Miss K's Aromaleigh Blog

IMPORTANT NEWS! Re-opening date has changed to 9/18 (formerly 9/9)

** Some important news to share... please share this on your blogs, social networks, forums you frequent, etc! **

I am making this the new featured post on the blog and will shortly update the website.

I've decided to allow some more time for all of us here at Aromaleigh, and extend our break a little bit longer.

I've been posting 9/9 in hundreds of Tweets in the Twitter feed announcing the inventories that will be available, but please switch gears with me and the new date will be 9/18, which is a Saturday!

I'll repaste in some of the update information from the original 9/9 blog post, as well as some updates for you!

I hope you are all enjoying the end of your summer, and all of the busy times and excitement of the back to school days and the return of Autumn...

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I'm making this a featured post, since it contains all the important info you'll need to know about what's going on at Aromaleigh right now, over the next several weeks and most importantly, when we reopen with our final inventory sale on September 18th (NEW DATE!)!

The last of the website and vault orders shipped out on AUGUST 19th... all going priority mail, so you should have received them if not already, very soon.

(remainder is previous update from 9/9 announcement which gives you some background about the processes we've been doing with inventory and counting, and what to expect when the final clearance sale begins on 9/18 (MARK THAT NEW DATE ON YOUR CALENDAR!)

Other than that, what's going on is a lot of counting. We're counting out exactly what's left of all products and determining a final number for each color, in every collection. Many of the face powders and items that were unorderable during the chaotic last 2 weeks are now being packaged into what's left of our 20 gm and 10 gm jars... so we're basically taking our backstock (large jars of product) and packaging the small amounts that are left into jars for products such as Perle, Pure Rouge, Gothic Lolita Rouge, Coquille, Silk Powder, Ultra Res Powder, Luminesce Divine, Rocks Rouge, Twilight Supernatural (we're going to pack what's left of these into 10 gram jars!), and others...

Many things are completely sold out- in jarred inventory, backstock jar as well as the ingredients needed to make more. What we're making available on September 18th represents all that we've got left, as we have not made any new backstock for weeks now.

Individual samples will no longer be orderable. We are putting together sample sets of all collections that have full sample inventory, and the remaining shades will be offered as "Grab bag" style selection- how we organize and offer these remaining samples depends on what's left after the sets are put together. More news on that as we progress!

We're going to keep counting and doing inventory for a few days and then I am going to do something unheard of... rest! I will be checking my email, but I will not be working during this time. If you have any order queries or corrections, I will get back to you within 2-4 business days, but anything that needs to be shipped out, etc- will be done when we reopen on September 18th, so then mailed on September 20th.

I'm taking a much-needed break, and am going to be limiting my computer use as much as is humanly possible. With all that has happened the last few years in life and work, and the intense stresses of 2010, I probably could use several months off. But for now, 3 weeks will have to do! Thank you for your patience and understanding.

Here's some important details to note which apply to the 9/18 FINAL CLEARANCE SALE!

1. Delayed turnaround time is to be anticipated. Please allow 5-10 business days for your order to be internally processed. Shipping method will remain Priority Mail for the remainder of the clearance. The minimum order is $20, as it was for the ADIEU35 sale.

2. When you receive a shipment notification, this means that a label has been made for your order and it is moving into the "Filling" stage, where the items are placed in your order, checked off, and the order is packed and labeled. Receiving a shipment notice DOES NOT mean that your order has shipped. Please read the text of the notice- your shipment notification will include an estimation of how many business days you should expect it to take before you order leaves Aromaleigh.

3. I regret that we will not be reopening for International Shipping again. International customers, you will need to have a friend or relative in the United States order for you, with their credit cards or PayPal accounts, and ship to their billing address or confirmed paypal address. Then they can ship the items to you. We are not able to accept ANY international payment forms, so you can't pay with your PayPal account or international credit card and ship to the United States. Doing this will result in cancellation of the order, without notice.

4. All Final Clearance discounts on the website will be as marked. There will be NO additional coupon to enter at checkout. This is a change from the 9/9 update. With many orders coming in where coupon codes were not entered, or shoppers did not know about the ADIEU35 code, I decided that it would be much easier for all of you if the deeply-discounted final sale prices were already programmed. For this reason, NO additional coupons may be applied to the final clearance orders. All coupons will be non-functional. ALL eyeshadows will be marked down to $4 each. Rocks Glitters will be $3.50 each. I have not yet gotten to programming or determining prices for other products, but it will be roughly, 40-50% off site-wide.

4. Vault sales (blog sales) will reopen on September 18th also. Vault sale orders are separate from Aromaleigh.com website orders and no discounts or coupons are applicable to these sales, nor will any work. No international shipping, payment via PayPal only.

 

IMPORTANT: PLEASE DO NOT PRE-FILL YOUR SHOPPING CART BEFORE SEPTEMBER 18th! This will cause complex issues with our inventory system and will result in availability issues with your order most likely causing it to be canceled. I am trying to find a way to disable the "add to cart" buttons without having to take hours to "undo" each button individually. Yahoo store systems sadly do not have an "off" switch, or a "disable shopping cart" button... how I wish they did! So please, do not add items to your cart prior to our reopening... and if you have items in your cart, please empty the cart prior to shopping with us on or after September 18th. THANKS~!

 

That's about it for now... please follow us on TWITTER as updates will be made as inventory is counted, announcing what shades we have left, so that you can make note of this and plan your future order.

Right now September 18th (formerly September 9th!) is the date to mark on your calendar. I don't anticipate having to move the date forward again, since this additional time will give us ample opportunity to refresh AND prepare. When we reopen, myself and my staff will be ready to start back to work after a pleasant, long break from the last few months of very intense order processing, shipping and inventory.

