Learning From Plants Directly

By Steph Zabel,
Herbalist, Ethnobotanist and Educator

In this spring season the plants are quietly emerging and greenness is returning to the land. Perhaps you’ve spotted the violets popping up around town. Soon we will have an abundance of these indigo gems sprouting up... Hopefully you will take the time to pluck a few to adorn your spring salads, or to place in a small vase in your home.

Now in early May, we may feel our restless hearts yearning for full-on warm weather and all of the blossoms it brings. We notice that things are changing very quickly and every day something new is emerging from the ground. So I send out this reminder: pay attention to the trees and weeds and bulbs that are sprouting at this very moment. You can learn so much from their growth and unfolding.

Perhaps this is a new idea for you -- Did you know that you can learn from plants directly, without a mediator (i.e. a teacher/herbalist) in the middle? You can! And it is likely much more simple than you ever expected.

“In my practice I believe it is so important to taste, smell, observe and interact with herbs in order to more fully connect with them. ”

In honor of Spring's arrival, here are a few of my favorite ways to get to know plants one-on-one:

• Observe. Consciously pay attention to the plant life that grows everywhere. Choose one plant -- you just need one -- that you will become deeply acquainted with, whether it's a tree, shrub, herb or weed that you pass in your daily routine. Notice what the plant looks like every day and how it changes throughout the year. Notice as it leafs out, opens it flowers, and creates seeds. Notice how it dies or goes dormant in the winter, and if it comes back the following spring. This is a slow practice that takes patience but it will give you so much insight into the growing patterns of your chosen plant.   

• Be still and sip. Consciously sit with a cup of tea (made of one herb), and approach it as a sort of meditation. Appreciate and take in the color, scent, flavor and viscosity of the tea. Notice every single little detail. See how you feel about it, noticing its effects on your physical body and your emotions. After practicing with single herbs like this you may be surprised to discover you know exactly which herb will suit you best in the moment, and what herb to choose when you are unwell.
• Use your imagination. Take a piece of paper and some colored pencils or pens. Go sit outside next to a plant that catches your attention. Start doodling as you look at the plant, just letting your pencil flow and not trying to draw the plant exactly as it looks. Add in colors. Be free and messy. Soften your gaze and allow yourself to play as your draw the plant. Pay attention to your intuitions about the plant; let your imagination use it as a starting point and see what artful expressions you create. What do these expressions tell you about the plant? What do they tell you about your relationship to the plant?

I encourage you to try out these simple methods. In my practice I believe it is so important to taste, smell, observe and interact with herbs in order to more fully connect with them. You can gain so much from these simple exercises.

If you would like more guidance in connecting with plants and learning how to use herbs in your daily life, perhaps you'd like to join me in one of my upcoming Herbs for Everyday Living series...

Warmest Spring wishes to you!

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Steph Zabel, MSc, is an herbalist and educator who helps urban dwellers connect with the plant world.  She teaches herbal classes, is available for individual wellness consultations, and is also the founder of HERBSTALK, Boston’s community herbal conference.  Learn more about her work at: www.flowerfolkherbs.com and www.herbstalk.org.

Introducing: Vapour Beauty

By Caitlin, CN Body Care Lead

Today, we are introducing Vapour Organic Beauty to our customers at Cambridge Naturals. We invite you to explore and enjoy the latest clean cosmetic brand to grace our Body Care Department.

Vapour Beauty comes to us from the hearts and minds of Krysia Boinis, Kristine Kehely and Eric Sakas. Together, the team (based in Taos, New Mexico) brings their expertise in entrepreneurship, fine art and a taste for high quality performance to present you Vapour Organic Beauty.

Crafting a line of clean beauty care products that fit the team’s standards meant leaving the unnecessary, often toxic filler ingredients behind, and advancing the future of beauty. Vapour is an innovative skincare and cosmetic hybrid that marries exquisite herbs and oils in a waterless base. Adding the fine art experience of Kehely, Vapour launched with a wide range of carefully chosen colors to achieve beauty lit from within.

Vapour Beauty has quickly become an award-winning leader in sustainable, non-toxic beauty and pure performance products! Rest assured that Vapour has done the work for you when it comes to ingredients, sourcing and responsibility, receiving Champion Safety Status by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) and the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics.

