Vendor Spotlight and GIVEAWAY: Morning's Mist Country Store (CLOSED)

Mango Papaya Soap

There are a few things I have a penchant for, and one of them is handmade soap. There's something about a great bar of handmade soap -- take a whiff, close your eyes and, mmmmm, heavenly! That's the feeling when I first tried bath products from our next Vendor Spotlight, Morning's Mist Country Store. Based out of Minnesota, Juanita from Morning's Mist sells handmade soaps, lotions, lip balm and dead sea bath salts made with all natural oils and butters, including olive oil, shea butter, kokum butter, apricot kernel & evening primrose oils, sweet almond oil and silk protein. She says she found the inspiration to create effective bath and skin products when she noticed her own skin looking dull and aged. Through research and trial and error, Juanita developed a product that can soften and soothe diverse skin types.

I tried the Mango Papaya soap and I'm still addicted to the scent. Think tropical and sweet, as if you're sitting in an exotic island garden of fruits and flowers! The accompanying body butter left my skin feeling smooth, soft and never greasy. Yes, even the future hubs noticed (boy, was he extra snuggly!). You'll see right away that these are products made with with unltimate care and the finest natural materials, unlike the store-bought, mass-produced items full of harsh chemicals.

Juanita can also personalize each order, as well as offer discounts for volume orders. What a great idea for homemade, natural wedding favors or bridal party gifts! Without further ado, introducing Juanita from Morning's Mist Country Store!

What got you started in creating handmade bath and body products?
I started having difficulty with my skin - too dry in some places, too oily in others. I bought handmade soap and realized it was helping my skin, but I still needed more, so I researched and through trial and error came up with the products I now manufacture.

Spiced Peach Body Butter

How long have you been making these products?
Over 10 years

Which from your line is your favorite scent/product and why?
I have to be very careful about scents, so the scents I use are all the ones that I love and my favorites change from day to day. I am currently trending to the Tangerine Spice that I have recently created. I have two products that I cannot live without and that is my soap and body butter.

Almond Soap

Tell me something unique about your products.
Mine is a castile soap that I have enhanced with Shea and Kokum butters for skin elasticity and moisturizing, as well as Apricot Kernel and Evening Primrose Oils for damaged and problem skin. The butters use the same exotic oils. The butter soaks into the skin almost immediately with no greasy feeling and you can still feel the goodness after washing your hands.

What advice can you give to brides who are planning a wedding on a shoestring budget?
Make your own items as much as possible. It gives your wedding your own personal feeling and your guests really notice it. Simple table top decorations are a hit when personalized with your touch. Use your picture or inspirational sayings on gifts to your bridal party and guests.

Links where we can find out more of your work:
http://www.morningsmist.com/

THE GIVEAWAY
Juanita has been gracious enough to give one lucky winner their pick of any one item on the Morning's Mist Country Store Web site (except for the gift boxes).

THE RULES:

1) Go to Morning's Mist Country Store and comment on which scent you're most interested in trying for one entry! This is mandatory! Contestants who do not do this will be disqualified. Remember to leave your email address or some way to contact you with each entry!

You can add more comments to increase your chance to win if you do the following (please leave a separate comment for each additional entry):

2) Become a new follower of this blog (1 entry)
3) Are currently a follower of my blog (2 entries or 2 separate comments!)
4) Become a facebook fan of “I Do” Budget Weddings (2 entries or 2 separate comments)
5) Blog about the contest and include a link to the giveaway. You must also include a link to Morning's Mist Country Store in your post (3 entries or 3 separate comments)
7) Buy anything from Morning's Mist Country Store (5 entries or 5 separate comments)
8) Follow “I Do” Budget Weddings on Twitter (1 entry)
9) Tweet on this giveaway and include a link to this giveaway in your tweet. (1 entry)
10) Subscribe to my blog emails (1 entry)
11) Grab my blog button located on the right sidebar and put it on your blog (2 entries)

The deadline to enter this contest is 11:59 p.m., Tuesday, April 12, 2010 (PST). A winner will be randomly chosen and announced the following day. Good luck! (This giveaway is now closed)

* Don't forget, your chance to win earrings from BellaLu and Me ends this Friday so don't miss out!