As a small indie company, it's always difficult to be able to provide benefits that larger businesses provide, such as vacation time, sick days, paid holidays, health insurance and the like... these are parts of running a business that can be somewhat frightening and overwhelming to us all- sometimes so much that we put off hiring staff because of it!

But... I have to say that my staff has worked so hard in the last few months that they truly deserve every hour of this bonus time off. Out of respect for the very hard work and devotion that my staff has shown for the last 3 months since announcing the closing of Aromaleigh, this is time to rest, relax and rejuvenate which is just as important for them as it is for me. That all is, well... priceless. And I know it will all work out.

My staff  will continue to work with me through the final clearance sale and then move forward with me into whatever my next creative journey is. My closing Aromaleigh was not a selfish decision, and in many ways it was not a decision at all. It was something that had to be done. Which is why I never faltered in my announcement. There will be no "dramatic comeback" for Aromaleigh. I will find an outlet for my creativity that brings me joy, and in turn, I hope... others! But my goal in life right now? Peace. Serenity. Healing. Solitude. Precious time with my son. And in time, a new creative path that is rejuvenating, beautiful, and a great metamorphosis.

I've been doing a lot of reading lately, and some of the books I'm reading are "Care of the Soul" by Thomas Moore. "The Molecules of Emotion" by Candace Pert. "Love, Freedom, Aloneness" by Osho. But the book that some of you might find most relevant to the constant conflict of our positive and negative aspects is "The Secret of Shadow" by Debbie Ford. It's about accepting your entire being... "warts and all"... because the parts of yourself that you want to hide, lose, cover up, cast off or bury... are part of you- every single aspect of you is part of an overall "recipe" that creates "you" as a whole. 

There are many things about myself that I have seen as weaknesses, faults, or shortcomings- that I have been trying to change or "fix" for years now... and honestly? I think it didn't do a single bit of good. Instead of working with my weaknesses or faults, I was fighting against them and trying to remove them. It's only in having time to slow down, rest, and let my mind be at peace, that I am now able to see these things. I know that many of you also have these constant opposing forces within yourself (not sure that there is a human being who doesn't!). Accepting your whole self and integrating all of your qualities rather than separating them and trying to remove certain ones is the key to overcoming the shadows that each one of us, over time, have attached ourselves to.

For example, I am very sensitive. I have always seen this as a fault, even though this sensitivity has very positive aspects to it. I am learning how to view it differently, and how to see this aspect of myself as something which I can effectively integrate into my life- in other words, allow my sensitivity to work for me, rather than against me. It's not about getting rid of my sensitivity, but rather about seeing it from a different perspective and joining it with the rest of the things that make me, well... ME. If I continued to try to remove my sensitivity, I'd also be removing a crucial part of me which is, for instance- the part of me which that creatively interfaces with the world around me, allowing me to react artistically/creatively at a deeper level. I wouldn't want to remove that part of me.

I highly recommend the book "The Secret of Shadow". Because without darkness, there simply cannot be light.

So take some moments for yourself... life is so short, really... Stress I do believe, is slowly killing us cell by cell... not to mention the havoc it wreaks on our neurons and the delicate balances in our bodies.

So yes, I do intend to regain health, peace, joy, and many things... but I also intend to embrace my shadows and see them in a new light. Because they are part of me in as much as the positive things that I am blessed to have. This concept is, of course, nothing new. Yin? Yang? Chi.

When I arrived home from my first Kung Fu belt test and was cleaning out my bag, I found a large yin & yang "chip"... I carry it in my wallet as a reminder of the need for constant balance between light and dark. It's a mystery to me where it came from, but I think it ended up in my bag for a reason!

I know that other than tweeting inventory updates and Aromaleigh news stuff, I've been pretty quiet lately. I've barely sent more than a handful of emails, and then- only for customer service related things. I've been very internally focused, which is just where I need to be, and where I'm experiencing the most benefit from this time off.

I think of many of you very often... and I have a stack of letters and cards, and several folders of emails that once I am in a better place, you will hear from me... I want each and every one of you to know personally how much I appreciate your support and kindness. I never knew the feelings that many of you had about Aromaleigh, so reading them has been difficult, but extremely special... and has allowed me to get through what has been sort of, a time of mourning... but also in time, a rebirth!

xoxo,

Kristen

Counting down to September 9th- what you can expect... (UPDATED with link to 9/18 announcement!)

Hello!

We've extended the time for our final clearance sale to begin until SEPTEMBER 18th instead of 9/9...

You can read all the important details in this new blog post, HERE:

http://blog.aromaleigh.com/blog/2010/08/important-news-re-opening-date-has-changed-to-918-formerly-99-1.html

Friday the 13th update!

Just a brief update... counting down to the 15th!

Lots of questions, here's some answers...

Where are the rest of the Voile and Glissade Colors? Why are they not on the site yet?
I am measuring out what remains of the Voile and Glissade inventory and adding the inventory numbers to the site as this happens... lots of queries about what colors when... and I'm working on these as much as I capably can... did quite a bit of Glissade shades this afternoon... have steadily gotten colors added each day. There are finite limits to what can be processed/packed/shipped each day, so that is why the colors have gone up gradually. They represent all that is left of our stock, which is why certain shades are not available, or others have only a few available, while others have much more... I can't guarantee that I can get all of the remaining Glissade and Voile shades measured and packed before we close for the August 15th break and final inventory count... what is not added between now and then will be available when we reopen with the final inventories for all currently unavailable product inventoried... on September 9th.

