A Month Of Thanks

Tomorrow marks the first day of November! Can you believe how fast 2013 has been moving? While many of us think of November as the month of the Thanksgiving holiday, many people choose to celebrate thanks and gratitude all month long which is what I'd like to do this year. November is gratitude month, and I'd like to share a few ideas with you about how you can turn this fall season month into one of great thanks, joy, and healing!

The Power Of Gratitude

The more we express gratitude for the small and big things in life, the more of them we get. Taking time to say thank you to others and to be in awe and gratitude at life itself heals and opens our hearts and keeps us in a positive state of mind. Our hearts are light and our smiles are big as we walk though life noticing all of the amazing things that happen at every moment.

Gratitude has the ability to flush us of negativity, remove blockages, uplift our spirits, and bring us great luck. The more we cultivate it, the more we'll end up having to be grateful for each day!

How To Celebrate Gratitude Month

There are endless possibilities for how you can make this a month of healing and joy, but here are a few of my personal favorites...

• Take time at the end of each day as you fall asleep to recall your whole day and express gratitude for the big and small things that happened.
• Make sure to say 'thank you' to the people in your life who deserve to hear it.
• Work on a list all month long on your smart phone or on a piece of paper for things that you're grateful for. See how many entries you can get before the end of the month!
• Use social media like Facebook and Twitter to share something you're grateful for each day. You can even get really creative and snap a photo each day that reflects what you're most thankful for.
• Write thank you notes to people who you may have been overlooking for a while.
• Every time you look in a mirror take a moment to thank yourself and express gratitude for the amazing person you are!

Pretty simple, right?

November can become a month of deep healing and great empowerment if we infuse it with the energy and intention of gratitude. I hope you'll join me in making this a magical month to remember!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is just a couple of days away and I am so excited! I love this time of year - the changing season, the holidays, the kids trick-or-treating, and all the decorations and festivities. In celebration of the spooky season, I'd like to share a few last minute things you can do to transform your Halloween celebration and make this a year to remember!

Decor

Today is the perfect day to pick up pumpkins for carving! If you create your pumpkin masterpiece today it will still look fresh and vibrant on Halloween night.

Mock spiderwebs that get put up too early often get tangled and matted as the winds and water happen. Today would be a great day to put them out and have them looking perfectly for trick-or-treaters.

Food

There are so many amazing foods that make this season what it is!

Try some of these amazing treats for the rest of the week...

• Apple Cider
• S'mores
• Pumpkin Pie
• Homemade Chili
• Homemade Candy
• Herbal Tea

This is a great time of year to try cooking something new in your own kitchen!

Celebrations

When the spooky trick-or-treaters come knocking on your door this Thursday, have something special in store for them! Try answering your door in costume or with simple face paint, turn on colored lights or haunted house background music, or decorate your doorway to really set the mood.

Candy is a favorite treat among all the haunts, but you can give out other treats if you want to get creative. Dried fruit bags, small toys, crayons, sidewalk chalk, or even fruit leather make great candy alternatives!

Happy Halloween!

Fall Essential Oils

One of the best parts of the autumn season is the many smells that come up at this time of year. As the weather cools down, many people find themselves baking more which leads to houses filled with delicious fragrances. There's also a lot happening outside with the changes in nature, and many amazing seasonal scents fill the air.

I'm a huge fan of scent, so today I thought it would be fun to explore some of the essential oils that can bring warm, joyful energy to your home all season long. Essential oils are great to work with because they are all natural, contain no harsh chemicals, and can even have health benefits!

Adding essential oils to a diffuser or dish with water can help fill your home with amazing fragrances that are perfect for the season... and there are many great diffusers to choose from now days that make it easy to work with all types of oils and oil blends.

While essential oils are natural, keep in mind that some of them can be quite strong. Use sparingly until you know their strength, and always dilute properly before using them on your body.

Sweet Orange

This is a classic fall scent! It blends the sweet, tangy fragrance of orange with that rich scent of the fall season. Orange works well on its own or combined with spicy scents like anise or cinnamon.

Sage

Sage is a clean, cooling, and uplifting scent that brings a light spicy note to the season. It works well on its own or added to floral blends as a balancer.

Clove

This is the best of the best for the holiday season! Clove brings fresh baked goods and warm nights by the fire to mind, and it's also very cleansing for the home and air!

