Regular readers will likely know that I am obsesses with tea. And I don't mean mildly obsessed. I fuel my addiction regularly with new tea varieties and teaware, but this particular tea-to-go mug is my favorite. Crafted of ceramic, it boasts double walls which help the tea stays hotter longer and also means it isn't uncomfortable to hold, even when freshly filled. I love the bold graphic design and the sandblasting adds texture making it even easier to grip. Snatch one up for just $12 at Stash and take your morning pick-me-up on the road!

Starting today, you'll be able to select a specific box type when shopping on our website. Sampler boxes will be assembled from the list of available samples based upon your preference, though we cannot guarantee the inclusion of any specific sample (they're all made fresh with each new batch of product and our selection varies from time-to-time). We can promise that you'll never receive duplicate samples within a single box.

Our hot-off-the-presses Sampler Box types include:
Facial Care+ Face & Body Masques
Peruvian Cocoa Azul Collection
Body Scrubs Honor Roll
Lotions, Cremes, & Body Oils
The Best of the Luxe Collections
Surprise Me! (completely random assortment)

So, if you’re new to Bella Luccè (or a loyal client who's itching to try something new), then we humbly suggest this golden opportunity to discover our incredible product collection. Our adorable “Goodies-To-Go” take-out box is brimming with a dizzying selection of our most beloved products. We like to call it: Maximum Bang for Minimum Bucks. Let us know what you think!

Celie spends summers in pottery camp and gets better at throwing pots on the wheel every single season. She also plays viola and bass, and Chloe guitar and flute. We've stood knee-deep in mud and driving rain to jam out during a 3-day music festival in Memphis. We travel to Emory University every spring to study Buddhist art during Tibet Week- everything from mandala and thangka workshops to mala-making classes to butter sculpture. Yes, butter. We've taken circus trapeze classes, though my core still has not recovered. And we once hosted an epic Halloween party with local firedancers/ breathers performing and an uber-cool end-of-school bash where bellydancers performed and taught the wee ones to balance swords atop their heads. Yes sir, we loooooove the arts.

I readily admit that I am often frustrated by the art offerings available locally, as we reside in a small capital city in South Carolina. But that frustration evolved into extreme pride last night as I watched Alternacirque's 2012 season opener "Dreams." This eclectic collective of fire dancers, aerial artists, hula hoopers, spoken poets, break and belly dancers, stiltwalkers and more are homegrown and some of the Southeast's finest. I have followed the group since their inception- an old journalist friend wrote a story about them and I've been checking in to see them whenever possible over the years. In fact, the fire troupe is the same one that graced our Halloween party in 2008 and the bellydancing troupe is the same one that wow'ed us at that summer party in 2009. Natalie Brown, the artistic director and founder, is a Hurricane Katrina refugee from New Orleans who brought an amazing vision and an abundance of chutzpah to Columbia- and we are all the better for it. I've seen Alternacirque perform in dimly lit bars and in outdoor parking lots with the most minimal budgets imaginable. But they have persevered, and fine tuned, and expanded their repertoire and dug in their heels and whoa....have they blossomed! Bella Lucce is a proud sponsor of their 2012 circus season and it is such a gift to have this caliber of vision and talent in our own backyards here in Columbia, SC. Last night's season-opening performance felt like a "coming out" party for a rowdy group of immensely talented circus kids who dared to plant their eclectic seeds in a town best known for its conservative political scandals.

Last night was the kickoff of their three-day "Festival of Doom" and the madness continues this evening with the "East Coast All-Star Undulating Abdomen Bellydance Show of Doom", featuring performers from across the Carolinas, Philadelphia, DC, Georgia, Tennessee, and Chicago. Saturday night will bring the "Circus, Sideshow & Burlesque Show of Doom" with acts from as far away as Seattle, and my favorites: the Wonderson Duo of acrobalance and aerial artististry from Charleston. Both events will be held at the CFMA Black Box at 941 Pulaski Street in Columbia (behind Gervais & Vine). Tickets are $13 at the door and will likely sell out, so get there early if you can. Please support the arts in your community...and come say "hi" if you're at the events this weekend- I'll be there. I promise it won't be your usual weekend fare!

