Ok, ok, we know it’s really Thursday, but we’re positive you’ll love this giveaway even though it’s a little late. What better time of year than tax season to take a little time for yourself and just relax? We’ve put together a few of our products to help you do just that. One lucky winner will receive:
Lavender Massage Oil: Great for a therapeutic massage. You can also add a few drops to your bath for a penetrating and aromatic soak.
Lavender Soy Votive: This candle has a low burn point so when the candle melts it does not burn to the touch. You can massage the melted wax into your cuticles and your skin. It will also fill your room with the peaceful scent of Lavender.
“Being Peace” by Thich Nhat Hanh: “If we are peaceful, if we are happy, we can blossom like a flower, and everyone in our family, our entire society, will benefit from our peace.” — Thich Nhat Hanh
Need we say more?
You can enter the giveaway by answering the question below in the comment section of this post. Double your chances by commenting on our FB page too! Our giveaway will be live through Sunday. Monday morning we will pick a winner at random and announce it here on our blog and on our FB page.
Question: When life is hectic what do you do to center yourself and restore your inner peace?
Pick up a copy of iconic Vogue magazine, turn to page 228, and join us in a congratulatory cheer for Peggy O’Kelly! Peggy, Napa Valley Bath and St. Helena Olive Oil Co. are all featured in the issue under a piece aptly entitled “Fields of Dreams.”
Highlights of the piece include:
Kudos to Peggy, her hard-working, devoted staff, and all the farmers who make her products so quintessentially wonderful. As the Vogue piece says, Peggy ‘follows her heart’ — and the proof is in every one of her products!
by Leslie Billera on September 16, 2010 · 0 comments
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!
In our 3-part lifestyle series, we’ve covered clothing (organic cotton, bamboo, hemp and more!) and bedding (those marvelous organic mattresses). Less fabulous – but equally fundamental – is green cleaning.
Whether you scrub up at home yourself – or hire someone to do it – you should know that when it comes to clean, you could be living the ultimate irony: spreading dirty chemicals around in the name of clean. One example: antibacterial cleaning products are actually registered with the EPA as pesticides. Does that sound like healthy clean to you?
Western cultures spend up to 90% of our time indoors, so clean indoor air really counts. A clean green home is free of dirt and germs – but also free of toxic pollution. You can use the following ingredients – many of which you may already have in your cabinets – to create powerful DIY cleaning products (great cleaning recipes are easily found using a simple google search):
- White distilled vinegar: Use white distilled vinegar with 55% acetic acid; vinegar disinfects, deodorizes, loosens dirt, removes mineral deposits and more…
- Baking soda: Look for baking soda that is “pure” or 100% sodium bicarbonate. Baking soda is abrasive enough to scrub off dirt and stains; deodorizes carpets, drains and fridges; and softens fabric in the wash cycle.
- Borax and washing soda: These alkaline minerals are stronger than baking soda so wear gloves. They brighten your wash, can be used to scrub stubborn stains from counters or bathtubs, kill mold and make toilet bowls sparkle.
- Soap and water: Experts agree that soap and water are less harmful than antibacterial products – many of which include triclosan – and are just as effective. Good old soap and water can clean everything from counter top to carpet to fabric stains. Don’t forget the basics when it comes to building your green cleaning arsenal!
- Vinegar: Kills 99% of bacteria and is not registered as a pesticide (afterall, you can cook with it too!). Use it in laundry, household filters, cutting boards…pretty much anything, safely and easily!
- Lavender Oil: Self-promotion aside, lavender is truly one of your critical green cleaning ingredients. Add it to all-purpose or glass cleaner or dilute with water to make a lovely antibacterial spray and spread aromatherapeutic love all over your home. 100% essential oil comes in dark glass containers; be sure to avoid the synthetic versions!
Let us know what all-natural, toxin free cleaner you use at home, right here!
Tossing and turning? Here’s a do-it-yourself, all-natural way to catch some zzzs – and float away on sweet-smelling dreams!
This mini-pillow should be placed between pillow and pillowcase, and laid on with your head to release the therapeutic aromas.
What you need:
1 cup dried hops
1 cup dried lavender buds
¼ cup dried thyme leaves
3 Tbsp. cellulose chips (cellulose chips are fixatives used to absorb essential and fragrance oils and then slowly release them)
10 drops lavender essential oil
10 drops bergamot essential oil
Two fabric pillows 6 inches square, each with one end open – why not make it organic cotton?
How to:
In a glass bowl or measuring cup, mix the essential oils into the cellulose chips. Cover and set aside overnight. The next day, mix in the dried herbs. Place half of the mixture into each fabric pillow and sew or fasten the open end closed with lace, ribbons or a simple sewing thread.
From: Natural Beauty Basics, by Dorie Byers, R.N.
Note that these essential oils are also known for their relaxing aromas – feel free to swap one or more into your pillow based on your personal preferences:
- Clary sage
- German chamomile
- Patchouli
- Rose
- Basil
- Neroli
- Sandalwood
- Tangerine
- Myrrh
- Orange
- Frankincense
- Cedarwood
What all-natural sleep remedies lull you to sweet slumber? Let us know here!
We’ve waxed poetic about organic lavender. We’ve hailed lavender hydrosol for its healing properties. And we’ve even extolled the virtues of lavender in food, both sweet and savory.
But once and a while, we recognize that other worthy floral blooms offer their own contribution to our bath and body routine.
