Lay It Out In Lavender

As Rosemary is to the Spirit,

So Lavender is to the Soul

-William Shakespeare, Winter's Tale

And truer words were never spoken! Since moving to France, July quickly became my favourite month of the year! Apart from the toasty, 38 degree days; afternoon storms; shallow, light evening skies covered in a blanket of stars and the endless throng of daily fairs, festivals and feasts to partake in... July, is lavender time.

And, do. I. love. lavender time! Lavender is a truely amazing herb; it has so many health benefits - both physical and emotional, and it's uses are endless! Lavender essential oil can be used in the treatment of acne, burns, aching muscles, cuts, earaches, headache, insomnia, depression, anxiety and menstrual cramps. It truely is a wonder-herb! For more information, check out this website - it's my 'go-to' website when I have an queries about essential oils.

Now, it's one thing to own a bottle of lavender essential oil, it is something else to see where it actually comes from, and there is nothing like driving along an endless, gray road and suddenly coming up and over a hill,  to be engulfed by a field of deep, rich, vibrant colour! 

Depending on what time of the year though, will determine which colour will carry you away because there are several stages of colour, before we get to the purple!

March through to July you can see wheat fields in every stage of growth from fresh, flowing green, to dry, mellow yellow, or beige - ready to be cut.  By this time, sunflowers have also made an appearance.

April, May and June is poppy time. I adore poppies and always pick a few to press between the pages of an old book. They are extremely fragile and pretty much wilt and die within a few mintues of picking them, as they are wild - not like the sturdy ones that you can buy in florists. Because of their silk-like petals, they dont really withstand the heat, so, by late June, they have mostly all but died off.

Come July, the lavender is in full bloom and a lavender field is something that you will definitely want to see at least once in your life time - if not for the endless ocean of purple alone, but for the devine scent, wafting through the air!

As I make quite a few things which contain lavender, my landlords were kind enough to let me have the lavender that they grow, as it lines the driveway - so today, I started picking it. I picked one bush and that gave me 5 {medium sized} bunches of lavender which I am going to dry and use in my heat-bags, soaps and body scrubs/salts. 

{Note to Self: Pick lavender later in the evening, as to not be surrounded by bees, wasps and other flying bugs. All seem to be of the unified opinion that I taste good!}

As for the medicinal uses of lavender, I have to say that I am defintely a believer! For the last two days, I had been suffering from a terrible migraine. Last night after dinner, Gabe and I took an evening stroll and we picked a few stems of lavender. We sat by the pool for about half an hour soaking our feet and making shapes out of the clouds. Every now and then, I'd smell a sprig of lavender. I rolled the flowers between my fingers, releasing a burst of strong, lavender scent. I rubbed it on my temples and my chest. By the time we went back inside for some ice-cream, my migraine had disappeared. Was it the fresh air or the lavender, or a combination of them both? Two hours earlier I was in the foetal position on the couch waiting for an excessive dosage of neurofen to kick in but half an hour outside with some lavender and I was walking on air. If you're not a believer in natural remedies, lavender alone is defintely worth looking into.

I'm going to leave you with one of my favourite quotes, from one of my favourite movies, and they are words that we should all live by...

 "There's a few things that I've learned in life;

always throw salt over your left shoulder;

 keep rosemary by your garden gate;

plant lavender for luck...

 and fall in love whenever you can" 

- Sally Owens, Practical Magic
{written by Alice Hoffman}