In this issue:

Spa Basket Drawing
Soap Of The Month - Gardenia
Of local interest - Dyers Greenhouse Openhouse
Soap Of The Month - Gardenia
Lemongrass Soap
Free shipping on orders over $100.00
Seconds
Bonus Points
Alabu Farm
Featured Feedback

It seems we have skipped Spring and sprung right into summer. The weather has been about 20 degrees warmer than average for most of April and we have been enjoying temperatures near 80. We are a little short on rainfall, but because the snows are melting rapidly out of the mountains, the local rivers have flood warnings at the same time they are issuing fire hazzard warnings because it is so dry. Because of the early warm weather we have been able to get a lot of outside work done early this Spring, which is a good thing because Dean and I will be leaving for Vermont to attend the Handcrafted soap makers guild conference. We have been members for many years but this is the first opportunity we have had to attend one. We will be leaving Alabu in the capable hands of our son Hal for the week.

Dyers Greenhouse

Our Neighbors and good friends Jack & Sherry Dyer are hosting a guest Landscaper at their family run greenhouse. They not only have six greenhouses and a wonderful robust selection of plants, flowers and shrubs, they are just a great family to do business with. So if you are in the area stop in and say hello. Open House - May 17, 18, 24, & 25

• Guest Landscape Design Expert: Bring your questions and the dimensions of your garden.
• Kid's photo-op: May 17, 18, & 25.
• Gift Certificates & Giveaways.
• Refreshments

Lemongrass Soap

We were introduced to Lemongrass last summer and love the strong citrus- like fragrance. Unlike citrus oils that fade very quickly Lemongrass has staying power. Although it sounds and smells like it could be a citrus, but this oil actually comes from a grass primarily used in eastern cooking. Its bright fragrance is lemony, yet earthy, and an uplifting scent. The high citral content makes it an effective insect repellent. It is great for all skin types especially oily skin.

Free Shipping on Orders Over $100.00

We have been very happy with our free shipping over $60.00 offer and many people have taken advantage of it since we started offering it. But then our accountant informed us that we were losing too much money on our shipping and he advised us to stop offering free shipping. He said that was over a 10% discount and that was just too much. We were disappointed because we knew many customers were using it. Then it occurred to me in the middle of the night that we could still offer it on orders over $100.00 so that is what we have decided to do.

Soap of the Month

We have had many requests to have a soap of the month sale, giving folks an opportunity to try a featured soap at a reduced price. This month we are featuring Gardenia . It is a very true fragrance and has always been a favorite here. My mom always grew a gardenia plant in our home. I remember in high school, in the Spring they would be blooming and I would put one in the end of my braided hair so I could smell the sweet fragrance all day. To this day it is my manly younger brother's favorite soap. It seems they are always available, here in the northeast around Mother's Day which makes it a perfect choice for May. NOTE: Coupons and special offers do not apply to Soap of the Month items.

Seconds

We are back in full production and now have some seconds available again. We have increased production on our most popular soaps, and now have a limited supply of seconds which we are going to offer on our web page while supplies last. Our soap seconds are the same as our regular soap, but are made by taking the ends from the soap log and molding them to form a regular size bar. The only difference is that they do not look as pretty. We wrap seconds with a tissue paper band around the middle and seal it with our label. They are about the same weight and size as regular bars. The price will be $3.00 a bar, a substantial savings from our regular bath bars.

Bonus Points - What are they and how do you use them?

We have a Bonus Point program for our customers that place orders over the internet. Customers collect 1 bonus point for each dollar in product ordered. So a purchase of $50.00 worth of Alabu products will earn you 50 points. The redemption value of 20 points is $1.00. That is, for every 20 points you have, you can redeem them for $1.00 off of your order. A 100 point redemption would equal $5.00 off of your order. The bonus points are roughly equal to a 5% discount on each order once you have redeemed them.

How do you redeem your points? I am glad you asked. To redeem your points, first login to your Alabu account. After you are logged in, click on "Bonus Points" in the "Your Cart" section of the page. This will take you to the Bonus Points page. Read through the directions to gain a complete understanding of how the program works but in short, you click on the "Convert to a Gift Certificate" and convert your Bonus Points into a Gift Certificate that either you can use when checking out yourself or you can send it on as a gift to a family member or friend.

Alabu Farm
Some pictures from from around the farm.

Click on a picture to see a larger version.

Featured Feedback
We love hearing from our customers. We get a lot of notes each month and many we put up in our Testimonial section. We do not alter the notes that we get (other than the occasional spelling error or misplaced word). We thought it might be helpful to highlight one each month that we found particularly interesting.

Dear Alabu:
My hubby and I love your soaps he can use any kind and tries something different each time we buy some from you. I have had very bad allergies since I was born 54 years ago. I have even been in the hospital because of what some soaps has done to my skin. I like best the Baby Me, of course. Sometimes I can use the Tea Tree but like once or three times a month. I look forward to your newsletters. I love the pictures and the little comments you place under them. Thank you for helping me not to have to take baths with floating oatmeal and slippery baby oil. We love you.
Cindy - Fort Smith, AR

A reminder, we do offer free shipping on orders over $100.

Thank you for trusting us with your skin. We have been overwhelmed by all your continued interest and support. We are always trying to serve you better, please don’t hesitate to let us now how we’re doing and how we can better serve you. We take your trust seriously and intend to create the best natural products for your skin for you and your family. And as always if your ever in the neighborhood stop in and say hello to the goats.

Sincerely,

Maryclaire, Dean, & Hal

Spa Basket Drawing

My multi talented friend Kris; a milk maven and crafter (she makes the therapeutic rice bags and baby bootie bouquets for us) who never wastes an idle minute, decided she wanted to make something for our Alabu customers. She thought a Spa Baset would be just the thing. She has created a basket with everything you need to relax and get ready for summer. The Spa basket contains 4 bars of Alabu soaps (Purely Herbal, Tahitian Vanilla, Citrus Splash and Stress Relief), a large bag of Stress relief bath blasts, a 2 oz bottle of our Baby Face oil, a nylon bath puff, a spa eye mask and a bath pillow. The value of this basket is over $50.00. Every customer who orders over $50.00 by May 23rd will be entered into a drawing to win the basket. The drawing will be on May 23rd and the winner will be announced in the June newsletter. Good Luck to you all and thank you Kris!

In the News

In case you missed it last February 24 Daily Gazette Business section a very nice article was run on Alabu. We would like to thank you our customers for the great feedback we recieved and thank you for your continued business.

Read article

New Soap: Lavender Mint

Our Lavender Mint was made to fill a request. This person loved Lavender mint so much she would buy Lavender and Peppermint and bind them together with dental floss. We tried the combination and knew at once we had a winner. Relaxing Lavender and cool refreshing Peppermint. Lavender is said to relieve stress, headaches and help reduce the spread of colds and viruses. Mint is uplifting and said to relieve a headache, reduce mental fatigue, and increase alertness. This soap leaves you feeling soft, clean and refreshed.

Alabu Blog

Our son Hal has started a new blog on his experiences in the family soap making adventure. You can check it out here .

Featured Products
Lavender Mint Soap
Soap Of The Month
Foot Care Spa

Gift Items
Gift Baskets
Gift Packs
Baby Gifts
All Gift Items
Shaving Soap
Mug & Brush
Deluxe Mug & Brush
Moisturizer
Lotion Sticks
All Products

Coupon Reminder

When redeeming your coupon be sure to enter the entire code including the word

"COUPON-"

All Alabu coupon codes are in the form

COUPON-xxxx-##

See Alabu news-letters from previous months.