From Garden to Still: The Art of Aromatic Distillation

🌿Hands-On Herbal Distillation: From Wild Mint to Botanical Bug Spray 🌿

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Step into a hands-on, scent-filled experience at The Garden Haven & Farm, where we’ll harvest homegrown herbs, steam distill their essence, and craft a plant-powered bug spray you can confidently use and share.

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🌸What You’ll Experience

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🍃Live Distillation in our Beautiful Traditional Copper Alembic Still
Together, we’ll walk through each step of the distillation process—not just what we’re doing, but why it matters. You’ll get up close with the tools and techniques:

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🌼Knead the gluten-free dough we press around the still’s lid to create a perfect seal

🌼Breathe in the rich, layered scent of fresh wild and mountain mints as the heat builds

🌼Experience the moment those first cooling drops of distillate begin to flow into the jar

🌼Watch as essential oils gracefully float like a shimmering rainbow on top of the aromatic waters

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🍃 Stovetop Setup Tutorial
Don’t own a still? No worries! You’ll also learn how to set up a simple distillation rig using basic kitchen gear you probably already have—perfect for home experimentation without a big investment.

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🍃 Make Your Own Skin-Safe and Effective Botanical Bug Spray
Once we collect our freshly distilled mint water (hydrosol with essential oils left in), we’ll transform it into a fragrant herbal mist that repels bugs and delights your senses.

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You’ll learn how to build a gentle yet effective formula that:

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🌻Uses plant-based ingredients to help essential oils mix smoothly into the aromatic waters

🌻Clings lightly to skin for staying power without ever feeling sticky or greasy

🌻Is FREE of top 9 allergens, gluten (even in the still seal), and coconut-derived ingredients

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We’ll walk through the why behind each choice, so you leave with both a custom spray (cute custom label commemorating the workshop included!) and the knowledge to confidently recreate it at home.

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🌱 What You’ll Learn

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🌺 How to distill aromatic plants into functional and beautiful, shelf-stable aromatic products rich in the benefits of essential oils, but gentle enough for all

🌺 The differences between hydrosols and essential oils, and how both support handcrafted herbal creations in different ways

🌺 How to build safe, effective natural sprays that don’t immediately evaporate or separate in the bottle with just a few core ingredients

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🏠 You’ll Go Home With:

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💚 Your own handcrafted minty botanical bug repellent.

💚An exclusive spiral-bound guidebook to the full process—including log pages to track your own distillations, a printable recipe for the shelf-stable botanical bug spray we’ll make, and lots of tips and tricks to help you better understand the processes and troubleshoot with confidence at home.

💚 Skills to start distilling at home, with or without fancy equipment.

💚 A whole new appreciation for what your garden can offer—beyond tea and tinctures!

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🌿 Cancellation Policy

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Because class sizes are small and supplies are prepared in advance, cancellations made less than 48 hours before the class are non-refundable.

That said, I understand that life happens and I offer a one-time grace credit toward a future class or products, equal to the class price minus the cost of materials already prepared. After your one-time grace credit, I can only offer a transfer of your spot to a friend.

Thanks for understanding and respecting the time, care, and planning that go into these small-group workshops!