Potions

Made with Love from my little house on the hill to you. 💚

For years, I sold my Elderberry Syrup until I stopped one day and only made it for friends as gifts. I’ve decided to give it another go, and because I no longer have my website, I had to figure out a way to do it through Substack. I aim to keep it lowkey because, in truth, I love that there’s not much selling going on here.

Staying healthy and hardy during the Vata time of year can be challenging. Enter this tasty and effective herbal home remedy, which has been around for ages. Elderberry Syrup has a long history of health benefits:

• Immune system booster

• It helps prevent and shorten the duration of colds/flu

• Eases allergies and sinus infections

• It helps support a healthy heart

• It may lower blood sugar

• Promotes healthy skin

I’ve tweaked my recipe over the years. Here are the current ingredients:

Organic: Elderberries, Ginger, Cloves, Star Anise, Rose Hips, Cinnamon, Raw Linden Honey, and NH Spring Water from just down the road.

This remedy is best used preventatively or at the first sign of feeling unwell. You can take a spoonful daily (more frequently throughout the day if you start feeling sick).

I like to add it to tea or to water (sparkling or still.) I gave some to my friend the other day, and she put it on ice cream. :)

It’s just food, and food is medicine.

Please note that there is raw honey in the syrup, so it should not be given to children under one year of age.

10 oz. Elderberry Syrup - $38.00

Potion #2 is my White Pine Infused Jojoba Oil

This potion is for external use only. It is a lovely remedy for skin issues.

Pine resins modulate inflammation, increase circulation, and are widely antimicrobial, making pine one of our best vulnerary or wound-healing herbs. Think of it as your local and sustainable Neosporin. Katya Swift, coauthor of Herbal Medicine for Beginners, says that pine is the herb she uses most frequently. She loves white pine “for almost any kind of skin issue, from wounds to eczema, especially if there is any risk of infection.”

—Wild Remedies by Rosalee de la Foret & Emily Han

Honestly, I love to slather it on just because it smells like the forest. This is not an essential oil. There are only two ingredients in my White Pine Oil:

• Foraged White Pine needles/branches

• Organic Jojoba Oil

Jojoba oil is the perfect partner because it has a long shelf life and is itself very healing on the skin.

4oz. White Pine Infused in Jojoba Oil - $33.00

I only have a few bottles left of the Pine Oil. The batch I’m making now combines White Pine and Balsam and will be ready in about four weeks.

Note: If you order via the Stripe links I’ve provided, you will see an $11.00 flat shipping and handling fee already added. Unfortunately, I can only ship within the US.

I had fully intended to offer these potions last month, but here I am, putting them out there to you during one of the busiest weeks of the year. Oh well. :) That’s how I roll…

When I stamp “Made With Love” on each label, I genuinely mean it. My potions are all made with love and tender care in small batches and infused with my best energy. With the best kind of Magic. I usually sing and ensure that I feel Joy when brewing the syrup and concocting the Pine oil. I don’t make potions when I’m not feeling my best self.

Sometimes, I invite my animal spirit friends to help me concoct…

Picture me inside this wee house on a hill, surrounded by forest and mountains:

And now, for the Magic that happened to me while writing this post! I was leaving a message for my friend Amanda this morning because she has been the detail person/angel helping me figure out the Stripe links. I was looking out of my kitchen window when I saw this beautiful animal stop right in front of where I was standing!

The Bobcat: A Spirit of Independence and Resilience

This elusive feline, with its solitary nature and keen sense of independence, has long been associated with inner strength and resilience in the face of adversity. Native Americans observed the bobcat’s prowess as it effortlessly roamed its wild domain, serving as a reminder that embracing one’s individuality and adaptability fosters a harmony with the world around us.

—Bobcat Symbolism in Native American Culture - Kachina House

I’m still buzzing a little from the encounter—Magic of the very best kind.

If you decide to order a remedy or two, I hope that you close your eyes when you drink the Elderberry potion or rub Pine oil on your skin and picture my Little House, the Trees, and the Mountains, the Bobcat, and Chip (I’m glad he was safe in his underground palace!), the little Chickadees, the sleeping Bears, and you feel the Magic that was Made With Love.

XOXO,
Barbara

Thank you for your heartfelt comments, your subscriptions (free or paid), or just for stopping by and reading or listening to The Quaking Poplar 🌳!

All Paid Subscriptions are now 20% off during Vata Season!

You can also order Potions via Snail Mail and Check 🐌:

Barbara Sinclair
The Quaking Poplar
PO Box 111
North Sandwich, NH 03259-0111