Notes from Sarah Tay

Addiction

I’ve come to realize that I might have a slight addiction to cold-pressed juices. Self-diagnosed as I realized that when I’m traveling to a city, my first thought is ‘Where can I get my juice around here?’ I’ve seen these pretty bottles for awhile at the market but didn’t quite understand the higher-than-average price point, until a friend had me sample some early last year.  I didn’t realize until later that there’s a large manufacturing process to cold-pressed juices. 

When you order a regular juice blend, it’s typically tossed into a blender and pulverized, which sometimes gives you that frothy top. But what is happening here is that the vitamins and minerals are introduced to more oxygen and the value of those nutrients are reduced (our skincare formulas are built along the same methods—small-batch production means less oxidation which results in more effective ingredients for your skin). With cold-presses, the fruits and vegetable are especially prepared and are slowly pressed down. The runoff becomes extract. It’s quite labor-intensive and takes some pre-planning and a good amount of time, but the quality and taste makes it very worthwhile. 

It looks like this artisan manufacturing process is appearing all over the country. Have you tried one yet? What did you think?

Here’s my juice diary from various places across the U.S. 

SAN FRANCISCO

Juice Shop

If you walk too fast, you’ll miss this cute juice stand next to the sidewalk. I picked up this pineapple-chia seed blend and it was absolutely delicious. The juice was probably all gone within a matter of minutes. It tends to go more towards the fruit side of the produce aisle and doesn’t feel overly acidic. @juiceshop

LOS ANGELES

Pressed Juicery

This local mini-chain is amazing. With cute storefronts, business is brisk and it’s no wonder why. I stopped by the one in West Hollywood and fell in love. The ‘Greens 3’ here was absolutely refreshing and the Spiced Almond Milk (almonds, dates, vanilla bean, filtered water, cardamom, cinnamon, nutmeg, sea salt) was all-satisfying. @pressedjuicery

NEW YORK

BluePrint Cleanse

What’s great about BluePrint Cleanse is that they seem to be everywhere, at least, most of the Whole Foods and upscale specialty markets I’ve been to. Great as a ‘pick-me-up’ during the day. @blueprintcleanse

Love Grace Foods

According to their website, “Probiotics help your body to create vitamins and eliminate toxins.” On top of that, this smoothie is a satistyfing drink. This one is my favorite flavor has banana, flaxseed, almond, lemon, dates, vegan probiotic himalayan sea salt, and coconut oil. When I met chef Jake who crafts these concoctions, I told him that it tasted like a healthy version of Calpico (one of Japan’s top-selling soft drinks). I’m craving this probiotic smoothie right now… @lovegracefoods

Creative Juice

Found inside participating Equinox gyms, these designer bottles are stored in petite fridges at the café. I picked up this blood marmalade-almond butter -banana-rice protein recipe. It was quite substantial. The flavors have been concocted in partnership with NYC restauranteur Danny Meyer, so these juices tend to have more exotic blends like butternut squash, goji berries, chilies, and more. Definitely delicious. @creativejuice

SEATTLE

SUJA

I picked up a couple of bottles during a recent trip to Seattle. So I’m not sure if this company is from the Pacific Northwest (the address on the bottle mentions a ‘San Diego’). But this was a good option from the local grocery market. The Coconut Almond was almost horchata-like! I was attracted to the bottle design and typography. @sujajuice

If you are looking for a Seattle-based place, check out the cold-presses smoothies at Evolution Fresh. Actually, Evolution Fresh is going to be showing up at your local Starbucks soon. @evolutionfresh

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If you have any recommendations for other cities, please post below! 

-Sarah

Inspiration: Almond Silk

After high popularity of the Clean Orange Bar Soap took me by surprise, I quickly moved into creating another soap. It’s always interesting to think about what a soap should be. A simple bar that you use as a child or an adult is actually quite a complicated thing to produce, especially if it’s a french-milled soap, which is one of the most complicated to make. It takes a lot of patience and playing with proportions until it’s perfect.

