Sun Wind and Rain Blog

The new Belle de Provence Floral Line is a fanciful bohemian collection full of lush, deep floral notes. Introduced in three scents, Water Lily, Gardenia, and Primrose, this blossoming line re-invents the gardens of Provence in a vibrant and fresh fashion. The entire line is paraben free and made in France. The products available in this line are as follows:

• 115g Bar Soap – a French-milled, vegetable based soap, infused with lush floral notes; each bar is presented in its own individual gift box. The vibrant packaging mirrors the liveliness of the scents.

• Body Lotion – infused with shea butter and almond oil, this lotion leaves skin soft and delicately scented.

• Shower Gel – rich and refreshing, this shower gel will transport you to the over-flowing gardens of Provence.

• Foam Bath – dazzlingly scented, this foam bath is designed to create a luxurious and relaxing bathing experience. Directions: Pour desired amount into running bath water and enjoy!

• Liquid Soap/Liquid Soap Refill – brightly scented this Marseille style liquid soap is paraben free and infused with shea butter and coconut oil, which leaves the hand moisturized and clean.

• Fragrance Diffuser – a fresh and easy way to scent the home, the new floral diffusers from Belle de Provence circulate the flourishing fragrances of Provencal gardens throughout the home. Each one lasts 2-4 months and is perfect for powder rooms and hostess gifts! Available in all three fragrances.

Made by Belle de Provence, this collection is infused with olive leaf extract, which is not only a fantastic moisturizing agent; it also intensifies and deepens all of the scents added therein. This makes for a collection of heady herbal fragrances sure to please any Provence fan! Furthermore, these products are vegetable based (even the dyes), not tested on animals, housed in recyclable packaging, and made in France.

The five fragrances in the line are as follows:

· Lavender – a true lavender fragrance, deepened by the olive oil. The proven soothing effect of lavender can be readily observed therein.

· Sage – a warm and robust apothecary experience, this fragrance is also enjoyed by men and (the shower gel especially) can be recommended as a gift idea.

· Verbena – a lemongrass fragrance, this is the most universal of the line. It is clean and fresh!

· Rosemary – based on the aromatic plant extract, the rosemary is a deeply herbal outdoor delight.

· Mint – cooling and invigorating this fragrance is comprised of mint, pepper, and lavandin (part of the lavender plant). It is a refreshing departure from the every day!

The products available in the line are as follows:

· 100g/200g Bar Soaps – hard-milled (to last), and vegetable dyed, these soaps are enriched with olive oil. They are made in the tradition of the famous “Savon de Marseille” and cleanse skin, keeping it healthy and soft.

· Liquid Soap/Liquid Soap Refills – this liquid hand soap is infused with cold pressed olive oil which stimulates the skin. It leaves hands soft and clean after frequent use. The herbal fragrances are great for the kitchen and are sold in plastic bottles for safety!

· Bath and Shower Gel – a bath and a shower gel, this product is infused with cold pressed olive oil. Its moisture rich formula leaves skin supple, smooth, and gently scented.

· Body Lotion – infused with olive oil and olive leaf extract, this moisturizing body lotion leaves skin silky soft and very touchable. It is vegetable based and has not been tested on animals.

· Olive and Verbena Hand Cream – the Belle de Provence Hand Cream offers real protection against the damaging effects of bad weather. Enriched with 10% olive oil and 10% shea butter, it is thick without being too greasy. It nourishes and protects hands all day long.

· Olive and Mint Foot Cream – enriched with shea butter, this luxurious foot cram is rich, refreshing, and non greasy. It is infused with olive oil and scented with cooling Mint, leaving tired, achy feet feeling invigorated and revived. The intense hydrating formula conditions the soles and seals in moisture for a lasting effect.

· Room Spray – robustly scented, these room sprays match their body counterparts quite closely in fragrance and feel. Just a few sprays will fragrance the area for hours! Great for powder rooms and hostess gifts.

· Olive Oil Guest Soap Box (6×25g) – small soaps for guests in beautiful Provencal fragrances: olive lavender, olive mint, and olive verbena. Enriched with shea butter and olive oil, they gently clean all skin types.

History

After two generations of furniture manufacturing, Bob and Belle Cooper founded The Uttermost Company in 1975, and it is still 100% owned by the Cooper family. Bob and Belle continue to be involved in the business, but are not active in day-to-day activities. Mac Cooper, President/CEO, Taz Cooper, Exec VP/Sales Manager, and a strong management team operate the business today.

Uttermost has enjoyed steady growth for the past 32 years, and now has approximately 290 employees working in its Rocky Mount, Virginia factories totaling 600,000 square feet. Uttermost also has a factory in China which covers an entire city block, and a sales force of 120 representatives throughout North and South America, Europe, Asia, etc. In May ’06, Uttermost will be fully operational out of its state-of-the-art West Coast distribution center. This West Coast facility has been added to increase distribution capacity, provide faster shipping to West Coast Retailers, and reduce freight costs to these Retailers.

