|
| |
 When it comes to relaxation, there is only one thing better than settling down with a hot cup of green tea to calm th nerves... making yourself a green tea facial to relax and rejuvenate your skin.
Green tea is full of antioxidants and anti-inflammatory properties to help reduce stress lines and wrinkles on the face, making skin more taught and youthful looking. If this isn't enough to convince you to slather some green tea on your face immediately, green tea facials have also been proven to help reduce the risk of sun cancer in animal tests! Are you slicing the cucumbers for your eyes yet?
If you're looking for a great green tea mask, you can either buy one at the store or attempt to make one yourself! A DIY project is a fun idea for a Friday or Saturday night in with a book, so here's a recipe to get you started!
To make the mask:
- 1 teaspoon of Moroccan Mint green tea, steeped lightly and strained
- 1/2 ripe avocado
- 2 tablespoons ground green tea
Mash all of these ingredients together in a bowl with a fork and then scoop it out, spreading it evenly across your face. Leave your mask on for about ten minutes before washing it off in warm water to leave your skin feeling pampered and fresh.
My husband, Will, and I planted our first vegetable garden at the tail end of spring. We were so excited to harvest a variety of tomatoes, pumpkin, okra, squash, cucumber and a plethora of greens and herbs by the beginning of fall. After carefully planting each and every seed, hand watering daily, and taking morning garden tours and connecting with their progress, much to our dismay, a pesky little rabbit or squirrel took it upon themselves to feast at our expense.
What they don’t find appealing to their palate are the more potent herbs, such as the mint and tarragon and spicy greens. For some reason they have also left behind the delicate thyme too. Lucky me!
This recipe made me rethink salads. Growing up when I tried to help my mom out in the kitchen, she would always put me in charge of the veggie chopping for salads. I barely learned the secrets of cooking the main entrees, but I got really good at nailing the salads.
It is truly such a fulfilling pleasure to pluck fresh herbs from your garden and include it in your meal. I picked some thyme, sage and tarragon, which I couldn’t believe I found a recipe that called for three untouched ingredients from my garden! I soaked, washed and chopped them and took a little over a tablespoon of the mixture and tossed it with the salad. The combination of the baby greens I used along with the potent herbs was fantastic! Not too overbearing from the defined sage and tarragon leaves.
Brewing the Darjeeling with rice vinegar was innovative. Darjeeling has a naturally flowery aroma that complemented the herbs and greens and fit into this salad in its own defined piece of the puzzle.
Will, who is a clinical salad dodger, devoured it. Perfectly light and airy, it went well with the main course of whole, roasted chicken.
Many of the herbal teas offered by California Tea House are grown at small, organic farms in California; these farms also provide many of the berries and flowers found in other teas. Even large chains like Wal-Mart have begun to offer and promote organic products. In my experience, organic products taste the same as coventionally-raised and produced food items, yet cost much more. So, what gives? Why is it important to eat and drink organic, even when it coems to tea?
1. It's important to support small farms. Most organic farms are small farms (source), which means you can feel fairly safe in that your organic dollars are not supporting unethical labor conducted in third-world countries.
2. By choosing organic, you are choosing to protect the health of farm workers. Because organic products are not grown using dangerous pesticides and chemicals, farmers who work on organic farms do not risk their health by coming into extensive, close contact with these toxic substances (source).
3. It's green! Because organic farms do not use as many chemicals as conventional farms, less energy is used applying these chemicals. Many organic farmers use naturally-occurring fertilizers, and because organic food is typically sold closer to where it is grown than conventionally-grown food, less energy is used for transport (source).
4. There is research indicating that organic foods contain more vitamins and minerals than conventionally-raised food (source).
By drinking tea comprised of organic ingredients, you are doing something wonderful for yourself, the earth, and society at large.
T ea lovers, rejoice: you can use tea to give your locks extra luster this winter!
How, you ask? Well, the tannins found in tea can thicken the shaft of the hair, which of course makes hair appear thicker. Although there's no science to back it up, I have also found that my hair appears much smoother following what I call a 'tea rinse.'
The method couldn't be simpler.
Brew three to four cups of your favorite green, white or black tea. (I have not tried herbal teas so while it's possible they may work as well, I can't vouch for it!)
Cool the tea until it's at least room temperature, if not a little colder.
Shampoo, condition, and rinse hair as usual. Allow hair to dry: it doesn't have to be totally dry, just not dripping wet!
Pour tea into a large bowl and flip your hair into it, being sure to get the tea all the way to your roots. Gently flip your hair back up and wrap it in a towel; allow it to sit for thirty minutes or so (the longer the better in my experience) and then rinse it out. Rinse with cold water for the shiniest results.
As a bonus, if you're like me and sometimes brew more tea than you can drink, you can always use the leftovers to treat your hair!
 Have you experienced the nighttime stalker, the sleepytime killer, the tossing and turning, turning and tossing, head under pillow, covers over head, on the tummy, left side, right side, even upside down and you just can't seem to escape its doom? Whether it be a final exam, a new job interview, a relationship gone sour, or a business decision that keeps you up staring at the ice melting away in your water glass with the nearby reflection of red lit numbers ticking away at your sanity as it approaches the set alarm time before you've even had a chance to catch one z. Insomnia is no joke. The good news is, tea for insomnia is no joke either.
You've tried all sorts of remedies. Over-the-counter, prescription, counting, reading, watching television, glass of milk, spoonful of yogurt, acupuncture, hypnotism and nothing seems to work. You've simply had enough.
California Tea House's Bedtime Chai is specifically designed to combat sleeplessness ... Bedtime Chai is a sleepytime tea, and it works. CTH invites you to take the natural challenge by sipping yourself to sleep. The main, all natural ingredient, valerian root, is a powerful herb famous throughout history to tranquilize oneself.
Bedtime Chai's valerian root is blended up with organic honeybush, chamomile blossoms, organic vanilla pieces, whole cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and toasted rice bits. The addition of chamomile, which is also known as a sleep aid that combats anxiety, seals this beverage as a powerful sleepytime potion.
California Tea House invites you to take a sleepytime challenge for a peaceful slumber:
1. Eliminate caffeine intake at least 8 hours before you sleep.
2. Eat a hearty dinner at least 3 hours before bedtime that leaves you full.
3. Brew a hot cup of Bedtime Chai an hour before bedtime.
4. Drink your tea next to a fire, listening to soft music, or cuddling next to a loved one.
As always, we love your feedback!
|