Cinnamon

Cinnamon essential oil is a sweet and spicy balance that brings joy and comfort to the home. It blends well with many other spices, and it helps us feel warm and comfy when we smell it.

Juniper Berry

As we get closer to the wintertime, adding juniper berry to your favorite essential oil aromatherapy blend is a great way to herald the season. It's a combination of sweet and evergreen, and it instantly recalls fresh cut pine trees.


Try some of these essential oils in your own home in a diffuser or potpourri blend!

A Fabulous Bag For Fall Style

Fall is here and it's time to get out in the crisp autumn air and enjoy the changing season. In many places the leaves are turning colors and falling to the ground, while in other locations the air is getting chilly in preparation for winter. Fall brings the start of the holiday season - the perfect time to get out and go celebrate with friends and family. To make this a stylish and simple season for all of us, I designed the AMANDA yellow tote! The color is the perfect match for the season and the over sized space inside makes it perfect to always have just what you need wherever you may go. This is a great bag to keep a jacket and scarf tucked away just in case, or to bring along your contributions to this year's holiday party.

The golden yellow hue of the AMANDA bag is the perfect compliment to the fall season. It's at once grounded and earthy while also being full of joy and energy. The exterior is made from a high-end dyed leather that is soft, smooth, and extremely durable. You'll also notice a golden Tabelina dragonfly which adds extra color and texture to the piece.

The interior of this bag is made from a tough twill in a luxurious royal blue color. It has an interior pocket that's perfect for securing a phone or wallet, and a larger compartment for all of life's essentials.

The double handles make this bag super easy to carry - and it looks great on your side!

See more here.

3 Herbal Teas For Fall Sipping

Herbal tea is a wonderful and healthy drink to enjoy during the fall time. It's warm, comforting, and aromatic - and it can help the body adjust to the changing season so that illness and discomfort can be avoided! Today I'd like to share just 3 amazing herbal teas you can sip this autumn season to warm your body and your heart!

Chamomile

This perennial favorite is a wonderful fall-time drink. Chamomile has an earthy yet sweet flavor, aroma, and color that works really well with the season. The name Chamomile is based on the Greek 'Ground Apple' because this flower smells so much like a fresh fall apple!

Chamomile herbal tea can be enjoyed by itself or mixed with milk and honey. Steep for just 6 minutes in hot water to avoid any floral bitter tastes.

Anise

Star anise is a superstar in many fall recipes - but did you know it makes an amazing herbal tea as well? This beautiful seed pod combines sweet and spicy together while also delivering lots of great cold-season healing benefits.

Anise herbal tea can help soothe a sore throat and warm chilled bones, and the scent alone is perfect for this time of year!

Dandelion Root

This earthy, coffee-like herbal tea is a champion among herbalists. It helps detoxify the body, cleanse the blood, purify the organs, and put a smile on anyone's face. Many herbal tea enthusiasts blend roasted dandelion root with chicory to create a comforting and warming herbal tea that replaces coffee.

Dandelion Root comes from the very same 'weed' that grows in most lawns. but it's important to make sure the root you use comes from the right species of plant that is fully organic.

When you experience dandelion root tea you'll be amazed at the unique and rooted flavor it offers!

I hope you'll enjoy some healing herbal tea this season!


Images used with permission from Living Herbal Tea

Featured For Fall : Victoria Teardrop Sardonyx Earrings

Fall is upon us and boy has the color palette changed! We've gone from the vibrant colors of summer to the earthy, comforting hues that only work in the autumn. Even Mother nature is following suit with changes in the leaves and the sunset sky.

In celebration of the season, I'd like to introduce you to an elegant design just added to the Tabelina shop. The Victoria Teardrop Sardonyx Earrings combine the colors and energy of fall in a wearable and eye-catching design that any woman would love!

These earring are centered around genuine sardonyx gemstones that have been perfectly faceted and shaped. The color of these stones is dark, rich, and decadent and they make the perfect addition to any fall outfit selection.

Grasping the gemstones are silver plated bead caps that create texture and contrast. These align with an intricate and delicate pattern that crates the overall teardrop shape piece.

The silver and facets of the stone create a subdued and elegant light show with every step, and the black layers of the stone make the perfect frame for any autumn color scheme.

To see more of these amazing pieces, click here!

Featured Fall Earrings

This week I'd like to introduce you to a new design on Tabelina.com that brings the color and energy of the fall season to life!

