Ginger Garrett

“A woman who does not perfume herself has no future.”

Mademoiselle Chanel

 We all love perfume but few of us have ever been taught how the experts evaluate perfumes. If we learn a few simple tricks, we’ll be able to choose a scent that makes us happy and reflects our true tastes.

First, every perfume is made up of three distinct layers, much like fine wine:

1. Top notes. These are intense but fleeting. Think of them as the store greeters. They’re there to give you a good first impression but they won’t linger as you get deeper into the experience.

2. Middle notes (also called modifiers). This layer is added to modify the base note. Middle layers will last longer than top notes.

3. Base notes. This is the scent layer that really lasts and is responsible for the final character of the perfume. In America, a warm vanilla is most often the base note.

How to Choose a Perfume:

Again, wine and perfume share a lot in common. If you’ve ever taken a wine class, you know that they recommend opening a bottle and letting it breathe for awhile before serving. Perfume is similiar. You can’t open the bottle and smell it, and hope that you’re getting a true sense of the perfume. The layered scent needs time to develop. For this reason, you shouldn’t rely on smelling strips to test a perfume. For best results, use this method. (and plenty of patience!)

1. Apply perfume to a clean, unscented arm or wrist.

2. Allow it to develop for 2-3 minutes.

3. Inhale and evaulate.

When you have selccted a perfume that pleases you, apply it before dressing, as spraying perfume can stain clothes. And one last piece of advice comes from A. Gosset, the former chair of Parfums Rochas, who said, when applying perfume, “discretion is a synonym of elegance.”

Want a sneak peek of the new novel In The Shadow of Lions?

Visit this site below and watch an interview with me! If you watch the video and post a comment, you’ll be entered for a private advanced reader copy of the novel. (be sure to send me an email and let me know which comment is yours!)

In The Shadow of Lions releases on September 1 of this year, but advanced reader copies, always reserved exclusively for media and critics, will be sent out early in the summer. I promise to steal one for a lucky reader!

http://www.youtube.com/GingerGarrettAuthor

My sister in law Andi believes salad is just an excuse to eat croutons.

I agree!

But commercial croutons are loaded with trans fats, preservatives and highly refined carbs, which all take their toll on your skin and health. So here’s my recipe for gourmet croutons that are as good for you as they are delicious!

4 slices whole grain bread (100% stone ground whole wheat should be main ingredient, or any other whole grain)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 teaspoon each: Lawry’s Seasoned Salt and garlic powder (adjust amount to suit your taste)

Slice the bread into small cubes and toss with oil and seasonings. In a shallow pan, bake at 250 degrees for 20 minutes, then turn off oven and allow to cool inside oven before serving with salad. You can also try replacing the seasonings above with this Italian version:

1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning plus 2 tablespoons grted parmesan cheese 

Enjoy!

If you receive my newsletter, last week you saw a sneak peek of my new book, In the Shadow of Lions. (I’ll be loading the cover on my website soon!) You know I’ll be tackling the stories of one of the most famous (and important) women in history, and the question of angels. Do angels exist? What role do they play in shaping human history? What role do they play in women’s lives?

My research on the topic has focused on both the Bible and ancient sources. Accounts of angelic beings was not limited to Jewish or Christian believers: almost every ancient culture reported them with stunning similiarities. Angels were frightening in appearance, large, benelovent beings, sent to serve us. (Many cultures also report visitations from fallen angels, or demons.)

My questions today is not do you believe in angels. Most Americans do. My question is what do you believe about angels? From my research into ancient texts and the Bible, here are a few points I believe to be true:

1. Angels are eternal beings, created before men and women. Therefore, they know your history better than any genealogist. They know who the women of your line were. They knew them when they walked through medieval Europe, or sang in Africa, and the angels were with them when they first came to America. They have seen first-hand the forces that shaped your life today because they were present for all your yesterdays. (Job 38:4-7)

2. Angels are sent by God. (Hebrews 1:14) Angels do God’s work at God’s bidding. Therefore, it’s silly to pray to the angels. I don’t ask my UPS man to bring me a new jacket. I order it from a catalog, and they send it, using UPS as the delivery method. My UPS guy, nice as he is, has never brought me anything on his own. He only brings what’s been sent. Angels may know your distant past, but they do not anticipate your future needs. Only God does that, and He sends His angels to meet them.

