Elgin Show and Open House

I am prepping for a Show in Elgin On Saturday and my Open House at the House on Sunday so it is wild and hectic and clean, very clean!!  I am making myself stay downstairs in the herb room if I am even thinking about making a mess!  But mostly today I am packing the car and labeling the herbs!

If you want to stop over at the house on Sunday we will have the cider and cocoa ready beginning at 11 AM and welcome anyone up until Masterpiece Theater is on Sunday evening (7 or 8 PM)  Address and location info is included on the Facebook events page also, linked here.

For those too far away to stop by we have a Deal of the Day each day (however- as a bonus I will not be able to get online to update things until Monday 12/12/16 so technically all these deals will last all weekend!)

SORRY ALL THESE DEALS EXPIRED ON MONDAY 12/12/16

Friday - Bath Tower - for the weekend we will make the Bath Tower only $10.00 instead of $12 so you can get three decoratively packaged bath salts in lavender lemon and grapefruit with a cute wood scoop.

Saturday - 20% off anything in the gift and gift basket section of Etsy.  We have a gift basket section with teapot, tea mugs and tea cups, as well as manly basket called Master of the Universe and other gift items and any of them will be 20% OFF with this coupon code: BASKET20

Sunday - Free Shipping on all orders over $25.00.  Just use the code FREESHIP on our Etsy Store or Square Store. If for any reason it does not work, we will refund your shipping charges quickly!

Monday - and on the off chance I am still not recovered on Monday, here is the Monday Deal as well - Buy One Get One FREE on all Herb Mixes - this includes our Dill Dip, Ranch Dressing, Meat rubs and all the herb mixes we have.  They are included in several listings, you'll know them when you find them, as they are all priced at $2.35, but most of theme are here: Herb Mix TOTAL

Backyard Patch Teas and making a Tea Library

Winter is a perfect time for tea.  I love it when it is cold, also when I am not feeling my best because of its soothing, warming and healing properties. I can never have enough flavors and styles and origins of tea, but I know that most people are not quite like that.  But think about tea like your closet, do you have only one color of clothing in your closet?  

No you have different fabric, textures, weights, patterns and colors.  The same is true of tea. A well-stocked tea  collection should be approached just as you approach filling your closet or your kitchen; choose a variety of different options, across a few broad categories, so that you know you’ll always have something to suit your mood. 

Not only are herbal infusions incredibly healthy, they are available in a huge array of flavors.  In fact, the choices when it comes to herbal teas might just be so wide that it becomes overwhelming.  If you feel like there are too many options to consider, you might be tempted to stick to the one brand or blend that you know, and forgo the rest of the possibilities.  But if you stick to only one herbal infusion, you’re missing out on some fantastic flavors, and some really valuable health advantages.  How can you branch out and expand your herbal collection without fumbling through the tea aisle of your supermarket for an hour?  

First of all, think about adding to your collection one herb tea at a time.  Try looking for an herbal tea in a different flavor profile than the one you already have at home.  Look at the options you have, and consider which category each belongs in:  floral (like hibiscus or orange blossom), fruity (like peach, berry, or apple), spicy (like cinnamon or Chai), or earthy (like rooibos or chamomile).  Once you’ve determined what flavor profiles you already have, experiment with a new flavor.  Or, try a new blend that mixes something you know you love with something you haven’t tried yet.  If you’re apprehensive about committing to a big bag of tea, before knowing whether or not you’ll like the flavor, seek out a sample size.

At Backyard Patch Herbs I make 22 varieties of Herb Tea, and a dozen teas with Green Tea and I create Black tea and Herbal Tea Blends whose number increases seasonally as I blend custom flavors for groups.

One of my first herbal tea blends was called Nerve Soothing.  It was crafted to help people relax, but the blend also has medical properties as well, because of the herb ingredients.  Chamomile for reducing or handling anxiety, thyme for its medical cold overpowering properties and digestive help, marjoram for the cough and cold fighting abilities and sage to cool illness, anxiety and stomach issues so you can just relax.

                                                                 Nerve Soothing Tea

Another of my early teas was Dreamtime,  A blend of lavender for stress reduction, chamomile for anxiety and catnip to improve relaxation.  The combination will help one relax and drift off to sleep more easily.

If you are interested in sampling teas, try out the Tea Samplers where you can get a grouping of three teas on various themes like Marvelous Mint or Luscious Lavender. 

How Tuesday - Lighted Potpourri Jar

This is such a great item to make quickly and place in the bathroom.  It is festive, holiday themed and leaves a great scent when you have guests in the delicate room!