The Victoria Teardrop earrings have all the design, balance, and color of the autumn season so that you can get festive no matter what style you're wearing or where you're headed.

The Victoria Teardrop earrings feature a genuine carnelian gemstone piece that's been carefully shaped and faceted into a teardrop. As you can see, the rich orange hue of this stone is the perfect compliment for the fall season, and it helps ass fall colors to anything you wear.

The silver filigree drops that hold the stones have been designed to carry light and movement - and they're a real attention-getter! There's an implied spin in the design that makes the earrings really stand out even if you're standing still!

Each piece measures 3.5" in length so they are the perfect compliment to both dressed up and causal looks. They are light-weight and are comfortable and safe to wear for pierced ears.

See the details here! 

3 Home Remedies For Fall Colds

Fall is a beautiful time of year when the world changes colors and the temperatures cool down. While many people look forward to the colors and holidays that happen in autumn, colds can ruin everything! To help you and your family have an amazing fall season without all the sniffles and coughs, I'm going to share 3 simple home remedies to help get rid of any bugs that pop up before they become a problem.

Water Is Healing!

When the body becomes dehydrated, illness happens faster. Because the weather cools down many people don't realize that they can dehydrate just as easy as they can in hotter months. The crisp, arid air makes it easy for the body to lose hydration, and when this happens the mucous lining of the respiratory system can be less able to trap sickness in the air before it settles in.

Staying hydrated by drinking enough water each day is a great way to prevent and help heal any colds or coughs you end up with. Herbal tea is another great way to get water with the healing power of nature!

Steam Baths

Bathing your entire respiratory system in soothing steam can help cleanse, clear, and moisturize where it's needed most. Try gently inhaling steam from a kettle through the nose. Stay far enough away to avoid burns. Inhale deeply into the lungs while allowing the steam to nourish and soothe the lining of the nose, throat, and lungs.

Sleep & Stress

Since holidays start happening during the fall, many of us experience a spike in stress levels. Stress weakens the immune system and makes it really hard for our bodies to get sleep and to fight off colds. Making sure that you stay calm, cool, and collected while also getting enough deep, restful sleep could be all it takes to help keep you feeling great all season long!

Here's to a happy and healthy autumn season!

Pumpkin Carving Patterns

Halloween is just around the corner - can you believe it?

One of my favorite activities at this time of year is carving pumpkins, and now is the perfect time to get started! The farmers have all brought in their harvests and the biggest and brightest pumpkins are available now for purchase. This is a great time of month to choose what kinds of designs you'd like to create and then plan a day to dig in and create your own jack-o-lanterns!

To help you and your family create the most amazing pumpkins this year, I've collected a bunch of websites where you can download and print beautiful stencils and patterns. These patterns make it simple to create artist-quality pumpkins without all the hassle!

To use your pumpkin stencil, you just print them out and attach them to your pumpkin using masking tape. You can then follow the pattern with a poker to create lines, or even transfer the design directly to your pumpkin using transfer paper from a craft store.


Here are a few of my favorite online stencil resources...

http://www.pumpkinmasters.com/free-patterns.asp

http://www.pumpkinpile.com/

http://www.bhg.com/halloween/pumpkin-carving/printable-pumpkin-stencils/

http://www.pumpkinlady.com/pumpkin-carving-patterns/free-pumpkin-carving-patterns/


I hope you have a wonderful time creating unique pumpkins that light up the night!

Happy Halloween!

Featured Earrings : Taylor Teardrop Hoops

Fall is just around the corner and there's no better way to keep style, color, light, and movement part of your personal style than with earrings! The Taylor teardrop Hoop earrings I'd like to show you today have been created to dazzle the eyes while being gentle on your ears. These earrings are the perfect shape to compliment the Fall season, and the gold color is perfect for this time of year.

Each earring measures 3 inches in length and is constructed from gold-filled metal and gentle posts for pierced ears.

As you can see from the picture above, this earring pair brings a lot of movement and light to your look. The shape catches light and reflects it back so that you catch eyes and keep the good energy moving.

During the fall, the days become shorter and the colors in the world around us take on a darker tone. Adding light and color to your look during this season is important as it helps keeps spirits high and ensures that your personal style doesn't get lost in the leaves!

To see more of the Taylor earrings line, and to see other earrings available now from Tabelina, click here!