A Winged Messenger

In mythology missives, messages and more were often carried by birds, both mundane and magical.  At the suggestion of customers, Nightblooming now has a Twitter account!  We'll be sending out updates to products, contests and more!  You'll then be able to check out the blog here or the shop on Etsy for whatever information we can't fit into 140 characters.

Follow @Night_Blooming_

Having never done this before, I wanted to ask what you'd like to hear about!  Please pick as many options as you'd be interested in, and feel free to make your own suggestions in the comments!

What would you like tweets about
	Renewed listings for herbal products (salves, oils, etc)
	New hair jewelry listings
	Contests
	Blog updates
	Juniper / Tsavo updates
	Treasuries my items are featured in
	Random Etsy items I like
	Unpredictable randomness

Two Contests Ending Soon!

We have two wonderful contests with time left for you to partake in!  Please enter and spread the word to others!

Juniper's Custom Item Contest
All my sweet, dear customers know what a wait my custom order list can have and how I stopped doing custom creations about a year ago.  Now, for Juniper, I'll make whatever item the winner wants for 20 cents and will send it anywhere in the world for free.   Entering is easy!  All you need to do is donate to Juniper in any amount more than $5.  We're about two-thirds of the way to covering her current expenses and appreciate all the generous help! For a chance at winning you'll need to enter by June 30th!


Errant Knight Summer Solstice Quest for the Forest of Flidais

It's that time again where the NightBlooming Knights head out in search of a legendary item for a chance at winning a special prize! View the contest listing here.


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(¸.•´ (¸A knight-errant is a figure of medieval chivalric romance literature. "Errant," meaning wandering or roving, indicating how the knight-errant would typically wander the land in search of adventures. NightBlooming has a quest for those that would dare to take it. Though a challenge, the reward is great!

As NightBlooming's signature style is well known to our customers, we're offering up this summertime hair stick as a reward for the one who can unravel this riddle! The answer lies within one of my sold items, so the better you know NightBlooming’s work, the easier this may be.

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(¸.•´ (¸The Prize:

Flidais was the Celtic Goddess of the forest, woodlands, and wild things. She was a shapeshifter who rode in a deer-drawn chariot through the thick of the wild and was associated with protection of wild animals. Built upon a spiraling stick by Elvenhair, this stick is topped with an abalone shell, dyed and coated to be a shifting emerald green full of deep blacks. It is set into the stick and accented by twin band of silver wire. Sadly, the pictures utterly fail to capture the shifting beauty of the stone.

The Forest of Flidais Hair Stick has a usable length of up to 6 inches and a total length of 7.75 inches.


We'll do another quest for the Autumn Solstice! So even if you don't win please try again then :)


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(¸.•´ (¸Rules:
Use the hint to find the right listing in my Sold Items, then look in the item description or photos to answer the question. The contest will run for a week (closing at 12am on Tuesday the 28th of June), and a winner will be randomly drawn from all those that submitted the right answer.

You are allowed only ONE GUESS and cannot amend your answer, so make your submission count! Please send me a CONVO with the your guess and a link to the listing you feel is correct. The winner will have the sticks shipped to them for free++ anywhere in the world!

Once the winner is announced they may check out with the sticks. Best of luck to you all!

You can see all the sold items here:
http://www.etsy.com/shop_sold.php?user_id=5131346


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.•´¸.•*´¨) ¸.•*´¨)
(¸.•´ (¸The Quest

Your Hint:
...Such belief is reflected in the names Fairy Caps, Fairy Gloves, Fairy Thimbles, Fairy Herb, Fairybells, Fairy-fingers, Goblin Gloves, Fairy Petticoats, Fairyweed, or Folks' Gloves, the fairies being sometimes called merely Folks since to speak of them explicitly was believed to get their attention and cause them to do mischief. In Gaelic they were Lus Mor, the Great Herb, for being the most magical of all herbs.

This hair clip may just get you into your own bit of fairy mischief.

The Question:
Praytell, what type of plant twines itself across the front of this Ficcare?

