The Herbology Lab

The weather is teasing us but I'm sure it won't be long before this product could come in handy! 🌞🌊

▶️

CUCUMBER & SEA KELP SUN MILK!
Sounds so refreshing, could that BE any more appealing
🪸💧(it's got aloe too 💚)

🥒all skin types
🥒Vegan
🥒POFCAP certified palm oil free
🥒Aussie made and owned
🥒No parabens or sulphates
🥒Natural preservatives
🥒Australian & organic ingredient source where possible.

SUNBUTTER - REEF FRIENDLY SUN CARE

This range is pretty fresh to the Lab but I couldn't go past them when their beautifully presented, eco-friendly packaging and branding caught my eye, plus, I already had brand awareness hearing positive mentions from customers who had already tried their stuff.

Next step before purchase - brand research.

Founded by marine biologist and conservation ecologist team - Sacha Guggenheimer and Tom Honey - the two were working on Ningaloo reef and developed the brand for whale shark guides, photographers, spearo's, divers and fisherman for tip top sun protection that didn't risk the health of our beloved reefs from harmful chemicals in sunscreens.

They've thought of everything it seems:
🌞Highest sun protection factor possible - SPF50
🌞REEF SAFE
🌞REUSABLE AND RECYCLABLE PACKAGING
🌞VEGAN SURF ZINC FORMULA

Big hearts, big cause, big ambition - you guys got my vote 👌

Proud to be stocking SUNBUTTER!

Yep, your vitamins are probably synthetic, born in a lab, not a garden.

Not necessarily a bad thing though, depending on who you're buying them from.

Synthetic vitamins offer many things that whole foods & whole food supplements just can't. Like controlled dosing and doses that dramatically exceed what would be found in a reasonable serving of food.

Vitamin manufacturers must ensure they consider bioavailability (absorption and utilisation) as these isolated forms are just not as available for human metabolism as their whole food counterparts.

They too must be careful not to get wobbly on their morals in exchange for reduced production costs with use of additives & fillers and low-grade (petrochemical derived) source materials.

It ain't easy producing supplements with SO many considerations & each step of production threatens high quality outcomes.
There are massive quality differences between brands and it really comes down to their company values and the 'who' and 'why' behind the brand.

This is really what sets health food shops apart from supermarkets with their supplement selection.
Chemists are a blurry one, lying somewhere between the two.

With naturopathy increasing in popularity, consumer demand for high-grade, naturopathic-prescription-only products has resulted in these brands stretching beyond exclusivity in the naturopathy space, into conventional medicine (pharmacy).

To meet consumer demand, some of these brands extend their ranges to include over the counter collections, some provide pharmacists with training to enable them to prescribe within a chemist and some do what Blackmore's and Swisse did and eventually sell out to pharmaceutical companies and risk their beautiful formulas being hijacked and transformed into monstrosities!

Anyway, it's all getting a bit chaotic and difficult to navigate. So here's a "beginner's synthetic vitamin shopping guide"

I've done the hard work for you which is why I created the shop I have 😋 you know where to go when you're lost amongst the vitamin vortex!

Enjoy
🌿✨

🌿😍Isn't she lovely 😍🌿

The Herbology Lab.
, Mandurah.

Working behind the scenes to get all of this online for the rest of Australia to get in on some of the action!

Won't find these formulas anywhere else - Jordy Lee original blends at The Herbology Lab!

I now have a range of single, dry, loose leaf herbs and ingredients as well as therapeutic blends (you can add into smoothies) aaannddd ready made herbal tonics for generalised system support & common complaints.

SLEEP
ENERGY
COGNITION
LIVER & GALLBLADDER HEALTH
CIRCULATION
INFLAMMATION
SLEEP
PREBIOTIC FIBRES
ANTIOXIDANT POLYPHENOL BERRIES

Powders, teas, tinctures - soooooo many options!

I guarantee you will find some herbs you've never heard of and can't pronounce in my collection. I encourage you to use your intuition and pick a mysterious herb, take it home and use it to guide your learning.

Start by learning its traditional use.
Learn about how and where the plant grows naturally.
Find out which plant parts can be used (roots, berries, leaf etc)
What's the best way to prepare? Is it water soluble or does it need a stronger solvent for extraction?
What does it do when we use it topically?
What does it do when we take it orally?
Which body systems does it have an affinity to?
What are the potential side effects?
Who SHOULDNT use this herb?
Is it food or medicine? Where does it sit on the scale from food to medicine?

