Natural Fertility and Birth Control Workshop- Wythe Hotel November 10th

Join women's health experts, Jessa Blades, Katinka Locascio and Erin Borbet for an interactive evening designed to empower you to know your body. Learn how your cycle works and what your hormones can tell you. Find out ways to optimize fertility now…. or five years from now.

Troubleshoot cycle imbalances like PCOS, low thyroid function, or missing periods. And discover how Fertility Awareness Method can be an alternative to hormonal contraception. If you want to get pregnant, if you want to avoid getting pregnant, if you just want your cycle to be in balance, this is the workshop for you!

+ gift bags with goodies from Kindara + Good Eggs + Traditional Medicinals Tea + The Period Store, Thinx, Urban Moonshine
7-7:30pm- Herbal Cocktails, Conversation and Shopping
7:30-9:30pm- Lecture, Q&A

Wythe Hotel, Screening Room 80 Wythe Ave, Brooklyn, NY 11249

***For general questions or more info contact: info@bladesnaturalbeauty or call (646) 580-2851

FOX FODDER FARMer's Market

Join us this Sunday, October 19th from 11am-4pm at Hillside in Vinegar Hill, Brooklyn.

Taylor of Fox Fodder Farm is hosting an amazing autumnal Farmer's Market.

Sip coffee + carve a pumpkin and shop awesome goodies:

Textiles by Caroline Z. Hurley

Ceramics by Helen Levi

Homemade Breads by Sarah Owens

Jams & Jellies by FFF's Momma Mary

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We will have wonderful natural beauty and wellness products by us Blades Natural Beauty!

Natural Beauty Workshop with the Tipi Project

Dreams are coming true! On September 9th I will be teaching a class in a 30 foot Tipi with the Tipi Project in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The Tipi Project is an intergenerational community space designed to foster connection between people, land, creativity and tradition through art, culture and education. Currently the tipi is in Havemeyer Park in South Willimamburg but only until the end of September- so be sure to check out upcoming classes.

Below is a description of my class- hope to see you there!

First we will talk about natural and organic beauty and products, why they are important, how they heal our skin and bodies and how to identify the right ones for you. We will learn about healing tonic herbs and create a tea blend that we will all share together and sip throughout the night. Next we will make a couple of simple skincare products. discussing raw ingredients, essential oils, and herbs.

You will leave this night empowered to take better care of your skin from the inside out and be inspired to look at your own beauty rituals in a much more holistic way.
Each student will leave with a custom tea blend of herbs and some of each of the products that we make together.

September 9th
7-9:30pm
Buy your ticket here: www.tipiproject.com
P.S. T Magazine wrote about our class! Now you have to come :)

Get your ticket! Sewing Seeds presents STAINED, an event of sensorial experiences through natural dyes.

So excited for this event. I hope you can make it!  STAINED was created by artist Cara Piazza as an unique experience for the public to engage with natural dyes through the lens of experimentation, ritual and performance. The event will challenge and delight the senses, inviting guests to participate with different “sensorial stations,”all interacting in unique ways with natural dyes.

An opulent table featuring ceramic works by Daniela Jacobs and Betty Roytburd, hanging net installation and table linens created by Cat Lauigan of Cave Collective and local delicacies curated by chef and artist Nicole Asselin, that will also function as dyes and stains.

A tapestry will be suspended along side ritualistic vessels conceived by Alex Wolkowicz of Cave Collective, that guests can use to splash, bang and imprint their imaginations on to it.

A tent will be erected, where guests will play with scent and sound, with scents provided and conjured up by Natural Apothecary and beauty guru Jessa Blades and sounds mixed by Cat Lauigan of Cave Collective. 

Each station will combine all the elements of the human senses of sight, taste, touch, hearing and smell and abstract them to wholly immerse you into the world of natural dyeing.

Join us for a night of celebration of art and natural dyes,  local food + cocktails,  and unique experiences.

May 22nd,  7-11PM
The Dumbo Loft (155 Water Street, Brooklyn)

Ticket includes access to event and performances and open bar from 7-11PM generously provided by Van Brunt Stillhouse and Sixpoint Brewery.  Dancing provided by DJ Ayres from THE RUB.