The inspiration for the Almond came to me one day when I opened up a bag of raw almonds. The smell was so pure, clean, almost like a blend between freshly sharpened pencils and apricots and another nameless trace; there’s nothing else quite like it. It took me to a time in my childhood when my father had to take a dead almond tree down on the property. It stood about two stories tall and it took just as long to bring it down. Eventually, we ended up with a giant tree trunks and in trying to figure out what to do with them, they became a bench underneath the mandarin orange tree in the garden. I have fond memories of sitting on that bench. The sweet almond, blended with a bit of coffee, jasmine, and patchouli amongst other things, made a marzipan-like natural fragrance. I also loved almonds for their antioxidant qualities and having Vitamin E properties, which are both beneficial for skin. 

The ‘silk’ part of the name comes from the moisturizing aspects of the bar. With the right proportion of shea butter, I made sure that this bar would not leave skin dry and flaky. 

Have you tried it? I’d love to hear what you think. Or what you’d like the next all-natural fragrance should be. 

xox

Sarah

2013 Resolutions

The chatter with friends has suddenly turned from the holidays to topics of renewal for the new year. It’s such positive energy to hear what everyone is up to. After I was running around like crazy during the holidays and trying to check all the boxes on my lists, it’s refreshing to think about the bigger picture, which I definitely need to do more of (see my no. 3 resolution). I don’t have an actual list that I post on my refrigerator door but I try to keep a mental checklist going. From my own perspective, the resolutions that stick are the one that show effects after a couple of weeks. Here are some points that I’m considering but I’d love to hear more about what you’re doing too. I’m always looking for good ideas. 

1. Eating Clean

When I first tried to tackle a salmon/chia seed/kombucha diet, it was daunting at the beginning. First off, I found it slightly difficult to buy things because I just was frustrated about which aisle to find my ingredients. But by encapsulating a 2-week diet with set recipes, this suddenly became a ‘I can do this!’ A good friend recommended this book, ‘Clean’ by cardiologist Dr. Alejandro Junger. It’s also found on Gwyneth Paltrow’s Goop.com site. This book was easy to follow, it didn’t require big sacrifices but rather helped put my mindset on a new track. If you can aim for 2 weeks with this book, it’s hopeful that you’ll be able to see and feel the effects of what your daily diet does for you.

2. Getting de-cluttered

It’s said that the presence of clutter can add stress to your everyday life. Given that this would be a great time to give to charities, especially Hurricane Sandy victims or those finding hard times with the current economy, I want to take the next rain/snow day to throw out anything I have not picked up in three years. From clothing, to pens, old vases, magazines, to tchotkes, it’s time to share with others. It would be nice to have my space back.

3. A space of beauty

It’s funny how technology creeps into our lives. Now that we can do things more efficiently, we are given the luxury to do more elective things. I’ve had so much going on this year that I realized that I didn’t give some time to myself. This year, I want to make a space of beauty. By taking an area, like a sunny nook or brightly lit space and to put nothing more a couch, a few favorite decorative art and design pieces, and have some blank books next to it. I also want to make sure that I don’t end up piling things around this area. I want this space to be nothing more than a resting place to maybe read, call some friends, or daydream as a “mental detox”.

4. Old school friendships

It’s amazing how our way of communicating is changing. I have some friends that just had their first baby and I was very scared to give them a ring. I was terrified of possibly disturbing the few precious hours of sleep they might be getting, or if they would be in the middle of feeding. Sending a text message seemed unobtrusive. But it didn’t feel super-personal. I’m deciding to send out real mail this year. Using beautiful stamps. Whether it’s a celebratory announcement, dinner party invitation, or a ‘hello from afar’, I want to share the love with my close friends that my sentiments are still old-school.

What are your resolutions? Or if you have advice for my resolutions, I’m all ears.

-Sarah