Make a braided T-shirt headband & Drink gunpowder green tea

It's two o'clock in the afternoon and you're at work. Your lunch break ended an hour ago but it feels like it's been three. Your phone and inbox are silent. Your eyelids droop. Your mind wanders...

It's time for an afternoon pick-me-up!

My solution is a quick craft project along with a mini dose of caffeine and antioxidants. Why not make one of the free promotional T-shirts laying around your office into an awesome hair accessory? And while you're at it enjoy an invigorating cup of gunpowder green tea.

Of course this solution works great for a lazy day off too!

What you will need:
A T-shirt you don't mind cutting up
Scissors

Gunpowder green tea
I ordered this tea from Upton Tea Imports. Their site is a great resource for premium loose leaf teas. I have ordered tea online before, but haven't found better product quality than Upton provides. Their prices and shipping are reasonable too. Their first grade Chinese gunpowder green comes in these awesome little balls that are tons of fun to soak and watch expand. Also, you know a tea is good when it smells amazing even in the bag!

First, cut three strips from the bottom hem of the shirt, about one inch wide each. I used a large promotional tee from one of our business partners, but I've made this work with smaller shirts too. For the first strip I went ahead and used the hemmed portion of the tee. Once it becomes part of the braid, the slight difference in thickness won't matter. I used some hair clips I had on hand to keep the edges of the fabric even as I cut them.

Cut each strip so that it is no longer a loop, and more like a ribbon.

Hold the three strips parallel and tie them together in a loose knot. Leave about four inches of material from knot to strip ends.

Start braiding! Be sure to keep tension even so that the braid will have consistent thickness. You can see if you're almost done with your braid by wrapping it experimentally around your head. You will want the ends of the braided portion of fabric to just touch.

Once your braid has reached the right length, untie the knot you made at the beginning of the braid. Make another simple knot, this time uniting the two loose ends of the braid. Make sure the braid isn't twisted.

Like me, you will probably have strips of several different lengths sticking out of a sort of lopsided and chunky knot. Make sure the knot is pulled fairly tight, but not too tight that you can't lift up the individual strips making up the knot.

Now the creative part! And, incidentally, the trickiest. Take the end of each strip and tuck it back into the knot to form a small loop. I used the tip of my scissors to push the ends under a strand in the knot. For the longer pieces I made two little loops. I tried to make the loops somewhat random but still evenly distributed around the knot. This should create a flower or pompom effect. If you don't like how it turns out at first, you can easily pull out the loops and rearrange them!

Now you're ready to wear you're creation! And hopefully you have a warm belly full of green tea too. I like to position the flower on the side of my head, just above my ear. It's a bit more flirty!

Mini Post: Make s'mores cookies & Drink chamomile tea

Even if you don't make it out on a camping trip this year, you can still enjoy some delicious s'mores at home. This quick and easy no-bake cookie is sure to satisfy your desire for graham-crackery, marshmallowy, chocolatey goodness. And it might just make you the most popular person at work or in your own home.

And while you're at it, why not enjoy a cup of chamomile tea? I always bring chamomile tea with me while camping. It's a great way to stay warm after the sun goes down without the stimulating effects of caffeine. After all, who would want to stay up all night imagining every snapping twig as a bear coming for the marshmallow residue in the corners of your lips? But you're safe in your home right now, ready to enjoy the light herbal flavor of some chamomile as you expertly melt chocolate.

You can find chamomile teas at any supermarket and chances are you will have many types to choose from. I tend to enjoy those that are honey flavored, but the plain can be delightful too because it is naturally somewhat sweet. You should steep chamomile tea a little longer than black tea, about 10 minutes. Most herbal teas have a longer steeping time. For chamomile, I usually consider it ready when it is bright yellow (it helps to use a clear mug). Don't add milk, but feel free to add some honey, sugar or other favorite sweetener. You will find I'm a big fan of honey myself, especially darker, organic varieties.

Okay, now for the cookies. You will need: one jar of marshmallow cream (usually found in the baking aisle), a box of graham crackers, and 10 (yes ten) Hershey's milk chocolate bars. You could use other chocolate if you wish, but Hershey's is a s'mores classic and melts nicely. For equipment you will need a large and a small pot (or double boiler), parchment paper, a spatula or wooden spoon, a butter knife, a cookie sheet and optionally a silicone baking mat.

Break the Hershey's bars into chunks of three or four squares. It's faster and easier to melt chocolate that is in smaller chunks. Place chocolate in a double boiler. If you don't have an actual double boiler (I don't) then partially fill a large pot with hot water then place a slightly smaller pot inside it. Put this contraption on your stove top and turn the burner to high. Bring the water to a boil, then reduce to simmer because a rolling boil may cause water to splash into your chocolate. The double boiler allows you to melt the chocolate evenly and slowly to avoid burning. I usually put the chocolate in the smaller pot at the same time I turn the burner on. Stir the chocolate with a wooden spoon or spatula as soon as it's melted enough to do so. Frequent stirring will help the chocolate melt more quickly and again avoid burning. Keep going until no lumps show up when the chocolate is stirred and it has a consistency almost like really thick hot chocolate. Remove from heat, pour out the big pot and set the smaller one aside. Unless it's very cold in your kitchen it should stay liquidy, but you can stir it occasionally to make sure.

Open the graham crackers and break into quarters as indicated by the baked in perforations. This can be tricky, depending on the brand. I discarded the crackers I broke unevenly (into my stomach) but you can feel free to make them into sandwiches if you are less of a perfectionist than I am. Next, open up your marshmallow cream and grab a butter knife. Spread about a teaspoon of the cream on a cracker then place another on top of it. Give the sandwich a little squeeze. I used the knife to smooth the cream that oozed out of the sides, but that's optional.

Now the fun dipping part! Grab a graham sandwich and dunk it halfway into the melted chocolate. Swirl it around a bit, then let it drip some excess chocolate back into the pot. I used my spoon to scrape some of the drippings off. Place the dipped cookies on either a silicone baking mat or layer of parchment or wax paper. The chocolate will pool around the cookies a bit. After all the cookies have been dunked, transfer them to a fresh piece of parchment paper, lining a cookie sheet. Pop them in the freezer to harden. I left mine in there until the next day when I brought them to work,  but they should be nice and solid after about half an hour and should stay that way when returned to room temperature.

Finally, enjoy your sticky little treats! I guarantee you will keep coming back for just one more. These are s'mores after all!