Use these herbs and journal prompts to start learning herbs today!
Work with one plant at a time for the most immersive experience.
In the process, you'll be creating your own herbal medicine reference guide that you can refer back to for supporting yours and your families health.

Time to become your own physician! Time to get your hands dirty and start playing with herbs. Time to make health and healing ENJOYABLE!

Still can't find what you're after?
Come and have a chat with me and I'll make you something customised to you :)

The Herbology Lab - your trusty local herbal dispensary 🌿

The life of a small biz owner/operator is a dynamic one to say the least, there is always much more going on in the background than meets the eye and as such, I will be closed for the day tomorrow but I'll be seeing all you wonderful customers back in store Tuesday, as per yoosh, 9-5pm.

I am forever executing projects and ideas to expand on my services and offerings behind the scenes, it quite literally never stops, and so while I very much dislike days like tomorrow having to close, please know there is an even bigger vision sprouting that also requires my attention & nurture - all in order to provide the best quality care, products and services that I can 🌱 All great things take time 😊

Thank you for your understanding 🌿✨🙏

Be like Tremella ❄️🦋

Following on from my previous post on my Snow face cream.. (go back have a read if you missed it!).. here's a visual of the growth pattern that Tremella takes to expand into all that she is!

A picture tells a thousand words, and so too do the natural patterns and cycles of nature when we simply observe and feel into our likeness and interconnectedness with her.

The same elements that build structures (⛰️minerals/earth), ignite regeneration and growth (🔥heat/fire), dissolve and infuse nutrients and oxygen (💦water) and transport them as well as conduct sound, create change & assist communication & connection (🌬️air), do the same in our bodies.

There are universal laws that govern all life - from the planets to the atoms - and without an understanding of these, we will never have the complete picture of what it really takes to thrive.

The four elements apply to the 4 "bodies"
⛰️ - the physical body
🔥 - the spirit
💦 - the emotions
🌬️ - the mind

Natural health is much more than taking supplements and drinking herbal tea, it also involves a recognition that we are not above these laws or separate from them. It's about realising our bodies are an entire ecosystem in themselves and living a life in accordance with these laws and beliefs.

That is what creates health.

As above so below, as within so without.

50g Snow Cream Restocked 🌝 plenty in store!

Aside from the fact that Tremella mushroom (Snow fungi) has good reason to be referred to as "the beauty mushroom" or "nature's hyaluronic acid"... there was something else that really drew me towards this fungi friend.

Tremella's growth pattern metaphorically represents the transformational path that is accessible to all of us, especially right now - a journey where great health is a natural byproduct and positions us in a place with more stability, strength and regulation, a solid foundation to create and glow from rather than being bogged down by our bodies "problems".
Snow cream brings those same qualities to the skin.

🌑✨From dark to light.

Tremella mushroom is parasitic and symbiotic with its polar opposite counterpart and preferred host - another fungi called "Annulohypoxylon archeri".

Tremella begins her life as a slimey, mucous-like film until it encounters this necessary counterpart. It then consumes this other dark, tiny, dense, black fungi triggering the aggressive growth of mycelium from which her big, beautiful, translucent, expansive, light fruiting body can arise.
Not too far removed from the lifecycle of the butterfly 🐛🦋

I can't help but see the parallels between this and the spiritual path towards ascension and enlightenment as we face our shadows with courage, re-integrating those aspects of ourselves we have rejected, abandoned or denied in order to see and express all of ourselves and experience life while recognising our wholeness. Dark & light acknowledged and combined.

As we integrate the density and expand our consciousness, the psyche becomes lighter and flows more freely. The physical body, being much less malleable and harder to move and shift follows the blueprint of the energy system and psyche.

When we switch our focus from trying to only move mountains (the physical body) and instead work where there are easy and fast responses (the energetics) at the same time - the mountain begins to move.

I have recently incorporated a new ingredient into this formula - the vibrational essence of "star of Bethlehem", the guiding light that brings us out of stuckness.

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Just a pretty picture of a glass of Caribbean Sea Moss Punch I made from scratch this morning for Dave & I.

This one takes me back to one of my happiest times living in Barbados with my sister for a few months where days were spent sipping rum punch on the beach, listening to soca & reggae, playing cards with our friends, surfing and sipping tea without a care in the world. That place will always have a little piece of my heart and I'm always excited to find Caribbean recipes to get me all nostalgic!

