You've got Fruit on Your Face

Fresh fruit is fabulous. It's one of the reasons I can't wait for spring and summer. Strawberries, peaches, apples, cherries, watermelon, bananas - I'm starting to drool a little. Most of these fruits are available year round now, but local and fresh if at all possible, is the best.

Not only is fruit yummy and good for your insides, many fruits are good for your skin on the outside as well. Here of some of my favorite face fruits.

Whenever I'm cutting these up, I don't wash the juice off my hands - I just rub it on my face. Instant facial! Not only do they make your face feel fabulous, you smell fantastic too.

Pineapple - We don't grow pineapples here in NJ, but I still love them and will pick them up occasionally from the market. Pineapples contain bromelain and alpha-hydroxy acid. These help reduce wrinkles and remove dead skin cells, helping to give skin a smoother and gentle glow. They are also high in Vitamin C and A which are anti-oxidant free radical fighters. I like to just rub the juice on my face, let it dry a bit, and then rinse with cool water. Makes my skin feel all tingly and just a little tighter. And I love the way it smells!

Great face fruits.

Strawberry - Strawberries can help reduce acne and oily skin, reduce puffiness under your eyes, and remove dead skin cells. They also contain alpha-hydroxy acid and Vitamin C. They also contain ellagic acid, which help protect the skin from UV rays.  Use in the same way as pineapple, or just cut a berry in half and rub it on your face. Just divine. But do be cautious if you have allergies.

Banana - Banana's have lots of Vitamin C and soothing properties for worn skin. They reduce skin inflammation. Mash up a nicely ripe banana and put into your face. Let sit a bit and then wipe off gently and rinse. Sometimes I'll just rub the inside of the banana peel on spots on my arms or skin that are really dry. I'll also use it to rub on my teeth to help clean and whiten them. 

Watermelon - Have you ever gotten cool, refreshing watermelon all over your face when you're eating it on a hot summer day? Then you rinse it off and your face feels wonderful! That's because watermelon is another antioxidant moisturizer that is a fruity fabulous face treatment. It contains Vitamins C, A and B6. It will help tighten up your pores and refresh your skin.

Next time you're looking for a quick skin pick me up, just look to your fridge and get some fruit on your face.

Our First Event of the Season is Flowericious

Our first event of the season is coming up this Saturday at Dragonfly Farms in Hamilton, NJ. It's our first time there, and we're very excited to be participating. It looks like such a fun place!

 Stop by and visit! 30 craft vendors (Celtic Chairde Creations included!) and flowers and ideas to get you in a spring time mood.  We'll have you favorite skin care products, our interesting and unique jams and jellies, and maybe even some new goodies.

Love Scrubs? We Need Your Help!

Do you love sugar scrubs? I sure do. I love the invigorating exfoliation and the fabulous softness of my skin after a shower. Oh - and the fragrance. It just fills the shower and lifts your spirits.

We make a wide range of sugar scrubs and a few salt scrubs. There are even a few we carry seasonally. You can see our current line here. But in the quiet of a chilly February, I look for other things to create. And we've got four new options in the sugar pot now.

Green Tea Sugar Scrub - Honey infused with green tea blends with rich butters and oils and three types of sugars. Refreshing and motivating.
Kelly's Garden Sugar Scrub - Heady jasmine and gardenia, neroli and davana bring you to a beautiful summers garden at twilight
Cococoffee Sugar Scrub - Two test versions - wake up to that perfect morning scent of fresh coffee while enriching your skin with cocoa butter.
Pine Barrens Breeze Sugar and Salt Scrub - Pine infused honey and safflower oil, peppermint infused honey, a touch of Celtic sea salt and your on a walk through the pines.

Now - these scrubs are all in the first draft stage. What we need are a few volunteers to help us out. Would you like to help us test out new scrubs? Go over to our Facebook page. Like our page and leave a comment saying - I'm in!  We'll send you some samples and ask that you send us your feedback when you've had a chance to try them.

Revenge of the Sock Monster

We all have them. Those lonely singles that frustrate us no end. Where did the other one go? It was probably eaten by that most insidious of all beasts - the sock monster.

I have a bag of single socks, collected in hopes of a mate turning up eventually. Or they are there because I've forgotten I've recycled the mate because it had holes or was torn. But there is something that keeps me from throwing those single socks out. Which is good, because there are so many things we can do with them.

