What's the deal with "SomethingSpecial from Wisconsin"?

ShineyGoat.com is proud to be Certified Something Special from Wisconsin by the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection.  To be certified, a company must apply to the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade & Consumer Protection and attest that a minimum of 50% of the value added for products, commodities or services intended to be included in the  Something Special from Wisconsin program must be attributable to Wisconsin ingredients, manufacturing, production or processing activities.  To display the logo, a company must apply for permission to utilize the logo for that product.  Our milk, both dairy goat and dairy cow, is a Wisconsin product.  We manufacture and package our ShineyGoat.com line of bath and body products right here in the Dairy State.  Uncle Buck Ventures, llc, our parent company, is proud to call Wisconsin home.  We grew up here, we work here, we live here, we play here.  Our state moto is "Forward", and that is where we as a company are moving.  On Wisconsin!

What's so great about Shea Butter? 

According to the American Shea Butter Institute, not only is Shea Butter known to be an excellent moisturizer for the face, body & hair, but it has healing properties as well.  The Vitamin A in Shea Butter is important in improving a number of skin conditions, including blemishes, wrinkles, eczema & dermatitis.  Additionally, premium Shea Butter cream has properties that can treat skin allergies (bug bites, poison ivy & poison oak), frostbite, sunburns and razor burns, and many other skin conditions.  The Vitamin E in Shea Butter may help in anti-aging and be an anti-free radical agent, but more testing needs to be done.  Unrefined shea nut butter has been found to act as a natural SPF of approximately 6. As you can see, Shea Butter is valuable for more than treating, itchy, dry skin, it can help heal small skin wounds and has been found to even have anti-inflammatory properties for those tense, sore muscles. www.sheainstitute.com

Where Does Shea Butter Come From?

Shea Butter is a fatty extract derived by crushing the seed of the Karite tree, or TREE OF LIFE.  Native to Africa, it grows wild in the semi-arid Sahel region of West Africa.  Many women in rural areas there make a more comfortable living for their families by making Shea Butter available to the rest of the world for it's amazing, all-purpose cosmetic and healing benefits.  So much so, that it has been called "women's gold" for the economic benefit it brings directly to some of the poorest places in the developing world.   Not many other developing countries can boast the same.  In comparison, even without depressed prices in the world market, coffee, cocoa & cotton when exported as commodities tend to yield their benefits to the governments, corporations or middlemen.  Shea Butter production and export are incredibly important in increasing access to global markets for poor, working women in a world where the majority of producers tend to be men and anything but poor, because the collection of shea nuts and the crushing of them into butter is considered women's work.   http://www.un.org/ecosocdev/geninfo/afrec/vol15no4/154shea.htm

What's so Great about Goat's Milk?

For thousands of years Milk has been used in a variety of skin care products.  The most famous perhaps being Cleopatra, who is said to have preserved her renowned beauty that snared Mark Anthony by bathing in the milk of goats and horses.  The soothing and moisturizing qualities of goat milk have been revered for centuries for it's gentleness to even delicate, damaged skin.   So much so that the Greeks and Romans used milk products to treat skin injuries.  In nineteenth century Europe, whey (the watery part of milk separated from the curd in the cheese making process) was a sought after therapy for skin in spas.  From ancient times to today, milk and milk products have been an excellent source for nutrition, medicine and cosmetics.  Goat milk is known to be well tolerated by those with allergies to cows milk, even those who react adversely to soy milk replacements.  Due to it's high fat content,  it lends itself well to the soap making process.  Higher fat content translates directly into a better moisturizing cleanser.  This is why Whole Goat Milk produced by our farming friends here in Central Wisconsin goes into our soap, not powdered milk.  Because of Goat Milk's low pH, the alkalinity of soap is reduced preserving the acid mantel which healthy skin uses to reduce bacterial invasions.  Some Dermatologists recommend Goat Milk Soaps to  heal skin conditions such as psoriasis, eczema and acne, as well as gently relieving dry, itchy skin.  http://www.realfoodliving.com/goatmilk.htm, http://www.goatworld.com/articles/whygoatmilk.shtml

What's so Great about Handcrafted Bath & Body Products?  

