Earth Day has come and gone . . . but has it really? Not for me, because Earth Day is everyday. We create products here at EdenSong Essentials always keeping in mind what is best for the planet and for its inhabitants, which is why we have such a strong sense of keeping our products pure. We also are conscious about our packaging and shipping materials.

This year we participated in Celebrity Earth Day Gifting through The Artisan Group - yes, even celebrities can be earth conscious and we appreciate the influence they may have.

Celebrity Recipients:
(first row) Woody Harrelson, Ted Danson, Sting, Sheryl Crow, Rachel McAdams, P!nk, Orlando Bloom, (second row) Natalie Portman, Mark Ruffalo, Malin Akerman, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Bosworth, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Josh Hartnett, (third row) Jake Gyllenhaal, Hayden Panettiere, Ginnifer Goodwin, Emily VanCamp, Edward Norton, Daryl Hannah, Courteney Cox, (fourth row) Cameron Diaz, Barbra Streisand, (fifth row) Alicia Silverstone, and Adrian Grenier.

Here's what was sent to the above celebrities.

See the gift guide in front of all the goodies? Here's a link to the online booklet to view all the participants: 2013 Earth Day Celebrity Gift Guide.

On April 22nd, Earth Day, I did my usual digging in the dirt . . . planting herbs to use for cooking and for skin care products.

What does Earth Day mean to you and what did you do to commemorate the day? 

You never know what kind of pesticides, insects or dirt may be lurking on the surface of your favorite fruits and vegetables. That's why it's always a good idea to thoroughly wash all your produce before eating it. Although washing with plain water can accomplish a lot, adding some natural sources of acid (namely lemon and vinegar) to the wash can provide a bit of additional, natural disinfecting power. Follow these easy steps to find out how to make a fruit and vegetable wash that is both inexpensive and completely organic.

You may choose from an selection of kitchen ingredients to make your homemade fruit and vegetable wash, including purified water, vinegar (white or apple cider vinegar), baking soda, lemon, salt, and essential oils.

You can simply fill your sink with water, add a cup of vinegar and a couple tablespoons of salt. Place the fruit and/or veggies in a colander and place in the water mixture. Allow to soak for a few minutes.

Another option is to create a spray with:
2 cups purified water
1 cup vinegar (white or apple cider vinegar)
1 Tbsp baking soda
juice of 1 lemon
10 drops lemon or orange essential oil (optional)

Put all ingredients into a spray bottle (be careful as it will foam up) shake gently to mix, then spray on produce. Allow to sit for about 2 to 5 minutes. If it's a fruit or veggie that can be gently scrubbed, use a scrub brush specified for produce washing only. Rinse thoroughly and enjoy your freshly washed and cleaned produce!

Be sure to store your wash in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks before having to make another batch. You can always cut recipe in half to make a smaller batch.

Research suggests to use the spray for hard-skinned fruits and vegetables and soaking for soft-skinned produce.

These are not hard and fast recipes, so feel free to experiment with the ingredients to find the perfect formula for you!

Why This Works
The acetic acid in vinegar cleans, kills bacteria and helps to dissolve the wax and pesticide residues. The salt draws out any little bugs, dirt, other small unwanted things and will remove some of the wax.

Why pay for the expensive wash at the store when you can make your own?

Check out the EWG's 2012 list of Dirty Dozen and Clean Fifteen to help know the produce that you need to buy organically and the produce that is safe to buy conventionally, but that needs to be washed thoroughly.

Click here for a free printable of the guidelines that's great to take shopping.

Do you believe it's important to wash your produce? What do you use to wash your fruits and veggies?

We're super excited to share that our Goddess Envy Moisturizer, was on the February 22, 2013 segment about Oscar Swag in The Wendy Williams Show! Our product, along with about 60 other talented artisans from The Artisan Group, were featured and gifted their products to Wendy, her staff and the audience.  We are thrilled to have had such a great exposure opportunity!

Here's the huge, 69-pound, ridiculously insured shipment of swag headed out to The Wendy Williams Show, including this lovely gift bag for Wendy herself. 

The exposure afforded us through The Artisan Group continues to get better and better.  We are experiencing fantastic feedback from our clients and we just keep growing!

