Be a Super Hero!

Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company

Bloggers who post daily: you are my heroes! How do you do it?

When I started this blog, I was between full-time jobs, and looking for a creative outlet. I figured a post per week would do. But now, I've got a whole lot goin' on! At any given moment, there are at least 12 things I (a) wish I was doing; (b) should be doing; (c) am thinking about doing the second I finish what I'm currently doing. Tending to this blog has been a, b, and c since I started it. Sometimes I wish I was Evie from the late '80s/early '90s TV show "Out of this World." Remember her? Her father was an alien from the planet Anterias. Being half-alien, of course she has superpowers, including the ability to pause and un-pause time! Why wish for more hours in the day when you could wish for the ability to pause time, check everything off your list without interruption, then un-pause and resume?!

What superpower would you like to have? Who did you pretend to be when you were a kid? Growing up, I loved to "play house" with dolls and Barbie; I was always the mom! Other than that, I put my creative juices to use rearranging furniture in my bedroom for fun, and sketching floorplans for my parents to use to remodel our house. Yeah . . .

Anyway, I don't have kids of my own, but hear more and more friends and relatives talk about the importance of "dramatic play." Who knew that there was such an official term for what a lot of folks in my age group knew simply as "dress up."

Well, parents (and adult dreamers and seekers-of-all-things-cool-and-unique), I am super excited to introduce to you to the Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company. Let them handle "dramatic play" for you, for when it comes to helping your kids make believe, you will never come close to what BSSCo has put together! This truly is one of the most unique lines I've come across in years, maybe ever. (And I don't use "unique" lightly. When I was PR, churning out press releases for consumer products, my co-worker, Janet, begged us to avoid using the word "unique." It was/is an over-used word. But what can I say, we were 20-somethings trying to convince reporters to pay attention to what we were hawking. We thought we were slick.) But I digress. I'm going for it; I'm calling Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company UNIQUE! Let me sell you on this. . .

[Stop here if you live in the New York City area. You need to just strap on a cape and soar over to 372 5th Ave. in Brooklyn and check this place out for yourself!]

Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company: purveyors of high quality crimefighting merchandise. Finally dear heroes, one-stop shopping!

You'll start with your Secret I.D. Glasses, or go a step up and get your "human identity" Starter Kits. You may need a new Cape. Depending on your identity, you may need to add a gallon of Muscle, X-Ray Glasses, or a Sequin Belt. Surely, you'll need some gear (a Mind Reader, perhaps) and lab supplies (some Matter, a case of Kryptonite, and some Chaos, which is for use by licensed heroes only). Manuals will come in handy, but some Speed of Light fluid will help you navigate the Index of Good & Evil.

Superheros don't deal with dollars, but for what it's worth, you humans can purchase a Vortex for $11M or Time Portal for a cool $3.8M. For now, maybe just the Red Phone?

You know what? I'm not any more imaginative and creative that I was when I was 8, so I'm going to stop trying to describe all of this in a clever way. You really need to check out for yourself. Go to the website NOW!

Ack! Wait! Before you go, I want to mention two things to keep in mind:

• ALL PROCEEDS from the sale of Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company products go directly to support the free writing and tutoring programs at 826NYC, which is a nonprofit organization that assists students ages 6-18 with their creative and expository writing skills, and helps teachers inspire their students to write.
  


• The BSSCo store in Brooklyn is staffed entirely by volunteers.
  

They are heroes in their own right. So, without further ado, Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company: http://www.superherosupplies.com/

- E

[All images courtesy of Brooklyn Superhero Supply Company]

From Breakfast Room to Boudoir, Penthouse to Pool House…and everything in between!

A sampling of the Lafco "House and Home" Candle Collection

(l to r: Master Bathroom: Marine, Game Room: Blue Bamboo, Media Room: Spike Lavender)

How you doing on candles? Let me guess – you’ve got a few choice ones scattered around your place? A couple on the mantle for decoration, your new favorite one on the coffee table, a few votives near the bathtub (because you envision yourself taking baths by candlelight)? And then a drawer or cabinet full of the ones you’re currently sick of. Something like that, right?

You may even go through phases with candles. I know I have! Discovered them initially for my college apartments. Then I went on to work at Pier 1 Imports for a while. And let me tell you – the last thing a candle-loving 21-year-old needs is an employee discount on candles. Let’s just say I amassed a collection! Then on to Party-lite candle parties. . . It was out-of-control there for a while. And then I lost interest in candles.

