An old recipe, a new recipe, and a yummy recipe!

Hello everyone, and happy Friday! 

Boy oh boy, has this summer just flown by! I know it seems like it's a little early to say, but with November just around the corner I'm feeling ok about this: I LOVE mulled wine season. More specifically, I love Glögg season! I am not a huge fan of the cold, however, if it has to be below 45 degrees for it to be ok for me to drink it, then, I guess I'm just going to have to be ok with it. There's something about the chill in the air, wearing comfy sweaters, and the smell of crispy leaves and burning firewood in the air. Combine that with the smell of cloves, ginger, cinnamon, bitter orange, and cardamom and mid to late fall wins me over every time. Now, we are preparing for some late fall and early winter shows, so we HAVE to bring back some fall and winter favorites for you guys. But, since we're talking about Glögg, let's talk a little throwback [Thursday] for a second.

Back in 2012 when the Etsy shop was first opened, I tried my hand at a  Mulled Wine soap. The picture below was the very first recipe we offered. I added wine instead of water, and I wasn't sure exactly how the soap was going to come out. I planned lots of swirls, but man did that sucker move fast! I was just barely able to get some colorant in there before it became a solid block. But, it worked, and this is how it looked: 

Mulled Wine, circa 2012, version 1

Not too bad, right? The soap smelled delicious, and although I wasn't able to get the swirls I wanted at the time, I was still pretty happy with my test batches and ultimately my final product. I was still learning things about soap and learning about what to expect, even though I had been making soap at home for a while. I liked the fragrance, but I kept working on it every year to make it better. Next year, I had done a bit better planning and blending, and came out with this guy:

Those soap curls look like cinnamon, right? 

I used soap for the cinnamon curls on top, and sprinkled the bar with elderberries and cinnamon. I was much happier with my creation, and I loved the way it smelled! We didn't do a Mulled Wine last year, but this year, I had been thinking of bringing the Mulled Wine back. However, I had been doing my research, and one of the things I pulled up was this article by Huffington Post: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/craig-goldwyn/glogg-hot-spiced-winerecipe_b_808157.html. Although I had tasted Glögg plenty of times before, I had never really understood the subtle differences between a Glögg and a Mulled Wine before.

Some of the flavors in Glögg are a bit different than what I had been playing with before in the Mulled Wine. Bitter orange? Cardamom? Oh goodness. All I want to do is drink it. But, I also want to smell like it...So, I started playing around and tweaking my essential oils in the blend, and made a tester lip balm:

I want...to..BATHE, in this.

Goodness. This is it. I can't stop putting it on my lips. And, I can't even tell you how awesome the tester soaps smell. This blend has come a long way from where it began back in 2012. The addition of the cardamom is really the key here, and a little balancing of the other oils makes me seriously want to drink this stuff when I'm making it. I know it seems early in the year to start talking about this, but c'mon, it IS almost November!

So, yes, it's starting to get a little chilly outside, but don't worry, we've got something that'll warm you up! And make sure to check out that article as it has a very nice recipe for Glögg in it! 'Tis the season, you guys. November is going to be awesome :)