I love our essential oil diffuser pendants. I really love them because they were actually designed specifically for myself! I wanted/needed a way to be able to wear the oils every day at work without putting them on my skin.  If you don't yet know what I do for work then you need to know I am a high school science teacher.  So not only is there a lot of stress from many different directions, there are also a lot of unsavory smells from the students returning from gym class, stinky chemistry experiments, to the odors of the cooking cafeteria food (Which are sometimes really good too!).  To make matters worse the hallway I am in is on the second floor which is literally 10 degrees hotter than the first floor. Classroom temperatures can reach into the 90's on some days and I don't have to tell you what heat does to the smells.... 

Anyway, I started looking around online for diffuser pendants and really didn't like anything I saw.  I am not a jewelry person at all.  I just don't like the way jewelry feels on my skin, especially around my neck so that pretty much ruled out anything made of metal.  I saw a few pendants made out of clay,  mostly kiln fired, which I thought was great at first. But then I realized that you were just applying the oil directly to the clay and the risk of getting that on my clothing or even on my skin was not worth it.  Then I came across air dry clay pendants and they were doing the same thing - applying the oil directly to the pendant.  But air dry clay, well now I had something I could work with!  Being a science teacher...well...the experiments began!

Trial 1:

• I made the pendants out of the air dry clay, however since I didn't like the idea of the oil possibly getting on my skin or clothing I decided it needed a small well for the oil to go into so we drilled small holes into the back where the oil would be 'dropped' into.
• After giving these a try I quickly realized this was not going to work. The oil was able to seep through the pendant to the front. The oils are also very strong and they weathered the finish as well!

Trial 2:

• ​Same pendants, same drilled holes as wells on the back, but now we addd a small piece of felt.  The felt worked great for absorbing the oils and keeping them from seeping into the clay.
• Problem: the oils dissolved the glue that was holding in the felt.  
• We ended up experimenting with numerous glues until we found one that the oils could not dissolve.
• However, after about a month of using the pendants I realized that the oils were still able to seep completely through to the front of the pendants and weather the finish on the front.  Not good.

Trial 3:

• I needed to find a way to prevent the oil from seeping into the clay. I needed it to be 100% blocked from going through.  Thats when the finish experiments began.  We tried every type of finish we could find from polyurethanes, to acrylics, etc.  The oils are so strong that they weathered every single one of them. Some finished took longer than others, but nothing worked the way I wanted.
• So I started to think about what they are stored in: metal or glass containers.  I already knew metal was out for me, so glass it was.  What could I use that is like glass?  I was watching a video one day for wood finishing and the man was using epoxy to give it a beautiful glossy finish.  I thought to myself, "could this work?" and the epoxy experiments began.  
• If you know anything about epoxy you know that most of them have a yellow tint to them. Finding one that remained clear and could withstand the effects of the oil was not easy but I did eventually find success (With thanks to my husband!).

Of course I really over-simplified what I wrote above. In all the entire process took about of year of trials and errors and experiments and in that time we threw out several hundred failed designs.  We also had a lot of input from friends, family, and customers and we are so satisfied with how they turned out that we offer a 100% money back guarantee if you are not happy! 

Some of the important design features:

• Super lightweight - the only reason you will know you are wearing it is by smelling the diffusing oils!
• Super soft cording - the faux suede cord is so soft on your neck you won't even know it is there.
• Deep well for the oil - we drill the wells deep enough that the felt is not able to touch your skin or your clothes.
• Absorbent felt - the felt absorbs the one or two drops of oil and allows them to diffuse over several days.
• Epoxy coating - the back of the pendant is coated with a special epoxy that prevents the oil from seeping into the clay.
• Many designs to choose from!
• Just add 1 or 2 drops of oil to the back and wear it all day! So simple :-)

Watch this video to see how they are made from start to finish!

You can make them yourself or buy them for $15 in our online shop (They ship FREE too!).  Every pendant comes with a trial size bottle (dram) of Lavender essential oil.  They make a great gift or even a stocking stuffer for the holidays!

Learn more about why you should use essential oil diffuser pendants!
​
Thanks for visiting!
Sincerely,

I have never sold at a craft fair before.  I have attended many craft fairs over the years, but I have never personally been involved in selling at one.  That is about to change.

For years my daughter has been urging me to sell at the craft fair where she lives. Every summer they have a community fair to raise money and every year she reminds me that I should rent a table and sell all my handmade 'stuff.'  I usually say no.  I am not sure why, but I guess I just really never knew what to make that people would want to buy.  And what if they don't buy it?  It is very intimidating to try something new like this, but I finally just said YES!  After all, the worst that can happen is my stuff doesn't sell but I get quality time with my daughter and I get to spend a weekend on Fire Island in the summer! 

And then after saying yes, I thought, uh oh....what have I gotten myself into?  I am not the type of person to just wing something like having a craft sales table.  I have to have a plan for exactly how and what I am going to do and that is what this post is all about. 

