Those who have seen us around at conventions will probably already recognize Chris. He's been a seasonal sales clerk for Contented Comfort for five years now, but that's been it. He came in to help at conventions and other events, but that was it. Not any more.

Chris is joining the team as our new Assistant Manager!

With his help, we hope to be able to continue bringing you terrific items to add some cute and geektastic touches to your home and growing. So everyone, please give him a warm welcome.

This year's Con Kasterborous was a mix of the familiar and a lot of firsts for us here at Contented Comfort. Chris and I saw a lot of familiar faces during set up the Friday night before and all throughout the weekend for me, and Sunday for him. Of course, everything was brand new for Allie since this was her very first year attending anything but set up.

For those who do not know, Allie came on as my apprentice back in December. She's a bit young, true, but she has a real passion for the types of fandoms we make items for, at least those she's allowed to watch or read. And she has both an artistic eye and a nose for perfumery. So she has been studying different aspects of the business around her school schedule for the past seven months.

As I've mentioned a few times, Contented Comfort was named with the idea it'd carry a variety of items designed to help our customers create a content and comfortable atmosphere in their homes: quality bath and body products, novels, and a variety of cosy blankets, quilts, house shoes, hats, etc. A couple of years later, the decision was made to focus heavily on fandom inspired items instead of more general fragrances and designs, and the original crochet and knit items fell by the wayside as the soaps and perfumes took off.

However, I've been wanting to get more into making crochet, knit, and sewn items in the past year, but I just haven't had much time to work on them. Then my eldest decided to come on board as my apprentice/assistant this year.

Work has begun brainstorming and designing 2018's new nine, and we want to hear from you. Some of our customers expressed disappointment there currently aren't any villains in our fragrance line up, so 2018 will be the year of the villain, anti-hero, and those characters that straddle the line between hero and monster.

I could always just pack the list with my own favorites and call it a day, but I don't want to do that. You're the one I work for, after all, so I want to hear what you'd like to see. 

Do you have a dastardly character you'd like to see in soap form or for whom you wish there was a fragrance? Comment down below or message me!

Anyone who has stopped by one of our booths at the various conventions and events we go to in the past few years knows I write fiction in addition to soaping, blogging, and vlogging. I have a novel and a collection of short works out now, and I'm well into the process of producing another novel. But, what you might not know is I've also been working on a series of flash fictions for a year now.

Each week since early February 2016, I've written a flash fiction story of 500 words of less based on first line prompts I either pulled from online sources or gotten from reader suggestions. At the end of March, I began making audio versions of the flash fictions and posting them each Friday over on Eng Family Vlogs. Then over time, the flash fictions began to intertwine and connect until I began to realize I'd created several new fictional "universes" in addition to adding to the three "universes" I've been writing in for years.

It's the time of year where I begin brainstorming the new permanent fragrances and designs for debut at Con Kasterborous in June.

Each year, we introduce nine new fragrances to be added to our permanent collection. Last year was an exception when a last minute request was just too good to push into the next line. So far, I have a couple solid ideas, but I want to hear from you. Everything we do here at Contented Comfort is to try to help make your life more contented, comfortable, and just all around awesome, after all, so your input is key!

What are some characters, series, or general concepts you would like to see rendered in soap? Do you have a specific fragrance idea you'd love to try? Leave a comment below or contact me directly to leave your request, and I'll see what I can do to bring them to life.

When I first started Contented Comfort, the idea behind it was just what you'd expect given the name. I knew I wanted to sell the soaps I was making. I got started in an effort to make keeping clean a more comfortable experience for my family, and then I began hearing similar stories from others. It made sense.

Then the idea grew. I had begun learning to knit and crochet several months before I started soaping. Even after I finished making items for my family, I wanted to keep up with the hobby. (The warnings are true. Fiber arts can quickly become almost an addiction. There's something very therapeutic about watching a project grow stitch by stitch and knowing you are the one making it do so.) Then there are the books I wanted, no needed, to write. Half the point of writing is to share those stories, so trying to sell them is a natural extension of it. I wanted to find a way to combine all of these ideas and desires under the umbrella of one business. Contentment and comfort are two words that sprung to mind when I thought about being clean, snuggled up under a cozy blanket, and reading, so that's how the business got its name.

So why did I decide to focus on fandom inspired fragrances and items in 2013?

As you might have noticed, there have been a few changes to the website in the past week. I've tried to make the navigation menus as user friendly as possible, and everything has been updated.

Have you ever wondered what goes on with a small business behind the scenes? We're giving you a peek behind the curtain, so to speak, this week.

We had our first event of the year on the 19th, and this past week and a half has been busy as a result. More of our inventory is sold at events than it is during any given week online, so there's always a flurry of activity following each and every one. This applies to the earlier shows of the year more than ones later in the season.