Uttermost is proud to support many of the most prestigious home-furnishing Retailers in the world with our products and service. The growth of Uttermost is primarily due to our commitment to three things: superior service to Retailers, maximizing the value of the products we make through better design and sharp pricing, and treating our employees, sales representatives, and designers as partners in business. This commitment stems from our stated mission and culture.

Uttermost manufactures mirrors, art, metal wall art, lamps, accessories, clocks and lighting fixtures.

Mission

Our mission is simple: to make great home accessories at a reasonable price. This has been our objective from the day we started 32 years ago.

Products

United Way of the Lakeshore is inaugurating their first Rubber Ducky Derby to raise funds to benefit Lights On After School, an out of school time initiative which provides high-quality, fun, safe havens, where youth are supported in reaching their fullest potential. Current Lights On sites include the following elementary schools:

Oakview, Grace Loftis, Orchard View, Ealy and Oehrle

On Labor Day at 11:30 am Monday September 1st, the Ducks will be released at Michigan Adventure’s Water Park and the first Duck across the finish line wins $1,000! Other prizes will be available as well. You do not have to be present to win.

Synergy, a local Muskegon retailing group, has ‘adopted the ducks’ for a joint summer fund raiser in support of United Way of the Lakeshore and Lights on After School. Synergy will receive a dollar for every duck they sell and these collective proceeds will also go toward to a non profit of their choice. Just another way local retailers are working together to help build Muskegon and give back to the community that support their local retailers.

To help support this good cause buy a commemorative rubber duck at the following retailers:

Sun Wind & Rain, Jilly’s Gallery, Clay Avenue Cellars & The Station Gallery, Art Cats Gallery, McDonald’s Homemade Candy, Mia & Greace Bakery-Bistro, the Cheese Lady, Hegg’s Gallery of Fine Furniture, Glamazon Salon Muskegon Mercantile Museum Gift Ship LST Gift Shoppe, Wassermans’ Floral & Gifts, & Muskegon Museum of Art.

Ducks are also available at local Huntington Bank locations.

For more information or to volunteer for the event contact De’Ondra Pentecost at the United Way office – 231-722-3134 ext 229.

This is Penney’s bio. She will be one of the featured artists at our Sun Wind and Rain event on July 25th.

“My husband Jim and I with our two Golden Retrievers moved to Muskegon in December of 2006. We chose Muskegon as our place to retire, with the lakes, beaches and our 11 acres to roam. The area has so many things to offer, tremendous fishing for Jim and great subject matter for me to paint.

I have always done Art in some form or another from Drawing to Oil Painting. Five years ago while living at the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri. I began to take on Watercolor. In 2005 we moved to Des Moines, Iowa where I was able to take many Watercolor Classes. Last November I traveled to Charleston, South Carolina to take a Workshop with Nationally Renowned Artist Mary Whyte. I have admired Mary for several years and to take her workshop was a great privilege for me as well as encouraging.

I had the pleasure May thru June to display some of my work at the Betty Clark Gannon Gallery.Watercolor has been one of the most challenging mediums I have worked with but also the most fun. Every painting has been a new experience leading me to the next. It has become my true passion.”

This is our first invitation to be put online! We are very excited about having this new avenue to make you aware of our events. We will be featuring 3 very different artists at our July 25th event. Check out David Warmenhoven’s photos and information that will give you a great idea of what he does. Hear more about Penney Smaardyki in my blog post. I don’t have information to post on Gretchen Cline so you will just have to come to the event to see her work which is uniquely strong and insightful. I met Warmenhoven when I was working on the art project for the Arts & Humanities Festival in 2002. His work is contemporary big and bold and I love it! Its playful, thoughtful and puts fire to your inner child!

Art’s in the Air!

Come celebrate summer with Sun Wind & Rain as we feature the art of three distinctively different artists:

David Warmenhoven
Penny Smaardyk
Gretchen Cline

Come enjoy light hors d’oeuvre and summer cocktails.
Friday, July 25th from 5:00pm-8:00pm

What started out as Spaniola’s grocery store in 1916 is now Sun Wind & Rain, an inviting boutique featuring unique gifts for the home and person. Jewelry Designer and proprietor Filis Slater is committing to retail in downtown Muskegon with the opening of her store, a new ‘life style’ boutique at 477 W. Western Avenue. Filis is a Muskegon native who spent most of her adult life between the mountains of Colorado and the high deserts of Arizona. While living in these two dramatic and contrasting environments, she grew to love and appreciate all the vivid and subtle colors found in the plant and wild life that surrounded her.

Wanting to incorporate this awareness of nature’s hues and forces, she began designing for the office and home, using color and light to insure those who entered a feeling of goodness and warmth…a sense of being welcomed and at home. Filis has brought this talent to her new ‘life style boutique’. She knows how to create a special sense of invitation and beckoning, understanding that this is ‘home’ during the day for her and all who visit her store. Filis has moved back home and brought new life to one of Muskegon’s historical sites on Western Avenue.

She welcomes your visit!