This one's going to be super nice for the gut with the flaxseeds adding fibre alongside sea moss, Tremella mushroom, collagen, turmeric and black pepper all of which support a healthy gut lining.

Bit of cinnamon for natural blood sugar control, nutmeg as a natural mood-lifter, Celtic salt to help fluid balance - day is certainly off to a good start with this!

🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛
Sea Moss Gel (prepared earlier)
Tremella Mushroom powder
Collagen powder
Celtic Salt
Flaxseeds
Coconut milk
Manuka honey
Vanilla extract
Cinnamon powder
Nutmeg powder
Turmeric powder
Black pepper
🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛🥛

I don't currently stock pre-made sea moss gel because of its short shelf life but I do have dried flakes in store for you to make your own - in my opinion, far more convenient to buy dried and make at home as needed (it's super easy & you can flavour it and use it however you like!!).

It's cold out! Come and enjoy a little herbal tea to sip on while you browse at the Lab!

This week I finally set up my tea light candle tea pot and I have plenty to share! Thanks

Yesterday we had a Choc-mint Maitake mushroom cacao & holy Basil blend. (Courtesy of
& )

Today we're on mullein, marshmallow, dandelion & peppermint herbal tea (courtesy of yours truly :p)

Happy to take suggestions for next weeks blends - hit me up :D What would you like to taste???? 👇

Have you tried Snow. yet?

Don't forget to pop in store and grab a sample if you're around Mandurah!

Heads up! We've got a couple of disruptions to normal opening hours this week:

TODAY: Shop is open from 9am-5pm as normal however I will be unavailable for tonics or advice until after 1pm.
I have some wonderful new help in store, pop down and say hi to Alyssa who will help you with any enquiries ✨🌿

THIS WEEKEND: we are closed from Saturday through to Tuesday, re-opening next week Wednesday 26th 9-5 as normal.
We are working to extend our opening hours in the near future - stay tuned for lots of exciting changes and updates! Always something brewing behind the scenes 🙃🌿✨

It's Snowing in Mandurah!!

We've got 50g jars & 100g jars and stay tuned for the refillable pouch bag that will be coming soon.

This cream began as an anti-aging product - designed by me, for me, initially... but I couldn't keep it all to myself! Since unleashing it on my customers, I've had all kinds of positive feedback with it helping dermatitis, eczema and fungal skin spots (so far! - I wonder what else it can do! 🤔).

Customers are loving the smoothing effect it has, especially when applied cold (I keep mine in the fridge) and the fragrance is often mistaken for perfume (thanks to the frankincense and Geranium essential oils).

It's pretty luxurious, if I don't say so myself.
It's a beautiful texture, somehow thick in the pot but has a smooth, silky application... and the subtle fragrance 🤤

Containing 5 practitioner-grade extracts, colloidal silica and fulvic acid (for all those lovely trace minerals so important for skin health and hydration), Snow packs a punch and supports the overall strength and integrity of the skin.

Every herb and mineral was carefully selected to support your body's own natural hyaluronic acid and collagen production and to promote the natural repair and regeneration processes your skin cells use to self-regulate.

Tremella mushroom is also known as 'snow fungi' or "nature's hyaluronic acid" and has been shown to have a greater capacity to retain water in the skin cell than the hyaluronic acid found commonly in other skincare products.

Together, silica and vitamin C help with collagen production. I've selected horsetail for its high silica content and Kakadu plum for its Vitamin C to provide nutritional precursors that work alongside Gotu Kola who directly promotes collagen production.

Frankincense and Geranium are added first for their ability to promote skin cell turnover and secondly because they smell delicious.

You know you wanna Snow! Pop in store to give it a go!

TOPICAL MAGNESIUM VS ORAL

🌿✨NEW IN STORE - KARMA RUB✨🌿
Liquid Magnesium Night Cream.

"Magnesium is known to relax the nervous system, muscles & tendons. It may help to reduce headaches, restless legs, muscle fatigue, joint pain & sleeplessness."

I find much better symptom relief from pain, inflammation and cramping with topical magnesium (lotion, spray, cream etc) vs oral - here's why -->

When applied topically, magnesium is able to bypass gut processing and issues with absorption having a localized effect at the site of application. For pain and cramping, I find topical provides more significant and faster relief.

Not only that, but magnesium is required in many many many body tissues and processes - unfortunately, we don't get to tell that magnesium where to go and what to do after we take it orally and it's entered circulation.