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++Free shipping is via First Class USPS. If you would like a different shipping method or insurance, a small charge will apply.

Though the listing is for $0.20 as that is the lowest amount that Etsy will allow an item to be listed for, these fees will be covered by NightBlooming for the winner.

Juniper Updates & Contest- Any Custom Item you want up to $50

Juniper Updates

We are so, so grateful for each and every donation that has come in for Juniper!  We're nearly halfway to our goal for her, 38 individual people making donations totaling just over $700.  But we still have a long way to go.

Thankfully, she hasn't needed more medical care.  She seems to be totally healed from her traumatic experience, at least in body.  While Juniper is happy (so far as we can tell), she's still adjusting from going from an only cat into a house with five other furry roomates.  It's a big change for her, but she's making progress and will now eat treats sitting next to the others.

Juniper had never been outside, so one sunny day we took her outside to enjoy the sun and the breeze and the sky.  All of our cats are indoor cats, but they are allowed to go outside in our fenced yard under supervision.  We're very careful to watch them, especially Juniper.  All-white, deaf animals don't stand a chance in the wild.

To give her a sense of security we brought her out in a carrier to let her take in the sights and smells and when she started getting antsy to get out, we opened the carrier door and let her explore.

Tenative at first, she took in all these new sensations- the dry feel of bare earth, the cool spring of grass under her feet, the way the leaves swayed and fluttered in the breeze.  But, brave girl that she is, she never returned to her carrier, but ventured forth, poking about the garden.

 

Juniper Contest- Any Custom Item Up to a $50 Value

I had wondered what best to offer for our next drawing from our donor list.  A moss stick?  That would be nice, but I doubt the black thumbs of the world would like me giving them something they had to care for.

A pair of draped sticks? That could be fun, but some people might find them a bit too fancy for everyday use. We just did a pair... a solo stick, well, that'd work.  Herbal products tend to be pretty particular to what a person wants... 

While looking at my custom order list I decided that was the way to go.  So here it is, the rules of this contest:

• Anyone that has donated to Juniper already is automatically entered, unless they've already won a Juniper contest.
• Anyone new that donates at least $5 to her cause by the end of the month (June 30th) will be entered.  You can donate by purchasing a Juniper item for $5, $10, $25, or $50, or by sending a donation via PayPal to night.blooming.garden@gmail.com.  Please be sure to mark it for Juniper and to use the gift option.
• Multiple donations don't aid your cause.  Each person gets one entry, so your odds of winning are the same if you donate one $50 donation, or ten $5 donations.
• The item can be ANYTHING.  I stopped making custom items that were joint designs with customers over a year ago because it was so overwhelming, but I'm making an exception in this case.  You may spend the full amount on whatever you want, or whatever you can dream up, so long as it stays under the price limit.  I will even include Winter Salve in this.  Juniper is worth a special batch if someone wanted it.
• You can choose multiple items that total $50. So if you wanted a pair of sticks, a pot of salve and a bag of our new Miruvor Hair Growth Tea, you can do that too.
• The winner will be put directly on the very top of the custom order list. The winner will be selected from a random drawing of all the donors. If you are already on the custom order list and win I will bump both this custom and your current custom to the top and they'll ship together. 
• Shipping is on the house, anywhere in the world.  And by shipping I mean First Class or First Class International.  If you would like to upgrade to Priority or Priority International with insurance, that will be an additional shipping fee.

Please please spread the word about this contest :)  It's for a very good cause and one very grateful kitten.

Introducing Miruvor Long Hair Tea

Health from the Inside Out

Long, healthy hair cannot be achieved solely from topical products.  You need to have a good, diverse diet that supplies your body with the needed silica, protein, vitamins and minerals; but let's face it, nobody has a perfect diet, and choking down huge supplement pills isn't something anyone looks forward to.  To that end, we're happy to announce Miruvor Long Hair Tea as a natural, safe and very tasty suppliment to give yourself the best hair you can grow.

 What is Miruvor?

