I am Lina. I worked as a chemist in a skincare laboratory, which is how I learned about the skin and eventually stopped buying skincare products.

The Amrata Kitchen is where I share what I do instead: food, plants, oils and simple rituals, drawn from Ayurveda, Chinese medicine, Japanese Kampō and my own Japanese roots.

I don't think of my body as separate from the earth. Caring for myself and caring for her are the same practice.

Lina Merkscha — MSc Pharmaceutical Research · Author of three

cookbooks · Former cosmetic chemist · Yoga teacher