

You won’t find many lotions that don’t contain some form of petrolatum on the ingredient label at most retail stores. The Jojoba-Shea Lotion has natural ingredients you can pronounce (if you know that “jojoba” is pronounced “ho-ho-bah”), and a made fresh date on the back of each bottle. It’s a highly moisturizing lotion without feeling greasy, and works well in the winter, or even as a soothing after-sun lotion in the summer because of the high aloe content.

This year I have decided to switch back to the 8 ounce pumps instead of the 6 ounce malibu tubes that you see in the photo, and make the 2.5 oz. malibus that were available at Christmastime available all year.

However, I need your help to decide which fragrances to offer! Therefore, I am opening up a survey for you to choose your top five lotion fragrances. There is also space for you to write in a favorite if you don’t see it on the list. Your completed survey will be your entry in a drawing for one FREE 8 ounce Jojoba-Shea Lotion of your choice from Great Cakes Soapworks. Winner will be announced Monday, March 8th. It’s a pretty simple survey, and it will probably take you longer to read this blog post than to fill out the survey, so without further ado:

Click here to take our Online Survey

(If you are using a Reader, you will need to click over to the post to get to the live link. I don’t know why this is.)

Great Cakes Soapworks

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Category Archives: Customer Feedback