It’s the MOST craziest time of the year!

Wow! I never expected the last few weeks to be filled with so much adventure! NO comfort and joy for me. I know I’ve been MIA … it’s so unlike me!

But I wanted to fill you in on why I have not been blogging. I’ve been traveling for work. Puerto Rico, Santa Barbara, LA and beautiful Palm Beach. I love traveling and exploring wether it’s work or play. Airplanes are my happy 😊 place!

First there was a late in the season hurricane in 🌴 Florida.

Then while that was brewing I got sick with an upper respiratory infection. Thank goodness no flu or Covid.

Next I got attacked by three angry 🐝 wasps! Three different times!!! While minding my own business. It was bad.

All with Shop Small Saturday events at my studio and my Holiday Open House 🏡 weekend for my beauty cottage. Needless to say… I’m exhausted from all of this and the steroids I had to take too.

But I wanted you to know I have not forgotten about you and my blog too.

Stay tuned … I’ll be back.

Cold & Flu Season Beauty🤧

cup of tea with sliced lemon on white surface

Photo by Daria Rem on Pexels.com

I woke up the other day and felt awful…like a Mack truck ran over me. I was clammy,runny nose,sore throat and had laryngitis.

I was forced by my body to stay in bed several days. I hadn’t felt like this in a year. What I know for sure is when you’re sick at home and stuck in bed… you need to really rest and take care of yourself! And do something nice for yourself.

And if you don’t have energy to even take a quick shower or bath 🛀 just do a few things to make yourself FEEL better.

Here are a few tips…

Don’t get dehydrated. Drink plenty of liquids.

*Fresh squeezed juice is a nice bonus. If you can’t juice 🥤 your own. Try and keep a store bought one in your freezer or refrigerator.

Refresh your skin with a cozy hot towel soaked with a dash of Vick’s vapor rub. Place over your nose and on your chest. Help those nasal passages & chest congestion.

Light a flameless 🕯 candle. Or better yet purify the air by lighting a Himalayan salt stone lamp. They light 💡 up the room with such a pretty, peaceful, ambience. And nowadays are cheap but bring so much joy!

Place your feet 🦶 in white cotton socks with your fave hand 🖐 & body lotion. Or another tip is to slather on a coat of Vick’s Vapo rub. Then place those tired feet in fresh white socks. Feels 😊 so good! Really helps with softening the feet and they say helps your cold leave faster. It also makes your feet feel good and skin softer too.

Turn on a white noise machine or listen to music in your chair or bed.

Open the curtains and let the SUN 🌞Shine in! Let the sunlight warm you up. The light will lift your spirits too.

abstract beach bright clouds

Photo by Pixabay on Pexels.com

Put on a 💄 lipstick, gloss or lip conditioner and you’ll be feeling better before you know it.

Guys you need a lip balm too! When you have a cold or the flu your lips will get dry. Very dry. Maybe even peel and flake.

Keep the skin on your face moist with a beauty oil or moisturizer. Sneezing, wiping, or blowing your nose can make your nose,face and cheeks red and raw. And dry! Keep that skin soft!

This might be a good time to put on a sunless tanner…while you’re stranded at home.It might even make you feel better. It def will make you look better.

Spray your pillow cases and sheets with a mix of 95 distilled or tap water and a few drops of lavender or Tea Tree oil.

selective focus photo of bottle with cork lid

Photo by Mareefe on Pexels.com

A hydrating KBeauty sheet mask is another good thing you could do to make yourself feel better.

If you have a fever… straighten the bed. Fluff up the pillows and sprinkle your fave body powder on the sheets.

Brush your hair with a dry 🧴 shampoo. Keep it handy at your bedside.

Place your journal,prayer book,a good book,magazines or adult coloring book 📚 near you. Place a mini notepad 📝 and pen by you too . You may think of things you need to buy or to do once you’re up to it.

Keep things close so you don’t have to get up and down from the 🛌 bed.

Chicken soup or Chinese hot and sour soup work wonders.

Feel hot and clammy? Got a fever? I love to make DIY Gatorade Ice cubes. Make ice cubes and suck on them! Cooling soothing electrolytes and they keep you from dehydrating too.

Ice cream 🍨 or an ice cream float is cool and soothing on sore throat! This is no time to diet. Indulge!

You know even if you get the flu shot it does not prevent you from getting a severe cold and more.

I’m just glad it’s over for me and I’m starting to feel like myself again. Something is going around. Get ready! Take care of yourself. I hope my blog post helps.

Tea Time!

I LOVE coffee, I love TEA!

