Create Your Own Home Pharmacy ~ Art of the Apothecary Series

"…and the bitter herbs for medicine, gave the place a dusty-spicy smell." 

~ Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House in the Big Woods

Once upon a time, not very long ago, places where herbal medicine was made {and often sold to the public} were called apothecaries. Many wealthy women would have such a room in their home specifically for the preparation of healing remedies. Here, the arts of transforming plants into something medicinal for the care of their family and neighbors in need was created. These medicine making places were also referred to as still rooms.

The Countess Juliana van Stolberg had an apothecary in her medieval castle. And you, dear reader, can have one too! We needn't a huge facility, modern housewives could manage something similar by adding some useful herbs, tonics, tinctures, salves, medicinal oils, teas, etc., to their pantry for the same purposes. In fact, think of your pantry as your own private home pharmacy! Wouldn't it be convenient to have an area set aside, full of natural remedies for all those little ailments that can plague our daily life. No need to run to the store for every little problem!?

"Almanzo could hardly choke down his food at mealtimes, and Mother look worried. She took him to the pantry and made him swallow a big spoonful of horrible black medicine she made of roots and herbs."

~ Laura Ingalls Wilder, Farmer Boy

This is actually the sister series to our "Reinventing the Herbal" series. You can find all the information here if you are interested. The exciting part is that all the knowledge you collect about natural healing could be stored away in your very own personal notebook called an herbal (our free printable is shared here). This would also make a special keepsake to pass down to your daughter or grand-daughters.

I have so much I would like to do for my own household which I will share here as I am able. There is so much to learn and so many ideas to try! This new series will combine herbal medicine with history, creativity, crafting (make your own decorative apothecary jars), medicine making, kitchen-crafting, organizing (via printables) and some good old-fashioned wildcrafting! This is also something you can do with your children as a home education project!

"... and the fruit thereof shall be for meat and the leaf thereof for medicine..."

~Ezekiel 47:12b

We will also be doing special link-ups on individual herbs so that you can share your own herbal recipes with us per category. I would love to learn anything I can from you! I do hope you join us in our efforts to create a home apothecary! Please leave a comment if this is an area that interests you as well!

The following posts have been shared thus far in our series:

Medicine Making Supplies ~ Preparing a Home Apothecary

Set of Apothecary Herb Labels ~ Free Printable

Should You Use Alcohol-Based Medicine?
How to Make Apothecary Jars ~ DIY

How to Make a Medicinal Oil {Plus Printable Instructions and Labels}
How to Make a Medicinal Tea {Plus Printable Instructions and Labels}

How to Make a Tincture {Plus Printable Instructions and Labels}

{Individual Herbs Covered Thus Far are Listed Below}

How to Make Elderberry Medicine {A Collection of Recipes}

Everything Elderberry {Learn and Share ~ Herbal Link Up}

How to Make Calendula Medicine {A Collection of Recipes}

How to Identify Calendula {Pot Marigold verses Common Marigold} In Your Back Yard

Calendula Collection {Learn and Share ~ Herbal Link Up}



How to Make Peppermint Medicine {A Collection of Recipes}

Peppermint Posts {Learn and Share ~ Herbal Link Up}



How to Make Rose Hip Medicine {A Collection of Recipes}

How to Forage For, Harvest and Preserve Rose Hips

A "Little" Warning About Rose Hips

About Rose Hips {Learn and Share ~ Herbal Link Up}

"And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy…" 

~  Exodus 30:35 

* Disclaimer #1: I am not a certified herbalist but a homemaker interested in the arts of natural healing. The information I have learned has been gleaned through study of some of the following favorite books; Rosemary Gladstar's Medicinal Herbs: A Beginner's Guide, Herbal Recipes for Vibrant Health, Grow Your Own Drugs by James Wong, and The Complete Illustrated Book of Herbs by Reader's Digest and websites of herbalists (such as the Bulk Herb Store Blog).

"And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil."

~ Exodus 30:25

Disclaimer #2: I am not a doctor. While I do seek scientific confirmation of the safety and effectiveness of the herbs and remedies I use, remember that using remedies is a personal decision. Nothing I say on this blog is approved by the FDA or intended to diagnose, treat or prevent disease. All things on this blog are my opinion or the opinion of others. Also, if you have a medical condition, are taking pharmaceutical drugs, or are pregnant, please consult your physician prior to taking herbs.

This post may be shared with some or all of the following link-ups: The Art of Home-Making Mondays, Modest Mom Monday's, Monday's Musings, Make Your Home Sing Monday, Marriage Monday, Good Morning Mondays,  Titus 2sdays, Titus 2 Tuesdays, Tuesdays with a Twist, Raising Homemakers, Wise Woman Link Up, Homestead Blog Hop,  Wow Us Wednesdays, Wildcrafting Wednesday, The Scoop, Coffee and Conversation, So Much at Home, Homemaking Thursdays, Home Sweet Home, Hearts for Home Thursdays, Home Acre Hop, From the Farm Blog Hop, Farmgirl Friday, Front Porch Friday Blog Hop, Simply Natural Saturdays and Clever Chicks Blog Hop. Thank you lovely ladies for hosting these.