©1999 by Gretchen Lawlor

If you have never made a flower remedy, you are about to start on a great and rewarding adventure. Beginners are advised to start with the method used by Dr. Bach, as it is the most dependable and foolproof. Here are the steps:

Have prepared: a sterilized clear, plain glass bowl, spring or bottled water, a one-ounce amber dropper bottle half filled with brandy for each remedy, labels, notebook or pad, and a gauze cover if the bugs are thick. Some people like to have a funnel or strainer, though this makes more things to sterilize between essences.

Now prepare yourself: meditate, cleanse, fast, wear something special...do whatever you need so you are in a receptive and harmonious state. Avoid perfumes, hand lotions, or other strong scents.

Choose your location. Find a place where the plants are blooming in profusion and growing naturally, unpolluted by exhaust fumes, power lines, or toxic wastes. A healthy garden specimen is another possibility, though preferably grown organically and not a hybrid. Be sure not to pick endangered species, and be aware that there are laws against picking on public lands.

Correct identification of the plant is important, including a botanical name. Take photos, make a sketch, or press a flower and leaf between contact paper and a 4"x6" card. (Later, find the species in botanical books or on the many botany websites.)

Start early in the morning on a clear, bright day. (Some makers use extended exposure to compensate for lack of sun.) Communicate your intentions to the plant or to its devas (flower fairies), asking for its permission and assistance in making the essence.

Fill a clear, clean glass bowl with spring water. Pick the flowers and drop them directly onto the surface of the water with minimal handling. (Some prefer to use a scissors or knife.) Cover the surface of the water, though you may use less if there are few flowers. Never pick more than a third of the available flowers. Try to pick from several plants in the area, though you may be drawn to a particular plant. You can ask to be shown the right blossoms to pick.

Leave the bowl in sunshine alongside the remedy plant for about two to four hours. Avoid casting your own shadow on the bowl. (Some makers discard a remedy if clouds obscure the sun during preparation--difficult to avoid in the Pacific Northwest.) This is a good time to record impressions and information about the plant.

Get a sense of when the flowers have transferred their healing strength and their energetic imprint into the water. (Watch for fading blossoms or ask the plant when it is ready.) Pour the liquid into prepared one-ounce amber dropper bottles. Use a leaf or twig from the same plant to keep any blossoms out as you pour. It is important not to touch the water with your hands. (Do not reuse the equipment without washing and sterilizing, so that you don't contaminate the essence physically or energetically.)

This is your MOTHER ESSENCE. To make a STOCK ESSENCE, place two to seven drops of the mother essence in a bottle with 50% brandy and 50% spring water, then shake or swirl the bottle to mix thoroughly. To make a DOSAGE bottle, add two to seven drops of the stock to a bottle which is 10% brandy, 90% water, then shake or swirl the bottle. (Label the bottles accordingly as stock, mother, or dosage.)

There is something special about making remedies for yourself. In connecting directly with the plant spirits, you enhance your personal connection with the healing forces behind flower essences, and thus you may get stronger results from all the remedies you take. In addition, when you make a remedy for yourself, the plant spirits and other healing beings will tailor make the remedy for your personal needs. Welcome to the adventure--and joy--of making remedies.

EDITORS' NOTE: Green Bells of Ireland, by the Alaskan Flower Essence Project, is a remedy which enhances your ability to attune to the plant spirits. To see an article on Green Bells, visit Vibration's Premier Issue. You may also find it helpful to read "Discovering What an Essence Does" in our March, 1999 issue.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Gretchen Lawlor has been a professional astrologer for a full Saturn cycle--over 28 years. She has lectured on medical astrology at seminars and conferences in the United States, Canada, England, and New Zealand. She has written the forecasts for We'Moon Almanac for over a decade, and her articles have also appeared in the Llewellyn Annuals, The Mountain Astrologer, and Beltane Papers.

Gretchen is a health and well being consultant in Washington State (USA), having completed her Doctor of Naturopathy in New Zealand, homeopathy studies in England, and herbal studies with Michael Moore in New Mexico. She regularly speaks on health and wellness at a massage school and the local hospital. A flower remedy practitioner and maker, she co-edited CASE Reports, a flower remedy journal, and contributes regularly to Vibration. For her most recent article, see our December Issue, To reach her, send email to: light@whidbey.com.

DESIGN CREDITS: The background set came from Lady Lavendar Creations. The flower fairy came from The Rhymester. The animated dropper comes from 2Cool Animations.

The World Wide Essence Society does not mean to imply any recommendation of nor give certification to any individuals or companies above. This article is provided purely for informational purposes. We ask consumers to make their own determination as to quality of the services and products offered above. This article is not meant to be advice, and the information is not meant to replace medical or psychological treatment.

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