Another time I opt for topical magnesium is with the kiddos. Applied to the bottom of the feet or as magnesium flakes in a bath can really help to calm and relax. The soles of the feet are highly absorbable, why not add a couple drops of lavender oil and give them a chamomile tea to sip on as part of a new bedtime routine.
I've seen many cases of resolving calf pain/growing pains with topical magnesium in kids.

That's certainly not to say that oral magnesium supplementation isn't helpful - we tend to use up our magnesium stores with our busy daytime nervous systems and poor sleep patterns and the majority of people I speak to have signs and symptoms of deficiency and feel better on magnesium. A bit of extra magnesium can go a long way in most cases.
Oral magnesium is my chosen method for restoring deficiencies, regulating nervous system activity (mood, energy, sleep and cognition) and supporting a busy/stressful lifestyle generally (most of us).

It's not about one mode being better than the other. One is working at a deeper level in the body (oral) offering a basic nutritional necessity required to maintain all functions - from nervous system activity, to muscle tension, to heart rate and rhythm, to detoxification...
The other is providing fast acting symptom relief (topical) but is not resolving the underlying issue.

Whipping up some Snow face cream in store this morning.

Includes extracts of:
Tremella mushroom
Gotu kola
Green tea
Horsetail
Kakadu plum

In a beautiful vitamin E cream base with sweet almond oil & coconut MCT.

The formula is designed to provide natural compounds that support the bodies own hyuralonic acid and collagen production as well as supporting the skins natural repair and regeneration pathways.
Keeping your skin cells functioning as if they were still in their 20's 😋

While I am still refining the final formula - I will have some test batches available for purchase in store from today :)

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ALMOND, CINNAMON & GINGER PORRIDGE - with Brahmi 🌿

Porridge
- oats
- water
- peanut butter
- almond butter
- vanilla
- cinnamon
- Celtic sea salt
- raisins
- prunes
- ginger pieces
- honey

Toppings
- brahmi (bacopa) leaves
- h**p seeds
- sunflower seeds
- prunes
- ginger
- walnuts

I free pour the oats (usually make about a cup) and just cover them with an inch of water or so, bring to boil and then drop the temp way down to a slow gentle simmer adding water to achieve desired consistency as it goes. Low and slow for the creamiest of creamy.

Bout a tablespoon and a half combined of the two nut butters, bout a TSP each of vanilla and honey and half a TSP of cinnamon, a pinch of Celtic salt. Throw it all in, doesn't matter when.

Can confirm, makes for a wonderful Sunday morning breaky in bed👌✨

Could blueberry leaf tea be a new functional food or used more commonly as a medicinal tea??

The leaves of the blueberry plant are never spoken about with all credit given to the fruit itself. BUT keep reading because I discovered something interesting yesterday 🌿

Blueberries have gained a bit of traction since the medical medium began promoting wild blueberries a few years back now.

They are well known as a concentrated source of polyphenols with great antioxidant and anti-inflammatory activity (like most berries) and I tend to think of them as having an affinity to the mouth/throat (their blue colour hints at an association with the throat chakra).

Turns out, the phytochemical analysis of the blueberry plant shows an even higher polyphenol in the fresh leaves vs the fruit.

In the same study, they found highest phenolic compounds in the fresher, less fermented preparations of the plant too.

Great news for us with our blueberry bush that's shooting off a heap of leafy branches but so far only 2 blueberries.

This inspired me to investigate the medicinal uses of the leaves and this curiosity not only revealed this fun fact about polyphenol content of the leaf but also confirmed the association of blue berry with the throat chakra.

Blueberry leaf tea can be used for any affliction of the mouth or throat. With strong antimicrobial action for tackling infections, compounds that give blueberry its astringency that also assist in the healing of wounds as well as its antioxidant, antiinflammatory polyphenols.

I often think of blueberry energetics for inflammatory thyroid conditions too 🩵 (alongside a nice piece of blue lace agate to wear around your neck)

My Lab 💚 my own little herb world created to honour nature and all she gives and to share stories of her medicine with all who are open to it.

Conversation, connection, books, teas, tinctures, wholefoods, mushrooms, nutraceuticals, eco-home & living, natural personal care.