Vapour is:

• 100% Natural
• 70% Organic
• Cruelty Free
• Made in USA
• Made with Solar and Wind Power
• Made with Recyclable Packaging

Want to make the jump into Vapour, but want to perfect your shade choice first? Use Vapour’s Free Shade Consultation tool. Here, you can upload a photo of yourself, evaluate your skin type, the climate you live in and list your current foundation brand and shade. In return, Vapour’s Beauty Experts will recommend your best options based on your answers. Now, that is innovation! Our body care team is also happy to assist you at the store, where we have all shades of their fantastic foundation (both liquid and sticks) available for you to try in person.

Please join us in celebrating the launch of Vapour Beauty by stopping by our Body Care Department and exploring these fabulous products. We have lots to celebrate as a store, as a local and global community and as crusaders for non-toxic beauty! Welcome, Vapour Organic Beauty to Cambridge Naturals!

Beauty Uniform: Jennifer Botto of Thorn + Bloom

By Mary, CN Body Care Buyer & The Naturalist Contributor

I remember when I discovered what I thought was my signature scent, and I remember clearly when I realized the effect it was truly having on me, which was what can only be described as “sensory assault.” The headaches, the skin irritation, all signs pointed to the designer perfume I insisted on spritzing myself with. Jennifer Botto, founder of the Somerville based perfume company Thorn + Bloom understands this experience all too well.

I first met Jennifer last summer at the annual Herbstalk event. The packaging and display of her products quickly reined me in and she gladly humored my eagerness to learn everything about her line. She patiently handed me sample card after sample card, walking me through the depth of each scent. There was finally a high quality non-toxic perfume on the market and I wanted to shout it from the rooftops of the Armory.

The “fragrance” that makes up synthetic perfumes is actually a combinations of hundreds of synthetic chemicals and are loaded with pthalates, known hormone disruptors. According to a 1991 EPA Analysis, 95% of those chemicals are derived from petrochemicals and are known to cause birth defects, cancer, asthma, and allergies. An alarming statistic we are privileged to be aware of. We at Cambridge Naturals are just as careful of what we put on our bodies as we are of what we put in them, and we want the same safety standard for you.

All scents in the growing Thorn + Bloom line are available for sale at Cambridge Naturals. I interviewed her this month to get the full scoop on how she got started in nontoxic perfumery and below she shares some tips from her own beauty uniform.

Scent is powerful in the sense that it can instantly flood you with specific memories and transport you to another time and place. As a perfumer, is there any scent or combination of scents that has that effect on you? Where does it take you?

My most nostalgic blend, Stranger in the Cherry Grove, reminds me of my father's cherry pipe tobacco. It is smoky, woody, leathery with the slightest hint of charred cherry wood and fruit. In a perfume, it's an unexpected and surprising combination (burnt cherries?) but it makes sense when you know the context behind it's creation. For me, it is one of my most favorite scents and memories.

You grew up on a farm in New York but now live in the city of Boston. Has the change of scents in the environment you work and live in had any effect on what you do?

Natural Perfumery has helped me reconnect to nature in the midst of a frenetic urban environment. Living in a city often robs people of natural aromas such as freshly cut grass, blooming flowers, tree bark, moss, animal manure, silage, wood fire, etc and replaces them with synthetic aromas such as exhaust, gasoline, industrial materials, car air fresheners and synthetic perfumes. The sense of smell is often underrated and neglected, especially in a city such as Boston.

“Perfuming quickly became an obsession when I realized that botanical scents can rival the very best synthetic fragrances.”

What initially drew you to natural perfumery?

I've always been very allergic to synthetic perfumes and could never find a natural perfume that met my expectations in terms of longevity, complexity and sophistication. I decided to experiment with a handful of essential oils and my passion grew into a collection of hundreds of rare natural essences. Perfuming quickly became an obsession when I realized that botanical scents can rival the very best synthetic fragrances.

Do you have a signature scent or do you change it up everyday?

I tend to wear perfume seasonally and developed the line with this in mind. I love wearing Bird of Paradise in the summer, as it evokes a luscious tropical paradise with night blooming Jasmine, lemon and ginger. During the colder months I choose Orange Blossom, as the cardamom, honey and cedarwood exude a sensual warmth.

What does your daily skincare routine from day to night look like?

