In a few short weeks, we’ll be meeting up with our sales and education team in the radiant wilds of northeastern Washington state for our annual Distillation Gathering.
Returning each year to this special place, to participate in our favorite alchemy always feels like coming home. This yearly journey embodies so much of who we are.
Here, we connect with our community, sink our hands into the earth, laugh under the crystalline sun, share meals made from local foods that are lovingly crafted by the hands of three beautiful sisters, and share in the magic and ancient wisdom of hydrosol distillation.
So much happens, and on the other end of the weekend, we are a little tired, more than a little dirty, and also completely restored.
In short, our Distillation Gathering is about transformation, and it is about relationships.
Transformation Through Distillation
Distillation is an ancient alchemy — a different, wild sort of alchemy, whose goal is not to turn lead into gold but to capture the very spirit of a plant.
In distillation, organic plant material is transformed through the elements - fire, water, earth, and air. The result — a hydrosol — is something that is both very practical, and also incredibly mystical.
In practical terms, hydrosols help bring harmony to skin — hydrating, plumping, balancing pH, and providing powerful constituents that deliver profound therapy, the actions of which vary plant by plant.
In less practical terms, hydrosols are the spirit of the plant condensed into matter. All aspects of a plant’s personality are captured and preserved by this exquisite process, and the end result is staggeringly enchanting.
Witnessing the plants journey and transformation cultivates our own. Hands in the earth, crystal sunshine on our skin, minds, and hearts open and ignited, participating in this ancestral process. At the end of this experience, we too are transformed.
Two Kinds of Relationships
Those that are tangible.
Our relationship with the Earth, and the plants who burst forth, the emissaries to the larger organism.
Our relationship with the dedicated farmers and distillers who create these beautiful plant waters — and who are both partners to the land and allies to the plants.
Our relationship with each other — our team, our customers, our community.
Our relationships with ourselves. Perhaps the most important of all.
Those that are abstract.
Our relationship with beauty — What it means to us? How does it shape us? Who do we become under its gaze? Does it empower us, does it lift us up? If it doesn’t, then it is not true beauty.
Our relationship with the past — How are we aligned with our ancestors and what they’ve created?
Our relationship with the future — How will we carry history and tradition into the future? What is preserved? What is reformed and made anew?
To experience a little of our distillation gathering for yourself, watch our video below.
The story of our journey is not over, so there is no conclusive statement that can wrap the entirety of this up with a pretty little bow. Our story is still so vibrantly alive. However, one thing can be said for certain.
Our annual distillation is the place where Transformation and Relationship meet.
Explore Our Hydrosols Distilled in Alembic Copper in Washington State
Rose Geranium Hydrosol
- Gentle and slightly astringent
- Features a soft and delicate rosy-leaf fragrance
- Ideal for dry, oily & combination skin
Douglas Fir Hydrosol
- Sweetly resinous, with notes of pine, lemon & butterscotch
- Protective, calming, purifying, uplifting, centering
- Ideal for dull, devitalized, sensitive & congested skin
Lavender Hydrosol
- Fresh herbal fragrance with honey-sweet notes
- Calms redness and soothes sensitive skin
- Ideal for sensitive, irritated & sun damaged skin
Tulsi Hydrosol
- Spicy and sweet, slightly clove-like fragrance
- Stimulating & awakening; a vitalizing and energetic hydrosol
- Ideal for dull, devitalized, blemished & congested skin
Lemon Thyme Hydrosol
- Sweet and refreshing notes of lemon
- Helps minimize appearance of pores, absorbs excess oil, hydrates, tones, and enlivens all skin
- Part of our holistic protocol for blemished and impure skin
Floral Trinity Hydrosol
- An exquisite water bouquet of Lemon, Rose Geranium, and Lavender hydrosol
- Inspired from the poem, The Morning Is Full by Pablo Neruda
- Harmonizing and uplifting for devitalized, combination & sensitive skin
Blood Orange Hydrosol
- Juicy, sweet, radiant & happy
- Restores pH balance, relaxes facial muscles & deeply hydrates
- For all skin, especially oily, combination, dull & devitalized skin
Discontinued Hydrosols
Although we these hydrosols were only available for a limited time, we still find these ingredients to be valuable skin care allies.
Clary Sage Hydrosol
- Notes of dreamy nocturnal herbs, mysterious balsamic flowers, and a fragrant cup of earl grey tea
- Relaxing, euphoric & toning
- For all skin, especially stressed & irritated, from blemish-prone to mature
Chamomile Hydrosol
- Notes of sun-warmed fields, tea with a drop of honey, and a distant whisper of apples
- Soothing and cooling, a deeply serene plant water
- For all skin, especially highly reactive, red, irritated & dehydrated skin
