Monday, July 22, 2013

Hollyhock Tea & Hollyhock Dolls

Hollyhock Tea is long known to be very soothing to a sore throat, relieve a dry cough, and promote a healthy respiratory, urinary and gastrointestinal tract.
 
Hollyhock Tea:
 
First I picked about a handful of Hollyhock flowers and buds.
 

I plucked the ends off and pulled the petals apart just to make sure there were no bugs hiding! I gave them a quick pre-soak of salted water (just in case I missed any bugs). Then I rinsed them off and strained them.



I put them in a large Mason jar in COLD water, covered the jar and let them sit on the kitchen table for twenty-four hours. It is best to use a cold infusion method as to boiling the water, to preserve the healing properties in the tea.


We used agave syrup to sweeten our Hollyhock tea, but you can use sugar or honey the same as you would in your regular tea.

The flavor of this tea was not my favorite. But it does have a very soothing aspect about it, almost a numbing feeling, so I can see why it would be wonderful for a sore throat. I think I will try freezing some in ice cube trays to save for winter, when cold and flu season hits!


Hollyhock Doll:

Here is my attempt at a Hollyhock Doll. I have three sons (soon to be four) so I have to say the boys weren't very impressed with my doll. But growing up, I had always seen them and thought they were neat, so I couldn't wait to try it!

All you need is one open Hollyhock flower, one flower bud and some toothpicks. If you pluck off the green part of the bud you will reveal a little "face-like" feature that looks like two eyes and a mouth. Turn the flower upside down, that will be the body/dress. Put a toothpick through the bottom of the bud, which is the head, and attach the two together. Break a toothpick in half and insert them into the sides of the open Hollyhock flower, that will be the arms. Your pretty fairy is done!

These would be so cute on top of cupcakes for a baby shower, bridal shower or a little girls birthday party since they are completely non-toxic and safe to eat.

 

Have fun trying something new! Lisa





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