MountainBalmHerbals' Blog

The Mountain Herbalist
1

Flax Seed and Lavender Wraps

Published: 11-30-2011 05:31pm
Just listed!  My flax seed and lavender neck wraps are just the thing to help soothe stiff necks, tension, sore joints or muscles, or cramps.  They are filled with flax seeds and a small amount of dried lavender flowers for a wonderful relaxing scent.  Heat in the microwave for comforting warmth, or chill in the freezer for cold therapy.  I've had one for years, and I use it all the time.  These make great gifts. ... » Read More

Black Friday

Published: 11-27-2011 08:59am
I spent Black Friday and day after selling my products at a local crafts fair.  It was great fun, hanging out with other locals who make handmade goodies.  We had a big crowd.  I sold out of Calendula Aloe cream and Soothing Salve, and the solid perfumes and lip balms were also very popular.  Need to get into the kitchen and make more!  It was very gratifying to have customers who bought my products in the summer at the Farmers Market come by and tell me how much they like my stuff, and of course even more gratifying when they wanted to buy more!    I don’t have any more shows lined up, so now I can focus on learning, wri... » Read More

A Few Words about Preservatives

Published: 11-21-2011 12:18pm
Part of the reason I like to make my own body care products is that I know exactly what goes into them.  I don’t have to worry about potentially harmful, synthetic chemicals seeping through my skin.  I wanted to have completely natural ingredients in all of my products, but came upon the problem of preservatives.  Oil-based salves last for a long time and don’t need a preservative, and adding vitamin E will help to extend their shelf life even further because it prevents the oils from oxidizing.  But water-based emulsions are a different story.  Anything made with a high percentage of water will eventually start growing bacteria... » Read More

The Birth of Mountain Balm Herbals

Published: 11-18-2011 10:58am
For my first blog post, I thought I'd write a bit about how Mountain Balm Herbals came to be. I had long wanted to learn about the healing properties of herbs in depth, and in 2008 I enrolled in the East West School of Planetary Herbology.  The course is mostly correspondence, but they offer a week long seminar each May near Santa Cruz, CA. I went to the Foundation seminar in May 2009, which was fantastic, and then in May 2010 I attended the Intermediate seminar.  One of the classes was taught by herbalist Roy Upton on the topic of GMPs (Good Manufacturing Practices) for making herbal products.  As he spoke, I started thinking ... » Read More
1