Resources

Resources for Herbs, Essential Oils, Bulk Ingredients and Natural Products:

Mountain Rose Herbs * A great online resource for Bulk Herbs, Carrier Oils, Essential Oils and other Bulk Ingredients.  They have great quality and they focus on organic & sustainable ingredients.

Starwest Botanicals * Another wonderful resource for high quality Bulk Herbs and Essential Oils.  They have great quality Herbal Tinctures too.  I love that they have a ton of organic options.

Essential Depot * A great online resource for high quality Lye, aka Sodium hydroxide (for soap making) and Zinc Oxide (for making natural sunscreen and zinc diaper cream).  They have some of the BEST silicone soap molds on the market! They also carry organic jojoba oil, essential oils and natural butters.

Rebecca’s Herbal Apothecary & Supply  A great resource for local Boulder/Denver folks.  Organic Bulk Herbs, Carrier Oils, Essential Oils, Containers, and other Bulk Ingredients.

Abe’s Market * Don’t have time to make your own? No need to worry. There are some AMAZING companies that make organic body care products and herbal remedies.  Shop the marketplace at Abe’s to find all these products in one place, including great deals on natural diapers, wipes, and great organic food.

* This is an affiliate link.  If you decide to purchase any products through this link, I do receive a small commission.  The prices stay the same for you.  You have my deep appreciation if you choose to support the little herbal when making your purchases.  I only recommend companies & products that I believe in 100% and buy from myself.

Frequently Asked Questions:

What is the difference between a Lotion vs. Cream vs. Salve?

Salve– A salve is simply a combination of oil and beeswax.  Beeswax is melted with the oil and then when it cools it will harden into your desired consistency.  It can also have other things added to it (essential oils, butters, vitamin E, etc.)  but it does not contain water.  This gives it a long, stable shelf life.

Lotion: A lotion is created when you take oil & water and blend it together using an emulsifying agent, typically emulsifying wax or beeswax.  Lotion usually has a higher concentration of water to oil (70% water, 20% oil, 10% emulsifying agent).  Depending on whether or not you use preservatives, lotions will have a shorter shelf life due to the high concentration of water.

Cream: A cream is also created when you take oil & water and blend it together using an emulsifying agent, typically emulsifying wax or beeswax.  Creams have a higher concentration of oil in them than lotions (45% water, 45% oil, 5-10% emulsifying agent), making them thicker, heavier and more moisturizing.

Body Butter: A body butter is created by blending natural butters like shea butter, cocoa, butter and/or mango butter.  My body butter recipes usually tend to be a blend of butters and liquid carrier oils making them more malleable and easy to apply and absorb into the skin.

What is the difference between an Essential Oil and an Infused Oil?

Essential Oils: Essential oils are volatile oils occurring naturally in certain plants, generally extracted through a steam distillation process. They have the characteristic “aroma” of the plant.  They are very concentrated oils and in general should always be diluted before applying to the skin.

Infused Oils: Infused oils are made by taking whole plant material (roots, leaves or berries) and infusing them into a carrier oil, like olive oil.  In doing so, you can extract certain therapeutic properties of the plants into the oil.  This oil can then be used directly on the skin or added to various body care products (creams, salves, etc.) to add a healing element.