Monday, February 14, 2022

Arts and Crafts with Kim Mullican - Book Soaps



It may be no surprise that creative types get crafty. But to tell you that story, I have to back up. 
I’ve spent most of my life with bad skin. For years, I suffered from rashes on my arms and legs. I’d have to go to the doctor and get prescriptions for oral and topical medications, all of which had side effects. I had to be very careful what laundry detergents I used because that could start the itch cycle all over again. 

A friend of mine was really getting into homesteading and talked to me about making her own soap. Soap the way our grandmothers used to make it starts off with lye and water. Lye, before mixed with fats, can be dangerous and cause burns. After the soaponification process is complete, there is no more danger. What you end up with is a perfect bar of long-lasting, natural soap. Of course, if you add color and fragrance, it’s no longer “natural.” However, it is still entirely more gentle than anything I can buy at the store. 

So, I decided to try for her and what I found, changed my life. I know people say that a lot, but for me, the old-school soap method literally changed my life and my skin. No more crying because my skin was itching, dry, blistered, and painful. No more oral steroids and topical creams. The first bar of soap I made was ugly as sin but my skin cleared up after my third shower. 

Of course, I could not stop there. I had to start adding my own creative twists on the old lye soap and now there are so many color and fragrance options, it became a lot of fun! Did you know you can use soap-like modeling clay that will eventually dry—no baking required?
It's true. 

Here’s a video of me making a book out of soap. 


Blood and Fire
Alpha and Omega
Book One
Kim Mullican

Genre: Urban Fantasy
Publisher:  Syn Publishing
Date of Publication: 01/17/2022
ISBN: 978-1-942632-39-9
ASIN:  B09NN4GLTZ
Number of pages: 160
Word Count: 62k
Cover Artist: Get Covers

Book Description: 

I am Maia Delacroix and I hunt people and relics. My life does not lack excitement or danger. I have it in spades.

Then the Mageri surprised me with an orphan...yes, an orphan. I can’t even keep a house plant alive, let alone a kid. It turns out that I’m her only living relative, and even though we’ve never met, I’m her only hope. Great. Can I feed her after midnight? What does she eat? I have no idea what I’m doing.

They tell me this little witchling will need care for a few years until she comes of age. The bizarre fire leaking out of Elaina’s hands is a pretty good indicator that she is no witch.

Then the coven comes—they want her back. Necromancers show up, turning my vampire friends into enemies. If that isn’t bad enough, I have a demon problem now too. 

Join me, and see if we can make it out alive!


Excerpt:

She leaned into me and sobbed.

I didn’t know her but damn if I didn’t suddenly feel responsible for her. How in the hell had that happened? Because I lost my mother too? Because this poor kid had big blue eyes and pleaded for me to help her? Damned if I knew.

She wiped her face on her shirt. “We should probably get some groceries.”

And we did. While she did buy some junk food, I was a little surprised at how much healthy stuff she put in the cart. She even claimed she knew what to do with it.

When she grabbed a box of Earl Grey tea, I laughed. “You liar!”

She looked slightly embarrassed. “My mom drinks it,” she looked down at the box, “she drank it.”

I snatched it out of her hand and threw it in the cart. “If nothing else, we’ll brew it just to sniff.”

She blinked back tears before grabbing a bag of coffee. “Sounds good.”

The bill at checkout nearly gave me hives. Did teenagers eat this much every week? The paperwork the attorney left did show a nice monthly allowance for necessities, but if the grocery bill was this much each week, I’m not sure how much would be left.

I tried to hide the shock from Elaina. My poker face must not be as good as I thought, however.

“Don’t worry, we had to get a lot of staple items this week. We won’t need this much each time.”

Smiling, I started piling bags in my truck. “You noticed my mini-stroke?”

She laughed. “I’ve never seen a mage turn white like that. It was like a vampire had sucked you dry.”

After returning home, she helped me put all the groceries away then volunteered to start making dinner. I poured a glass of wine and leaned against the counter, watching her. Something was niggling at the back of my head.

“I wanted to ask you about that awesome fireball you made earlier.”

I noticed the pause in her movements before she went back to work. That spoke volumes.

“Cool, huh,” she said, keeping her back to me.

“What kind of magic is that?” I asked. “I’ve never seen a witch make a fireball.” I studied her movements while she worked. Her hands started to shake a little. The topic made her nervous. Interesting.

Her shoulders rose and fell as she took a deep breath. “As it turns out, I’m not a witch. I turned twelve and mom put me through all of the usual tests. Nothing.” She shook spices on the meat in the pan.

“Wow, that must have sucked.” I was trying to stay on her level to keep her comfortable.

“Not really. She didn’t make a big deal out of it. I helped her with her projects, learned about ingredients, spells, and relics. Last year, I felt something.”

She turned and looked at me. “I don’t know how to explain it. It was like a switch flipped and I could feel something here,” she said pointing just below her sternum.

“Warm and kind of moving?” I asked.

She nodded. “Exactly, except sometimes it feels icy too.”

Warm and cold? Was this kid defective?

“Anyway, I told my mom. We were close and she was just, awesome. I always knew I could tell her anything. She said it was excellent. So, we went into the woods and tried several things.

Nothing I tried worked. Then she said to do what felt naturally. That’s when I cupped my hands and made a tiny light ball. It was the size of a marble.”

This made no sense. It didn’t sound like any magic I knew.

About the Author:

Kim Mullican is a cross-genre author with over 20 novels under her belt. She enjoys the farm life in Northwest Indiana with her husband. Between chasing chickens and herding cats, she and her husband enjoy gardening and old episodes of Top Chef.

Website: https://kimmullican.com/

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