What's all the hype about matcha?  What IS it? Matcha is a finely ground, powdered, high quality green tea and not the same as tea powder or green tea powder. It's 10 times more potent than regular green tea and provides a powerful arsenal of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and amino acids like no other green tea. Matcha's level of antioxidants have been reported by Tufts University to exceed blueberries and pomegranates by 20 times over. Match helps to fight-cancer, burn fat, reduce stress, heighten mental clarity, and beautify your skin. What's not to love about it?

Give it a try with these recipes!

Ingredients:
1/2 - 1 teaspoon matcha powder
1 banana
1/2 avocado
1 apple, chopped (OR 1/2 apple, 1/2 pear)
2 heaping cups of leafy greens (your choice: kale, romaine, chard, spinach, etc.)
1/4 teaspoon vanilla powder
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger (or to taste; helps with inflammation)
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup coconut water, coconut milk or almond milk

Mix all ingredients together in a blender until creamy. If you prefer thinner smoothies, add more liquid.

Short on time? Try this simple recipe.

Ingredients:
1 large banana, frozen
1 1/4 cups watermelon, frozen
3/4 -1 cup almond or coconut milk
1 tsp chia seeds (optional)
1/2 - 1 tsp matcha powder

Blend until smooth. Add extra milk for a thinner consistency. You can mix up the banana/melon blend by using 1 1/2 frozen bananas and a cup of frozen watermelon, making an even creamier shake.

Do you have a favorite way of using matcha? If so, share with us!

Are you ready to start the New Year creating the life you want?

Here's an excellent article written by Dana Claudat  a Feng Shui expert, about 9 simple steps to accomplish changes in your life.

The bagua map is a diagnostic tool in my Pyramid School Feng Shui practice that helps to identify weaknesses in a space and explains how the correlate to one's life.  

The bagua map is a grid of nine areas that can be laid upon the floor plan of a room or home that explains which areas of a home influence specific areas of your life. 

For example, the far right from the entrance door of a home or a room is an area focused on love & relationships.  

If this area is empty (or, say, used as a mess room), your love life may reflect the same disarray! 

We could discuss the bagua for hours and have a great time, but for today, the important lessons are that the bagua is a diagnostic tool (not your destiny!). 

The areas that comprise the bagua can shine a light on under-valued aspects of your life and the bagua can help you design your dream life!

A little while back I got a call from a fabulous designer on the East Coast asking for my help to coach him in his question to be extraordinary.  

Instantly I was interested. 

He had a system worked out based on the feng shui bagua map that encompassed engaging a coach in nine separate areas of his life that correlated with the nine areas of this feng shui tool. I was honored, flattered and agreed to coach him in one “area” of the bagua map.  

I also sat down and looked at his system and realized the genius that could be extracted from using the bagua as a “life coaching” tool.

I experimented with y friend’s “bagua” formula. What I learned was astonishing! While I could never ease myself with nine different life coaches at once, I actually needed help with aspects of my life I’d never seen before looking at the map in this way.  

If I set a very modest but actionable goal or intention for each of the nine areas of my life that correlated to the bagua, would this make a difference?  YES!!! A small shift in areas that seemed unrelated to my “goals” actually moved me forward in every sense and helped me to live a more balanced and empowered life

The holistic life-design exercise I have enjoyed for the last few months is my big recommendation to you as you reflect on 2012 and make plans for 2013. 

Ready? Grab a piece of paper and something to write with!

• Sketch out this map (see above) on a piece of paper.

• Decide on a very small shift in action that you can take in each area of your life for next month and write it in the corresponding area.

1. Self-Empowerment/Money: could you save a few dollars a week, start a new personal business venture with a small step like a blog, hire a life coach that specializes in business… the possibilities are endless!

2. Power/Fame: since this area has to do with how the world sees you as manifesting your purpose, could you start by revamping your image online? (Add a few fresh photos? Tweak your blog design? A freshly designed portfolio? ) Could you try wearing some new colors in the new year that enhance you?

