Edible flowers – like organic lavender – can add both flavor and elegance to many dishes.

Sorbets, custards, jams, jellies, wines and teas work well with lavender, rose, nasturtium, jasmine, and orange blossom.

The splash of color provided by cornflowers, geraniums, chrysanthemums, and marigolds stimulate the palette – even if their flavors are not very potent.

Follow these tips for top chef cred on the floral front:

• If getting your flowers from the garden, pick early in the day and ideally in dry weather

• Rinse quickly under gently running cool water

• Don’t gather more than one day in advance as the flowers will wilt.

• Remove pistils, stamens and the white part at the base of the petals (known as the ‘heel’, this part will add a bitter flavor if not removed.

• Dry flowers like lavender, hibiscus, heather and rosebuds for out-of-season use; one great options is flavoring sugars…simply grind the dry petals, mix 1 part petal to 4 parts sugar and let it sit for about a month to mellow out the flower’s intense flavor.

As we enjoy the last summer sun, put your love of lavender and respect for raspberry to the test with this summer jam recipe. You’ll need:

• 3 1/16 cups fresh raspberries (you can use frozen if fresh are not in season)
• 2 1/2 cups caster sugar (super fine sugar)
• 1/4 cup dried lavender, heads (stalks removed)

Get the step-by-step ‘how to’ over at food.com, and let us know how it came out right here!

Buy Organic Lavender Flowers for cooking from St. Helena Olive Oil Co., here!

I’ll never forget my first roasted chicken with rosemary. It was made with love by an Italian friend we were visiting in Tuscany and I still dream of it from time to time.

Now I can apply this warm and fuzzy feeling for this native Mediterranean herb to my personal care experience.

Greeks wove Rosemary wreaths into their hair believing that Rosemary strengthened the brain and enhanced memory. From a health and skincare perspective, rosemary – a member of the mint family (the same as lavender!) – is known to:

• boost mental activity
• relieve respiratory problems
• stimulate hair growth
• tone skin
• heal skin dryness

The Sweet Scent of Rosemary Therapy

On the aromatherapy front, rosemary is a potent inhalant that enhances mental energy. Since it’s known for strengthening memory, it is also an ancient symbol of fidelity and has been referred to as the ‘remembrance herb.’

Delight your senses and indulge your skin with a unique take on rosemary goodness – try Napa Valley Bath’s Organic Rosemary Soap (it includes barley grass for extra, earth-bound richness) and let us know what you think!

If your facial cleanser is leaving your skin feeling dry, it’s removing too much of its natural moisturizer, known as sebum.

On the other hand, if your cleanser leaves your skin feeling greasy or sticky, either it isn’t removing enough oil or it contains heavy emollient and film-forming ingredients that clog pores.

Squeaky, Cheeky Clean!

A great facial cleanser removes grime from your skin – without stripping it of healthy lipids which you need to protect from the environment.

That’s where a great DIY green cleanser comes in.  Olive and sunflower oils are suitable for almost every skin. Try the following recipe, which green cosmetics author and advocate Julie Gabriel considers “a green replica of conventional cleansing” products.

Just Olive Cleansing Oil

Ingredients:

• 2 ounces organic extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 ampoule of vitamin E (a blend of tocopherols and tocotrienols)
• 1 drop essential oil of chamomile

note: an ampoule is a small sealed vial

How to:

1. Pour the oil into a stainless steel shaker; add the vitamin E and essential oil. (if you have acne outbreaks, replace the chamomile oil with one drop of tea tree or geranium oil).

2. Shake vigorously for 30 seconds.

3. Pour the contents into a pump bottle. Thanks to the antioxidant action of vitamin E and chamomile, this blend has a long shelf life in dry, cool conditions.

The following DIY recipe can be used as a mask if you’re experiencing pimples, dullness, or overall uneven complexion. Just leave it on for 5 minutes to let it do its magic.

Day in Provence Cleansing Powder

Ingredients:

• 1 teaspoon loose organic green tea
• 1 teaspoon dried rose petals
• 1 teaspoon dried calendula (marigold petals)
• 1 teaspoon dried lavender florets
• 1 uncoated aspirin tablet
• 1 ounce white clay (bentonite)
• 1 ounce rice bran
• 3 capsules of vitamin C

1. Crush the green tea, rose and calendula petals, and lavender florets in a mortar.  Add the aspirin tablet, crush it, and blend with plant particles. Add the clay and blend thoroughly. Add rice bran. Twist open capsules of vitamin C and add them to the mix.

2. Transfer to a wide-neck glass bottle and shake vigorously so the ingredients form a homogeneous mix.

3. Use daily by pouring a teaspoonful (size of two quarters) into a dry hand. Add a few drops of water, form a dense paste, and rub into face, avoiding the eye area.

note: this concoction can be stored up to three months in an airtight twist-cap bottle.

Let us know how you like the results, right here: we’d love to hear from you!

recipes via The Green Beauty Guide, by Julie Gabriel

Did you know that lavender is porphyrous – an adjective that means of, or pertaining to, the color purple?

Orchids, lilacs, and violets also share this special hue, which is often associated with boosting imagination and inspiring creativity.

Purple is also associated with three winning attributes: royalty, power and wealth. It seems as if back in olden days, purple dye – difficult to obtain and expensive to produce – made the color purple especially valuable.  Clearly, purple has been a people pleaser for ages!

Sweetest Dreams Are Made of This

Napa Valley Bath celebrates purple every day with its focus on oh-so-lovely lavender. Lavender is aligned with feelings of tranquility and peace – an herb elixir for mood-lifting and calming.

One way to bring the soothing, spiritual power of lavender into your life is to wrap dried lavender in a cloth sachet and place it under your pillow. This simple act is known to encourage dreams that are both peaceful and lucid.

Purple Purification

Several spritzes of purified water – infused with a couple of drops of lavender essential oil or the less-concentrated lavender hydrosol – clears away negative energy in your home or office. And a lavender bath – in which you add some lavender essential oil or dried lavender to your bathwater – can strengthen your aura, improving your personal energy field and giving you a purple-tinged lift.

Has the power of purple ever worked for you in some way? Tell us about your experiences, right here!