#1 question: are you really closing?
Yes, Aromaleigh is really closing. That's why lots of things are selling out, going out of stock, or currently not orderable as we determine stock. Closing is not simple, and I had no idea as to how the process would evolve. Right now, the plan is as follows: we will stop accepting orders on August 15th and process and ship all outstanding orders. The site will remain up. Between August 15th and September 9th, two things will occur. I will take a much-needed break. Second, all remaining inventory and back-stock will be accounted for, programmed and available for the "last act", I guess you might call it... on September 9th. This will include all remaining backstock that is not currently jarred due to time restraints, as well as possibly, ingredients and materials, such as jars, lipbalm tubes, micas, etc... I've been too involved in processing orders as well as personal matters, to give it complete thought or a definite plan, but with the vast inventory of ingredients that we have, I have to clear not just available product and backstock, but ingredients as well. But yes, yes... Aromaleigh is really closing. Not as quickly as expected, but most definitely, closing.

I ordered an eyeshadow and when my order arrived it was listed as out of stock and refunded. Why?
We are currently selling out all remaining shades and when a color sells out, we remove it from the website. However, we can't account for the difference between processed orders and unprocessed orders that may contain that shade. So sometimes, when we get to a new order batch, a color is no longer available. I have added an "Alternate Eyeshadow Choices" box to the order form. If you order eyeshadow and would like to specify alternates in case of a color you ordered not being available at the time of order processing, please list your alternate choices and we will include them as needed, if your purchased choices are not available. 

Can you please make more Nocturne?
All Nocturne inventory and out backstock is currently sold out/emptied. I do not know at this point if I have the ingredients left that are needed to create another batch of Nocturne. If I do, such a batch wouldn't be available until September 9th, and would be packed in zip bags, as Voile and Glissade currently are (we have used up all 30 gram jars and are not purchasing more stock).

Lots of products are listed as "unorderable". I want to order these before the 15th!
I regret that things only happen as quickly as the hands that are able to measure and pack them. Right now, that is my hands. My staff has been completely devoted to order processing and packing, and I've been little by little measuring out and packing backstock to replenish. It's physically impossible for all backstock to be measured and packed into jars or bags for purchase all at once... which is why we will be doing this during our closing break that starts on August 15th.

What are you going to do after Aromaleigh?
I'm not even sure of that myself.  I need some good down-time, rest and de-stressing before I figure that out, but I have lots of ideas brewing... in all sorts of areas, from sewing to screen-printing to making jewelry to aromatherapy to writing to doing graphic design work or photography. But I've not been able to devote any concentrated thought or creativity to any of that, as the last two months have been intensely devoted to many things, personal things, in addition to the duties associated with Aromaleigh and order processing.

Why do things, dates, etc. keep changing?
Because nothing is constant... and having never closed down a 12 year-old cosmetic company before amidst many other life factors, I could not possibly lay down one path, one date or one plan... and have that be perfectly suited to closing the company. So many things have happened since I announced the closing. I assure you that changing dates, plans, availability and such- has been done as needed, and always for good reason. I've gotten many emails with advice on how to handle things, and I've taken some of that advice into account. But in the end, no one is walking in my personal shoes, so no solutions are a perfect fit. Only I can figure that out. And while I wish it was a perfect science, it isn't. But I thank you all for your patience!

Have a wonderful weekend!

Closing procedures- no need to panic, I'm not turning into a pumpkin...

I decided to piece together parts of many of the announcement postings I've been communicating often the last month. Rather than have this be part of update posts, I am making it it's very own post, since the level of panic is rising faster than I can keep up with the panicked emails being sent to the help desk... for some odd reason, people seem to think I am going to go "poof" and disappear forever... on August 15th, and that Aromaleigh.com will completely fade into the ether?

If you see strange comments on beauty blogs or forums, please feel free to direct frightened persons here, so that they can be reassured that I'm going to be online and processing orders well after August 15th, and Aromaleigh.com is not going "poof".

Here's the Closing "scoop

* Projected closing date is still August 15th... at which point we will stop accepting orders and work on the order queue, as well as do a complete assessment of remaining inventory (which I hope has greatly dwindled!). 

* Aromaleigh.com and blog.aromaleigh.com will remain online (and obviously have to, for without the website being online, we have no access to our order records).

* I've gotten a few emails at the help desk asking about the "risk" of ordering from Aromaleigh right now... I doubt there's anything I can say to allay these feelings if one isn't familiar with me and the way I do business. I can tell you I was surprised to hear about these fears, simply because at no point have I ever had any intention of jumping ship, taking anyone's money or doing what's become known in the MMU world as "pulling a Botany".

I can offer you some information. It may help, it may not. Aromaleigh.com will be online for weeks after 8/15, as we process order backstock and assess whatever inventory is left. I DO need to sell off my inventory, and if I close down Aromaleigh.com, I not only can't do that in any sort of efficient manner, but I also lose 12 years of order records... The last 6 years we have gone paperless... so as you can imagine, I have to do one of two things... print out 6 years of orders for tax purposes, or export the orders one month at a time to electronic PDF files and save these accordingly to my backups. This is a time consuming proposition. Closing a company isn't just as simple as a day on a calendar. It's multi-pronged and complex.

I have mentioned several times that while August 15th is the projected close date, once all orders are shipped, and I take that 2 week break (no work, orders, just REST!) I will have my staff assessing inventory, what is left... and on September 9th, will reopen with this available inventory- the lash hurrah, so to say... That's a month from now.