3. Love/Relationships: the classic “love” area deals primarily with romantic relationships, but all kinds of relationships in actuality. If you are already dating with marginal success, maybe you can get more specific in your love search with a reputable matchmaker? Perhaps you can redo your bedroom or get some sexy new bedding?  Remember, just one action or a shift in attitude in each area is all we need here.

4. Legacy: Do you honor your family? Can you improve your relationship with one family member, learn more about your genealogy, etc?

5. Health: Rather than planning an entire health revolution (you can, for sure, but this is about easy-to-accomplish moves!) could you steadily take a vitamin, take a walk, drink a smoothie or do a few minutes of yoga a day or a week? You know for you what will work, but for the intention of this exercise, pick a small thing like, “ I will eat a vegetable every day.” (I hope you do already! This is just an easy example…) 

6. Children & Creativity: If you don’t have kids, can you volunteer with kids?  If you have kids, can you find new ways to bond with them? Or can you nurture your own creativity and inner child with a fun hobby or an artistic pursuit that you can act upon in 2013?

7. Wisdom: Learn!  Decide how you can learn (An app that teaches you a new word a day? A subscription to the New York Times? A class? Webinars? Videos?) and make a bit of time to keep learning.

8. Self/Career: It’s always a good time to tune up your business/life plan and this exercise is already a huge step in that direction! You may have a goal or two in mind for the new year, but here we keep it to a small action. Will you hand out business cards to people you meet? Start a newsletter? You get the gist. A small action that feeds this area of your life without overtaking you.

9. Compassion & Helpful People: How much do you give to others in the spirit of selfless service? How much do you nourish your clients in business? Can you think of a way to give more to others?That energy always comes back, but you don’t really think about it because it feels so good to just give!

Take a walk through your house and see if there are any areas that you seem stuck on in your “life map” that are also cluttered or neglected in your house. That’s your assignment: to clean it up and beautify what you aren’t excited about in your space…

Now, with no pressure, enjoy getting involved in your life as a whole. These steps may seem insignificant but I promise you, they are not!  

And they are fun!

The rush continues on, even though Black Friday has come and gone.  During all the Christmas hubbub, be sure and take time for yourself.

Here's an easy Raw Vegan EggNog recipe you are sure to enjoy!

Ingredients:

• ½ cup raw almonds + 1 ½ cups filtered water, 1 ½ cups homemade raw almond milk, or purchased almond milk
• 2 frozen ripe bananas
• 1 pitted date soaked for about an hour
• ¼ tsp natural pure vanilla extract
• ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
• ¼ tsp ground cinnamon
• pinch ground cloves
• pinch of Celtic sea salt

1. Place all ingredients in your blender and puree until smooth and creamy. Add more water to achieve desired consistency. 
   **I just blended whole almonds with 2 cups of water as I liked the rustic consistency. But you could use homemade strained almond milk.
2. Sprinkle with cinnamon and serve immediately. YUMMO! 

Now, kick back, put your feet up and enjoy the moment!

Still not quite relaxed?  Then it's time step it up and pamper yourself a bit more!

Simply pour into your bath a few tablespoon of oil - sweet almond oil is perfect - along with a few drops of lavender essential oil and a few tablespoon of milk - coconut or almond is best.  That's it!  Spend at least 30 minutes in the tub and you'll feel like a new person!

Now, if you haven't finished up your holiday shopping, don't fret.  You needn't even step out of the house!  We've got some terrific suggestions of USA made, handcrafted items for you to select from The Artisan Group.  Check out their Pinterest board - from accessories to woodworking and everything in-between!

Here are some photos to peak your interest.

I wish I could list all the members and show you their beautiful handcrafted works; however,  they're too numerous to mention here.  Just be sure and do some shopping with them this holiday season.  You'll be so glad you did! Check them out on The Artisan Group Pinterest boards.  

Last but not least, if you're looking for quality organic skin care made from food-grade ingredients, then you've come to the right place.  Just go to our Facial Care, Body Care or New Products pages to find what you need.

And let's not forget the most important reasons for the holiday season . . . peace, love, and joy. Wishing you the best for you and yours!

We're very proud to announce that EdenSong Essentials is featured in official gifting for some of the biggest names in Country Music, as well as executives for The 46th Annual CMA Awards! 