Appearing in The Lord of the Rings, miruvor is a warm and fragrant cordial of the Elves that gives the drinker renewed strength and vitality. The elves do not reveal how miruvor was made, but it is thought to come from the honey of the undying flowers in the gardens of Yavanna.

Inspired by this mystical drink, our Miruvor Herbal Hair Tea is a gathering of herbs and blossoms that supports healthy scalps and provides what’s needed to grow hair worthy of an elven princess.



What's in it?  What does it taste like?
Miruvor is gluten-free, kosher, organic, and naturally sweetened.  A blend of herbs and flowers,Miruvor tastes of wild woodlands, fields in bloom, all warmed with cinnamon. Caffeine-free, it can be enjoyed at any time of day or night and blends wonderfully with green tea or chai.

Ingredients: Red raspberry, nettles, linden flowers, lemon verbena, chaste tree berries, lemon peel, burdock root, chamomile, horsetail, squawvine, cinnamon and stevia leaf.



Detailed Ingredients & Benefits:

• Red Raspberry Leaf- Rich in minerals and vitamins that promote the health of hair, skin, nails, bones and teeth
• Nettles- Often called nature’s conditioner, Stinging Nettle is natural deep cleanser useful for oily skin and hair that promotes hair growth from within
• Linden Flowers- Linden flower contain the curative plant fiber mucilage, as well as many vitamins and the essential oil farnesol. When ingested it promotes circulation, relaxation and healthy skin and scalp
• Lemon Verbena- This tasty herb helps to support the central nervous system and aids in de-stressing
• Chaste Tree Berries- The Greeks and Romans used this plant to encourage chastity and thought of it as capable of warding off evil. More practically, however, the berries help to regulate hormone imbalances and reduce inflammation
• Lemon Peel- Provides an excellent source of bioflavanoids and vitamin C, which supports circulatory, skin and scalp health
• Burdock Root- Contains mucilage and starches that soothes irritated skin and membranes and is one of the most effective herbs for promoting hair growth and reducing the amount of hair shed
• Chamomile- Promotes hair growth, soothes scalp and is a natural hair conditioner for the length. Helps in relaxation
• Horsetail – Horsetail, not to be confused with cat-tail, is possibly the most abundant source of silica in the plant kingdom, helping to keep hair strong. Many people believe that horsetail can help speed up hair growth by giving the body the extra silica it needs to build hair. Some of the ways to take horsetail is to drink it in your tea, take it in capsule form or apply it directly to the scalp and hair
• Squawvine- A perennial evergreen creeper that grows on forest floors, this herb is most beneficial to the uterus, but promotes good circulation throughout the entire body
• Cinnamon- In addition to having a germicidal effect, cinnamon helps improve circulation and therefore supports healthy hair and skin.
• Stevia Leaf- Naturally 30 times sweeter than sugar using Stevia instead of sugar helps to keep the body's blood sugar in balance, while increasing energy levels and mental activity. Has been known to help acne, seborrhea, dermatitis, and eczema

How do I Make it?
Miruvor is a loose-leaf tea, meaning that it does not come in a prepared bag.  To infuse the tea you can take one of several methods, from simply putting the tea through a strainer before drinking, to using a tea ball, or a mesh infuser basket that sits in your cup.  You could also use a teapot with a built-in infuser, or something called a Perfect Tea Maker that strains your tea for you.

No matter how you infuse your tea, for maximum benefit, herbal tea must be properly prepared. Pour 8 oz. freshly boiled water over one heaping teaspoon of herbs. Cover cup and steep 10-15 minutes. To make iced tea, brew double strength and pour over ice. For best results drink 3 to 5 cups per day. The spent herbs and bag can be composted.

Want some extra antioxidants?  Blend it with green tea!  Need a kick in the morning?  Blend it with some chai.   Have leftover tea? Pour it through your hair for a rinse that will give your hair softness and shine.

Storage: Keep the rolled and closed bag in a cool, dark and dry place.


How do I know if I like it?

Miruvor comes in two sizes, a 2 tsp sample and a 6 ounce bag.  Pick up a sample pack to test drive, and then come back for more!