Sure, I’d still sniff every candle in a store (and still do), but for the longest time, nothing “wowed” me. “Practical E” was always in my head telling me I had plenty of candles at home to light and love.

Then along came the “House and Home” Collection by Lafco.

Before I commence with the love fest, I should get this off my chest: these were part of Oprah’s “favorite things” last year. And I got a little uppity because I figured everyone would think that I jumped on the Lafco bandwagon because of Oprah. No people, no. In the most immature, obnoxious way, I’m here to say, “E discovered them first!” But thanks, O, for agreeing with me. :)

Annnnywayyyyy….the candles! You know I’m going to say they’re great and worth every penny! They are soy-based wax candles, with a natural cotton wick, housed in a wide hand-blown glass jar (approx. 4” x 4”) that’s pretty just sitting there doing nothin’. A 16oz candle will yield about 90 hours of burning. Retail is $55. I currently own “Kitchen: Cilantro Orange.” I tend to move a lot and it’s made sense in every kitchen I’ve had it in. And you know why it makes sense in every kitchen? Because it was designed for the kitchen; it’s in the “Fragrance Floorplan.”

Yes! You heard me! There is a Fragrance Floorplan! And let’s pause for a moment to discuss the Fragrance Floorplan, shall we? Um, it’s F-a-n-t-a-s-t-i-c! I need you to picture me reaching through your computer screen, grabbing you by the shoulders, and sticking the Fragrance Floorplan in your face. And then I’d tell you to take a good long look at it, concluding that yes, it’s the coolest thing you’ve seen all week! (Link to the coolest thing you’ve seen all week – when you’re done reading this – below.)

I’m going to go ahead and put this Fragrance Floorplan up near the tippy-top of my “loves.” Other companies may woo you with fragrance and packaging (which, don’t get me wrong, will often work for me), but Lafco doesn’t stop there. The Fragrance Floorplan gives these beautiful candles a story. They were thought about and planned for. They were incorporated.

As if all of this weren’t enough, a sub-group of the “House and Home” Collection is the “Dream Home Candles” Collection. Oh yes, a candle for your ski lodge, a candle for your beach house, a candle for your ranch house, and a candle for your treehouse (yep!). On and on the options go…..

So, buy yourself a Lafco candle. Buy one for a friend. Lafco candle(S!) would make a GREAT housewarming gift - - you could buy for several rooms of the house and put them in a great basket! Or, best of all - - buy a TON of them for a wedding gift. I am waiting for just the right people to get married so I can gift them a boat-load of room-specific candles, setting the tone for their blissful, tasteful, beautiful, Lafco life together. (I’m corny, but I’m serious!)

The very least you could do is follow this link so you can see the Fragrance Floorplan in all its glory, hovering over all the rooms, then moving on to see the “Dream Home” collection. Look. And Love.

The "Fragrance Floorplan": http://www.lafcony.com/hh/floorplan.php

- E

p.s. If you find yourself in New York City, visit the Lafco collections at Santa Maria Novella on Lafayette St. in SoHo. It’s a beautiful store full of beautiful things!

Lips Like Sugar

the lip scrub, by Sara Happ

Do you make any of your own cleaning products? Or beauty products? Got some sort of homemade remedy you swear by?

Want to know how to garner some attention for it? How to grab E’s attention and get written up in this here blog (ha!)? Well…

1. Concoct something simple, yet super effective

2. Put it in very simple, yet stylish packaging

3. Sell it in a cute store

That’s what Sara Happ did. She invented “the lip scrub.” And then she put it in a tiny little brown box with a tiny little white ribbon, and used a very simple font. And then I found it on display in a sweet little tea shop in New York City. Of course I bought it! (I’ll say it again: I’m a sucker for good packaging!)

I’m sure I thought I was going to gift it to someone. That would make sense since it’s all tidy and wrapped up to begin with. But….I figured I should try it out first. You know, review it. And then I fell in love.

Yes, you could make some version of this at home using Vaseline and sugar. I love to think that I would do that. But do I ever actually get around to doing it? No. I wonder, though, if a homemade version could be as effective. Sara Happ nails it on her ratio of petrolatum (the Vaseline-like stuff) and exfoliating sugar granules.

Oh, by the way, when you read “the lip scrub” aloud, “the” should rhyme with “me.” It’s the lip scrub (says E). It’s that good!