3. Hebrews also tells us there’s one reason God sends angels: to minister to us. They’re sent to aid, help, care for, and comfort. Some of us have had experiences of being physically saved by angels, or comforted by a sense of their presence. Our lives have been shaped by the knowledge that they exist, and that we are safer because of them. In many small ways, our personal histories are shaped by angels, and human history has been impacted as well.

4.The book of Genesis hints that angels find human women beautiful. A story in Genesis chapter 6, which of course is included in the Jewish Pentateuch as well as the Christian Bible, seems to refer to a period in history when the angels were allowed to marry human women and have children…children that became a race of giants.

We’re blessed women. We are loved by God and surrounded by angels. The eternal world has declared that we are wholly accepted and beautiful. There is nothing to fear today–not from your past, not from your future, and not from the unseen. Angels are at work all around you and God is at work within you.

It’s going to be a glorious week!

Studies continue to demonstrate the power of color. We respond in fairly predictable patterns, and colors have been shown to influence physical responses, emotional responses, and perception.

For instance, green and yellow are associated with cheerful and happy feelings. We feel good, and feel good about the space.

Red is energetic and charged. We may experience a quickening pulse and associate the space with action, not relaxation.

Blue, especially lighter shades, is a peaceful color, shown to enhance a sense of rest.

We respond to the colors of the natural world because we are designed to have responses to God’s artwork. Colors should have an effect on us. And we can use this knowledge in creating spaces for ourselves at work and at home that promote well being, productivity, and joy.

Summer is coming and swimsuits are in the stores. Most of us feel two things right now: dread and excitement. We love summer but we dread getting into a swimsuit. Well, try these three tips and start loving your body just as it is!

1. Focus on what your body does, not what it looks like. When I began training for my first triathlon this year, I had never swum before. (Oh, sure, I could dog paddle, but that was it!) The last bike I had ridden had a basket and horn. So training for a triathlon was a huge goal for this mom of three! I noticed that as soon as my focus shifted from what I looked like to what I could do, appreciation and satisfaction with my body sky-rocketed. So the next time you’re feeling blue about your body, make a list of what it has achieved so far and set a bold new goal, too. (and if you’re a new mom, what greater achievement could there be than sustaining and birthing a child?) Our bodies were born for action and achievements. Let’s start celebrating them!

2. Make a decision to stop judging. Nutrition experts often recommend fasting from food for a day to “cleanse” the system and allow it to heal. The same technique can be used for our mental health, too. Make a decision to mentally “fast” for one day. Do not allow any judgmental thoughts about your body, your weight, your shape…or anyone else’s. Every time you catch yourself judging, stop and replace it with an encouraging thought. On your “fast” day, also avoid checking yourself out in the mirror and jumping on the scale. Allow yourself one full day to simply be. Be comfortable in your body. Be free from judgment. Be yourself.

3. Pay it forward. We are tempted to believe that perfection equals love. If we could only get our act together, we’d attract more love and acceptance into our lives, right? The truth is, imperfection creates intimacy. The most popular woman in the room isn’t the most beautiful, but the one who sets everyone else at ease.

When we learn to embrace our imperfections, we secretly invite every other woman to let down her guard, too. We create healthier, stronger, deeper relationships. We attract love and acceptance because we extended it first. Learn to pay it forward: create an atmosphere for other women that lets them be themselves, and welcomes their imperfections. You’ll find that you create a circle of friends that nurture your spirit and will be there to pick you up when you stumble.

I’m getting a lot of questions about under eye creams, wrinkles around the eyes, and dark undereye circles. Every reader asks, “What can I use?”

First, if you’re using powdered mineral foundation, be sure to moisturize around your eyes well before applying, and avoid mineral foundations that have bismuth or mica. Bismuth is a heavier mineral that doesn’t settle well into wrinkles, and mica gives a sheen that can highlight the wrinkles instead of hide them.

Next, if you are fair-skinned, consider using Burt’s Bees baby diaper balm as an undereye cream and concealer. It’s extremely moisturizing, the zinc oxide gives a dash more sun protection, and the light color will help lighten the under eye area. A little dab will go a long way!