There were some criteria about selling at the fair: I rented one (1) 8' x 30" banquet table and two chairs.  Anything and everything I sell would have to be on top of that one table. No other stands are allowed.  I also needed to get everything onto a ferry - it is not a craft fair where you can pull your car up and unload.  Everything has to be lightweight, portable, and literally carried by hand.

Here are the steps I took to get ready for our first craft fair ever:

1. I Researched...

• I 'Googled' and looked and literally hundreds of pictures of the way sellers set up their tables and booths at craft fairs
• I 'Googled' and read nearly as many blog posts about anything and everything having to do with advice for selling at craft fairs

2. Made A List Of What I Wanted For My Table...

• Bottom fitted banquet tablecloth (most tables at fairs are banquet size)
• Second decorative tablecloth for on top of the fitted one - in a complimentary color
• A spinning table-top display for my pendants 
• Signs with prices and descriptions
• Signs with our company name etc.
• Business card holders (with business cards of course)
• Sign showing that we take credit cards (I read that being able to take credit cards is a must!)
• A container to do a FREE giveaway raffle to collect e-mail addresses
• A mirror so potential customers could try on the pendants
• Baskets to put display products in

3. The Tablecloths
I didn't just want tablecloths...I wanted them to be special and stand out!

• ​Purchased a fitted tablecloth from Amazon (affiliate link).
• Purchased a square tablecloth from Amazon (affiliate link).
• Personalized the tablecloth with a crochet border - Read about it here!

4. Signs
​I didn't want to simply order signs from someone else...I wanted mine to be handmade like all the products I sell!

• Chalk board signs with chalk paint for individual signs (affiliate links).
• Sign for credit cards - simply displayed in a photo frame
• Crochet Sign for table - made and sewn onto tablecloth front (video below on how these were made!)

5. Spinning Table-top Display for Pendants
​It was at least $90 to buy one and I didn't like any of them anyway, so of course my husband and I decided we could make our own and put our own handmade crafty 'spin' on it - pun intended :-)

• This is my favorite! It is a combination of *peg board with *hooks, cotton scrap yarn to hold it together, a lazy Susan (affiliate link) bottom, a foam board top with a simple cotton crocheted 'hat', and chalk-board signs written with chalkboard paint (affiliate links) on the top! Check out the video below to see how we made it :-)
  
• *peg board 2' x 4' common at $10.47 and hooks at $10

6. Bonus Hair Scrunchy Display

• There was left-over pegboard from the spinning display so we used it to make a quick and simple display for my crochet hair scrunchies! We simply cut the left-over piece in half, painted it up to match everything else and used the crochet yarn to hold it together at the top and bottom.  Add a few hooks and a chalk-board sign to the top and it's the perfect little A-frame display!  

7. Miscellaneous

• Business card holders $2 (affiliate link)
• Mirror 6.5" for $15 (affiliate link)
• Baskets (already had them!) - note: my wonderful husband cut up and drilled holes in some of the chalkboard signs so I could attach them with colored yarn to the front of the baskets!
• We made a special display for the Little Lamb Lovey Blankets using a plastic soup container, a half of a paper towel cardboard center, and hot glue!

8.  And of course, before we packed it all up, we had to do a    practice table set-up in our living room!

Thanks for visiting!

If you are anywhere near Ocean Beach Fire Island, NY the weekend of August 13th - 14th 2016, stop by our table and say hi!

Please follow us on social media!

​Sincerely,

There are many different essential oils available.  Some oils are helpful when coming down with a cold and some are more helpful if you are tired or stressed. You can even buy or make blends of different oils to help focus on specific problems.  Regardless of the oil, all you need is from 1 to 3 drops depending upon the oil and size/type of diffuser.  Our pendants only require 1 drop to help you feel good!

*Here are a few Essential Oils that we use regularly:

• Eucalyptus - Clean, crisp menthol scent - good for asthma, cough, stuffed nose, sore throat, sinus problems
• Lavender - Sweet floral scent - good for anxiety, tension, stress, insomnia, headache
• Tea Tree - Fresh medicinal scent - good for colds, flu, to ward off illness, disinfectant
• Peppermint - Sweet minty menthol scent - good for fatigue, exhaustion, or apathy, asthma, bronchitis, cough, sinus, headaches, migraines, nausea, indigestion
• Lemon - Sweet lemon scent - good for immune system booster, digestive health, household odors, fatigue, PMS, or stress
• Cedarwood - Woody scent - good for neverous tension or stress
• Bergamot - Fruity & citrusy scent - good if you are feeling anxious, depressed, tired, nervous or stressed
• Frankinsense - Warm spicy & woody scent - good for asthma, cough, cold, flu, sore throat, or fatigue​​

​​*NOTE: If you are pregnant, nursing, or have any health issues you should always check with your doctor before use!

Sources:
University of Maryland Medical Center
​