“Eat your vegetables, they’re good for you!”  I heard that a lot growing up, but now along with eating your vegetables you are reminded to make sure you get your omega-3 fatty acids.  A good source of the heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acid is flax-seed.  Flax seed is a tiny seed that is loaded with nutritional benefits; it helps lower cholesterol levels and cut the risk of heart disease.  Sounds like a super food to me.  But did you also know that both flax-seed and the textile linen come from the same plant, Linum usitatissimum??!!  Flax is grown both for its seeds and for its fibres.  Linen is made from the fibres of the flax plant.  Flax fibers are amongst the oldest fiber crops in the world and the use of flax for the production of linen goes back at least to ancient Egyptian times.  I love to wear linen especially in the summer as the fabric has such a coolness and freshness to it.  I find that clothing made with linen has great movement to it and I don’t mind the wrinkles either.  But decorating with linen is something I have a real affinity for.  Furniture covered in linen is beautiful and gives the piece a very organic look.  I have covered an entire sofa in linen. (One of those sofas I no longer have!)   My living and dining room drapes are linen.  I have tablecloths, cushions and duvet covers that are all made from linen.  But I must admit, when I use linen for decorating I like the fabric to be crisp and not all wrinkly looking.  Crazy, right?  No crazier than knowing that tomorrow at breakfast while eating your omega-3 cereal remember, flax – you can eat it or wear it.

Image 1.  Modmissy     Image 2.  Naturespath.com