Of course, Coconut Oil is a mainstay for full body and face hydration. I've recently discovered topical Magnesium oil which has been a godsend. I find it helps with lymphatic drainage and exfoliation, giving my skin a firmer texture and more rosy appearance. It also helps with aches and pains just as an epsom salt bath would. I love the idea that I can spray the Magnesium on my skin as a kind of mobile bath therapy.

Do you wear makeup?

When I wear makeup I tend to do a natural, minimalist face with Jane Iredale products. My favorite look is a neutral lip with bright rosy cheeks and a lot of lash. I recently discovered a fantastic new product called One Two Lash which relies on magnetic technology to attach false lashes effortlessly. I'm constantly on the go so the ability to apply lashes in a snap with no messy glue or expensive extensions has really upped my beauty game!

What has inspired or continues to inspire your beauty uniform?

The older I get, the more I try to look for ways to let my inner beauty shine through. This has meant clean eating and clean living, cutting down on synthetic chemical exposure and processed foods. I also rely heavily on drinking lots of water and getting a minimum of 7 full hours of sleep every night.

When do you feel most yourself?

I love spending time in rural settings, away from the maddening crowd. I tend to become overstimulated by all the sounds and movement of the city and so it's very refreshing to return to the countryside for reflection and slow living. It's also wonderful to be able to stargaze when the light pollution isn't so heavy!

Do you have a favorite scent in your collection or one that is particularly special to you?

My favorite is Evergreen. I grew up in norther NY surrounded by beautifully fragrant forests of pine, spruce and fir trees. My family makes maple syrup so the combination of sweet boiling sap and cool fresh evergreen needles always brings back fond memories of childhood.

Thank you so much, Jennifer! Visit us in store to try  Thorn + Bloom. To learn more about Jennifer and the line of perfumes you can follow them on instagram @thornandbloom for updates!

Beauty Uniform: Tom Groves

By Mary, CN Body Care Buyer + The Naturalist Contributor

I discovered the benefits of herbal medicine and green juice during a few formative years in Los Angeles, land of the macrobiotic diet and home to soul cycle devotees. My skin was glowing and my moods were balanced, all without harsh chemicals or prescriptions. It’s what led me all the way back to New England to work towards a degree in Nutrition. I didn’t expect a passion for food based medicine to lead to cleaning out my makeup bag and bathroom cabinet, but you can’t un-know all the things your skin is absorbing every day.

We live in a society that has unrealistic beauty standards and the skin care and cosmetic industry certainly targets women more than men. But we all have skin that needs love and attention regardless of gender. So this month I decided to get a different perspective on skin care.

Tom Groves, co-founder of Heart Grown Wild, had a similar indirect introduction to natural skincare. His background in wildlife biology and botany has given the line of organic, plant-based, skin and hair care products an edge on what often feels like a saturated market.

Below, Tom shares more about his background, his work with Heart Grown Wild, as well his own favorite skin care rituals.

You have a background in wildlife biology, has co-founding Heart Grown Wild and working with plants in the context of beauty and body care changed anything about the way you interact with or study plants in your research?

I was academically trained as a wildlife biologist. I was introduced to botany through a professor at Framingham State University and eventually through the conservation department of the New England Wild Flower Society (NEWFS). My work with NEWFS began as a volunteer experience and continued as a conservation fellow. Generally, we performed rare, threatened and endangered species surveys, seed collections, habitat restoration and educational offerings for the public. This work was taxonomically species based. It was common to be carrying around 3 or 4 books for species identification in the wild. The knowledge of botanical diversity I learned while with NEWFS has given Heart Grown Wild a unique perspective on product constituents, habitat conservation, and sustainability. Currently, I work for a forestry company which allows me to be out in the woods on a daily basis. For Heart Grown Wild to provide a quality product, it was invaluable to be able to knowingly select particular plants for wild harvesting and product inclusion.

When/how did you first become interested in using more natural beauty/body care products?

My wife Lena had the most impact on my interest in plants for skin care. Like most guys, I was reluctant to be anything but a “shower and go” guy. It began with the In the Trees body oil which originally was a beard oil Lena formulated for me that piqued my interest in using plants as products. The beard oil was liked so much we decided to change its categorization to body oil. The scent is really why it’s a best seller. The facial expression on people makes my day every time, when they inhale dank conifer base oil mixed with just a hint of orange and patchouli. It’s made with wild-harvested red spruce and balsam fir tips, and our own home distilled spruce/fir essential oil. It’s something special. This was the first product that I used on a regular basis. It clicked for me when I realized that I had a specialized set of skills for helping Lena to create skin, hair and body products that were honestly unique, creative and rooted in Vermont. (See what I did there?)