Do you? Some days you just want to wind down with a cup of hot tea. I especially love making a tea from scratch and TEA TIME D.I.Y. photothat don’t come in a store-bought tea bag. I like to do a D.I.Y.

Here is a recipe I made that I find helps fight a cold,sore throat or the flu.Good for your immune system too!

3 cups of water

3 slices of fresh ginger (1/4 inch thick)

juice of half a lemon

1/4 tsp. of cloves

1/2 teaspoon of Tumeric

1 pinch of cayenne

1 1/2 tbsp. raw honey

1 cinnamon stick to swirl it all in!

*I also love to steam my face and pores with an exotic steam bath brew.Stay tuned to that recipe too.

I hope you will enjoy this drinking tea recipe too.

Day 22 to beautiful skin

For better looking skin you MUST keep your hands off your face.

I often see people pull,push on tug,lean on their face.Every one of these movements your face remembers and it can cause more wrinkles over time.

On another note we are in flu season and that means you should be concerened about this even more. I also see that people do so many things and are not washing their hands. Bacteria is doing the chah cha all over your hands from touching door knobs,hands rails, credit cards,magazines at the doctors office and so much more. THEN you place those fingers in your eyes, around your nose and all over your face. Be mindful and remember to wash your hands often.
If you want to stay healthy and skin to look good …Keep it clean
.

Hello,Spring you bloom in my heart today!

Welcome gorgeous, happy and sun filled spring.

Last week I felt it’s early arrival in New York City now I sip a brew of hot jasmine tea and enjoy it in my garden chair. I had to stay home today and cancel my work day due to my hectic schdeule and or  travels have given me that run down flu bug and no voice.I wish I could speak today but all I can utter is an ugly struggling whisper.No fun having only the energy to sit or lay down in bed. I want to celebrate the beauty of today and the season that blooms in my heart today. I wil pick a few herbs to make a bouquet with and settle for a day to continue in bed resting. The rest of my week is full…I only hope I don’t have to cancel more days for this.

 I love Spring… it so makes my eyes and heart sing! Your garden of earthly delights make my life so rich!

Enjoy the riches in life and the eye candy our world has to offer.

Feeling under the weather?

When you don’t feel well, going through chemotherapy or just have a bad case of the flu…There are some lovely things you can do to feel good just for wonderful YOU!

Pretty Pick Me Ups

  •  Always take time for you and for some ME time. Whether it is shopping an antique mall, stopping at a coffee shop for your favorite brew or going to a matinee.
  • Makeup your mind to care and make certain the health of your skin is a priority. Don’t skimp on moisturizer. Now is the time you need it even more! Day and night, apply moisturizer from face to toes.
  • Vow to yourself that you will add some color to your face…daily. If you are too sick, at least apply lipstick or a lip-gloss. Or have your BFF apply it on you. It will make you feel better I promise.
  • Blush is necessary during these times you will look washed out especially during chemotherapy.
  • Relax in a bathtub especially when your days are rough, long and you simply have had enough. Dip into some delightful scented water. Try the scents of rose, lavender and or vanilla. There are so many products on the market to enjoy! If you are not a bath person or cannot take a bath …Shower on! Choose a decadent bath or shower gel and rub your cares away.
  • Spray your pillows with a spritz of your favorite fragrance. Sleep tight~
  • Cozy up to a fireplace or fill the room with a few fragrant candles.
  • Bake a pie, roll up bread or go to a decadent bake shop and enjoy what they have made.
  • Make TEA time a part of your day. Just like the people of England do in mid-afternoon. I do it with my honey when we can and it is so wonderfully relaxing.
  • Buy yourself some flowers! Yes, a chic and cheap bouquet is what the happiness doctor ordered. I love color and surrounding myself with it. Bouquets are an easy way to do this.
  • Plant an herb garden or buy one herb in a pot. Mint for tea, mixed with meats or salads. Rosemary for cooking and barbequing. There is nothing like fresh herbs~
  • Create a journal or storybook of your life. Now’s the time for reflection and while you are forced to slow down. Enjoy these moments with yourself.
  • Find some music that rocks you or moves your soul. When I want to relax, I listen to Bliss by David Young (no relation to me) and George Skaroulis he takes you to Greece without leaving the country. A delightful favorite is entitled Sanctuary. There are no words just mystical, pretty and relaxing music. J’Lo’s new CD Love is upbeat, sexy and amazing to put you in a mood. Whatever rocks you buy it. Listen and dance like no ones watching.

When you are blue do something for you…enjoy the little things and take care of wonderful you! You are going to get through this.