Herbal Medicine is the medicine of the people. Traditionally, local knowledge of plants to support health, treat illness, & support pregnancy & birthing would have been passed down through families & communities (often from woman to woman) through the everyday work of growing & using plants, and orally through stories & teachings.
Come reclaim that missing link with the medicine of our ancestors. Allow me to pass on a cumulation of teachings from my herbal mentors & learn the foundational principles of Herbal Medicine Making the way it was intended—in community.
In this comprehensive 4 part intro to medicine making, you will learn how to prepare compresses & poultices, craft herbal tea blends for medicine & beauty, learn the art of infusing herbal oils & the many ways they can be transformed into support for the body (salves & balms, etc.), prepare herbal tinctures, vinegars, syrups & elixirs.
This class is a hands-on experience so you can connect with the plants using all of your senses-taste, touch, smell, & of course, sight. We will be sharing the traditional uses of many herbs while touching on what we can grow here & how to harvest.
4 Part Kitchen Herbalist Apprenticeship Workshop Series Includes:
-Learning the foundational principles of herbal medicine making. When completed, you will have confidence to begin crafting your own herbal “farmacy” for yourselves & your family. I break this down into 4 sessions dedicated to 4 different aspects of Herbal Medicine:
Plants & Water: Herbal Compresses, Poultices, Infusions, & Decoctions
Plants & Alcohol: Tinctures & Elixirs
Plants with Vinegar & Honey: Syrups, Infused Honeys & Herbal Vinegars
Plants & Oils: Infused oils, Salves & Healing Balms
-All handouts & materials such as herbs, alcohol, apothecary bottles, etc.
-One of each of all of the herbal preparations we crafted to take home with you & share with your loved ones (average of 4 each class)
-Hands on instruction from Community Herbalist, herb gardener & plant medicine maker, Dionne Jennings
Class 1 – Saturday, September 30th
Plants & Water: Herbal Compresses, Poultices, Infusions, & Decoctions
In this first of the series, we begin at the beginning: with an introduction to the plants. We begin with the element of water & how that relates to plants & plant medicine & discuss fresh & dried herbs.
We will explore many ways that we can play with plants & water-we will learn herbal infusions (cold & hot) & “nourishing infusions”, decoctions, & how to prepare them. We will also look at some topical ways we combine plants & water to aid the body, such as compresses & poultices, & we will also touch on flower essences.
Many times people poo-poo the power of water in herbal medicine-you may hear generalizations like “Teas are ok, but tinctures are stronger”. Well this isn’t necessarily true. Want to learn why? Well, join me in this workshop!
In this class we will:
- Discuss fresh & dried herbs
- Prepare a compress
- Prepare a poultice
- Learn how to discern when to infuse & when to decoct plant material
- Blend 3 assorted seasonal medicinal tea blends to support different body systems
Class 2 – Saturday, October 7th
Plants & Alcohol: Tinctures & Elixirs
Here we will explore the alchemy of alcohol & plants.
Alcohol is the darling of Western Herbal Medicine-so let’s explore how to work with it properly & when it’s indicated, & learn when it might not be. We will touch on some alternatives to alcohol also, some of which we cover in the series.
Learn the difference between preparing a folk tincture & a standardized tincture-and how. And why.
Oh, and yes, we will craft an elixir also. What’s that, you say? Join us to find out!
In this class we will:
- Learn the Folk tincture method
- Prepare a seasonal folk tincture
- Craft a bitters blend
- Learn the standardized tincture method
- Prepare a standardized tincture
- Craft a seasonal herbal elixir
Class 3 – Saturday, October 21st
Plants with Vinegar & Honey: Syrups, Infused Honeys & Herbal Vinegars
Alcohol may be the darling of Western Herbal Medicine, but let’s not forget that many healing traditions didn’t use it, so let’s not downplay the benefits of water, vinegar, & honey.
There is a long history of relationships between the bees, the microorganisms & the plants. We don’t necessarily need to discuss the the birds & the bees here—but let’s do discuss the benefits of honeys, vinegars, & syrups!
This is practical, kitchen herbalism— easily prepared to support you & your families health.
In this class we will:
- Make an infused honey
- Prepare a tonic syrup
- Create a mineral rich vinegar
- Create an oxymel
Class 4 – Saturday, October 28th
Infused oils, Salves & Healing Balms
Plants & Oils: Infused oils, Salves & Healing Balms
Oh, this is a fun one—who doesn’t want to play with flowers & anoint ourselves with oils? Tonight we learn about the marriage of herbs & oils & how that union may be transformed into beautiful salves to heal & support the skin & body. Specifically: we discuss how can we use oils to extract plant medicine.
We start with the basics but let’s think outside the box & play a little, okay? We will cover basic cold infusions, warm infusions, alcohol/oil infusions, double infusions, & that’s all before we even get to making the salves. Yes, so many infusions!
Intrigued yet? Join me!
In this class we will:
- Press 1-2 tinctures from the Tinctures & Elixirs class
- Learn the principles & considerations for infusing herbs in oils
- Do a warm infusion & a double infusion
- Prepare a body oil
- Craft a body salve
- Learn how to incorporate infused oils into lip balms
Course Prices/Dates:
Complete 4 part Kitchen Herbalist Apprenticeship* – Register early & save! Early Bird Registration: Investment $308 ($77 each workshop) before September 15th. (Payment by installments available by e-mail transfer. Contact me for details!)
After September 15th, the 4 workshop series is 335$ (83.75 per class) -payment by installments also available.
Class 1 – Saturday, September 30th, 1:00 – 4:00 pm
Class 2 – Saturday, October 7th , 1:00 – 4:00 pm
Class 3 –Saturday, October 21st 1:00 – 4:00 pm
Class 4 –Saturday, October 28th , 1:00 – 4:30 pm
*Due to the hands-on nature of the class, we are limited to 8 participants total.
Location:
The eclectic new art studio & workshop space in Strathearn: Studio Theo. 9504-87 street–located above Juniper Bistro.