Thanksgiving

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving we put up or decorations, played in the snow and cross country skied today.

For your holiday shopping pleasure, the Green Springs Elves have been busy in the workshop creating lots of new soaps, individual bath scrubs and more!

 As as thank you to all my wonderful customers I am having a sale at www.greensprings0.etsy.com : ♥GREEN SPRINGS BLACK FRIDAY THROUGH CYBER MONDAY SALE♥ Free local delivery with  shipping refunded via paypal.
~ Nov. 26th through Midnight PST on Nov. 29th~
20 % off entire store and a free gift with every purchase. Use coupon code: GREEN4THEPLANETANDU at checkout.

Combined flat-rate shipping on up to 7 soaps is only $4.75 within the US, $11 for Canada and Mexico, and $13 for everywhere else. Shipping overages over $1.00 refunded.

SPRING AND THE COLUMBINES HAVE FINALLY ARRIVED

Spring arrived late this year to the Green Springs but due to all the rain the Columbines are blooming the like crazy.  Columbines have always been my favorite flower and the huge Rocky Mountain Blue Columbine which is the state flower of Colorado is my favorite. It was there that I first discovered the Columbine 30 years ago. They come in many different colors and sizes. I love them for their beauty and also because they  bring my favorite bird, the hummingbird to my windows. Red Columbine,  Aquilegia canadense, is especially valuable in a hummingbird garden because it blooms just when Rufous Hummingbirds are beginning to return from their wintering grounds. Feeding hummingbirds must hover directly beneath the Columbine flower, aiming their beaks straight upward to sample the nectar.  I have actually tasted the nectar and it is delicious. 

Skijoring with the huskies

Here is a picture of the dogs taking a break while skijoring at Hyatt Lake yesterday. Hyatt Lake is located outside of Ashland Oregon in the beautiful Cascade Siskiyou National Monument. It is one of our favorite places to play year round. We love to ski around it in the winter, take the canoe on it, bike around it, swim across it, dog sled, hike and run around it. We are sometimes rewarded with a view of ospreys and eagles soaring high above.

Cabin Fever

I have had a serious case of cabin fever since the beginning of January.
We moved to the mountains 20 years ago because we love the snow but hadn't had any snow since Christmas Eve. While the East was getting dumped on, here in the Green Springs all we were getting is rain. Because of Global Warming we have really noticed a difference in our weather. In the past snow would stay on the ground for weeks at a time, but in the last few years it's only a few days. So I have been keeping busy doing things like taking inventory, organizing, ordering supplies, and getting ready for taxes and filling orders. Friday it finally happened! We had a nice snowstorm followed by a sunny Saturday. Hurray for sun! We headed up to Hyatt Lake (pictured above) to ski around it. The views are breathtaking with Mt. McLaughlin visible most of the way. It was an easy 10 mile ski around the lake, and then it was the dogs turn. We love to skijor with them so we hook them up to our waists and they pull us until they are tired. Today we will do it again but this time we will go to Buck Prairie and bring the dogsled. I am off to make blueberry pancakes and coffee, pack a lunch and head up the mountain. Life it good!

Nature's Gold Rose Facial Oil

Natures Gold is made with the oil pictured in the post below. I bottle the precious organic herbal infused oil in a frosted glass 2 oz container, add a few fragrant rose petals, rose essential oil, vitamin E and viola this facial oil gives your skin a dewy appearance and silky feel. The oil soothes dry, damaged skin and the rose scent is uplifting.
Rose is an aphrodisiac since ancient times and this oil is also great for a sensual massage.

Nature's Gold

This beautiful infused oil is where it all begins. Most of Green Springs Bodyworks products start with this herbal infused organic olive oil. This jar is chock full of healing herbs and flowers, solar infused for four to six weeks. I lovingly pick and forage the herbs and flowers in the early morning preferably during the time of the full moon. I have been wild crafting herbs for over twenty years and I make sure to walk gently and only pick what I can use. It sometimes takes weeks to find enough herbs for one batch as I go to many different locations in the surrounding mountains so as not to deplete any one place. Often I come across herbs that I use for natural dyeing, I am also a fiber artist so it's great when I can also find natural dye plants while I am wild crafting!

One of my favorite herbs to infuse is St. John's Wort. Picked at the peak of perfection this oil will bless you with the most beautiful deep red oil that is one of my most prized healing oils. I usually harvest that in July but Spring arrived late this year so it may bloom later. I will post a picture of that oil when I infuse it. Well, I better get back to my garden, it rained heavily last night so I need to take advantage and get in there and pull weeds before the ground hardens. Happy Spring !

Guardian of the Spring

This majestic Ponderosa Pine stands guardian over the spring I posted about below. The picture on the left was taken at sunrise, the right was taken before sunset. This is the view we have from our bedroom window and is one of the reasons we chose to buy land 5 miles up a bumpy dirt road.
This beautiful tree is over 200 ft. tall and the bark smells just like vanilla.


A few years ago the dogs and I came face to face with a cougar walking up the road around 10am. He or she turned to face us and I just about had a heart attack, the dogs started barking like crazy and it bound over a fence and was gone in a flash. I have always wanted to see a cougar and finally got my chance, I just wish we had been safe and sound in the car. We routinely see coyotes, bobcats, red fox, great gray owls, blue herons and the occasional rattle snake and black bear. Living in the mountains can be hard and sometimes lonely, but thanks to our wonderful neighbors, both human and not, there is no other place I'd rather be.

This is why they call it the Green Springs

This beautiful spring a mere 100 yards from my house is why they call the area in which I live the Green Springs. There are many such springs in the area. We drink from this spring and the water tastes like water should taste, pure and fresh. Whenever I need to get away from it all this is where you will find me.
In the next post I will show you our majestic old growth Ponderosa Pine, guardian of the spring. The area around the spring teams with herbs and flowers that I gather to use in my products. If I am lucky I can find violets hidden among the nutrient rich soil. Oregon grape, plantain and wild strawberries are plentiful.

Well I better get over to the spring, today I am making bamboo soap. As I draw water from our spring to use in the soap, I will give thanks to her and bless the herbs that I have gathered.
I also say a blessing every time I make one of my organic potions, lotions or creams. I feel it brings me and the person receiving it luck.

If you are ever in Oregon, head up Hwy. 66 to the Green Springs, the area is so special, President Clinton protected it and it is called the Cascade Siskiyou National Monument. Our land is within the boundaries and will be protected for future generations. The hub of the community is the Green Springs Inn, check it out, great food and good prices. Happy Spring!!