Herbal skin and hair care products also just made sense to me – why use products that artificially scented or chemically based when I could use products that I know are entirely plant based and have low levels of essential oils. Through the process of making our own essential oils and hydrosols, Lena and I learned the amount of plant material to make 10 drops of essential oil was quite a bit. We try to impart this knowledge to our customers that essential oils should be used in sparing quantities due to their potency and for sustainability reasons. In today’s market it’s difficult to really know where our products are coming from. Our skin is the largest organ, so making products that Lena, myself, and our customers could rely on to be good on so many levels was a big part of what we wanted our business to be.

What’s your daily skincare routine? Does this change with the seasons?

I use three products consistently at the moment. I begin my day with a shower and post-shower I start with a spritz of the Tree Song toner, which is another more masculine scented product, made with our own black birch infused witch hazel and black birch hydrosol – an invigorating way to begin the day. I use a dime sized amount of In The Trees around my shoulders, with a little on my beard, and a dime size amount of Sol Nectar hair serum I run through my hair before I comb it. I don’t use a mask on a regular basis, but I do try these products when Lena formulates them and they are quite the experience. I haven’t quite crossed into that level of skin care as part of my routine yet, but who knows…

How do your self care or body care rituals change while traveling?

Prior to my introduction into Heart Grown Wild and plant-based skin care I had no skin care routine. Since the beginning of my use of skin care/body care products, the biggest change to me when traveling is that I actually take skin care products on the plane. Lena and I recently traveled to North Carolina and we were able to take all of our individual products through the security checks in our carry-ons. I never check a bag and I like to travel light. This made continuing my daily routine, which I’ve come to love, easy to take with me.

What has inspired or continues to inspire your beauty uniform?

The thing that has inspired me and continues to inspire me in regard to my beauty uniform is Heart Grown Wild products and the use of more and more Vermont grown herbaceous and woody plants, whether that be from a farm or the wild. I also am excited about the substitution of related non-native species of plants for sustainably, locally grown, or wild-harvested plant based products. In my free time I’m researching the evolutionary connection between related genera of evolutionarily divergent plants in an attempt to find comparable skin care compounds that could be present in Vermont’s native plants which could be used in skincare products. At the moment I’m looking into a substitution for the Mediterranean native, Helichrysum italicum, for a New England native, commonly called Pearly Everlasting or Anaphalis margaritacea. I’m also looking into using Populus grandidentata and Populus tremuloides extract, commonly known as big-tooth and quaking aspen, as a natural skin care product preservative. Very exciting!

When do you feel most yourself?

I feel the most like myself when I’m traipsing through the woods hunting for plants I’ve never seen in the wild.

Last but certainly not least, do you have a favorite Heart Grown Wild product?

This might be the most difficult question. I’d have to say for an overall score, where the criteria was simplicity, improvement to my life, and it’s botanical cool factor, is the Birch Wisdom body oil. Betula lenta was historically used by native and early settlers to treat headaches and fevers and eventually it was used to make salicylic acid for aspirin. Many New Englanders are familiar with chewing a twig as a child and the sweet, minty taste. What many New Englanders don’t know is that black birch can be tapped like maple trees and the sap can then be brewed into birch beer, although authentic birch beer is difficult to find these days. During the early 1900s this species was pushed to the brink of scarcity for the extraction of methyl salicylate for flavoring of soaps, chewing gum and sodas. When it was possible to create the compound synthetically, the harvesting of the species dropped off and the species rebounded. Black birch will likely be the tree of the future here in Vermont. It proves to not have sap as sweet as sugar maples, or to grow as tall and stout as a red oak, and it is surely not as straight grained as the white pine, but it does show resistance to disease, warming climate, and out competes thick, regeneration-killing fern. The Birch Wisdom body oil for me mixes resilient botanical qualities, native wisdom and childlike nostalgia together to create the feeling I love each time I put it on.

Thank you so much for sharing your beauty uniform with us, Tom! And look out for Tom’s wife, Lena, who will be featured as this month’s Muse! To learn more about Heart Grown Wild you can come visit us at Cambridge Naturals to try the line yourself in store, or follow them on instagram (@heartgrownwild)