Who doesn't like a cup of tea?  It's comforting, warm, familiar, delicious and always seems to do you a power of good.Tea is very English too. At least that's what we like to think but of course tea came originally from China. It's a camellia bush with a wonderful Latin tag…

When the the sun comes out to play and the temperature rises, the unaccustomed body can feel a little hot and sweaty. That’s especially true when you’re stuck in the workplace or at your computer with no fan or you’ve overdone the heat on the beach.Rest easy: Little Herbs have…

This strawberry face wash smells divine, works a treat, and isn't expensive (so no guilt involved!). It's a deliciously revitalising cleanser. It makes your skin feel beautifully soft, smooth and refreshed. Strawberries contain vitamins A and C, which are essential for preserving healthy, youthful skin. Lemon balm leaves are mildly astringent and…

At least the weather's better! So maybe it's a good time to think about a how to you put your best self forward while the world outside puts on its bright Spring coat.It’s worth thinking about what you put in your body as well on it. What you eat is…

Jane Gordon, columnist and author, remembers the first 'granny' night with the new baby Edie.

Let’s take a look at nappy rash.  The bad thing about it is that you, Dear Mum, are going to feel, well, bad about it.  Firstly, let’s banish ‘bad’ – whether you use disposable or washable nappies, it is highly likely that at some point or another, your Little One…

Scary cut-out masks and comic carved faces are everywhere at Halloween – and mostly made from pumpkins these days in Britain.  But that wasn’t always the way: it’s a fairly recent ‘tradition’ that goes back only a few decades when the American celebration of Halloween found its way back to…

The autumn harvest is abundant with hedgerow herbs, fruits and nuts that will help you stay healthy through the winter. On Apple Island we have been picking the elderberries, dark, lucious, ripe and glistening on the trees.  Elderberries, with some added rosehips, are astonishingly good anti-virals, full of vitamins that boost the immune system and help both to prevent and cure nasty colds and flu.

Spiders have been with us for 100 million years and so – no surprise - are a crucial part of those ancient stories and beliefs, they conjure up fear and fascination, they are always with us in one form or another, sometimes poisonous, sometimes insect-munching benevolence; they are symbols of eternity, creativity, persistence.  

Marvellous for the digestion, excellent on the vitamin front, fabulous fresh or cooked, apples are super-food. The skin is the place to start: it contains heaps of anti-oxidants (grate some, mix with some ground almonds and give your face a real skin-treat).  Apple skin also contains something called ursolic acid which reportedly keeps cholesterol and blood sugar under control – good for weight loss.