When handcrafting our Goat Milk Soaps and Shea Butter Skin Care Products, we use the small batch method.  We feel we are better able to maintain the high quality standards that ShineyGoat.com has imposed on all it's products.  It is more labor intensive and time consuming to do it that way, but anything worth doing is worth doing correctly, and for ShineyGoat.com, providing this level of quality across the board in safe, effective bath and body products is a labor of love.  Pride of this level in a product this intimate is a rarity in this increasingly impersonal world, and that is why ShineyGoat is so tickled to bring these products direct to you.  Please see our About Our Soaps http://shineygoat.com/page/21444 page for additional information about what goes into our soap, and what does not.  There you'll also find information on how to care for your soaps to make your investment last.

What's so Great about Cocoa Butter?  

Cocoa butter is derived from the Cocoa Bean.  As with most vegetable based oils, it is a beneficial moisturizer for the skin.  Cocoa Butter has been rumored to help heal scar tissue or stretch marks, but the jury is still out.  Cocoa Butter will how ever, help reduce or prevent stretch marks fresh stretch marks, such as during pregnancy, though old, existing ones may be another story entirely.  It is a very stable vegetable fat and is very high in anti-oxidants, which will help prevent rancidity in other vegetable oils.  It's smooth texture lends well to the creamy texture of foods and bath & body products.  Cocoa Butter lends to the aroma of chocolate and helps it remain solid at room temperature, but to melt in your mouth.  http://www.insightempire.com/cocoa-butter/

What's so Great about Olive Oil?  

Olive oil is used as an anointing oil by Christians and Jews alike.  The ancient Greeks and Jews used it to anoint their kings or athletes.  To those who follow Islam, the prophet Muhammad advised his followers to apply it to their bodies.  It has also been used for every day health measures and is generally non-commedogenic (won't clog pores). The Greeks used oil to clean their bodies. In lieu of soap at the baths, olive oil was applied to the body then scraped off with special tools. In the time of Muhammad, putting oil on the hair may have been considered a health measure as it discouraged lice and seborrheic dermatitis (dandruff).  Olive oil on the body may help prevent dry skin conditions and eczema and is a mild antibacterial agent just like your natural skin oils. www.oliveoilsource.com

How can I avoid a back order on my favorite scent of Goat Milk Soap?  

We suggest placing your next order as soon as you crack open the box for your last bar, or better yet, your next to last bar of soap.  Handcrafted soap must cure and ShineyGoat.com soaps are aged a minimum of 3 weeks to assure mildness, and the small batch method helps assure first rate quality.  As such, occasionally, due to a particular scents burst of popularity, we may sell out of our small inventory.  We strive to bring you fresh, mild product.  Remember this ordering tip to assure that even should your favorite scent be temporarily out of stock, that you'll receive your shipment before you are really "out" of soap. Bookmark us http://shineygoat.com/home

Yikes!  My Shea Sugar Shine arrived melted!  Is it ruined?  

No way, it's ok.  Keep in mind that one of the properties that makes shea butter such a great moisturizer is it's low melting point, about body temperature.  So, if your Shea Sugar Shine was shipped in the warmer months, chances are it arrived melted.  No worries.  Simply place it in the refrigerator to set up and then stir to reconstitute the sugar.  Ta-dah!  Good as new!

Will ShineyGoat take Returns? 

We cannot take returns on opened or used items, sorry.  It is for sanitary reasons.  ShineyGoat.com goes to great lengths to provide a quality product that we are confident you'll be satisfied with.  However, if you are unsatisfied with your unopened, unused Dancy Rose products in the first 30 days, please use the e-form on our contact us page with "Returns" in the subject line to discuss your issue with the product.  We will not accept a return of product without return approval.   We will do our best to accommodate you.  Please allow 3 business days for a personalized response.  At ShineyGoat.com  we appreciate our customers, we are here to serve you, and while the customer may not always be right, the customer always deserves to be heard.  If you have a problem with us, tell us; if you're happy with us, tell a friend! 

Can I Track My Order?

Of course.  Use the link at the top of the page to access our "Track Order" page to see what phase of processing your order is in.  We ship as quickly as we can, direct from our suppliers to be sure you're enjoying your purchases as soon as possible. http://shineygoat.com/tracking

What if My Question wasn't Answered Here?

If you have a question or need help that wasn't addressed here, use our e-form on our contact us  page with "Questions" in the subject line.  We'll do our absolute best to get back to you within 48 business hours with a personal response.  Remember, we actually want to hear from you!

Want to submit a Testimonial or make a Product Request?