How to -

Step one - Gather your supplies.  You will need:

• 1 wide mouth 1 quart canning jar
• 1 string of 20 to 30 christmas lights (I got mine from the dollar store)
• potpourri
• two rubber bands
• a paper or cloth doily

Step two - Potpourri

       I suggest making your potpourri rather than buying it, but in the essence of time, you can get some store-made at your local hobby center.  Here is recipe for seasonal potpourri if you want to try your hand at homemade.

Potpourri for the Holiday

• 1/2 cup dried cranberries
• 2-3 cinnamon sticks, crushed
• 1 to 3 star anise, broken is fine
• 1 tablespoon cardamom pods, crushed
• 2 teaspoons whole cloves
• 1/4 cup candied ginger or 1/8 cup dried ginger root pieces
• Needles from a pine branch, or from one sprig of rosemary (about 1 tsp. dried rosemary)
• 5 to 7 slices of dried orange
• 1 to 2 tsp dried mint leaves
• 1 Tbls. dried bay leaves

Combine ingredients in a jar and shake to blend.  Store in the jar for a few days to meld the scents.

Use as the potpourri in this project or add 1 cup mixture to a medium saucepan and fill 3/4 full with water and use as a potpourri simmer on the stove.

Step three - Fill the jar with lights and potpourri

Place a layer (about 1 inch deep) of potpourri in the bottom of the quart jar.  Thread in the lights and arrange on top of the potpourri.  Plug them in while you are working so you can see your progress. 

Add more potpourri as you thread in the lights and arrange the lights and potpourri artfully so you can enjoy the lights and the colors of the potpourri together.

Top off the jar with potpourri, leaving the tail end of the light cord outside the jar.

Step four - top the jar

Place a rubberband around the top of the jar to hold the string of lights in place over the rim.  Add the doily to the top and, using the second rubber band, secure the doily in place.   Now you have a scent opening.  Tie a bit of ribbon around the rubber band to cover it.

Step five - plug in to final resting place and enjoy!

We also had the one with the multi-color lights on the book shelf in the livingroom.

Hot Cocoa and Chocolate Shortbread

Happy Monday -

It snowed Yesterday!  I have been waiting for it to snow this year!  It started around 10 am and was still coming down heavily at 2 in the afternoon!  I was out taking pictures and enjoying the muffled quiet that comes with snow falling and just getting myself in the spirit of the season.

I have many orders to make and a show on December 10 and my open house on December 11, both of which should have many visitors browsing so I have lots things to do, but I had to take a break and enjoy the snow!

And just to get you thinking about the outdoors and cocoa here is a chocolate shortbread recipe:

Chocolate Shortbread
This goes well with hot cocoa!

1 cup flour
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 Tbls. cocoa powder
1/2 cup softened butter

Directions:
Cream the butter.  Then add the entire package of Shortbread Mix and work in. Knead the resulting dough on an unfloured surface until nice and smooth.  Firmly press the dough, working from the center out into an oiled pan.  Prick the surface with a fork all over . Bake at 325 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes.

Oatmeal Cookies & Milk Bath - Bath Blend of the Month

Bath Blend of the Month - Oatmeal Cookies & Milk Bath

1 cup cornstarch
2 cups powdered milk
1/2 cup oatmeal (not instant)
1 teaspoon cinnamon (or use Backyard Patch Cinnful Dessert blend for other useful and healthy spices)

Mix all ingredients in blender or food processor until it is a fine powder. Store in a tightly lidded jar.

TO USE: Just add 2 tablespoons of the mixture to your bathwater for a soothing bath.

If giving as a gift, place in a decorative jar and attach a spoon for measuring!

Shipping Deadlines 2016

SHIPPING DEADLINES

The last first class retail shipping day is December 15.
The last first class shipping day is December 20 and
The last Priority mail shipping day is December 21. 

To help you not procrastinate I have pulled together 12 days of Herbal Gifting.  Each day I will place an item on sale in my shops and post it as the deal-of-the-day at the top of the blog.  The blog may then be other ideas and information but the top will give you your herbal gift.  The sale item will expire at midnight CDT.  These herb-inspired items make great holiday gifts for yourself and others.

Shop that item and we will make sure it arrives to you or your recipient in plenty of time for Christmas.

Barley Vegetable Soup - makes a great gift!

Find this mix on Etsy right here!

This quick and easy soup mix is salt-free and tasty in cold weather! And the packaging is so cute for gift giving you might want to give it to all your friends and office mates!