And some more details from an earlier update:

THE PROJECTED CLOSING DATE HAS BEEN EXTENDED TO AUGUST 15th (11:59 PM EST), at which point ordering will be closed, BUT THE SITE WILL REMAIN UP!

From August 16th ONWARD, we will be fulfilling ALL remaining orders, customer service queries, order issues or problems, and all aspects of business. We will also be determining our remaining inventories during this time.

I will be available this entire time. My email addresses are aromaleighinc at yahoo dot com (YAHOO NETWORK) OR aromaleigh at me dot com (MAC NETWORK). The site will be up. The blog will be up. The twitter account will be up. The Aromaleigh Anonymous Facebook page (not an official Aromaleigh page, but a very good resource for all things Aromaleigh) will be up.

I will be taking taking some time off at the end of August/Beginning of September. I am physically and emotionally exhausted from extenuating circumstances in both life and work. All orders should be received before this break, BUT...  I WILL BE AVAILABLE DURING THIS TIME, I AM NOT DISAPPEARING FROM EXISTENCE!

Once any remaining inventory is assessed, if need be, we will reopen for the acceptance of remaining inventory- on SEPTEMBER 9th.

I cannot estimate what may or may not be left on August 15th. It is my goal for all inventory to be sold out, but this can't be projected.

I hope that this information is helpful and reassuring and that all readers are able to now take into account the overwhelming undertaking that closing a 12 year old corporation is. Perhaps for a tiny new company, it IS as easy as hitting the "off" switch on a certain date, but for Aromaleigh, it is anything but simple.

All I can do is communicate with all of you as clearly as possible, along the way, which I've been putting forth my best efforts at doing- but yes, dates and times have changed and that's because I can't see the future. I have to go with the flow and be flexible based on what has occurred since the date I announced the closing...

Some may see this as "flaky", but hey... all I can do is my best, and be up front about things that are happening each step of the way. The last few months have been extremely trying... and I had no idea that closing a business would be this troublesome- it's tough as it is without all of the accusations, naysaying, chargebacks, disputes, impatience, and a lot of strangeness that I can't even start to understand.

It's as simple as this... I've never cheated a customer out of their goods and I have no intention of starting to do so now. I'm not going "poof" on August 15th, nor is the entire Aromaleigh website. Closing is, I am finding, a much more overwhelming, gradual process than I ever could have imagined (and I have a pretty vivid imagination!).

So please pass this on if you see someone worried, fearful, thinking the worst, or in a panic over the August 15th date. Life's too short...

Thanks!

Sunday 8/8 Update... and thoughts on closing, life, the present and what the future holds?

Check out these two updates for more info about the Voile/Glissade availability and packaging!

http://blog.aromaleigh.com/blog/2010/08/glissadevoile-availability-an-update.html

http://blog.aromaleigh.com/blog/2010/08/87-530-pm-est-aromaleigh-reopen-for-ordering.html

Today's updates? Plenty!

* Final inventory for Cream Concealers has been determined and published.

* There are 3 jars of Cream Eyeshadow left, and inventory is entered and final.

*The few items from yesterday (eye primer, eye/lip primer, Tanzanite Gel liner and a few brushes) have sold...

 *Voile Level Two full sizes (in zip bags!) have been determined and entered into inventory. Once these shades are gone, they're gone!

* Voile Level One, Two and Three sample packs (10 samples to a pack) are published and entered into inventory.

* Voile Levels 3-5 in full sizes are upcoming, as are Voile Sample packs in Levels 4 and 5.

* Once the Voile is complete, I will start on Glissade, which has a much smaller (and sparser) inventory than Voile.

* As far as other products on the site that are currently unorderable, we are going to be examining these items one at a time, assessing inventory and backstock, and working on making as much available (with real-time published inventory) as we can.

* The "MyAccount" database has become corrupted, which was brought to my attention when some help desk tickets were received indicating that they could neither log in to their accounts or retrieve their passwords. I tried to log in myself, same result. Retrieving my password, same result. I ran the database utilities in hopes of repairing the files, as I'd done in the past. But it didn't work this time. I think the system received a great deal of new registrations in the past month, and while I regularly ran the db utilities, I stopped doing this when the going got pretty crazy. Since I can't repair the database, and Aromaleigh is closing soon, I removed the code from the checkout pages and header tags that call the database script.

I know that several of you had a lot of points (nearing the 1000 point mark where you get the 40% off coupon)... while I can't access your MyAccount, I CAN access your order history and verify your orders. So if you were nearing this mark, or had already submitted a request for your 1000 point reward, please contact me. aromaleigh at me dot com. It may take me a few days, but I will do my best to get each of you the 1000 pt. code, which is 40% off... it's actually the only reward code that is higher than the ADIEU35 coupon, so essentially the only one that I know several of you were working towards.

Here's the Closing "scoop

* Projected closing date is still August 15th... at which point we will stop accepting orders and work on the order queue, as well as do a complete assessment of remaining inventory (which I hope has greatly dwindled!). 

* Aromaleigh.com and blog.aromaleigh.com will remain online (and obviously have to, for without the website being online, we have no access to our order records).

* I've gotten a few emails at the help desk asking about the "risk" of ordering from Aromaleigh right now... I doubt there's anything I can say to allay these feelings if one isn't familiar with me and the way I do business. I can tell you I was surprised to hear about these fears, simply because at no point have I ever had any intention of jumping ship, taking anyone's money or doing what's become known in the MMU world as "pulling a Botany".