Watch LIVE on Nov. 1 at 8p/7p Central on ABC.

The first “CMA Awards Banquet and Show” was held in 1967. The following year, the CMA Awards was broadcast on NBC Television for the first time – making it the longest running, annual music awards program on network television. The Awards aired on NBC through 1971, on the CBS Television Network from 1972 through 2005, and has aired on ABC since 2006. ABC will be the network home of the CMA Awards through 2021.

Our participation is possible because of our affiliation as a proud member of The Artisan Group.

The Artisan Group is an elite art promotions group representing talented artisans at Hollywood’s best celebrity gift lounges. It provides a sampling of handcrafted products to celebrities and members of the press at major award show gift lounges such as those leading up to The Academy Awards, The Golden Globes, The MTV Movie Awards and The Primetime Emmys. Membership in the Artisan Group is juried and by invitation only. Members showcase a broad range of specialties including jewelry; spa and bath products; designer stationary and paper goods; crocheted apparel; children’s clothing; accessories and toys; ceramics; purses and totes; hand-poured candles; book binding and journals; illustrations and paintings; hand-dyed scarves; fine art photography; hair accessories; pet apparel and toys; woodworking products and more. The Artisan Group also offers its members guidance in the areas of sales, marketing, social media and public relations.

The Artisan Group is in no way associated with MTV, The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, The Hollywood Foreign Press Association or The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences.

Talent gifted: Blake Shelton, Brad Paisley, Brantley Gilbert, Carrie Underwood, Colbie Caillat, Connie Britton, Eli Young Band, Faith Hill, Hayden Panettiere, Hunter Hayes, Jana Kramer, Jason Aldean, John Legend, Keith Urban, Kellie Pickler, Kelly Clarkson, Kenny Chesney, Kevin Canady, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Lady Antebellum, Lisa Marie Presley, Little Big Town, Love & Theft, Luke Bryan, Martina McBride, Mickey Raphael, Miranda Lambert, Reba, Scotty McCreery, Sugarland, Taylor Swift, The Band Perry, Tim Allen, Tim McGraw, Vince Gill, Will Hoge, Zac Brown Band, along with a number of executives from ABC and the CMAs.

We're excited to see our specialized edible organic skin care product line getting this exposure!

Who doesn't want white teeth?  Unfortunately most of us have been taken in by the need to use commercial toothpaste which may contain chemical fillers and ingredients such as glycerin and fluoride. Did you know that fluoride is a toxic waste by-product of the phosphate fertilizer industry or the aluminum or steel industry? We are beginning to understand the harmful effects of fluoride on our bodies. Glycerin coats the enamel on your teeth and prevents re-mineralization from saliva.

We can prevent and even heal cavities by the food we eat. It's best to eliminate processed foods and eat more free range eggs, raw milk and butter, fish and good vegetables.

With a good diet and using tooth powder, you will greatly improve and strengthen your teeth.

Try this simple tooth powder recipe:
4 Tablespoons aluminum-free baking soda
2 teaspoons fine sea salt

Baking Soda helps whiten teeth. In saliva, baking soda buffers & neutralizes plaque acids,  helps clean your teeth and counteract acidity in the mouth. It's slightly abrasive consistency works as a cleanser of teeth and gums, so brushing your teeth with baking soda, with its high pH and disinfectant and antiseptic properties, will reduce harmful oral microbial flora by killing off acid-loving bacteria.

Sea salt whitens your teeth and is good for firming the gums and keeping them healthy.

Add essential oil: clove helps heal gums; tea tree is a great all around antiseptic; peppermint is antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antifungal, antimicrobial, antiseptic, and astringent; spearmint is antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and astringent; clary sage helps tighten and whiten teeth and they have astringent/antibacterial properties.

Optional: montmorillonite ore bentonite clay is great for polishing teeth and clearing up stains.
Optional: stevia powder for sweetness
Optional: myrrh gum powder for its excellent antiseptic properties and overall oral health capabilities

There are many other options, but this will get you started if you haven't made your own tooth powder before.

Do you have a favorite tooth powder recipe?  If so, do share with us!

It's all about choices.  What changes have you made lately and how have those changes affected your health, particularly your skin?