|
Love
Poems and Lavender
Growing Lavender is so Fun. The bees love it in the
summer and
then the seeds provide food for the birds.
12 Lavender Plants
Lavender, Candles, Seed & Flower Links:
Purple
Haze Lavender
Recipes Lavender
Farms
Garden
guides for lavender Fragrant
Garden
Picnics
on a Whim Lavender
Oil Review
Candles
Extremely Beautiful Asian Love Poems
As you read this anthology of Asiatic verse you may
find it stunningly beautiful. The translations are perfect and
retain the original tenderness with which the poems were written.
These are love poems that speak of passionate desires shrouded in
mystery. The mentioning of veils and breath scented with rose
water and honey makes these poems very exotic. I read a lot of
poetry and this book is perhaps one of the top ten most beautiful
books I've ever read. I have never read any of these poems in any
other collection of world poetry. The author really seems to have
collected some rare treasures. If you love romantic poetry you
will adore this book.
~The Rebecca Review |
You Drive Me Crazy Love Poems
The ebb and flow of love..., February 20, 2007
Love Poems for Real Life seems to have been created for couples in
a long-term relationship. The poems are arranged according to how
the authors see love's initial passion and then how this ebbs and
flows over time.
At first the poems radiate an intimacy that contrasts sharply with
a desire for distance later in the book. The lovers express such
sweet concepts as in E.E. Cummings "I carry your heart with
me."
Later, Dorothy Parker displays her sardonic wit in the last line
of a love poem - that feels more like elation and frustration. It
seems she is depressed at the time and nothing is bringing her
joy, so she writes of the sweetness and then throws in a line or
two about how she wishes she had never met her lover who seems to
live with sunny skies. After reading about her life, we know there
were some storms, but was anyone listening?
I loved Al Zolynas' "The Zen of Housework." It is
brilliant in the way it presents visual images for contemplation.
Anna Akhmatova's "I Wrung My Hands Under My Dark Veil"
is also stunning in beauty and emotional implication. Carolyn
Creedon's poem shows great sarcasm and Sylvia Plath takes the cake
for misery:
"The moon, too, abases her subjects,
but in the daytime she is ridiculous.
Your dissatisfactions, on the other hand,
Arrive through the mailslot with loving regularity,
White and blank, expansive as carbon monoxide.
No day is safe from news of you,
Walking about in Africa maybe, but thinking of me."
Margaret Atwood's poem "Habitation" seems to define this
book as it explores the idea that in love, we are always at the
point of "learning to make fire." The passion of the
initial poems mellows into a nourishing comfort.
Mary D. Esselman and Elizabeth Ash Velez are careful observers of
popular culture and of the daily lives of the seemingly typical
love relationship in modern society. In their introductions to
each chapter, they explore the ideas of Ecstasy, Stability,
Monotony, Uncertainty, Misery and Clarity. Their commentary on the
poems makes for interesting reading and makes the book feel more
personal and ultimately more emotionally fulfilling. Most of the
poems in this collection were new to me, so that was a delicious
surprise.
~The Rebecca Review
|
Lavender Spa Basket
Caswell-Massey English Lavender
Lovely for Travel, October 31, 2006
Caswell-Massey English Soap Leaves are perfect for your
purse
or when traveling. Unlike bottles of liquid soap, these never spill
into your purse. Each sheet dissolves quickly in warm water
and scents your hands with a warm lavender scent.
~The Rebecca Review
Scents & Sensibilities Creating Perfumes
Lovely Cozy Style with Practical Appeal, July 26, 2006
Review: The Rebecca Review
"Using solid perfumes is a simple activity to incorporate
into your life for reduction of stress...over time, just a whiff
of your special fragrance can help you to become calmer and more
grounded." ~Mandy Aftel
Mandy Aftel's work has been featured in Vanity Fair, Vogue and
Allure. She creates unique perfumes for private labels and for
individual clients. In this lovely colorful book, she explores how
you can make your own solid perfumes and maybe even refill a
collectible compact you discovered in an antique store. This book
has made me want to go visit more antique stores to look for the
little compacts you refill with the liquid perfume mixture. You
could also use glass or new metal containers.
A Brief History of Perfume introduces you to the process of
extracting the essential oils from plants. Entertaining facts
about the Egyptians wearing solid perfumes on their heads makes
this very enjoyable.
"As the ancients used perfumes in brooches, rings, pendants,
and charms, so can we incorporate the same pleasurable effects of
solid perfume in jewelry today."
The chapter on essential oils also explores top notes, absolutes
and concretes. Perfume ingredients that are described include:
Bitter Orange, Bois de Rose, Ginger, Lime, Pink Grapefruit,
Virginia Cedarwood, Clary Sage, Jasmine, Lavender, Nutmeg, Rose,
Ylang Ylang, Bezoin, Cocoa, Frankincense, Labdanum, Oakmoss and
Vanilla.
Tools, beakers, bamboo skewers...so many things I didn't know to
use when making perfumes. You will probably find you have many
items in your kitchen.
A Basic Solid Perfume Recipe is the starting point for your own
discovery. Detailed instructions with pictures lead to the
blissful moment of your own creation.
A soft, warm and sensual blend I made up recently: Ylang Ylang
III, Egyptian Musk, Lavender and Patchouli. You can mix your own
essential oil blends and then add them to the solid perfume while
still a liquid.