I can offer you some information. It may help, it may not. Aromaleigh.com will be online for weeks after 8/15, as we process order backstock and assess whatever inventory is left. I DO need to sell off my inventory, and if I close down Aromaleigh.com, I not only can't do that in any sort of efficient manner, but I also lose 12 years of order records... The last 6 years we have gone paperless... so as you can imagine, I have to do one of two things... print out 6 years of orders for tax purposes, or export the orders one month at a time to electronic PDF files and save these accordingly to my backups. This is a time consuming proposition. Closing a company isn't just as simple as a day on a calendar. It's multi-pronged and complex.

I have mentioned several times that while August 15th is the projected close date, once all orders are shipped, and I take that 2 week break (no work, orders, just REST!) I will have my staff assessing inventory, what is left... and on September 9th, will reopen with this available inventory- the lash hurrah, so to say... That's a month from now.

Also, while I won't be returning to the cosmetic world, I have a basic concept of what I will be doing. I won't be disappearing from the internet. So this concept that I'm going to "run off with the cash" is even more silly considering that I DO have to make a living somehow... and while it won't be cosmetics, I have a great deal of creative energy right now and hope to put my love of sewing, metalsmithing/fabricating or screen printing to work in some way. This will, of course- take place via the internet, whether it is Etsy or a new site.

While I will never again put myself "out there" as a spokeswoman for anything that I do in name or image, nor ever feel the freedom to blog or write about anything of a personal nature... I have in the last month been overwhelmed with ideas as to what I would like to do. I've got sketchbooks full of my scribbled drawings and ideas... some I can't even comprehend!

I have learned a lot in the last decade++ and the most important lesson I have walked away with... and that which I've received many emails about from my colleagues in this industry... and what I recommend to those of you who have put yourselves out there... is this: withdraw. You only make yourself a target. Business is business and my/your identity, while we've been told for years about the importance of a face behind a name, etc.. that really only works when you're Leslie Blodgett or Jane Iredale.

My advice to all indies is to protect yourselves by not giving anyone a target to aim at. Every single one of of Seth Godin and "new Internet" marketing books is on Ebay. While being the face of your business may work for some, for many of us, it has been destructive. I will never again associate my name with any items that I create. I learned the hardest way possible, this lesson. This is the biggest piece of advice that I pass on to my colleagues. Shelter yourselves. Hold your personal bits and treasures close and keep them your own.

While this all goes against the grain of everything that I've done for years, I know that it's the only way that I'd ever consider doing any business on the 'net again. There is a very strange thing that I have noticed goes on in the indie MMU world. Customers become fiercely attached to brands and certain owners. They idealize the owners, even seem to look up to them, consider them close friends, and more. The owner is then put in an unusual position because while small business naturally lends itself to closer, more intimate transactions and getting to know some of your customers... there are certain customers who react drastically to the actions of the business owner. When a product is discontinued, they take it as a personal attack. If a shipping policy is changed, they feel slighted. If a coupon is dropped from the lineup, they get quite upset. If the owner writes a blog post and refers to a certain situation on the forums, or reviews... these customers project themselves onto the situation, and feeling that the owner is unhappy with them, they react strongly- so strongly that it is almost as if they are jilted, like a lover.

This has happened to me so many times over the years that I can't even count the situations anymore. I naturally want to please people, make them happy, feel good, be pleased with sales, products, quality, fast shipping and discounts... but I never wanted what has happened... to happen. I have always found it so difficult to understand why certain customers took business decisions I made so personally, so intensely to heart. It has been one of the most baffling things for me to try to figure out... as well as how to get it to stop happening.

The only way to get it to stop happening is to... well, stop. I've made peace with customers and apologized when an apology was necessary. That's all that one can do. But it's frustrating that your apology is often not enough. The vendetta is oddly alive and well... over makeup?!

I was scared to death that my decision to close would set off scourges of hate mail (kind of like when I discontinued my skincare line back in 2004)... but oddly, it didn't. In fact, I received emails from competitors, from colleagues, from customers who had never written a word to me prior, as well as from those who did... and what shocked (and amazed) me, was the overwhelming understanding and beauty of those letters... all telling me that given what had happened, that they felt that closing was all I could do. That it was the right thing to do. That they understood. And so much more. I have not been able to respond to the vast majority (say 99%?) of those emails. But I will. Until I get to that point though, I just wanted to say... Thank you for taking the time to write to me and share with me. It's made the grief and loss of all of this so much more bearable, especially knowing that the little things (and the big things and the in between things, and things I never imagined) mattered... and made a difference.

Letting go of Aromaleigh was not something that I was forced to do, but it was something that, given the circumstances and everything that had occurred- that I had to do. I personally have a living will with a DNR order in it. I'm also an organ donor. In the end, I would not allow Aromaleigh to exist when I had to completely withdraw my consciousness from it, leaving only a hollow shell of what it once was. If you look at it this way, strange as it seems, I gave Aromaleigh a DNR order. I did it for many reasons, some of those being to protect others from being harassed, ridiculed and attacked. Alas, that approach didn't work for the harassment didn't stop- it just moved on to different people. I've recently been blackmailed by the creator of the Rant4theUgly site, , and my mother is now being personally attacked. They claim they want "an apology posted on their site by me". (Sorry, I don't negotiate with terrorists). But honestly? It simply won't end until my name is a dim memory in the minds of those who have obsessively stalked every word I have written for the last 5 months. Or will it? That is the question...

In the meantime, I am meandering along... doing my very best to provide all of you with your product needs in these last weeks, but also making changes as I have to make them... to make it possible for me to do this. Yes, I'm actually being a little selfish for a change, and recognizing the very important notion that you can't get back lost time. You can try to make up for it, but you can't get it back. So make the most of the present. Revel in it.

