Happy New Year

Wishing you all a very Happy New Year. May all your needs be met abundantly and may your lives be filled with Love, Light, Joy and Health.

In this quite time before everything gets back to normal many people take time to reflect on the year that has just passed and consider where they would like to go in the next year. Once again I'm suggesting that some of you might like to take time and create a special blend designed to support and enhance what it is you are hoping to accomplish this coming year.

On my website you will find an article that I wrote for New Year 2000. Your own Special Blend. The creation of a special blend can of course take place at any time but setting your intentions for 2009 and creating a special blend to support those intentions could be a really fun thing to do.

Suggestions on ways to use essential oils can always be found in the Newsletter on my website and are entirely up to you.

May you be rich in blessings,
poor in misfortune,
Slow to make enemies,
quick to make friends.
But rich or poor, slow or quick,
May you know nothing but happiness
from this day forward.
Irish Blessing

The Four Candles

The four candles burn slowly.
The ambiance was so soft you
The first one said:
”I am peace! However, nobody can keep me lit. I will go out."
It’s flame rapidly diminishes and goes out completely.

The second one says:
"I am faith! Most of all I am no longer indispensable, it doesn’t make any sense that I stay lit any longer."
When it finished talking, a breeze softly blew on it putting it out.

Sadly the third candle spoke in it's turn:
”I am love! I haven’t got the strength to stay lit. People put me aside and don’t understand my importance. They even forget to love those who are nearest to them ."
And waiting no longer it goes out.

Suddenly...
A child enters the room and sees three candles not burning. “Why are you not burning? You are supposed to stay lit till the end." Saying this, the child begins to cry.

Then the fourth candle said:
”Don’t be afraid, while I am still burning we can re-light the other candles, I am Hope!"

With shining eyes, the child took the candle of hope and lit the other candles.

May the flame of hope never go out for you!

Blessings to you all at this very special time of year.

Beverley

Aromatic Gifts - Bath Salts

An quick and easy to make aromatic gift is bath salts. You can really customize them to suit the person you're gifting them and imaginative packaging can really make the gift something very special. The popularity of 'bath and smelly products' is evident when you see how busy these stores are in the malls. Why not whip up something really special for a fraction of the price?

Basic Recipe
1 cup Epsom Salts
1 cup Sea Salt
20 drops essential oil or essential oil synergy
Optional: 10 drops food coloring

Packaging and presentation is what will make the difference.
Here the sky is the limit and is only limited by your own imagination.

Do you just want to give the bath salts? Then pretty clear or colored cellophane bags tied with pretty ribbon and a few flowers or feather etc could be the way to go.

Do you want to add the bath salts to something else? There are a number of interesting containers you could consider using - a coffee mug; a pretty bowl; a wide mouth jar; again your imagination is all that will limit you as the bath salts are easy to pour into just about any kind of container.

What about making up a small (or large) Gift Basket. In addition to the Bath Salts there are lots of interesting things you could add like a nail brush, a back brush, a sponge or a loafer. What about adding a nice relaxing CD and/or a pretty candle?

Your gift can be customized especially for the person you're giving it to, taking into consideration what you know about them and their own personal fragrance preference or you could create themed gifts like a Lavender theme or a Relaxation theme or Happy Feet!

There are lots of recipes and ideas in my in my e-Book Aromatic Gifts for all ages and for all seasons.

Sage - Salvia officinalis

The signature oil for Sagittarius is Black Pepper but that oil has already been profiled on the blog and you can read about it here just scroll down, so today I'm going to talk about another oil that is listed for Sagittarius - Sage.

Common sage is an evergreen, shrubby, perennial herb with a woody base, soft silver, oval leaves and a mass of deep blue or violet flowers. Native to the Mediterranean region it is now cultivated worldwide. Sage has a long history of being used as a medicinal plant Leung and Foster in Encyclopedia of Common Natural Ingredients say that "in traditional medicine it has been used as a tonic, digestive, antiseptic, astringent and antispasmodic. It has also been used to reduce perspiration (e.g. night sweats) to stop the flow of milk, to treat nervous conditions (e.g. trembling, depression and vertigo), dysmenorrhea, diarrhea, gastritis, sore throat and insect bites, usually in the form of a tea or infusion."

Did you know that the name of the genus, Salvia, is derived from the Latin salvere, 'to be saved'. Sage was considered to be able to save people from illness and death. First Nations people have a long tradition of smudging with wild sage for protection and purification. It was once believed that sage would thrive or wither in accordance with whether the business of the person who planted the sage prospered or failed. Yet another tradition holds that when sage grows vigorously in the garden, the wife would rule the household.

On a subtle level Sage helps one to surrender to Spirit. It is thought that it can help one to connect to Ancestral memories. Sage cleanses and purifies.

Avoid during pregnancy. Avoid its use for people with epilepsy or high blood pressure. Use with care and only for short periods of time.