2016 EARLY SUMMER PLANT WALK

This past weekend my oldest daughter and I attended another herbal workshop.  This time the location was a beautiful farm in North Central, MN and it was the perfect spot since there was a great variety of wild edibles and medicinals spread over the property, even this beauty… truly growing wild, there were just two plants on the 38 acres. I think my daughter had the most fun hanging out...

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THE NON SEWERS GUIDE TO MAKING A DOGGIE BELLY BAND

I like to pretend I know how to sew but truth is I'm really no good at it.  I wish I could make fancy clothing or a nice set of drapes but my skill level only allows for sloppy doggie wraps and maybe a tiny hand bag that small children will like. Doing this post for my friend Julie, my sewing "lingo" is my own, I have no idea what the proper verbiage is for those that actually know how to sew. The...

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SPRING IS OFFICIALLY HERE!!

When you live in Minnesota there's that moment when you say to yourself that yes, spring is officially here.  Today is that day.  Here is what's coming up in the backyard today. Chives Mint Lavender Lemon Balm Bee Balm Yarro...

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HOW TO CONVINCE A TEEN NOT TO DRINK ESSENTIAL OILS

Recently my 16 yr old daughter came home from a friends house asking if I knew people could drink essential oils.  The first thing I said was "let me guess, one of your friends parents sell Young Living Essential Oils" and she asks "how did you know?" The first time I heard about Young Living was during my aromatherapy certification course when a student brought up Raindrop Therapy.  She...

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SHOULD YOU CALL LAVENDER A LAVENDER?

I was reading a Facebook post recently where essential oils were being discussed, particularly cassia vs. cinnamon bark oil.  There was a debate over whether two plants from the same genus were essentially equals.  Should we refer to both peppermint and spearmint as mints (mentha)?  Should we refer to both cassia and cinnamon bark as cinnamon? The answer provided by the chemist leading...

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PUMPKIN SOAP

I recently made some pumpkin soap using pumpkin puree for the first time. It turned out great! I colored half of it with titanium dioxide and the other half using copper sparkle mica from Brambleberry.  I'm not impressed with the way the TD appears in the soap but I like the copper sparkle mica. ...

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CRYSTALLIZED HONEY

While I was at Valley Natural Foods the other day I was standing behind a couple in front of the honey shelf and I overheard them discussing the quality of the various honeys.  The woman leans in towards the man to tell him that some of the honeys had gone bad "you can tell because they are crystallized" she said. I didn't correct them but I had to laugh to myself because prior to becoming...

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