On that same notion, I'm harvesting the bits and pieces of me... recording the flickers of creativity that I have... and moving foward to the next level in my creative life, whatever that may end up being. I've been very inwardly focused lately, for that is where I need to be... and that is where I'm going. Whatever I create will be done with my usual attention to aesthetics, detail, quality and a passion for what I am doing... but  "I" won't be part of the final equation.

And that's ok with me. Because I never was comfortable with feeling like I had to put myself "out there" with a bullseye on my head because every business book and business coach said I should. It always felt... uncomfortable. And while it was enjoyable and rewarding to share and indirectly inspire others, I realized that for some reason, I evoked pretty strong reactions in some people online. I'm still exploring what that reason is because I can't believe it's as simple as what some have suggested to me it is... it's just not logical, simply because in real life I pale greatly in comparison to the imaginative concepts others have about who I am. And again I wonder... why do they care?

And so, there's quite a Sunday update... now I'm off to pull the RUSH orders out of the order range, and get started on shipping labels... if you got this far reading this, Thanks you for taking the time, I've not said much about much of anything that has occurred in the last 6 months, but I fear that this is also what has kept it all going. My silence was something unexpected.

And even while I write this, I do so, silently.

Thank you all for your support. Some day in the future after I've had some time to rest and heal up and learn to breathe and live again without being in constant fear and anxiety... you will hear from me!

xoxo

Kristen (to sign this as "Miss K" seems diminishing...)

8/7 5:30 PM EST: Aromaleigh reopen for ordering!

Just a few notes...

Level one, VX and 00 Voile shades are available for ordering. The full sizes are now packed in 12 gram zip bags (although I have overfilled most bags to 14 grams, as I like to air on the heavy side!). Remaining samples for this range has been packed into 10 sample packets.

Inventory for these items is real-time and final, so once you receive the inventory message during checkout, the color IS sold out!

The remaining shade ranges will be added soon, but it is time consuming to get everything packed and into baggies, counted, entered into the inventory system, etc... we're working as fast as we can and will try to get Level 2 range up ASAP!

Many items are set to unorderable (face/cheek products) as we determine final inventory and get it entered into the system.  A few items have been added back into the store with inventory entered, some brushes, primers, gel liner... these will go quickly!

Eyeshadows are still marked at an extra 10% off! Some colors are sold out, or close to selling out. (See blog announcement about this)

The order forms are functioning properly. If you have any problems, refresh your browser, or try a new browser.

And we shipped many orders from the last range using the new RUSH CHARGE service... here is a blog post about that:

And here's the top 10 tips to get an order processed faster!

Ten tips to get your order processed faster (from aromaleigh news twitter!)

The Ciao Italia! collection is now available in both sample sets and full size sets, via the blog Vault sale. Here are some posts about that:

Ciao Italia- SAMPLE SETS can now be purchased!... new blogger reviews added!

Ciao Italia collection... links to Blogger Reviews... not listed? leave a comment!

Ciao Italia LE Eyeshadow Full Sizes #1 (shades 1-10) Now Orderable!

Ciao Italia LE Eyeshadow Full Sizes #2 (shades 11-20) Now Orderable!

Ciao Italia LE Eyeshadow Full Sizes #3 (shades 21-25) Now Orderable!

The "Lost in Faerie" collection quantities are starting to dwindle... last chance for many of these gorgeous shades!

Lost in Faerie Eye Collection: Full Sizes #1 of 3 FINAL INVENTORY! 8/3

Lost in Faerie Eye Collection: Full Sizes #2 of 3 FINAL INVENTORY! 8/3!

Lost in Faerie Eye Collection: Full Sizes #3 of 3 FINAL INVENTORY! 8/3

Lost In Faerie Eye Collection: Sample sets now available FINAL INVENTORY! 8/3!

Ten tips to get your order processed faster (from aromaleigh news twitter!) reposted 8/10

1. Fastest order processing is for full sized eyeshadows.

2. Ordering a mix of full sizes and samples in same order slows your order down... a lot

3. Ordering all of your samples in one order (no full sizes mixed in) is also speedier, but...

4. Larger sample orders (anything more than 30 samples) take a long time to fill and check for accuracy

5. Ordering any face or cheek product (that we potentially have to pack for your order or are almost out of) sloooooows your order.

 

6. Any order that is smaller (6-8 items) processes faster. All full sizes is optimal, a mix of f/s and samples a bit slower.

7. Send only necessary queries in to the help desk/customer service/don't reopen closed tickets- this slows down order processing/shipment

8. Place your order carefully, proofread, make sure it is all correct and coupon applied *before* you submit.

9. Vault sale orders for sample sets of ciao italia/lost in faerie ship faster than anything!

10. Vault sale orders have a shorter turn-around time than aromaleigh.com and ordering is never closed for them.

And surprise #11... we are currently adding an EXPEDITED charge that is $5 for your order to be pulled out of the queue and processed within 2 business days. More details on this very soon!

Aromaleigh will reopen for ordering on 8/4 at Noon EST....

Hello!

In the spirit of pacing ourselves (all of us at Aromaleigh are trying to stress less, stop and smell the roses and all that good stuff!), we are adopting a process that allows us to efficiently process orders accepted and still accept Paypal. Domestic orders only, International shipments are permanently suspended. Sorry!

We recently closed for 5 days to work on orders and honestly... rest... and sleep!?!

We reopened on 7/31 and accepted those orders that I felt could be reasonably processed in a few days, stress free, without inventory issues, etc... We then closed and are working on those orders right now!

We will reopen tomorrow, AUGUST 4th, at NOON EST... please be patient and allow a few minutes leeway... refresh your browser pages, etc... thank you!