I’ve used it the same way from the get-go:

1. Before getting in the shower, I rub a bit of it in little circles all over my lips.

2. Then, I rub my lips together for about a minute or so. Helps the exfoliation.

3. By the time I’m washing my face, most of the little sugar granules have melted away and I’m left wish super soft lips. See - no dryness or chappiness here! (And just to be clear - - there were no enhancements, touch-ups or lip balm used in the making of this photo. Real, plain lips here! Thank you, Sara Happ!)

As Sara Happ herself states in her marketing: “Wonder how you ever lived without it.” Exactly!

Visit Sara Happ’s website to find out where to buy “the lip scrub”: http://www.sarahapp.com/index.php If you’d rather shop for it online, the website provides links to stores that sell it online. A 1oz. container retails for $24 (cute little brown box with a tiny little white ribbon, included). Several flavors available (E loves almond crème).

I close today with a shout-out to Echo & The Bunnymen: Thank you for writing a song that’s bound to be stuck in at least one reader’s head all day. It’ll keep “the lip scrub” top-of-mind!

“Lips like sugar….sugar kisses….”

- E

The nose knows

Molton Brown's Warming Eucalyptus Bath & Shower Therapy

I’m nervous about this post. I went back and forth on this one all week. The product itself, I love. I really, really do! It’s just that, well…..I’m about to suggest you consider gifting this product to your mother for Mother’s Day. I actually did just that a couple of years ago. And . . . Mom didn’t care for it. Oops! I love great gift-giving so it pains me to get it wrong.

But over the weekend I remembered that this blog is about me reviewing products I love. Got the love part covered. And any good review will include everything you need to know so you can decide whether or not you want to buy it, right?! Right! So here we go. . . Molton Brown’s Warming Eucalyptus Bath & Shower Therapy.

Back-tracking for a second . . . the reason I’m offering up a Mother’s Day gift idea now is this:

• Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 8th


• This stuff isn’t super easy to get your hands on, so you may need to order it online.


• If you want to order it, receive it, add a personal greeting card, and then ship everything off to Mom, you need this much time!

All of the above. . . that’s just what I did a couple of years ago. The Molton Brown folks are good at packaging. I was able to forgo wrapping on my end because the brown bag and bow they put the product in was lovely on its own. (Complimentary gift box when you order online.) “Mom will love this, I know!” So I thought. Bless my mother for being thankful and trying it out.

The truth came out when I was visiting several months after-the-fact. She confessed and said she knew it was a special product, she knew I chose it carefully, and knew I liked it. And then…..she gifted it back to me! All’s well that ends well!

Earlier this week when I told Mom that I was thinking of writing about this stuff but worried about the irony of the whole thing, she was quick to say, “Oh, tell them that I really wanted to like it! I loved the bottle, and it came packaged so nicely!” Cute!

So what’s so great about this stuff, aside from pretty packaging? Did you catch the name – Warming Eucalyptus Bath & Shower Therapy?! Already, we’ve set ourselves apart from run-of-the-mill bath gels! (It is considered a body cleanser/ bath foam.) And the smell is just so intoxicating! It’s great to have on-hand if you have a cold or sinus issues. Or maybe you’re just stressed out? I guarantee the aroma in a hot shower or will make you feel better!

I like to lather up my shower puff. Get my first few whiffs. And before you know it all the olfactory cells in my body start high-fiving each other as if to say, “YES! She used the good stuff today!” And the celebration lasts throughout the morning because the scent lingers, just so, on your skin.

Clearly, I L-O-V-E this stuff! But the scent is strong; not everyone will love it. A lot of people will, though! Both before and after my gifting failure of two years ago, I’ve gifted it to friends. And I know my best friend has turned around and gifted it to others.

Other people worthy of “the Therapy”:

• It would be nice for a new mom (surely, she needs pampering).


• Certainly for someone who’s sick.


• Super easy for a guy to give to a friend/sibling/spouse because it’s “manly” enough looking, and thoughtful.


• Great for a friend who works out a lot. Really great for someone who just competed in a super athletic event (like a marathon or regatta).


• And yes, for Mom for Mother’s Day. I stand behind my endorsement.

Here’s where you find it: ($28 for 10 fl.oz. Splurge, people!) http://www.moltonbrown.com/bath-and-body/bath-and-shower-gels/warming-eucalyptus-bath-and-shower-therapy.html

FYI – I do not currently have this product in my shower. And there’s no reason for anyone to buy it for me. Should you accidentally hit “Qty: 2” when ordering this online, we can arrange for you to ship one to me. Cool? :)

-E