All posts tagged jasmine

Iced Tea, Ya’ll!

iced tea time, ya’ll, in the apothecary!

I was raised on family stories of not-so-law-abiding ancestors who lived fast, and in some cases, died young. Having now lived for a short while in Austin, I’ve come to appreciate one of my ancestors, the wild west train robber and outlaw, Sam Bass. My Uncle Sam’s death is re-enacted annually just a half-hour from our home on the 4^th of July which is a strange experience for me, but an altogether Texas way of celebrating the 4^th. He was an interesting character, whose appearance was said to be gentler than the typical rough-and-tumble outlaw. I imagine that if Sam were alive today we’d sit in the Apothecary’s backyard drinking iced tea and planning our next direct-action protest (I figure that I could direct his wild west energies into more social justice oriented activities and less train robbing). So in honor of my outlaw ancestry and in an attempt to love the heat, our newest creation in the Apothecary is an iced tea.

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Herbs of the Full Moon

We plant by the moon, pick, and make medicine by the moon. The moon calls the tides of our earth’s waters and our own individual tides. Just as some herbs are more suited to organs in the body they also correspond to the planets which orbit our the greater body of our earth.

JASMINE Jasminum officinale: Jasmine is a flower of love of both spiritual and physical manifestation. An aphrodisiac, Jasmine is also said to attract the good will of prosperity to those who wear it. In tea blends, it adds a calming element. The white of the Jasmine flower is what connects it to the full moon as well as the fact that the flower blooms only at night.

ANISE Pimpenella anisum: A common and delicious spice for the kitchen, Anise is antispasmodic, antiseptic, and sopoforic, relieving gas pains and cramps. Anise brings harmony between those who ingest it and protects from terrifying dreams. Like Jasmine, it mingles the powers of our physical and spiritual needs for love, helping to dissipate the illusion that they are separate in the first place.

PAU D’ARCO Tabebuia impetiginosa: Legend has it that when the Vikings first came to South America and saw the Pau D’arco plant and its unusual color they said that it must have come from the moon! A powerfully healing plant, Pau D’arco is used to treat colds, tropical diseases such as malaria, psoriasis, and is generally strengthening to the body.

In honor of the silver orb who returns to us fully crowned cycle after cycle, we’ll have a 10% off, one-day-only mo(o)nthly discount on the full moon. Redeem your coupon with the code “LUNACY” in our Etsy shop. For this month, we’ll stretch the time of the coupon, allowing you to use it for the rest of today and tomorrow. Enjoy!

Visit out S H O P to redeem your coupon!

More Stars for More Merriment

As with any part of the year, whether you are tired, invigorated, flabbergasted, illuminated, joyful, disgruntled or bursting with any other exuberant expression of emotional being-ness, we hope that you’ll always have time to drink deep the incredible (tea)cup of life that we’re all experiencing.

All that said, we are simply tea-sellers at the end of the day and we would like you to know that we’ve more stars to light your way. Our Star of Yule Tea Blend is now available in our standard 3 ounce size in our little online shop. You can still find it in our Winter Remedy Kits, too, in a smart-looking 1 ounce tin (who doesn’t want to look clever?).

Tea to soothe, to calm, to sing a song…

When I was working at a local café here in Portland, I had the opportunity to create custom teas for our customers. In the process of creating blends for the café, I asked many of our customers not only what kind of teas they liked, but why they drank tea. Many responses included drinking tea because it was “soothing” and “de-stressing,” as well as a time to be still and mindful. Sounds pretty good to me!

I know I enjoy walking into a café, a friend’s kitchen or backyard and having the opportunity to sit down with a cuppa. It’s not only the tea that centers me but also the environment I’m in, the way the tea is served, its scent, color, and, of course, its taste. I love especially seeing the tea before it is brewed and I often choose teas by sight, attracted to its particular colors and texture. Beauty, in its multitude of manifestations, soothes the soul, and with that in mind I created Flower Song as a tea that inhabits the realm of beauty quite comfortably.