Ancient Alchemy, Modern "Medicine"

An Aquarius Full Moon falls on the pagan date of Lammas, inviting us all to get down with some magic potions

August 1st brings an Aquarius Full Moon and the pagan holiday Lammas.

Aquarius is the sign of the “water-bearer” and the archetypal embodiment of the alchemist, and Lammas rituals involve gathering enchanted flowers and herbs with which to make an alchemical amulet— or magical potion— known as the “9 Herbs of August”.

So, in short, this August 1st is the PERFECT day to get into the alchemy of magical potion and herbalism, including our TOTEM Flower Essences.

To celebrate this and democratize the flower essence-making knowledge we have here at TOTEM, we’re going to host an online workshop “Ancient Alchemy, Modern ‘Medicine’” on July 29th via Zoom. Details, as well as registration, can be found on Eventbrite HERE.

This workshop will set you up for success for this powerful Full Moon + Lammas convergence, equipping you with all of the ins and outs of how to harvest, formulate and make these herbal remedies for yourself— as well as which flowers, herbs or trees might align best with your core focus areas in the manifesting month to come.

This three hour, immersive workshop will cover:

• The basics of herbalism and shamanic alchemy, including the mechanisms that make flower essences work as a “plant medicine”

• The 9 Herbs of August celebrated— and collected— on Lammas, and how to turn these into a witchy potion of power

• The history of flower essences and herbal tinctures throughout the world

• How to make your own flower essences or high-powered herbal tinctures in the “old world” way that TOTEM leverages

• How to maintain an organic flower essence garden for your energetic and physical health, regardless of location or space limitations

• What flowers, herbs and trees correspond to various, specific benefits across energy, spiritual development, personal development, and even physical health.

As the owner/ creator behind the TOTEM Flower Essence collection— and TOTEM Readings ATX Etsy shop— I’ll be sharing all of my lessons learned, best practices and insights from my many years of research, training, and in-the-field practice with these flowery potions.

At TOTEM, I literally grow all of our flowers, trees and herbs from organic seed in organic soil in the backyard of our work/ live space. I water and weed by hand everyday (often twice a day here in central Texas), bringing preying mantis eggs into the ecosystem as our only form of pest control!

I hand-harvest the flowers and trimmings in sync with nature, placing them in their ‘mothers’— via mason jars— for months in a dark, cool closet to do their magic before being formulated and hand-bottled for sale on Etsy and via our TOTEM Flower Essence consultations.

So, long story short: I know what I’m talking about when it comes to flower essences, and the surge of Aquarian energy is asking all of us to get empowered and educated across alternative healing modalities. I look forward to seeing your faces on Zoom and answering all of your flower essence questions— just register HERE ASAP to secure your spot!

Can’t wait to see you all there!

-Rachel