Whether you are a hungry, information consumer and just have questions and insights to share and curiosity to satisfy

Or, you have been living and breathing natural med and need to top up your staples,

Or, you are totally new to natural health but you're ready to explore new strategies,

Or, you are a herb nerd and want to work with a specific herb

Or, you are seeing a naturopath and need a prescription filled

This is the place for you 💚🌿✨

🌿Learning herbs back in 2018 via complete immersion.🌿
Drawing the plants, growing the plants, cooking with the plants, creating herbal monographs, teas, oil infusions, learning about the wild weeds growing in my backyard... In, on and around - it's the only real way to get to know your herbs properly.

As a student and a kinesthetic learner, I would explore each herb from as many angles, preparations and perspectives as possible.

Although I was learning western herbalism at college, in my spare time I was attempting to grasp concepts and philosophies from as many other modalities as I could find. This lead me on an inner trip around the globe learning about different herbal practices in traditional and even ancient cultures worldwide.

It was such a fun and fascinating time being immersed in the wonder of this newly ignited flame and I had no idea what would be revealed through my exploration back through time, guided by the herbs, unravelling the history of modern medicine and reconnecting myself with the roots of modern naturopathy.

This time in my life was the beginning of an entire new understanding of the world we live in today - an understanding that has created an overflow effect in my body where my mind is more peaceful and so my body runs more smoothly in return.

The shifts in perspective that occur along this plant path with every bit of knowledge acquired, results in greater intuition and wisdom and a sense of coming home, to ourselves and to the earth.

Good health is the gift of participating in this process.

I couldn't have been gifted a more suited plant right now with this hot weather! Hello Aloe Baby 🌿

After saying "I need to start having aloe juice daily" on Friday evening, my beautiful customer walks in, aloe plant in hand, the next morning 😍 a lovely gesture and a reminder to get myself some 100% pure aloe juice to bring home with me.
Thankyou ❤️

☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️

Think of aloe for any condition that resembles sunburn both internally and externally.

🌿Eg. Ulcerative Colitis (literal ulcers/blistering of the GI tract) and GI inflammation.

🌿Skin rashes and inflammatory conditions like eczema and dermatitis that are aggravated by the heat.

🔥Inflammation itself is a very 'hot' energetic pattern suited to the cooling, anti-inflammatory actions of Aloe🌬️

For some people, GI inflammation brings stagnation in the waste removal systems, especially the bowels - cue constipation/symptoms of IBS.
With compromised bowel elimination, the gut-immune interface can be thrown off and impact skin health.
Gut inflammation + dysbiosis + immune dysregulation = eczema/dermatitis.

A person presenting with the above patterns would be an ideal candidate for Aloe juice or aloe juice powder as a daily supportive herb.
Even better if the person just generally "runs hot", sweats easily, prefers cool weather etc.

Aloe is not only an extremely cooling, antiinflammatory herb for the lining of the GI tract and skin, it's also a gentle laxative and prebiotic having positive influence on the microbiome and bowel regularity and therefore, indirectly, positively influences gut-based immune function.

It is hydrating, cooling, healing & cleansing.

If you're struggling to cope with the heat this summer, don't forget about Aloe 🌿

- Topical application on the skin (it's even used for promoting hair growth when applied to the scalp)
- Oral administration with a juice (most have preservatives and additives, look for 100% aloe juice in ingredients) or a aloe juice powder added into smoothies/food or consumed straight in water

Aloe is included as an ingredient in many gut healing powders as well.

The juice I use is 👌🌿

I'm such a proud sister showing off this sand-free, recycled plastic beach towel my sister has painted & created.

The thing I admire most about Maddi is the way she so effortlessly co-creates with life. She doesn't over think things, and follows what feels good. She is such an authentic & organic manifester and I'm not sure she even totally realises it.

By just following what feels good to her without doubting or asking too many questions, she has established a successful art business that was never actually planned.

Her heart told her to paint and she did.

She began sharing her art on social media with no intention other than to just share. Order requests quickly began flowing in and suddenly she found herself with a marine art business with multiple stockists all up and down the WA coast - a career that supports her in doing more of what she loves - seeking inspiration beneath the waters surface, exploring coastal landscapes, connecting and collaborating with other marine-fiends and expressing herself through her art.

When you give your attention to things that feel good, when they feel good without judging whether this thing is 'right or wrong', you are maintaining alignment with a life path that holds all kinds of abundance for you.

Good feeling things bring more good feeling things. Remember this and you might just find yourself living out your dream life before you know it (and it's never what you expect and always so much better!)

Thankyou Maddi for teaching me, through example, how to do life in such a free-flowing way.