A Rose By Any Other Name…
Like lavender, rose water – or rose hydrosol – soothes irritated skin. It is considered a mild, natural sedative that can act as an anti-depressant. And rose is used in treatments to ease everything from nervous tension to peptic ulcers to heart disease.
This Lavender-Rose Sweet Water Mist is a multi-tasker extraordinaire. Mix up this DIY recipe and use it to…
- Repel moths and other insects before winter storage
- Promote rest and relaxation before bedtime when spritzed on your pillowcase
- Give your clothes a lovely lift when used as a mist before ironing (see you later spray starch!)
- Use your favorite lavender essential oil from Napa Valley Bath!
So without further ado, here is a great DIY recipe for yourself, or to make as a gift for a friend or loved one…
Lavender-Rose Sweet Water Mist
Ingredients:
- 4 ounces rose hydrosol (available at natural-foods stores)
- 1 ounce distilled water
- 1 tablespoon 150- to 190-proof alcohol, such as brandy, unflavored vodka, or grain alcohol
- 10 drops vegetable glycerin
- 45 drops lavender essential oil
How To:
In a small spray mister, combine rose hydrosol, water, alcohol, vegetable glycerin, and lavender essential oil. Cover and shake well to blend.
source: WholeLiving.com
There are 3 steps to sidestepping toxic air fresheners:
- Keep clean
- Shop smarter
- Do-it-yourself
Before we delve into each, here’s the stinky news on ‘conventional’ air fresheners.
Conventional air fresheners emit heavily scented chemicals infused with synthetic perfumes. Pine, orange and lemon scents in particular are full of toxic chemicals known as VOCs, or Volatile Organic Compounds. These proven toxins include:
- Benzene – causes cancer in animals and has been linked to leukemia
- Xylene – linked to nausea and liver and kidney damage
- Phenol – can cause kidney, respiratory, neurological and skin problems
- Naphthalene – linked to blood, kidney and liver problems
- Formaldehyde – linked to cancer, particularly in the nasal cavity
Irony alert! This is the stuff that’s supposed to ‘freshen’ your air?
Go Green and Clean
If you’ve got a bad smell happening in your home, you’ve got to get at its root. Take the time to discover the origin of the bad smell, and use the internet to help you find all-natural cures. Using air fresheners – toxic or non-toxic – should not be the solution to a lingering odor problem that needs to be ousted, once and for all.
Many of you simply love the aromatherapeutic effects of an air freshener. Good for you – so do we! The trick is to buy green. Green air fresheners typically:
- Come in a recyclable and recycled pump sprayer – not an aerosol can
- Is plant-derived and biodegradable
- Derives its fragrance from natural – not synthetic – essential oils
Napa Valley Bath’s Lavender Hydrosol makes a soothing, toxin-free air freshener you can use every day! A naturally-scented soy or beeswax-based candle works wonders too!
Take Ultimate Control: Make Your Own
There’s always a DIY approach. You can create your own potpourri as follows:
- Choose a pretty vase, preferably antique – or a great flea market find
- Sprinkle your favorite dried flowers inside – of course we recommend lavender flowers!
- Add 5-6 drops of you favorite essential oil blend (experiment and find the scent you like best)
- Place in your bathroom, bedroom or any place you’d like a lift!
What are your all-natural tips for ‘scent-ual’ healing at home? Let us know!
by Leslie Billera on October 27, 2009 · 0 comments
Halloween means cooler temps lurking around every corner. Don’t be haunted by dry skin – give it the extra TLC it deserves.
Napa Valley Bath delivers the decadent moisturizing you need this fall and winter with our Lavender Body Butter. Developed specifically to treat cracked, callused and parched skin, it treats your dry dermis to the nutrition and care it craves in cooler temps.
Highlights from this skin-tastic salve include:
- Aloe Vera Leaf Juice: Used extensively in skin care and in health care to soothe and protect, aloe vera is also used to treat a variety of skin care disorders as well as burns.
- Safflower Seed Oil: This oil boosts the skin’s firmness, makes it smooth, toned and gives it more elasticity.
- Shea butter: Extracted from shea nuts, shea butter is a great moisturizer and emollient (something that softens and soothes) with anti-inflammatory properties. Ours is from Uganda, where shea trees grow in abundance naturally.
- Lavender Hydrosol: We’re big fans of lavender hydrosol, the lesser-known and less concentrated sibling to lavender essential oil. It tones, cleans and delights as only lavender floral waters can.
- Beeswax & Propolis Cera: Busy bees supply us with this natural wax rich in moisturizing fatty acid esters and propolis cera, the waxy component of the resinous material found in beehives.
- Orange Peel Wax: Orange is a natural skin refresher rich in vitamins.
- Wheat Germ Oil: Plant-based oils are the green alternative to toxic chemicals; wheat germ oil contains Vitamin E and essential fatty acids such as linoleic, oleic, palmitic and stearic fatty acids.
- Comfrey Root Extract: Used to repair damaged tissues, comfrey boasts a long list of nutrients including Vitamin C, Vitamin A, Vitamin, B complex vitamins, calcium and more.
- Lavender: As you know, we love our lavender. We use both lavandula angustifolia flower oil and Lavandula grosso (lavandin) flower oil for their soothing, healing qualities.
Feed your skin this beauty brew of goodness and keep spooky skin away all year long!