~The Rebecca Review
|
Ergo Lavender Candle
Lavender Field at Monclos by Timothy Easton
In ancient times, there are accounts of the use of lavender to
scent the bath or laundry. Lavender essence is an efficient
antiseptic and is used to treat burns and wounds. You can retain
the intoxicating scent of lavender in sachets and pillows. In
Elizabethan times, lavender oil was rubbed into oak furniture to
give it a high gloss. If you want a wonderful source for a
Lavender /Herbal Furniture oil, please call: 1-800-884-9287. You
can also write to: Sweetwater Lavender, Ltd, 58 Jacobs Road,
Coupeville, WA 98239. They also have potpourri, honey, tea, soap
samplers, creams, perfumes and essential oils. The furniture
oil is to die for! I use it on my windowsills and desk, not to
mention...kitchen cupboards and just about all my oak
furniture.
Experience the essence of lavender. Purple fields swaying in
the breeze and the heady aroma of sun kissed flowers. If you visit
Whidbey Island you will see a beautiful lavender farm
on your right hand side when driving from Deception Pass to the
Guest House Cottages. You can purchase handcrafted products
or even lavender
honey from Provence,
France. Visit a lavender
festival to see all the lavender varieties. Provence lavender
has the sweetest fragrance, but English lavender has
the sweetest taste, so it depends how you want to use it, in
cooking or perfumes!
The whole experience of grinding lavender into sugar with a mortar
and pestle is seductively primal. The scent of the lavender is
almost intoxicating. It gets even better when the cookies are
baking. If you love lavender half as much as I do, you will love
Jerry Traunfeld's new cookbook. He makes the best lavender
cookies. I make the dough simply, grind the lavender into the
sugar and then sift it into the butter. I stir it with a wooden
spoon and add the flour, roll the dough and bake. It works well.
Sometimes cooking is more fun if you use just a wooden spoon and a
bowl to make cookies. Making lavender cookies should be more
romantic. These are cookies you want to share with someone you
love. They can also be packages and given as gifts. I use a round
biscuit cutter with a curly edge. It gives the cookies a nice
shortbread look. The dough seems suited for a cookie mold which
would be very pretty. I found the recipe is also good with chopped
pecans pressed into the top of the cookies before baking
them. To make a lavender sugar, combine 1 cup sugar with 1
tablespoon dried lavender.
The Herbfarm Cookbook : A Guide to the...
Lavender Cookie Recipe, adapted from:
The Great Big Cookie Book : Over 200...Great Big Cookie Book
In a large bowl, cream two sticks of butter with
1/4 cup granulated sugar
until creamy, set aside. In a mortar (see above), grind 2 tablespoons dried
lavender into
1/4 cup sugar until most of the lavender is finely ground.
Sift the sugar into the butter.
Stir well. Add 2 cups
unbleached all-purpose flour. Stir to make a soft dough. Roll the
dough on a floured
breadboard to 1/4 inch thick. Use a Biscuit cutter to cut out
rounds of dough.
Place on baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until lightly
browned.
When the cookies are cool, they can be dipped halfway into melted
chocolate and left on wax paper to set completely.
These can be wrapped in cellophane bags with a
big bow.
You will want to insert some dried lavender into the bow.
Lavender Wreath
100 Flowers and How They Got Their Names
Lavender
is one of the easiest plants to grow. It is advisable to add
a handful of lime and bone meal to the soil before planting lavender. The soil should be alkaline and have good
drainage.
Ylang Ylang
Ylang Ylang
Dreamy
Dreamy Essential Oil, August 15, 2004
Recently I've been interested in trying more than lavender. Essential
oils are doors to new experiences and Ylang Ylang is a more sensual
oil that can be blended into massage oils and creams.
The tree is native to Indonesia and Malaysia and star-shaped pale
yellow flowers with trailing and twisting petals produce a heady
aromatic scent that also seems to have a slight lemony edge. The
flowers are collected at night in May and June and the essential oil
that is distilled is a highly evocative fragrance.
Soft, exciting, sensual and almost invigorating yet makes you sleepy.
A highly complex fragrance that leaves you a bit heady and definitely
in the mood to relax. This oil is perfect for sensual moments,
massage, bubble baths or just to apply to your wrists before bed. I've
also been known to sprinkle this around smooth stones placed around
candles.
The Complete Book of Essential Oils and...
If you are looking for a rich and healing moisturizer with this scent,
try the Burt's Bees Evening Primrose Overnight Crème. It can also be
used as a massage cream. I would only recommend this essential oil for
use when you don't have to be very aware. It can make you feel a bit
"in love" at times and you might find yourself putting the
soy milk in the cupboard with the soy butter instead of back in the
refrigerator. I'm not kidding.
This stuff is a heady potion. I always put things that go in the
refrigerator in the kitchen cupboard when feeling in love. lol I don't
know why. But maybe you will find yourself wanting to just climb into
bed after inhaling this essential oil.
~TheRebeccaReview.com
Lavender Vanilla Ready To Glow Kit
Modern Country
Charming Country Style with Chic Appeal, July 26, 2006
Reviewer: The Rebecca Review
If you are dreaming of the country or want to redecorate your
house...or even just find a few new decorating ideas, this book is
filled with charming style and chic appeal. Classic and comforting
designs warm the pictures as antiques add mystery and a sense of the
past.
A granite washbowl is perched atop a antique wooden cabinet, modern
lamps blend with wicker chairs, an indoor grass garden adds calm and
outside tables find their way into the living room.
The antique, teal-painted cupboards even have sight wear and glass
containers filled with breakfast cereals. The ideas in the kitchens
are "on display." The teacups are not hidden and country
fruit dinnerware highlights the country appeal. Baskets are found
throughout whether they are wicker or metal.
The bedrooms have Victorian style with plump down comforters and
upholstered chairs for reading. A laundry room doubling as a workout
room - now that is something new. This book is filled with unique
ideas like chalkboard paint on cupboards so you can leave notes. They
even have chalkboard painted mugs.
~The Rebecca Review
Lavender Foot Spa
Miel de Lavande Pure Lavender Honey
|
|