Each row, moving left-to-right: Chloe learning to draw a geometrically correct Buddha at Emory University in 2009. Celie and her new viola, 2010. Chloe widening the neck of her first blown glass vase in Seattle, 2008. Chloe goofing around with a giant cosmic egg at the American Visionary Art Museum, Baltimore 2011. Chloe at the Tim Burton exhibit at the MOMA, New York City 2009. Celie with a poster signed by the West Side Story cast, Baltimore 2011. Celie learning how to care for her thangka painting from a Buddhist monk, Atlanta 2010. Bellydancers performing on our back deck at a party in 2009. Me, collecting my first "gather" of molten glass during glassblowing lessons, Seattle 2008. Chloe and Celie with a member of the Blue Man Group after a show, NYC 2009.

Check out our Peruvian Cocoa Azul Sugar Scrub on page 24 of the January/February issue of Vegetarian Times...on newsstands now!

Nine years ago, Bella Luccè introduced our famed Peruvian Chocolate Collection, which has since appeared in dozens of magazines worldwide and become a best-selling customer favorite. Now we're raising the bar once again, thanks to the reintroduction of our Peruvian Cocoa Azul Collection. New for 2012: a higher concentration of organics, elegant new graphics and more convenient packaging. The same luxurious textures and aromas you've come to love...

These decadent creations don't just smell of chocolate, they are chocolate. Created with golden cocoa butter, organic Dagoba cocoa and premium French cocoa absolute, we've harnessed the potent antioxidant powers of South American cocoa beans and given them a boost with the addition of real blueberries.

Six innovative new formulas have just made their debut and we'd love to know what you think. Right now, we invite you to save 20% on our new Peruvian Cocoa Azul collection. Just use code CHOCOLATECRAVING at checkout to reveal instant savings. We'll also tuck in a FREE Peruvian Chocolate Renewing Masque with any order of $45 or more. As always, FedEx ground shipping is complimentary for all order of $75 or more delivered to the lower 48 states.

Offer Expires: Friday, January 13th at 11:59pm EST
Complimentary Peruvian Chocolate Renewing Masque will be our older packaging style and will include our standard-sized 3 ounce masque. While supplies last.

* Welcomed more than 100 new spas within the U.S. to the Bella Luccè family

* Continued the work of our nonprofit, including our first aid distribution trip (which included the donation of more than 400 picture books to a local school and provisions of backpacks, personal hygiene and school supplies for 200 students at a rural school in Morocco, along with life-saving surgery for a young boy attending the school)

* Breathed new life into our famed Peruvian Chocolate Collection, relaunching it as our Peruvian Cocoa Azul Collection (we’ll do a big reveal later this week!)

* Updated the packaging and relaunched all three of our signature facial masques to improve their value for our clients

* Donated more than 2,000 pounds of product to two local organizations here in Columbia, SC: Harvest Hope Food Bank and Sister Care women’s shelter

* Used more than 9,500 pounds of botanical oil (the majority of it organic) and more 22,500 pounds of sugar in the creation of our sugar scrubs

* Appeared in more than 30 publications worldwide

* Distributed more than 45,000 pounds of sugar scrub and 38,000 pounds of lotion and crème worldwide

* Helped teach women in Morocco how to make soap using indigenous ingredients as a means of improving hygiene and promoting self-sufficiency

* Performed trainings at the annual hospitality training of Uniworld’s Global River Cruises in Vienna, Austria (voted #1 river cruise line in the world by Conde Naste magazine)

* Shipped orders to all 50 states and more than 3 dozen countries

* Our CEO (Lela Barker) visited Austria, Italy, Morocco, Dubai, Mexico and Thailand to speak at industry events, visit international distributors, perform philanthropic work and explore new product ideas and ingredient sourcing. That's more than 52,000 miles in the air...and a lot of jetlag.

