Apothecary Holiday Plans

Now that the Apothecary is closed for the holidays (we'll be back around December 28) we finally have some time for some of the items on our winter respite to-adventure list.  Since it often involves brewing up new goodies for the Apothecary, we thought we would give you a peek into our winter workshop.

Just what are we doing these wintery days and nights?

Working on my Swedish Chai recipe. A lot of my remedy ideas come from dreams.  So it was that one night I dreamt of DeLoreans and the idea of making a chai recipe that incorporates classic Swedish herbal elements.  I already have an idea of what herbs I am going to use, now it is just experimenting with the proportions.  I’ll share the recipe once I’m done!

Reading. I am never far from a book and I have a couple of books I have been carrying around but have yet to read that I look forward to tucking into during these long nights.  One of these books is Culpeper's Medicine: A Practice Of Western Holistic Medicine by Graeme Tobyn, which explores the work of Nicholas Culpeper’s herbal practice and especially his use of medical astrology.

Catching up on my writing. Journaling, writing up new blogs for the Apothecary, such as plant profiles, and other freelance writing work fill up lots of my time when I am not making medicines (or walking dogs or making tea).  Between Samhain and Yule I write down my goals and dreams for the year which build upon the work of the previous year, arching towards my long-term visions.  It is a season, in other words, of making bridges out of lists.

Making lots and lots of sweet herbal goodies. This is the time of year that I fill up friends and family with adaptogenic, bliss-filled herbs in the guise of holiday sweets.  I love Kate Magic’s wonderments, My New Roots, and Earthsprout are some of my current sources of my recipe inspiration.

Sending out handmade postcards like a boss. I guess I am a boss of myself so I would therefore be the type of boss to make and send out handmade postcards.  If you get a lot of boxes this holiday season that you don’t have much use for, cut them up to postcard size, decorate them with some glitter, and make the folks who get them in the mail really happy.

Working on a new adventurous offering from the Apothecary! We'll be offering a brand new something in the next few months that we've never done before in the Apothecary.  I'm in the phase of charming dreams into the waking world...  There will be a tiny preview - just a hint - of what we'll be offering on the Winter Solstice.  Keep your eyes on the skies...

So, my clever friends, this winter dark may you...

☆ Find the festiveness of quiet moments + simple retreats. ☆

☆ Delight in the delicious company of loved ones. ☆

☆ Love + nurture the tangled roots of all your dreams. ☆

The Longest Night: Herbs for the Winter Solstice Season

The wheel of the year turns deeper into the dark, bringing us to the longest night of winter.  The Winter Solstice is both a time of honoring the reflective gift of solitude and the distant promise of the seed sparking to life.  With this spirit we invite herbs into our practice that root our dreams into reality as well as warm us with the inner fire of the sun's promised return.

So put on the kettle, prepare your charm, and welcome in the winter!

PINE Pinus sp. Evergreens are sacred trees and remain green throughout cold seasons when other trees lay bare.  The needles of the Pine tree can be made into a tea and is an excellent source of vitamin C (more vitamin C, in fact, than citrus fruits such as lemons and grapefruit!).  Drink Pine tea throughout the day to clear up congestion and excess mucus.

ROSEMARY Rosmarinus officinalis Warming Rosemary gives us the gift of a dry, Mediterranean heat in the long dark days of winter.  After a bought of sickness or a round of the blues, drink Rosemary tea to restore your body’s inner warmth and fire for life. Rosemary is very restorative to all of our blood organs such as the liver, heart, spleen, and kidneys, bringing back balance after a period of fatigue.  It is also helpful for a dispelling the winter fog from a dull mind.

VALERIAN Valeriana officinalis A root of water and earth, Valerian is gently sedating, helping us to fully settle into the Season of Slowing Down.  Restlessness, insomnia, nervous stomach, and tension, dissolve with the use of Valerian.  My favorite way to take Valerian is as a glycerite, but it can also be enjoyed as a tea (even though we use the root, it should not be decocted since that would destroy its delicate volatile oils).  Mix Valerian with other herbs such as Mugwort, Anise, and Peppermint to create a potent brew for inducing visionary dreams.

CHAMOMILE Matricaria recutita A classic herb for stomach upset, nausea, and indigestion, Chamomile also supports a sense of peace and cheerfulness in the body through its nervine qualities.  Chamomile flowers are miniature suns and can be used in bath, steams, teas or made into an herbal oil to uplift the spirit, calm the cranky, and center wayward energy.  I think a jar full of Chamomile flowers is a pleasant sun-honoring addition to the home altar.