Many products are currently unorderable, due to their being completely out of stock, or stock currently unable to be determined. We are starting to sell out of eyeshadow shades in many collections- Bete Noire and En Pointe are almost gone. Victoria's Revenge and Gothic Lolita, also. When colors sell out from our stock, they are removed from the site.

If you have a pre-filled shopping cart, it will not reflect any changes made to inventory since you filled it. For this reason, I urge all of you to empty your carts and start fresh, with what is currently listed in inventory. Some colors are VERY low. I can't guarantee stock for all.

Orders that are filled most quickly are those that contain only full sized eyeshadows. We are able to fly through these quite fast.

Sample orders take considerably more time, and most face powder and cheek products are currently unorderable due to issues mentioned above.

Vault Sale orders are processed separately and on a different timeline than Aromaleigh.com orders.The Adieu35 discount cannot be used on Vault Sale orders.

The projected closing date is still August 15th, at which point I will be taking a much-needed respite of several weeks, and plan on reopening September 9th, if there is available inventory or stock at that time. What will be left, I cannot assess at this point!

Thanks for your patience and understanding with all of the changes taking place during our closing days... these have been some very challenging days!

Tomorrow, stock up on your eyeshadow favorites, but remember... ordering will be closed again when we meet our limit. PLEASE don't rush and hastily place your orders in a panic though! If you enter incorrect info, or products we cannot change your order- we have to cancel it. So it is very important to take your time and make sure you enter accurate information.

Thanks all!

Parting thoughts...

"

“Begin to see yourself as a soul with a body rather than a body with a soul.”
― Wayne Dyer

Aromaleigh will reopen TODAY (JULY 31st-revised!) for ordering. We have to catch up on order queue...

Hello,

In light of the chaos that has been occurring with all of the international ordering issues, and now, having to stop accepting Paypal altogether, I have made an executive decision...

Aromaleigh will stop accepting orders (you can reach the checkout pages, but you will not be able to check out!) from now through 11:59 PM EST July 29th. We will reopen for ordering at the stroke of midnight, JULY 30th. (This was extended on July 30th to AUGUST 2nd when I fell off the attic stairwell and sustained some minor injuries (and am on a high heel strike :( )... however we are opening today and this is possible because we are not accepting orders for Voile, Glissade, Pure Rouge and other products with inventory and packaging issues (having no jars in stock kind of makes it tough to let you order a product, eh?).... and because I got an awesome lower back brace!

SOME CHANGES:

* full sized eyeshadow orders ship fastest! Sample orders ship slower. They are harder to fill.

* please arrange your items in your order to be all samples together, then all full sizes together. This gets your order (and everyone's) processed faster and with greater accuracy.

* ORDER MINIMUM HAS CHANGED due to the deep discount ADIEU35 code... it is now $20.

* We are only shipping via Priority Mail. There is only one ship method you can choose.

* We are accepting PayPal again. We are only shipping to confirmed addresses.

*Vault Sale (blog sale) and Aromaleigh.com orders CANNOT be combined.

* The Adieu35 coupon cannot be used for vault sale orders and never could be used for them. It is for Aromaleigh.com ONLY.

* There is still an ample number of orders (mostly those containing foundation) that are still in processing. Thank you for your patienc

* Ciao Italia sample sets will be made orderable via vault sale soon.

So as not to get behind in the order queue again, I will ONLY be accepting the number of orders we can effectively and efficiently process, as we are currently working at a slower, more reasonable pace. When we are caught up on these orders and related inventory, I will announce that we are accepting orders again.

THE PROJECTED CLOSING DATE HAS BEEN EXTENDED TO AUGUST 15th (11:59 PM EST), at which point ordering will be closed, BUT THE SITE WILL REMAIN UP!

From August 16th ONWARD, we will be fulfilling ALL remaining orders, customer service queries, order issues or problems, and all aspects of business. We will also be determining our remaining inventories during this time.

I will be available this entire time. My email addresses are aromaleighinc at yahoo dot com (YAHOO NETWORK) OR aromaleigh at me dot com (MAC NETWORK). The site will be up. The blog will be up. The twitter account will be up. The Aromaleigh Anonymous Facebook page (not an official Aromaleigh page, but a very good resource for all things Aromaleigh) will be up.

I will be taking taking some time off at the end of August/Beginning of September. I am physically and emotionally exhausted from extenuating circumstances in both life and work. All orders should be received before this break, BUT...  I WILL BE AVAILABLE DURING THIS TIME, I AM NOT DISAPPEARING FROM EXISTENCE!

Once any remaining inventory is assessed, if need be, we will reopen for the acceptance of remaining inventory- on SEPTEMBER 9th.

I cannot estimate what may or may not be left on August 15th. It is my goal for all inventory to be sold out, but I realize that this may not happen since I am having to limit ordering to 100 orders at a time.

Please make note of these dates, and please share this post, the post about Paypal payments, and most importantly- the post about International Ordering example transits... on any beauty blogs or forums you follow, your twitter, facebook accounts, etc... right now I need this news to get out into the world and while many of you do check the website, blog and twitter, a very large percentage do not.  I am going everything within my power right now to handle all of this efficiently and maintain ordering availability while also paying heed to the limits that myself and my staff have in what we can capably process in a reasonable amount of time.

The truth is, I'm tired. my staff is tired. They have been working so hard and while I gave them the other afternoon off, paid... they both deserve and need some time off to rest and renew. The weekend is not enough for me... and I cannot expect it to fairly be enough for them. These are women who I care about and respect very much... and I owe them some less stressful days, and some hours off with pay- over the next 5 days.

