Hurray! Crocheters love Lotion Bars!

We've made our debut in Crochet Today! magazine! Not only that, but our Honeybee Lotion Bars and Nanny Goat Milk soaps are charmingly included under the title, "We Love It!"--picks for gifts for the holiday season. We are so happy to be entering the fiber/knitter/crocheter market! Thank you Fiesta Yarns for taking us to market with you.

Organic Calendula Harvest Glows

The Organic extra virgin olive oil in my Nanny Goat Milk Soaps, and the almond oil in my Honeybee Lotion Bars are infused with local, now Certified Organic calendula, grown by Heather Harrell and Kristin Davenport.

I wish I was a better photographer; it is so hard to do justice to this stunning fresh-dried calendula that seems to glow with its own inner light. It is shockingly beautiful, and when it is infused into oil, it will impart its healing resin as well as some of its color, leaving the oil a darker orange color. This is one of the "secrets" of my products. This little herb adds no scent (it smells like alfalfa when dried), but has powerful benefits:

"Calendula is a plant extract that has been used throughout history in skin preparations. Calendula is beneficial for dry or damaged skin and also promotes the fast healing and regeneration of the skin because of its anti-inflammatory and antibacterial properties. According to YourHealth.com, applying calendula topically is effective for decreasing inflammation and promoting the healing of wounds, burns, eczema and other inflammatory skin conditions." (source)

I'm in the process of ordering large quantities of oils; the fresh-dried flowers will go right into the oil, which will preserve its properties (leaving them in the air will slowly render them less potent). Then I'll pour off this rich infused concentration to blend with the pure oils, and that oil will go right into my products, and out to you.

By the way, my business is growing, and this is enabling me to support more local farmers. Heather Harrell, once my sole source of calendula, will now be joined by Kristin Davenport and Becky of SunStar Herbs.

An Ode to Udders

My three girls are very different when it comes to udders--just like women and their breasts. I've been doing a lot of milking-instruction lately, and those poor beginners, just when the get the hang of it on one set of udders, the next girl steps up, and it's completely different getting milk out of her. They all produce yummy milk in great abundance though. Top to bottom: Sula, Autumn, and our new girl Baby (who has the best textbook udders).

Exciting Partnership with Fiesta Yarns

Jeannie Duncan, owner of Fiesta Yarns, with Amy Olson, VP of Marketing

I am thrilled to announce that Milk and Honey has partnered with Fiesta Yarns, to distribute our Honeybee Lotion bar to the knitting world. Fiesta yarns is an Albuquerque-based international yarn company that specializes in luscious hand dyed yarn beloved by knitters far and wide. As you may know, I am a knitter myself, and I have had fiber artists of all kinds tell me how perfect my Honeybee Lotion Bar is for their hands. Handling fiber can draw moisture out of your skin, leaving it dry and vulnerable to cracks. Of course our Lotion Bar not only soothes and softens that dry skin, but the oils absorb so quickly, that you can go right back to your fiber work without getting lotion or oil on your project. Our lotion is also non-reactive with dyes--something Fiesta Yarn lovers particularly appreciate, as they are working with their lushly-colored, hand-dyed yarns.

Our Honeybee Lotion Bars will be available to knitting stores and catalogs through Fiesta Yarns, as well as traveling with Fiesta to such exciting knitting events as Stitches Midwest next month.


Knitting and Honeybee Lotion Bars go together like sheep and yarn!

The Goats' New Home, Part 1

In early August, my goats will be moving to a new home in Agua Fria Village, about four miles down the road from where I live. I am thrilled to be part of a working horse farm, where folks come to do therapeutic work with the animals. Beekeeping friend/supplier Steve Wall keeps some hives there too.

I am in the process of converting a chicken coop into a Goat Dream Palace. This will be the third--no the fourth goat barn I have built or retrofitted, and I realize I now have a pretty good system. I will be posting more pics as we progress, but for today, I received a load of 30 straw bales for insulating the barn (also makes it so pretty and peaceful inside! And is yummy, I think, for the goats to snuggle up against in the winter) and 12 bales of protein-rich alfalfa. The pic here shows the first laying out of the bales inside. I'll snap another pic of the completed interior. Turns out I'll need about 15 more bales to really line the walls to the roofline. There is a sweet little window one wall complete with a shutter that opens or latches shut. I plan to install a feeder within the window, so I can just put flakes of hay right in from the outside. Cute!

I've taken this move as an opportunity to purchase some new tools, like my wheelbarrow pictured here, a rake and a shovel, parts for my drill, a new tarp, etc. I guess these things are hardly worth mentioning really, but they are the tools of the farm, the brass tacks.

Tomorrow friends Janeen (who milks once a week for me) and Claude will help out for a couple of hours. We'll expand the size of the yard a bit, continue cleaning/mucking from the former chickens, and secure the strawbales with fencing.

Look for tomorrow's progress report!

Smelling Like a Rose

I am smelling like a rose . . . and sandlewood, and local pinon and tulsi and redwoods . . .

I have just returned from a visit with Christa Obuchowski, our local, world-reknowned aromatherapist, herbalist, perfumist and font of knowledge of exotic plants, scents, cosmetics, etc. etc. etc. Do I sound a little wowed? Yes I am.

Christa, who collaborates with Ashana at Agua de Flora Botanicals to create scent blends, botanical perfumes, and the essential oil blends for the custom soaps I make for them, is working with me to develop my first custom essential oil blend for my Honeybee Lotion Bars. We are looking for something with the feel of vanilla--itself a very expensive, rare essential oil. When you use something vanilla scented, it is most likely a synthetic fragrance oil. However, vanillin exists in many other plants and can be extracted and isolated. People love the scent of vanilla, Christa explained to me, because it reminds one of "mother's milk"--comforting, sweet, safe. How perfect is that?

Leaving her studio--which was like a mysterious palace filled with the scents of exotic places from India to Germany, as well as our own native New Mexico, my head started to spin with ideas for Milk and Honey. A high-end line of lotion bars, packaged in stunning, custom tins, scented with unique organic oil blends . . . transitioning to all organic essential oils for all my products . . . collaborating with Christa to create special soaps scented with local pinon--which is healing for the skin . . .

More to come--stay tuned!

IV the Bath

On Monday I visited this lovely new soap and bath boutique, IV the Bath, right in the heart of Albuquerque's Old Town, just steps from the Plaza. Named in honor of their son, Charles M. High, IV, who died fighting in Afghanistan last year, Sheri and Charles have created a charming shop with colorful, yummy smelling products from bubble baths and shea butter salves to popular bath bombs, and of course, Milk and Honey's Nanny Goat Milk Soaps and Honeybee Lotion Bars.

Although they have already been open for a few months or so, today is their Grand Opening, featuring live music, face painting for children, and a gift basket giveaway. They will also be collecting donations for Blue Star Mothers. Take an afternoon to visit IV the Bath and all the lovely businesses that share the small plaza where they have their store. It's a great slice of old Albuquerque, right behind the grand Albuquerque Museum. After you buy a rubber duck bath soap (that lights up when you rub it!), and a Honeybee Lotion Bar, you can visit the magic shop or toy store next store, discover local crafts, or eat some ice cream around the corner. Bring your out of town guests, or just treat yourself.

Their website is still under construction, but you can find them at 505-842-5449/email
328 San Felipe NW



Best of luck Charles and Sheri!