• Use that single sock for a rag is an obvious one. Make a nice little dusting or polishing mitt.
• Make a cat toy. Stuff the toe of a small sock with catnip. Tie a tight knot or two above the herbs. Cut the top part into strips and toss it to your cat. They'll love you for it.
• I remember making lots of sock puppets when I was little. Sometimes I didn't wait for a mismatched pair, much to my mothers chagrin. All you need are buttons, ribbon, felt, glue and some imagination.
• Cut socks into strips and use as garden plant ties. I like to leave long ends to be tossed about in the breeze to help deter critters and birds. That doesn't always work but it looks pretty.
• Use them to cover bottles and jars. Bottles of oil or syrup can leave sticky rings. Slip a sock over the bottom of the bottle to catch drips. Replace with another sock when it gets messy and just wash the old one!
• You can also use it as a glass or bottle cozy.
• Fill with rice or flax seed. Sew the end closed and you have a wrist wrest.
• And my absolute favorite. Make sachets. Fill old socks with your favorite scents. This time of year I have lots of pine needles so I fill one with crushed or cut pine needles. Tie off or so the end and put in drawers or linen closets. I like to tuck them in to sofa corners so it smells nice when you sit down. You can use lavender, lemon verbena or dried lemon peel, rosemary, rose petals or any combination that makes you happy. You can also toss these in to the dryer to add some extra scent.

Reef loves his Catnip Sock

So have a snack every now and then, old sock monster. I'm ready for you.

What do you use old socks for?

Honey of a Time... With Infused Honey

It's been a hectic past few months. Between Super Storm Sandy clean up and the Holiday season, life has seemed to pass by in a blur. Now that we've welcomed in 2013, I've had a little time to catch up on some of my herbal chores. Of course these aren't really chores at all. They are the favored tasks that you reward yourself with when all the rest has been done. What have I been doing? Oh, how sweet a task it is. I've been decanting and setting up my herbal infused honeys.

The sweetness and health benefits of honey are well documented. Whether you're using honey in your skin care, food or for your health, you can give it a boost with some herbal input. And it is so very, very easy.

Ginger swimming in honey.

What You'll Need:

• Clean mason jar/s
• Honey (my favorite is Herberstville Honey. Try to use local honey to aid with allergy immunity building)
• Your favorite fresh or dried herbs. Personally, I prefer using dried, except for roses. Less chance of moisture getting into the honey and causing problems such as mold or fermentation. Of course, fermentation could lead to an interesting mead, but that's another story for another day.

Make sure your mason jar is clean. Run it through the dishwasher or submerge in water and boil for a few minutes. Make sure the jar is thoroughly dried before using.

Loosely fill the jar to about two thirds full with your favorite herb, spice or combination.

Vanilla beans soaking in honey.

Pour the honey into the jar to cover the herbs. Stir with a knife or something long to remove all the air pockets. Top off with some more honey.

Cover tightly and put in a sunny windowsill or on a shelf you check fairly often.

Every few days turn the jar over to circulate the honey and herbs. Let the jar sit for at least two weeks or longer. The longer it sits, the stronger the infusion will be.

I just decanted a cinnamon infused honey that had been steeping for almost a year. I will admit that I only flip or check the jars every month or so when I'm letting it set up for that long a time.  It's divine! So extraordinarily yummy on waffles.

Here are some herb or spice combinations to try:

Honey dripping from vanilla sooo yummy!

• Rose petals. You can use fresh or dried petals (untreated, naturally). If you use fresh petals you don't even have to strain - just use eat the petals like a jam.
• Lavender
• Cinnamon - use just the sticks. Powder is OK, but it can make it gritty.
• Vanilla
• Chai - use cinnamon sticks, cardamom pods, a few black peppercorns, a vanilla bean, cloves, allspice, star anise, or other chai flavoring that you like
• Peppermint
• Thyme
• Lemon Herbs - I like to combine lemon thyme, lemon balm, and lemon verbena
• Orange or lemon - use the peels cleaned of pith
• Rosemary
• Hot peppers - this is great in barbecue sauce or as a glaze for ribs or ham
• Ginger
• Calendula petals
• Elderberries - dried make a wonderful cough syrup

Use your imagination! These honeys are great to use in cooking or in teas, or straight off the spoon!

Of course, honey's not just great for your insides - it's fabulous for your outsides. I like using Calendula honey straight on cuts and scraps. We use ginger infused honey in our Orange Ginger Sugar Scrub.  Rose infused is used in our Rose n' Dew Sugar Scrub and the Rose 'n' Dew Face Spritz.

And if you want to ease away the stress of the past few months, try some Lavender honey in your tea - or in your bath!

Have fun making infused honeys. Let me know what herbal combinations you're trying, and I'll keep you posted of mine.