Q + A with Ontario Soap Maker: Sarah's Soaps

Maker Addition: Sarah's Soaps

When I started Blue Jay Botanicals I connected with a wonderful small business owner through Instagram. Via insta dm's we quickly began chatting business, plants and herbalism. I am so grateful for Sarah's ongoing encouragement.

I feel like we both really shared a connection over starting our little plant based businesses, all on our own, from scratch. It is not easy and it is so rewarding.

My little golden nugget: If you are running a business, I highly recommend finding another business pal to bounce questions off of, share highs and lows or simply cheer each other on!

I am so excited to feature Sarah's Soaps in the upcoming 2022 boxes. The images shows are the feature for the December 2021 Yuletide Box.

Let's get to know the girl behind the soap...

Q: Describe a part of nature you are grateful for....

A: I am Continually grateful for the changing seasons that remind me to slow down + accept change. There is something so special about syncing up your rituals to nature; cooling teas in the summer, warm baths in the autumn, immune boosting tonics in winter. The seasons install patience + gratitude, because with each change brings new + exciting plants to explore!

Q: If you could only use one plant from your garden to infuse into your products, what plant would you grow? Why?

A: PLANTAIN! (Plantago major) It was the very first medicinal plant that I immediately had a strong connection with. As a child, I remember picking seed stalks to use as bouquets, studying its beautifully ribbed leaves. Before I began studying herbalism + horticulture, I never truly understood my calling to this plant. But as the years passed, I realized that this plant was showing me my true path… the path to plants!

This plant is a master healer - I always have a few leaves on hand when foraging to help soothe any rashes, but bites, scrapes… this plant does it all. Plantago aids in reducing redness + irritation, itchiness, soothes burns + rashes and speeds up cell regeneration, just to name a few. It is gentle enough to use on sensitive skin, yet works hard at healing problematic skin. One of my favourites for sure!

Q: When you’re feeling disconnected, what plant allies do call on to help your reconnect with yourself?

A: The first ally that comes to mind are rosehips (Rosa sp.). The act of harvesting is a mindful process, reminding me to take my time + slow down. Her sweetness, only growing sweeter after a hard frost. I always munch on a few ruby reds while out on the trail; there is truly nothing like a perfectly ripe, jammy, tart rosehip. If you have yet to try one, I highly suggest you do! (just be sure to stay away from the fine hairs + seeds)

The entire harvesting + processing experience is based in connection - waiting for the perfect frost, gently harvesting, slowly dehydrating, infusing to make soothing salve; all of these processes take TIME. Time that I can use to thank the land, remind myself that I am part of a much bigger web of life than what I can see. These rosehips are infused in golden canadian sunflower oil for three months, gently warmed by the sun. The sunlight truly makes them look like rubies! Once infused, the oil goes in to a salve to soothe, hydrate + nourish the skin.

… and I can’t forget pine pitch! The sweet, earthy aroma of sticky pine pitch is like no other, one ally that truly connects me to my ‘why.’ Why I started, why I continue to craft plant medicine. One gentle whiff + your worries are swept away.

There are trees deep in the forest that I have a special relationship with, visiting every few weeks to see if there is any pitch they would like to share with me. I always wonder what they have seen in their time on this earth.

The beautiful resin is mindfully harvested, melted, filtered + again made in to salve. I use this salve in a grounding meditation, gently warming some balm in between the palms of my hand, gently covering my mouth + nose and deeply inhaling. I take this time to name things I am grateful for, work through things I would like to change + dream of new adventures!

Follow Sarah on Instagram