I also find Flower + Gem Essences to be beneficial at any time of the year!  The following are excellent deep winter wonders:

SAGE Flower Essence The Winter Solstice is the cusp between the signs of Sagittarius and Capricorn - Sage is a plant of Sagittarius and its ruling planet Jupiter.  As a flower essence, Sage has an initiatory quality to it, helping us to ease through life transitions.  It is an excellent rite of passage herb and provides release to stagnating emotions.  For the season of the Winter Solstice, Sage helps us to express our deepest kept secrets in ways that bring us joy.

Sage Salvia officinalis

OAK Flower Essence As the Wheel of the Year turns from the Holly to the powers of the Oak, the energies of Capricorn begin to shine.  A tree of Saturn (which rules Capricorn), Oak is a great flower essence for those folks who struggle on even though they are exhausted - they put on a happy and courageous face, hiding their feelings, and never complaining in hopes of not being seen as weak.  While they appear tireless, they have only become rigid in a state of constant stress brought on by a need to achieve the next thing on their list.  An excellent remedy for Capricorns who tend to burn the candle from both ends (you know who you are).  Oak helps us know our limits and be kinder to ourselves by realizing that taking time to rest is not a sign of weakness, but a sign of intelligent strength.

HEMATITE Gem Essence A reflective mirror of night, Hematite is grounding and centering during the hustle of winter holidays.  Hematite is also a very protective Essence and helps folks feel shielded from fears, especially those of the "lurking in the dark" sort of insecurities, teaching us that it is not the dark we fear, for darkness is beautiful and necessary, but what we perceive to dwell within the shadows.

Be well and drink deep the darkness for after the Winter Solstice the days begin to grow longer as we prepare for the burst of spring!  

Create your own delicious + fully enchanted recipes for the winter with The Winter Apothecary!

Hematite Gem Essence is available in our Apothecary along with other fully enchanted herbal remedies for the wintertide.

Good Morning Mischief!

Morning Mischief: Enchanted Herbal Recipes for Delicious Awakenings + Resolute Magnificence has arrived!

Create mornings of mischief with our new fully enchanted, full-color ebook! Morning Mischief is full of herbal recipes - 25 in all! - but so much more, including:

☆ A workbook to getting your morning groove back!

☆ Inspirational mini-poster printouts (feat. unicorns + rocks +  sunlight)!

☆ A guide to Tissue States - Western Herbal Energetics!

☆ Plant profiles for herbs to start your day with!

☆ Planetary recipes for aligning your stars!

☆ A guide to creating your own foundations for herbal yum!

More than just a recipe book, Morning Mischief is a ❤ HEART❤ book for plant folks, apothecarians, urban homesteaders, rural wonderkin, + those looking to infuse their world with the magick of herbal medicine + mystery!

A Tea Charming: A Yuletide Musing on Tea + Magick

A repost from a guest blog + giveaway I took part in last Yule.  Enjoy!

I have spent much of my life in coastal cities where the rhythm of the day is broken up between fading light on the water, ships sliding between waves and the shifting landscape of fog over the idle cliff sides and curving slopes. For me, the Yule season is an incredibly rich time of year when Moist Mother Earth slumbers and the Bone Crone gnashes Her teeth, rattling the edges of our winter shelters. I recognize the fog that steadily creeps and retreats to and from the shore as the thick veils of the Bone Crone and Her sister the Sea Hag who are meeting at the edge, exchanging bones of earth for bones of saltwater. I see the fog as the same mist that hides the sacred Isle of Apples, confusing the unwary, pulling the careless down below. I know the fog as a softening of boundaries pulling our visions towards the darkness where we can better learn of our own depths, uncertainty and expansive joy.

It is in the fog-laden retreat of Yule that I pay attention to reflecting the quieting world around me within my own body. I move slower, I stretch more and do activities that are slow in nature, such as reading, knitting and making tea. My dear, tea-drinkers and magick-makers, I make a lot of tea this time of year for myself and my loved ones. As an herbologist and Witch I am keen to mystery and the articulation of ritual gestures for everyday doings. Rituals of daily doing, such as brewing a cup of tea, is good practice for the grander acts of transformative change we pass through each season.

Tea is a wonderful ally in daily ritual practice and hot tea is especially welcome during the cold months. The act of brewing a cup of tea involves five elements of many modern Pagan traditions: Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Spirit. For Earth we have the tea leaves themselves. Grumbling roots, tumbling berries, sturdy bark, glowing leaves and delicate flowers are the gifts of Moist Mother Earth – let us honor them as we put them in our teapot. It is through the vessel of Water, the life-blood of our home planet and a sustaining fluid of our home bodies, that we extract the medicinal and magickal qualities of the tea. Blessed Water helps us to recognize our teapots for what they really are – charmed cauldrons, holy chalices and the womb-like receptacles of wisdom. The Water is heated by the element of Fire and during the darkening season of Yule our respect for Fire and the light and heat it brings comes from knowing that the fire from our hearths reflects the deeper Fire of the Earth’s core which keeps warm the seeds of promising spring during winter’s slumber. Air is found in the fragrant steam drifting up from our brewing tea and scent is a sure way to ignite the curiosity of our Spirit who then draws closer and pushes out from the depths of our being.