MORE INFO + TICKETS HERE

EVENT: Natural Beauty Workshop in Philadelphia with Art in the Age

So excited to be doing an event back in my hometown, about two blocks from where I grew up. Art in the Age (a fantastic store, check it out ASAP) is hosting the event and providing us with herbal cocktails while we talk about natural beauty.
Hope you can join us! More info below-

You’re invited to an evening of wellness discussion and demos with natural beauty expert and makeup artist Jessa Blades of Blades Natural Beauty on Thursday, March 27th from 6:30pm to 8:30pm at our flagship store in Old City. Homemade teas and Art in the Age spritzers will be provided while Jessa answers questions about natural beauty products and shares helpful tips on healing your skin and applying makeup for day and night looks. Feel free to bring a guest and please RSVP to daniel@artintheage.com.

WHERE:
Art In The Age Store
116 N 3rd St, Philadelphia PA 19106
WHEN:
Thursday, March 27th, 2014
6:30pm to 8:30pm

BLADES BEAUTY COURSE, HOLIDAY SPARKLE EDITION with LDBA

So excited to announce my upcoming class with my favorite art school in Brooklyn, L’Ecole Des Beaux Arts. Join us on December 8th for the ultimate class to keep you looking good and feeling calm during this busy and festive season.

 

We will begin class by sipping herbal tea and discussing easy herbal recipes to keep yourself calm and healthy during Holiday madness. Next, I will demonstrate some easy and effective makeup techniques to get you ready for all of those festive holiday parties:
Techniques include: Smokey eye demo (obviously), fake eyelash application, how to wear a perfect and long lasting red lip, and how to turn your daytime makeup into party ready, sexy night-time makeup in just 3 easy steps.
We will also cover simple beauty tricks & I'll share my expert advice teaching you how to make the most of your beauty products.
Students will finish this course with a sparkling herbal cocktail as we celebrate your skills and confidence to look and feel your best this Holiday Season!

 

  

Class description:


Jessa Blades, a natural-beauty expert, herbalist, and make-up artist, teaches this exclusive LDBA Beauty Course just in time for the Holidays! Sign up and schedule a night to celebrate and pamper YOU.
Date: Sunday, December 8th, 5- 7:30 pm
Location: LDBA Classroom, Williamsburg
338 Wythe Avenue · Brooklyn, NY 11211
To sign-up:    
Purchase here

Natural Beauty Event at Wythe Hotel

I recently led a natural beauty event at the Caron Callahan shop at Wythe Hotel. It was an evening of education, discussion and shopping. Part workshop, part Q&A, this event was a real community experience. I made all of the ladies sit in a circle, pass around samples of tea and tinctures. My goal was to provide a space for women to come together and share, and realize that they all have the same questions. Whether it is about dry flaky skin, how to do a smokey eye, fertility awareness or what herbs to take when you think you are on the verge of getting sick... we all think about the same things. It is time that as women we come together and feel empowered and inspired by each other and I was honored to provide that space and experience.

AND we got to sip on Mountain Woman Tea and lavender rose spritzers, shop, and had a really fun night!

Mountain Woman Tea brewing

Fabulous products from Earth tu Face, Kahina Giving Beauty, Good Fight Herb Co.

Kitchen Medicine Poster

Tasting elderberry syrup

Jessa, Anna and Caron

We opened a SHOP in BROOKLYN!

It has been a whirlwind of excitement and new beginnings as we opened our shop this past month. Caron Callahan is the name of the awesome new store, located in the lobby of the fabulous Wythe Hotel in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The shop is filled with women's and men's clothing and accessories, gifts, the cutest little baby clothes, jewelry, books, travel essentials, all curated by my dear friend, clothing designer Caron Callahan. I've been lucky enough to curate the beauty and apothecary items and stocked the shop with my favorite natural beauty brands for both men and woman including products from: Ursa Major, SW Basics, Soapwalla, H. Gillerman Organics, Province Apothecary, Smith and Chang, Earth tu Face, Kahina Giving Beauty, and my own products from Blades Natural Beauty.... with more products being added weekly.