We'd be tickled to hear from you if you're happy with our site, our service or our chosen line of products.  Have an idea?  Need a gift basket for that special occasion?  Just ask and we'll do our best to accommodate.  Dancy Rose Soaps make great gifts!  Direct these comments, requests and testimonials using our e-form on our contact us  page and allow us 3 business days to get a personal response to you. 

Why the 3 Business Days Wait for a Personal Response?

We are a small family business and keep manpower low to bring you the best prices we are able.  This means there may be a small wait until we can make a personal response, however, we promise that we will do our best to respond to you.  Our autoresponder will make the initial contact, but a caring individual will always make the follow up.

l'm expecting an email from you yet I still see no response?

Check your spam folder and be sure we are enabled to send you an email.  Yahoo Mail's spam filter is notorious for this.

What are other ways to contact the Goat?

You can find us on Facebook.  Look us up at http://www.facebook.com/pages/shineygoatcom/104729608624. 

What's the deal with Parabens and do ShineyGoat products contain them?

Parabens  are a group of compounds widely used as anti-microbial preservatives in food, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics products, including underarm deodorants. Parabens are absorbed through intact skin and from the gastrointestinal tract and blood. Measurable concentrations of six different parabens have been identified in biopsy samples from breast tumors. The particular parabens were found in relative concentrations that closely parallel their use in the synthesis of cosmetic products. Parabens have also been found in almost all urine samples examined from a demographically diverse sample of U.S. adults and have been linked to increased breast cancer risk.  You can find more information at http://www.breastcancerfund.org/site/pp.asp?c=kwKXLdPaE&b=1203361 ,  http://www.organicconsumers.org/bodycare/paraben011304.cfm , http://www.cancer.org/docroot/MED/content/MED_6_1x_Antiperspirants.asp?sitearea=MED, and http://www.thinkbeforeyoupink.org/Pages/CosmeticCompanies.html to name a few. 

ShineyGoat products do not utilize parabens.  We have cancer survivors in our family. Why take unnecessary risks?  Be an informed consumer, be a safe consumer.

Why do you ship USPS Priority Mail?

We believe shipping USPS Priority Mail to be the best value.  Quick shipping is balanced with affordable rates and standardized packaging.  Our handling fee is kept as low as possible to get you the best rate.

Your shipping seems expensive.  Why?

We do not try to hide our shipping costs in our product costs.  When you process an order you will see the USPS Priority Base Rate reflected and a small per item shipping adjustment & handling fee applied to your order.  We try to charge as close as possible to actual shipping costs to you to keep our product costs down.  We value that kind of honesty and hope you, as our valued customer, do too.

l read the disclaimer "Use Common sence: If irritation occurs, Discontinue Use" on the product.  What's up with that?

While we list all ingredients on the lable for those with allergies (food or otherwise) to be informed consumers, we cannot know if you will have a reaction to our products.  Disclaimer: Uncle Buck Ventures, LLC, ShineyGoat.com and all it's agents cannot be held liable if you choose to disregard this product warning lable or if products are misused and cause injury.  Product usage is at your own risk.  We give you all the information we have on the ingredients/processes we use to make these products.  Be an informed consumer, read the lables and product warning lables/disclaimers.  Be a good consumer, use common sence and discontinue use if you show sensitivity to a particular product/variation and do not purchase an item that contains ingredients you know to cause you irritation.  These products are tested on ourselves and are considered safe for use at point of sale to the best of our knowledge, thus they are "as is" and no liability shall fall back on Uncle Buck Ventures, llc, ShineyGoat.com or any of it's agents.  Thank you. 

Are these products ANIMAL FRIENDLY?

These products are never tested on animals by us.  We are the guinea pigs, we test on ourselves, so to the best of knowledge they are safe for use.  If you have an allergy, please read the lable and do not use product containing ingredients you are sensitive to.  If you have a question if an ingredient you know you are allergic to is used in a particular variation or product, ask.  This is not a secret sauce.  We want you to use our product with confidence and enjoy it.  We do not hide ingredients, we can't.  That's against the law.  All ingredients are disclosed on the packaging.  However, should you notice sensitivity or irritation while using a particular variation/product, discontinue use.  Uncle Buck Ventures, llc, ShineyGoat.com nor any of it's agents can be held liable for product misuse, abuse or should you decide not to discontinue using at the first sign of irritation.