I approach making tea with magickal mindfulness as I am ever seeking to strengthen my skills in magick which I feel is, as Dion Fortune says, “…the art of changing consciousness at will.” So, I offer to you, my Witchen Kin, a small Tea Charming that I sometimes sing when making a pot of tea. Say it if you like with loved ones, little ones, at your altar, in the kitchen or in a very comfy chair, but mostly I hope that your tea-making during the Yule season brings you respite and contentment.

Flower + Gem Essences for the Journey: Labor

Flower + Gem Essences that are particularly useful during pregnancy, labor and postpartum (to learn more about what Flower + Gem Essences are visit our previous blog post).  The great thing about Flower + Gem Essences is that they are good remedies that, by their very nature, can do no harm which makes them wonderfully safe to take during pregnancy.  Continuing our journey through pregnancy and postpartum, we've now arrived at labor!

Here we go (!) (?) (.) (!?)

CHERRY PLUM "I trust the journey"

Ah, sweet Cherry Plum!  Here is an ally for laborer and baby - it guides us to trust the experiences of our journey and to find balance during times of stress and uncertainty.  Sounds like it was made for labor, right?  Such clever flowers!  I find that Cherry Plum is especially good for those who seek to have lots of control in their life.  Cherry Plum is a kind massage of a Flower Essence, helping us to gently loosen our grip on our (generally futile) attempts to control all possible variables of labor (and life).  Trusting in the greater cycle of life, the lineage of births before us, and the knowledge that we don't know everything is another gift of Cherry Plum.

BORAGE "I am courageous"

For some folks it is really scary to contemplate labor.  For first-time laborers it may be the uncertainty of the unknown or their mental / physical / emotional capacity to go through labor.  Other fears arise from previous birth traumas or worry about complications throughout pregnancy leading to complications during labor.  Sometimes it is just scary.  Borage teaches us that we get scared to know where the fear lies and knowing that fear is often a process of finding our own power.  The star-shaped blue flowers of Borage hang from their stems, gazing down at the earth, not fearing the fall, but meeting the journey with an open heart.  Take Borage for an infusion of courage during uncertain moments and the most challenging parts of labor to remember that you are, in fact, complete, whole, and full of strength.

MUGWORT "I move between"

Mugwort is an excellent ally to move between one stage to the next - a wonderful remedy during transition in labor.  The herb is also a guardian of childbirth and easy labors.  Mugwort seems to help communicate between parent and baby during labor, helping to psychically guide the child through the birth canal when both parent and baby are ready.  As a herb of dreaming, Mugwort also connects us to our most important visions dreams and vision just before and during labor.

BLACK COHOSH "I transform disturbances"

For those who have suffered from trauma in the past, especially of a sexual nature, Black Cohosh is an essential ally during the labor process.  Labor can be a birthing of many things: a new child, a family, and a (re)birthing of the laborer.  Through labor our previous traumas, our hardest challenges, and our most disturbing experiences can sometimes arise, challenging us during some of our most powerful and vulnerable moments.  Black Cohosh strengthens our back-bone and resolve to transform cycles of abuse into a wheel of wellbeing.  Releasing the built-up congestion of imbalance, Black Cohosh helps us not only confront previous trauma, but to be present to the challenge and joy of labor.

WALNUT "I am free from limitations."

Ever feel like everyone is so eager to offer their opinions of your pregnancy that it is hard to know what you really want in your labor?  Maybe an overbearing Mother-in-Law or a pushy, know-it-all sibling?  Labor is a good as time as any to be firm in your resolve and desire for your birth experience.  Walnut is your ally to untangle from the limitations of everyone else's opinions, beliefs, and social conventions.  Walnut is a guiding star for your labor journey - it helps to attune you to your own internal compass.  Like Mugwort, Walnut helps us with the transitions of life, and, in particular, the transition from being swayed by the opinions of all around us to being steadied by the truth of our own experiences and desires.

Read our recommendations for the First Trimester, Second Trimester, and Third Trimester.

We carry Borage in our Etsy Shop and Poppy Swap Shop.  Other Essences can be found from a variety of resources such as the Flower Essence Society and Bach Flower as well as local health food and natural healing stores.

Explore our full series of Flower + Gem Essences for the Pregnancy Journey:

• The First Trimester
• The Second Trimester
• The Third Trimester
• Labor + Birth
• Postpartum - coming soon!