We are open everyday through December 28th, 10-8pm in the lobby of the hotel at 80 Wythe Ave. N. 11th Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY 11249.  I hope you can come in and visit us soon. I'll be in the shop each week sharing my tips and tricks for natural beauty. So come on in and check my Instagram to stay in the loop about what is going on at the shop and when I'm going to be there to help you find some great solutions to any of your beauty needs.

Check us out! We were featured in T Magazine!

photos by Bex Finch

Winter Wellness Workshop

A couple of weeks ago we were lucky enough to get  Carly Harrison, of Vermana Herbals, to come down from Vermont and teach us how to keep ourselves strong and healthy all winter long. Herbal cocktails, learning, snacks, sharing and then some beauty product shopping. What a perfect night!

Tea brewing on the stove

Carly's Winter Blend tincture

Smelling the herbs

Our immune boosting cocktail featuring elderberry syrup, lemon, cava and rosie day tincture.

These were the stars of the night!

Odile chopping the Echinacea root

Herbal students

notes notes notes

Yummy immune boosting snacks: rosemary and garlic honey on goat cheese & lemon and lavender sugar cookies

Carly making garlic lemonade

Jessa showing makeup techniques

The magical eyeliner for smokey eyes

The Echinacea tincture we made

Amazing gift bags care of Earth tu Face, Whole Living Magazine and Thumbs Cookies

And a big thanks to Daeja Fallas for the photos!

Holiday Shopping Party and Trunk Show

Please join us, Kahina Giving Beauty, at Corrente Handbags, 179 Orchard in the Lower East Side, NYC, for a very special trunk show Thursday, Dec. 8, 6 to 9 PM.

We’ve invited top organic & natural make up artist Jessa Blades to help you color match, experiment with new make up brands, and refresh your look with a mini makeover. Enjoy refreshments (wine!) while you shop Corrente’s amazing locally-designed and produced leather goods, Kahina Giving Beauty, and Jessa's favorite natural beauty products and gifts. Yes, this is a party. And you’re invited. RSVPs encouraged-  email mairin@givingbeauty.com.

EVENT: Find out what your OBGYN and your Mom never told you about Birth Control

Have you guys ever heard of the Fertility Awareness Method as a method of birth control? A couple of years ago I had the opportunity to take an intro class with the wonderful teacher Katinka Locascio and now I am thrilled to be able to host the class and share this knowledge with all of you.

Please join us for this very special event:
Fertility Awareness Workshop and Discussion with Katinka Locascio
November 2nd, 7-9 pm, Ft. Greene Brooklyn.

Whether you are looking to welcome a child into your life, 'waking up from the pill' and looking for a more natural form of birth control, or wanting to better understand you gynecological health-

This evening will be a fun flash back to high school biology class and a conversation about little talked about, but very safe forms of birth control that we bet your Doctor or your Mother never told you about!
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DETAILS:
Fertility Awareness Workshop, 7-9pm, Wednesday NOVEMBER 2nd
7-7:30pm- Cocktails, Herb Tisanes and Conversation
7:30-8:45pm- Lecture begins at 7:30pm; Q&A and discussion to follow

$25 per person Buy your ticket here 
 For questions or more information, contact: jessa@bladesnaturalbeauty.com or call (646) 580-2851

About Fertility Awareness:
Fertility Awareness teaches a woman how her body works and provides a method by a which she can chart signals to know each day if she's fertile.  Not the ineffective rhythm method, Fertility awareness is based on science and understanding one's own body.  It is inherently empowering and helps women gauge their gynecological health as well make choices about fertility. This class will not teach the method itself, but provides an introduction and be an open forum for discussion and questions.  Check out this great article too: Your Grandmother's Birth Control Might Actually Work by Nona Willis Aronowitz.

About Katinka:
Katinka Locascio, is the founder of Earth + Sky Healing Arts and has been practicing bodywork since 2001.  She currently teaches classes on Fertility Awareness method and natural birth control and writes for PostModernFertility.tumblr.com

The 24th New England Women's Herbal Conference

In just a week I get to head up north to the Women's Herbal Conference. The conference features over 60 workshops for all levels of interest and experience. Workshops focus on women’s health, herbal crafts, medicine making, plant identification walks and many hands-on demonstrations.