* Offset 100% of our carbon emissions

* Added industrial, on-site recycling containers so that we can now recycle 100% of all cardboard incoming to our facility

* Hand-poured more than 35,000 lip balms

* Hosted two fundraising drives via Facebook, which resulted in $1,500 in donations to continue the amazing work of the people at Mercy Corps

* Sponsored a walk-a-thon in conjunction with the SC Alexander Graham Bell Association to promote awareness and raise funds devoted to providing hearing aids for deaf children in the Columbia, SC area

I am eager to see what triumphs and struggles the next year brings. Thank you for being a part of our journey and best wishes for joy, health and success in 2012!

Meet our new office mascot: Thoreau. He joined our family over the holidays and I stopped by the office today to introduce him to the Bella Lucce team. He'll soon be joining our other pup Emerson for naps under my desk! For those of you who may remember previous posts about my beloved dog Samadhi, you'll be pleased to know that Thoreau is a Keeshond, just like Sam. If Thoreau grows up to be just half the dog Samadhi was, I'll count myself infinitely lucky...

From all of us at Bella Lucce to each of you, we send you wishes for the happiest of holidays. May they be filled with joy and peace and may you feel our profound gratitude for your continued support...here's a phenomenal 2012!

A few weeks earlier, I had spied the most bizarre looking fruit at our local Fresh Market. I picked it up simply for the novelty, thinking my kids would find it curious. Once home, I did some research into Buddha's Hand citrons and learned that they are common temple offerings in Asia and also edible. As citrons, they have no pulp, no juice and no seeds, but they smell DIVINE. There's definitely a lemon note, but it mingle with gorgeous floral notes that fill your kitchen as soon as the fruit is sliced. "Closed hands" (as seen at the bottom of the picture) are most often temple offerings because they resemble praying hands, while "open hands" are used in cooking.

I studied up a bit and found that the most common use for Buddha's Hand is to infuse them in vodka. Not sure Buddha would approve, but the internet certainly seems to. I returned to Fresh Market the next day to discover the rare fruit had already sold out, but I found them by the case online at Pearson's Ranch in California for less than half of what I had paid in store! I ordered two cases, which is ummmm... a LOT of Buddha's Hands.

I ordered glass bottles and jars from Specialty Bottle, though this is a great opportunity to recycle old glassware. Alternately, you could probably find suitable glassware at Sur La Table, Crate & Barrel or your local craft shop. I began by giving each Buddha's Hand a thorough scrubbing with warm soapy water and leaving them to dry overnight. The next morning, I cut the "hands in half" with a knife, then separated the "fingers." From there, a vegetable peeler made quick work of creating strips of the citron. Literally, every part of the fruit can be used though I chose to just use outer strips for their gorgeous shock of yellow.

I slipped 6-10 long strips of citron into each bottle and topped each bottle off with Grey Goose. Though I hear that any budget vodka will work wonderfully, we're vodka snobs in my house and I wanted top-shelf. I sealed the bottles and left them in a dark spot for two weeks to infuse, shaking them every few days. Since the holidays are just a few days away at this point, you could create a gift tag that says "Don't open me until 2012!" to give everything time to infuse a bit. To finish each bottle off, I picked up some fun printed papers at the craft store and matched them to coordinating satin ribbon. Using a 2.5" craft punch, I made gift tags that I inscribed with holiday wishes and a description of the vodka. I wrapped each bottle in the ribbon and affixed a smaller "medallion: of the same paper using a glue dot to hold it all together. The wrapping was just pennies per bottle. The infused vodka is sublime and is lovely on its own. Mixing one-to-one portions of simple syrup and infused vodka yields a gorgeous Limoncello.