If you have richer-colored skin, you’ll still want an eye cream with a lot of staying moisture power, and not a lot of pigment. I like using all natural beeswax lotion bars. My favorite is BlueCorn Naturals, a paraben free solid lotion bar that is packed with organic shea butter. One will last a long while, and you’ll be addicted to the natural, sweet scent! Just rub a little off onto your fingers and pat under the eye. The light amount of beeswax will also help plump out those fine lines while keeping plenty of moisturein the area.

If you’re new to my website, and a fan of Beauty Secrets of the Bible, you may want to check out the Free Downloads page. There’s a lot of free stuff from the book, plus a shopping list that has the key ingredients listed chapter by chapter.

If you’re a fiction fan, you can read a few posts under my fiction tab on the right of this page, but be sure to sign up for my newsletter! The next issue goes out next week and it contains a sneak peek of the cover for my new novel, In the Shadow of Lions. I can tell you the cover designer did brilliant work!

I’ll be doing a lot of motivational speaking over the coming months, so I’ll try to keep you posted when I’m coming to your area. If your group is interested in having me visit, you can click on my “speaking” tab above to be directed to my agency. They’ll take good care of you!

I need at least 30 minutes into a run before I feel my soul begin to stir again in my heart. 30 minutes of ignoring random thoughts, pushing through the sluggish discomfort of muscles who wanted to be home watching CSI Miami, and confronting the reality that some days I like the idea of running more than the actual run.

But I keep going. One foot in front of the other. Breathing in, breathing out.

And after about 30 minutes, when I am pushing out of three miles, something quiet and magical happens.

I stop noticing the complaints of muscles and mind, and I start to hear my heart. My dreams begin to rise to the surface of the soul, my overwhelming fears begin manageable issues, and I find I can pray deeply.

Running is whole-body prayer. I am not listing my requests and petitions, rattling off my list of concerns and loved ones who need God’s help. I am listening. Random thoughts still intrude, but I easily sweep them away, or hold them up to the sunshine. I dispense most; a few stick with me and I let God have them. These thoughts rest between us as we run.

The testing of my faith, and my body, develops something true and lasting between us. I learn God is able to hear my heart even in the clutter and madness of the week; when I run, He helps me to hear it, too. Exercise makes room for the soul to come home, to unfurl, to speak.

The road is calling you, too, today. I hope that you can get outside, or at least get up, and move. Breathe deeply. Let everything go until the only thing you have is the sound of your steps on pavement, your breathing, and the quiet, certain feeling Someone runs alongside you.

After filming a fiveweek special on Beauty Secrets of the Bible for The Harvest Show and recording a DVD special for David C Cook (More info on that to come!), I’m finally back in the office and back on my blog. I have a ton of emails to reply to, so if you haven’t heard from me, be patient!

A study caught my eye recently that I wanted to share with you. While we’re spending 35 billion a year on weight loss products, natural foods continue to make the news for their ability to help shed unhealthy excess weight and promote radiant health. Grapefruits are the next wonder food to have their moment in the sun.  

A study conducted by the Department of Nutrition and Metabolic Research at Scripps Clinic in California, found that eating grapefruit or grapefruit juice before a meal resulted  in a “significant reduction in 2-hour post-glucose insulin levels,” and grapefruit before meals was “associated with significant weight loss.” Significant in this study equaled 3.5 pounds in 3 months. That doesn’t seem like a lot, but over one year that could equal 16 pounds.

Whether study participants ate half a fresh grapfruit or consumed 8 ounces of grapefruit juice, the results were comparable. Here’s how I am incorporating this research into my daily routine:

Grapefruit Lemonaide

Combine:

4 ounces (about one-half cup) 100% unsweetened ruby red grapefruit juice

1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger (for a boost of inflammatory-busting antioxidants)

8 ounces cold water, plus ice

I sip this while I cook dinner and love the idea that I’m getting a little extra super-food into my diet. Grapefruit juice is rich in vitamin C and lycopene, the same phytonutrient found in tomatoes. If you drink green tea, adding grapefruit juice to your diet may also increase the health benefits of the tea. The two seem to work hand in hand and create a synergistic effect in the body.

If you’re taking medicines, consult your doctor before adding grapefruit juice to your diet, as it can interfere with some medicines.