Does this sound overly dramatic? It's nothing more than the truth. In fact, large companies are so intent on making you buy that they have special classes for it. They run their employees through these workshops and basically teach them how to trick you into buying more.

There is the fine art of making displays which encourage you to pick items up and not put them down. There is also the sales script that every employee knows when you're about to check out. With this script, sales people can rush you into making extra last-minute purchases at the register, sometimes doubling your total order! And then there is the opening line, "Here, have a basket." Ever heard that? This 'basket trap' is a proven technique that makes people buy more, according to "Why We Buy" by Paco Underhill.

"Why did I spend so much?"

There is nothing wrong with a company wanting more sales, but often these stores' tactics result in buyer's regret. After the fog clears and you're heading down to your car, you start kicking yourself for spending so much of your hard-earned money. What made you buy so much, when you didn't need it, or even want it? Was it worth it? You feel uneasy because your natural sense of economy told you that you made a mistake.

Natural ingredients only available in high-end products are yours for just a few dollars.

But learn to make your own bath and body products and escape that corporate mind control. Instead of feeling guilty, you'll feel great about using natural ingredients and fine fragrances to create the highest quality bath and body products. Use exciting and exotic ingredients such as shea butter, mango butter, and botanical extracts, and use more of them in your own products. When companies claim that their lotion contains shea butter, it's often just a tiny percentage.

You'll be able to experiment with ingredients such as cucumber, horse chestnut, green tea and sea kelp extracts. These are ingredients that hike the price of commercial products sky-high, but you can get the same things for only a few dollars. Some of these ingredients are only available in extremely expensive, high-end spa lines, but you can use them at home.

Any fragrance you want.

And you're no longer dependent on the fragrances of the month; you can make your toiletries in any scent you want. Just like how an artist's palette has unlimited colors, you have an infinite selection of scents to use. Want aromatherapy products with essential oils? They are simple to make! Do you have a fragrance that you can't find anywhere but keep wishing companies would make? Now you can make all the products you want in that fragrance. And if you're absolutely addicted to scents such as Moonlight Path, Cherry Blossom, and Warm Vanilla Sugar, you can also make your lotions, shower gels, and bath salts smell like those fragrances.

Making bath and body products is easier than you think.

But can you do it? Absolutely, you can! Even if you're not a typical crafter or "do it yourselfer," you can get started easily. You don't have to make everything "from scratch" if that sounds like too much work; there are other methods that don't need chemistry knowledge, just some basic kitchen skills.

There are many resources dedicated to helping the beginner get started - websites, books, ebooks, and even the public library. Many people have learned to do this, and you can too!