The vanilla sugar was a breathtakingly simple affair. My friend Melissa just returned from Madagascar and brought home a bounty of lush, fresh beans. I was fortunate enough to receive a handful, though most gourmet shops should carry beans with some "plump" left in them. We selected demerara sugar for the infusion and used candle jars from Specialty Bottle (though small mason jars would be adorable). Simply cut each fresh bean in half with a sharp knife, then use a spoon to scrape the tiny seeds. We filled a large, two quart bowl with sugar and dropped in the seeds of six fresh beans. Stir well. We stuffed the remaining shell of one bean into each empty jar, then used a soup ladle to fill each jar full of infused sugar. The flavor develops within days and is divine in coffee or tea and is lovely when sprinkled on fresh fruit. You can also substitute half of the sugar called for in any holiday recipe with this infused sugar for an extra dose of vanilla!

For the rosemary infused sea salt, I purchased a fresh rosemary tree (which is still adorning our table weeks later), along with kosher coarse salt and flake sea salt. We used a small food processor to grind four cups of coarse salt with a handful of fresh rosemary leaves. Once the rosemary leaves had been sufficiently shopped, we poured that rosemary/salt mixture into a large bowl and stirred in four cups of the sea salt flakes. Again with the candle jars filled with a soup ladle. We also stuffed each jar with a fresh rosemary sprig. I adore rosemary and these infused salts are perfect to sprinkle on chicken or vegetables.

At the end of the day, we created 48 gourmet gifts in record time and on a limited budget. The next day, Celie and I made the gift tags and tied it all up in ribbon in just a few hours. If you give these a whirl, let us know what you think...happy holidays!

Our Peruvian Chocolate Collection is getting a facelift! Launching January 6th, Peruvian Cocoa Azul is the natural evolution of the best selling collection in Bella Lucce's history. A more refined look, more convenient packaging and the addition of powerful blueberry and dark chocolate extracts to boost each product's antioxidant power. Never fear: we're maintaining the same luscious texture, aroma and premium ingredients that our clients adore.

In the meantime, we have limited stock of our Peruvian Chocolate Collection on sale at 50% off. I have no doubt that our shelves will be wiped clean in short order, so don't delay!

December 23 (Friday)
December 26 (Monday)
December 30 (Friday)

Additionally, our shipping will be slowed during the last week of the year as we conduct a full inventory, so please order early and plan accordingly. Happy holidays!

Here's how it works: Hop over to our Facebook page and upload pictures of your holiday decor. Multiple entries per individual are allowed, for a maximum of 6 per person. However, each entry must be unique. We’d love to see your light displays, menorahs, mantles and holiday trees. If you’ve decorated it for the holidays, it counts! A three-judge panel will select a favorite to win a $150 Bella Lucce gift certificate. We'll also randomly select another winner to receive a $50 Bella Lucce gift certificate.

The fine print: Contest is open only to U.S. residents aged 18 years and older. No purchase necessary to enter or win. Multiple entries per individual are allowed, for a maximum of 6 per person. Photos which we deem, at our sole discretion, to be inappropriate or "off subject" will be disqualified. Winner(s) will be selected within 24 hours of sweepstakes closure and will be promptly contacted via email. If winner(s) fail to respond within 5 days of notification, their prize(s) will be forfeited. This contest is sponsored by: Bella Lucce Ltd Co., 401 Western Lane Suites C-G, Irmo SC 29063. Void where prohibited by law. You must be 18 years or older to enter. Your information will be held in the strictest of confidence and will not be sold, rented or exchanged with any third party.

Swan Hill, Australia: The Beauty Spot
San Antonio, TX: Spa D’Sante
Miami, FL: Miami City Massage
Milton, VT: Highland Bodyworks
Queensland, Australia: The Rural Relaxation Centre
Safety Harbour, FL: Crimson Moon Spa & Boutique
Orlando, FL: Cypress Spa
Minneapolis, MN: The Perfect Getaway Day Spa
Maryville, TN: Morgan Place
Aldie, VA: Polish Cafe
Nassau, Bahamas: The Skin Centre
Monroe, WI: Urban Spa & Boutique

Click here to locate the nearest Bella Luccè stockist in your area... there are now more than 700 worldwide. If you're a spa or salon interested in hearing about our innovative products and treatments, we invite you to give us a ring at 800.485.3079!