Herbal Tea: 5 Reasons to Ditch the Tea Bags

Herbal Tea: 5 Reasons to Ditch the Tea Bags

I'm not here to tell you to stop drinking tea. I love tea, and I think it's a great way to get your herbs in. Water is a universal solvent, and a powerful one when everything is done correctly. 

What I am here to do is tell you to stop using those little, paper tea bags. There are multiple reasons for this...

1. There isn't enough plant material in the tea bags to actually effect anything. If you're looking for healing properties in your tea, you're not going to find it in those little bags. There just isn't enough plant material in them.

2. Who knows the quality of those herbs?! What color are they actually? Color and smell can tell us a lot about the potency of the dry herbs. When the herbs are dried and processed into those little bags, a lot of the volatile oils that contain the sought after properties are lost. 

3. Stop drinking out of plastic. For so many reasons. I won't go deep here. But suffice it to say, plastic is not good for you or the environment. 

4. Water temperature! This one is important, especially if you're using delicate herbs like chamomile or lavender (I'm looking at you, Sleepytime Tea). Water that's too hot will make your tea bitter and increase astringency. Basically, it'll taste bad. Use cooler water for delicate flowers and berries or a shorter brew time, and hotter water/longer brew for heartier herbs and roots.

There are so many little nuances, and that is the point of this post. There isn't necessarily right and wrong, but if you are looking to get more than a tasty beverage out of your tea bag, there is a better way to approach this. There is an art to it, it should be a little ritual. A quiet time to take a moment of rest and peace, and give thanks for the wonder that is your body and this life.   


So there you have it! Four reasons to ditch those little paper tea bags and brew your own herbal tea at home with fresh herbs. Not only will your tea taste better, but you'll also be doing yourself a favor by avoiding plastic and getting more of the balancing and healing properties from the plants themselves!  

Love to drink tea? Check out our blended teas here.


2022 Lilac Hydrosol and Harvest

2022 Lilac Hydrosol and Harvest
The spiral year comes round again, marked by the seasons and the harvests they bring.  This time of year, the air is filled with the delicate, floral scent of our dear Lilacs.  Purple, white, pink, she shows up in many different forms.  

This is our second year distilling Lilacs and as the heat hit the blooms and the most volatile floral notes hit the air, a smile creeps into my heart.  This is what I live for.  This intimate knowing of these beautiful flowers.  

The steam distillation produces a concentrated water called Hydrosol. This hydrosol can be used in SO many different ways; you can use Lilac hydrosol on torn tissues, cuts, athletes foot, vaginal tearing after birth, as an additive to baths, for rashes, add it to muffins or any other baked goods...the list goes on and on.  

I think sometimes we forget the fact that the plants that we know and love are also really useful to keep in and growing around the home.
 
Here at Herbellion (interested in checking out what we have in stock? go here), we use hydrosols in lotions, as bath teas, and as toner & room sprays.  

You can get pretty creative when using hydrosols.  How would you want to use Lilac Hydrosol??

The Power in Feeling Seen

The Power in Feeling Seen
When I got pregnant with my second child, my mind thought I wanted to try giving birth alone.  At my first birth I had a big old team of helpers and I didn't want any of them to touch me...I needed to do it by myself for myself. 

What I didn't realize was, I also really needed to be seen in my fullest power.  Why?  Probably because I needed that power reflected back to me because I didn't truly believe in my power.

My births feel like a dream; a dream that leave me feeling profoundly humbled. And these dream births also often leave my heart hurting because I know not every woman has the gift of this, of feeling this empowered and able to take on the world after birthing her baby from the inside out.  Not every woman has a team that so deeply believe in her ability to birth that they let her take the lead and all they do is reflect that woman's power back to her. 

Now, I am positive God gifted me these births so that I can pass it on to other women. Every woman deserves to walk away from birth feeling POWERFULL.

Want to hear more about that experience?  Check out this video: https://www.instagram.com/p/CTkfpxWnuiN/

The Continuous Death of Woman

The Continuous Death of Woman

There’s no end to the cycle of shifting, changing, and mourning as a mother.  Mourning the loss of your beautiful belly, mourning the loss of your new squishy baby, mourning the loss of your body, your time.

As a woman, it's a cycle we intimately get to know before children ever enter into the picture.  Each month we shed a piece of our bodies, making way for something fresh and new.  If our bodies are in health our cycle of life, death, life will be continuous.

If we choose to stay in a harmony filled relationship with our bodies, we will get to know this cycle and learn to love the tides that ebb and flow. 

I was baking the other night and realized, wow, I AM ovulating! I had TONS of energy and had already baked 3 things plus dinner and dishes.  When I am close to release, I am much quieter, slower, and wish to move a whole lot less.  My body will start to feel heavy with the weight of loss. 

Women have always been the keepers of life and death and I think that's because our relationship with life and death are intimate and visceral, it's woven into the very thread of who we are.  Who better to sit with and stand witness to others in the moments of life and death but the woman who walks through that cycle every single month?

Finding motivation to do the mundane

Finding motivation to do the mundane

I didn’t spend my maiden 20’s learning how to cook, clean, or raise a family.  In fact, I did the exact opposite.  I started eating on the fly and usually scarfed down whatever I had in my pantry.  I got used to eating what I call “cheese sandwiches”, not a grilled cheese, oh no, something much simpler than that.  

I didn’t value keeping house and home.  I valued being with my friends and doing literally anything else. 

In the house I lived in before I had my daughter, my roommates actually asked me to leave because they wanted roommates who wanted to live like a family.  They wanted a family, not just a roommate and I only wanted a house to keep me warm in between my romping.

When I had my daughter and chose to settle down, being a housewife didn’t come easily. I messed up many a dinner before I learned how to actually cook a good meal. 

I got deeply depressed because I wasn’t valuing my role as a mother and a house wife.  I wanted more, wasn’t I supposed to want more?  Wasn’t I expected to go back to work since we were working on less than $600 a month coming in?  

Instead of pouring all of my energy into other people and other businesses outside of my home, I decided to do the exact opposite again.  I decided to pour everything I had into my family. 

Friends, the best change happened.  I learned to value home and family.  I learned how to stop longing for more and started valuing the gift of motherhood and being a house wife.  

Sure, some days I long for a time when my oldest will be able to wash dishes for me, but for now, it’s my job and I take it seriously and do it happily.

 
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