Back to Basics

Sometimes we need to take a step back, get back to the basics.
Be Zen and aim for a little simplicity.

Here are some suggestions:

Basic Teas: Sencha Green Tea (this week's featured tea!)

Basic Incense: Sandalwood

Basic Meditation:
Sit with a cup of tea, a white candle, and sandalwood incense.
Sip in quiet solitude.

Get back to basics in the home.

• purge the clutter
• cook your own meals
• pack lunches to bring to work with you
• spend a week without the TV

What else can you think of on the theme of getting back to the basics?
Suggest it to us in the comments.

With the tail end of February and the rush of the new year of the rabbit, we see a mix of exhaustion and excitement. Colds run rampant in the fluctuating temperatures. Se are eager for the warmth and yet the relaxation of the coming summer. Spring is definitely on its way!

Featured tea this week is IMMUNE BOOSTING tea to beat the winter colds/flus.
With added rosehips and orange for extra vitamine C.

As advice, cook with lots of garlic too as that will also boost your immune system.

Also this week, we are featuring MUSIC! We now carry the CD's from SpringRoadProduction. Most popular collections so far are Berceuse, Une Fenetre sur les Etoiles, and Les Chakras. An absolutely wonderful collections of ambient music to relax to with a hot cup of tea. CD sell for $17.95 in store. You may call or email us to add one to your mail order if you like!

Happy Valentine's Day!

I carry your heart with me (I carry it in my heart)
I am never without it (anywhere I go you go, my dear;
and whatever is done by only me is your doing, my darling)
I fear no fate (for you are my fate, my sweet)
I want no world (for beautiful you are my world, my true)
And it's you are whatever a moon has always meant
And whatever a sun will always sing is you

Here is the deepest secret nobody knows
(here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud
and the sky of the sky of a tree called life;
which grows higher than the soul can hope or mind can hide)
And this is the wonder that's keeping the stars apart

I carry your heart (I carry it in my heart)

EE Cummings



And with the weather as it is, it's the perfect day to get out and play in that fresh fallen snow - or stay in together and hide from it!

I wish you all all the love and kindness in the world.

Happy Valentine's!

Now on Discount

We still have a few calendars and agendas left in store. If you haven't gotten yours yet for 2011, now is the time!

50% off all remaining calendars & agendas

This sale is available in store only. We have left in stock the following:

• Bohemian Cats wall calendar (x2)
  
• Hafiz wall calendar
  
• Zen Mind wall calendar
• Celtic Blessings mini wall calendar
• Vampires desk calendar
• Seasons of the Witch Weekly Agenda (x8)

Love is in the Air!

And in the tea cup!

This week's featured tea is in honor of the coming Valentine's Day. Served all week will be Love Potion. This aromatic darjeeling tea is spiced with cinnamon and sweetened with rose petals and rosehips. Share it with your loved one on Valentine's Day!

Also at our public altar we have our annual magical book of love available to all. Come in and write a note about love within it's pages. We here at the store charge up the altar every day to help these messages of love be heard by the universe.

Bright Blessings and Love Tokens!

Brand new leather pretties!

New to Melange Magique, hand made leather pretties from artists right here in Quebec! Les Artisans D'Azure!


Leather strapped and corked bottles, excellent for wine and mead.



Leather bound, metal clasp books, great for notes or even for your own personal Book of Shadows.




Leather masks and bags, wonderful for masquerades and carrying tools/supplies wherever you go.

Xin Mao

February 3rd, 2011 is the start of the Chinese New Year: Year of the Rabbit (Xin Mao).

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

This is the Chinese version of Thanks Giving all rolled into New Year's celebrations. For two weeks, families come together, giving thanks and sharing. Meals consist usually of eight or nine dishes (eight for prosperity or nine for long lasting). Dishes are creative family affairs. You can explore with various stir fry dishes yourself for this time of year. Mark the start of Spring... even if we are buried deep in snow. Red paper decorations can be used to warm the home's feel and scare away the winter blues!

According to: http://www.stanssewingsupplies.com/catalogs/store.asp?pid=253080

According to Chinese tradition, the Rabbit brings a year in which you can catch your breath and calm your nerves. It is a time for negotiation. Don't try to force issues, because if you do you will ultimately fail. To gain the greatest benefits from this time, focus on home, family, security, diplomacy, and your relationships with women and children. Make it a goal to create a safe, peaceful lifestyle, so you will be able to calmly deal with any problem that may arise.

What can you do?

• make red paper decorations
• learn about the life of a rabbit and think about how that influences you this year
• cook up delicious stir-fry dishes for your family meals
• share flowering tea
• create safety and peace in your home with Feng Shui