I'm looking forward to the plant walks, early morning yoga, a sweat lodge, henna, drumming, and learning from some of the most knowledgeable and powerful women in the herbal world. Hope you can make it- there is still space- just register here!

Face It: Healthy Beauty Event

In June I had the opportunity to head to Pittsburgh to be a part of an amazing event hosted by Women For A Healthy Environment. Hundreds of women gathered at the beautiful Phipps Conservatory and Botanical Gardens and together we talked about what is really going on with our personal care products and then had an opportunity to mingle and shop around for alternatives. Our panel discussion was hosted by Emmy-award winning correspondent, Tonia Caruso, and featured myself (Jessa Blades of Blades Natural Beauty), Betsy George from Duchess Marden, Vanessa Green from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics; and Michelle Naccarati-Chapkis, Executive Director of Women for a Healthy Environment.
After the panel the guests were able to meet and shop with local natural beauty vendors (As I am Naturals, Cherry Valley Organics, Simple Sugars Scrub, Third Day Luxury Soaps, and Una Biologicals) and participate in my makeup demonstrations. I couldn't have asked for a more perfect night surrounded by open and thoughtful women in the most BEAUTIFUL botanical garden. More videos and photos are on their way.

Curious to hear more about our event or how we can organize one in your city or community? We are always looking to collaborate and share our knowledge of healthy beauty. Contact us and let's discuss ideas!

The Green Fashion Show at Boston College

Last week I went up to Boston College for their sustainable fashion show. The students created the most amazing clothes, using everything from trash bags to gum wrappers. I was honored that they asked me to come up and educate the students about safer products as well as how to do makeup for the runway. We were so lucky to have the most amazing eco, non-toxic tools and products to work with- W3LL PEOPLE, Jane Iredale and EcoTools

Check out my interview (complete with lots of giggles and my loud voice in the background) with my expert makeup artists- Katie and Lauren. These two rockstars had just completed doing the makeup for around 25 student models. I am so proud of these two for working so hard and picking up the tricks of runway makeup in record time.

An Evening at Stone Barns and Blue Hill

from Weleda.com: This summer I had the opportunity to visit Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture up the Hudson in Pocantico Hills, NY, to talk to the staff there about my work as an organic beauty consultant and makeup artist.  Dan Barber, the visionary chef (and one of my heroes), asked me to come and speak to the farmers and chefs and share my knowledge about natural beauty.  I'm so passionate about my work and my mission to educate and inspire folks to choose a more natural, healthier type of beauty routine, that being able to share with the staff at Blue Hill and Stone Barns was such an honor.

I got to take a stroll around the farm before we headed to the outdoor patio where the staff had assembled, eating their meal of fresh greens and pasta. First we heard from Jack Algiere, the farm manager, about what was coming into season and the importance of communication between the farmers and chefs. Then it was my turn. I told the staff about what I do, and then we engaged in a discussion about how the beauty industry is in desperate need of a makeover. Dan fired away with thought provoking questions, and the staff also chimed in, curious about what “organic” really means, whether sunscreen is toxic, which companies’ products are truly natural and how they can learn how to make sustainable choices.

I was thrilled to connect with everyone there; they are doing such great work educating and inspiring people about healthy food and sustainability. I like to think I do the same sort of thing, talking about our environment and sustainability through an interesting medium—mine is makeup and skin care and theirs is food. It was thrilling to be in the presence of such gastronomical rock stars. To finish I passed out Weleda treats of Skin Food and Almond Facial Oil. The staff was thrilled—everyone loved the samples.

Then for the part I had been waiting for: dinner! The next three hours were incredible. The chefs indulged us with fresh asparagus wrapped with prosciutto and sesame seeds, lemony watercress, purple potato gnocchi, apricot jam, smoked butter, fried smelt, fiddle head ferns, honey from the farm, tiny strawberries, goat’s milk yogurt and much, much more! I had the biggest smile on my face throughout the entire meal. Finally, for my final treat of the evening, we walked out of the restaurant to see the moon. It was bright orange, full, big and fat, and we could hear the newly born, baby lambs cooing in the distance.