Bonsai in bloom
L is for Labyrinth and Life
This morning after my yoga class, I took a walk through Heartwood‘s Labyrinth… I have a special fondness for that place for several reasons, one of them being that it is a replica (almost to scale!) of the famous Labyrinth of the Chartres’ Cathedral in France!… π€
It had been a while since I last walked though the labyrinth, and I had forgotten it took so long to get to the center of it.
I was reminded that you have to go through the motions in your journey…
There is no skipping ahead, or cutting corners.
There is no point in getting impatient.
You have to go with the flow, let the current carry you and negotiate each turn the best you can.
And you have to make sure you pay attention to the scenery along the way and try your hardest to enjoy the ride.
If you ever find yourself near a labyrinth, I invite you to take a walk through it. You might be surprised at the thoughts and emotions it triggers in you…
“Grandma’s Closet” Aromatherapy diffuser blend
I realized I have a few blends I forgot to postβ¦ Hereβs one of them…
“Old World” Aromatherapy diffuser blend
“In the Meadow” Aromatherapy diffuser blend
“Sweet Orchard” Aromatherapy diffuser blend
A word about smudging
Smudging is the act of burning certain herbs, roots, or resins, to purify the air around us. Common choices are California White Sage, Palo Santo, or Sweetgrass…
People usually associate this with a spiritual or esoteric practice (especially by Native Americans), as it is said to evacuate negative energies and spirits, but scientific studies have shown that it actually physically purifies the air, by turning the positive ions back to negative ions (negative ions = positive energy, positive ions = negative energy!…).
Personally I really like the smell of burnt sage (in cooking too! π) which is what brought me to this in the 1st place. An Abalone shell is often used to catch the ashes (and how gorgeous is this one!? π), and a big feather can be used to waft the smoke around.
If you’d like to learn more about the subject, check out those links:
Elephant Journal: scientific facts that make me want to start smudging right now
“London Fog” Aromatherapy diffuser blend
For as long as I can remember I have been fascinated by fragrances and perfumes. I have a strong sense of smell which, let’s face it, is mostly a curse, since a lot of modern days perfumes are just unbearable to me and give me a major headache.
I use a lot of Essential Oils, and one of my hobbies is playing mad scientist/perfumer and trying to come up with new combinations of oils to use in my diffuser and suit my every moods. The one below was my 1st attempt.
I am a tea drinker, and for me a London Fog (Earl Grey tea + milk + vanilla) falls into the category of “comfort foods”, so I was eager to try and recreate something evocative of it, especially since Bergamot is one of my favorite oils.
This is what I used “on the spot” in a 100 ml diffuser but the blend can be prepared in advance (which allows the scents to mingle together) and then you just use a few drops of the mix.
Given the properties of the oils I used, this blend falls into the calming/comforting category.
Terrarium mini gardens
Supplies:
- Various sizes glass containers (Tall ones are from IKEA, round ones from Walmart)
- Sand (what I used here is crushed shells from Walmart)
- Rocks, glass pebbles
- Assortment of succulent plants
- (Assortment of fake plants)
- Potting soil
- Inspirational rocks or signs (I used engraved rocks from Amazon)
- Gardening gloves
Place your little terrarium somewhere safe, where it won’t be knocked off by your zany cat, or attract your curious toddler… Remember that the plants will need light and to be watered every now and then…
Enjoy!… π