Let's give a huge round of thanks to Ashly and Valentina, who have been working very hard in getting orders filled and processed. Let's also thank Joy and Melissa, who have been working hard filing jars and samples for your orders through this entire roller coaster ride!

And I'd like to thank my Mom... for helping me out, spending quality time with my son during what's a tough time for all of us... and for being a supportive and listening ear...

I'd also like to thank my very dear friends... you know who you are! Without your support in the last month(s) and year(s), well... you know, I could not be sitting here typing this right now much less rationally making any decisions for the future. I love each one of you and you all know that my ears are open when you need someone to listen, my heart is open when you need someone to care... and my home is open if you ever need to get away!

xoxoxoxoxo (to infinity)! (and beyond!)

Thanks for your patience and understanding!

Sincerely,

Kristen

International Shipping has been suspended for all orders- 7/21- UPDATED

7/21: ALL INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING HAS BEEN SUSPENDED DUE TO CONSISTENT LOSSES, DELAYS, CHARGEBACKS, DISPUTES and the resulting massive financial losses Aromaleigh has had to incur from even the non-delivery of packages to established customers.

We apologigize, but at this point in time we simply cannot continue to offer international shipments when every single order we ship out represents a potential loss, direct from our paypal account, or our being forced to reship large amounts of lost product, or refund product that is lost and sold out.

Thank you for your understanding. Please do not take this personally, but rather, consider how a company can continue to offer International shipping when they are losing several hundred dollars a day to International orders being lost, delayed, disputed or charged back?

No small indie company can, and especially not one currently closing doors and other extenuating personal circumstances.

Please note that we cannot respond to the influx of emails being sent to check status on previously shipped orders, ask for exceptions to this new development, or let you know if an order placed but not yet shipped will ship when, or has shipped, etc- we have been inundated with emails. 

~~~~~~~~~~

UPDATE:

I am very sad to report that I have been put on "notice" by several international customers (including established ones) that they are filing disputes and not allowing time for packages to arrive because they are ANTICIPATING that on August 10th, Aromaleigh and Aromaleigh customer service will completely disappear, and they will not be able to file paypal disputes at that time. So they are doing it now.

I would like to address this, very bluntly.

1) I have never cheated any customer out of their money or goods and have NO intention to start now

2) Opening a dispute without allowing your items to arrive is dishonest.

3) You ordered knowing that Aromaleigh had a) a delay in processing time b) shipping notification email did not mean order had shipped, but would be shipping SOON, c) Aromaleigh's international terms and agreement states that if 45 business days have passed and your order has NOT arrived, at that time we RESHIP the order.

4) We have stood by this policy with EVERY international order that we have shipped, and INTEND TO STAND BY THIS POLICY AND RESHIP ORDERS THAT DO NOT ARRIVE.

5) I have no intention of cheating anyone out of their money and the implication is pretty hurtful, not to mention that these hare-trigger disputes immediately take funds from my paypal account for product that I shipped in good faith and intend to follow through on, IN GOOD FAITH, as always has been the case.

6) Even established customers and bloggers are doing this to me and as a result of the fact that even people whom I thought were good, fair and kind... I have no choice but to cancel ALL international orders that have not yet shipped. I simply cannot take the risk that more of you are going to follow suit in filing premature paypal disputes or chargebacks without allowing your merchandise to arrive, and wrongly assuming that on August 10th, I will cease to exist or be available. This is not only an incorrect assumption, it's essentially judgmental. Obviously, I will be accepting orders for several more weeks, and obviously due to long processing times, I will be processing and shipping orders long past August 10th.

A deadline HAD to be given for Aromaleigh's closing, because without a deadline, customers think they can just wait and that there is no urgency with stock and availability. Giving a deadline is the only way for me to clear out my inventory.

I have not, nor will I ever cheat customers out of their money. For customers to be assuming this will happen and file premature chargebacks that directly and immediately harm me- is very wrong

With the ludicrous number of premature chargebacks so many of you are filing, you ARE going to get my PayPal account closed down and ruin paypal payment accepting ability to ALL customers... over invalidly placed disputes being prematurely placed due to judgments and assumptions. Please do not ruin this for everyone... enough has been ruined already.

Please, stop these unnecessary and hostile actions against me and Aromaleigh. Orders are being processed as quickly as possible and SHIPPED IN GOOD FAITH.

Paypal disputes should never be your first course of action, and especially not premature ones that are being filed in anticipation of inaccurate perceptions.

I am extremely upset by what has transpired, and I regret that in order to protect myself from others doing this, I have no choice but to cancel every international order in the system from 111413 onward, in addition to any international order that is in the processing department here at Aromaleigh.

I do not like having to do this, but orders I have shipped with all good intentions are not being allowed time to arrive, and customers and behaving in a panicked and irrational fashion that is directly harming my ability to do business and in turn, support myself and my child.

This is an extremely unfortunate situation and I have to admit, I am very hurt by the accusing tone and harsh words of international customers, even some of whom are beauty bloggers that I have sent free product and sample collections to. When even those who you thought were good, kind and understanding people start behaving like this, I have to tell you- it is very frightening.

I am in no position, due to my company closing in the near future as well as personal extenuating circumstances- to deal with the high risk that each international order represents.

Thank you for your understanding, and may I repeat that I have not, nor will I ever- at any point- cheat a customer out of their product. This includes ALL orders placed by ANY customer in the time leading up to August 10th (which is, by the way, a TENTATIVE CLOSING DEADLINE that is not set in stone, and if there is still tons of product left to sell a week prior, that date WILL BE EXTENDED).

Sadly,

Aromaleigh