Natural Body Products and Tea… with a Give-a-way!

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I first met Connie through a local natural mothers group here in Charleston. I tried her tea and I have not stopped drinking it since… years later, I can say without a doubt her teas are my favorite… ever! And the more I’ve gotten to know Connie, the more I love her… teas or not. She is just, absolutely an honest, true, dear soul, and I really respect everything she does. She homeschools two of her precious children (and one on the way! Congrats Connie!) and fills her days with creating equisite teas, delectable salt scrubs and moisturizers, doedarants, bath products, healing salves… and loving up her sweet family.

If you met Connie right now, I can garantee you would love her too. There is just something about her, and her passion for what she beleives in, that makes you feel good.

Sipping her tea is *almost* as good as getting to spend time with her, because they make you feel good too. Her products are completely natural and pure, with no additives, colors, artifical scents… nothing but high quality ingredients that nurture your soul. Because her products are so organic and natural and healthy, I thought she’d be a perfect person to write a guest blog… so I asked her, and she graciously agreed.

She also is very generously giving away a gift basket containing an assortment of body products and teas… to one very lucky soul. She is willing to ship it, so anyone can enter! To enter, just leave a comment at the end of this post. I’ll announce the winner on Friday.

Without further ado, here is my sweet friend, Connie:

“Lost River Naturals… it took me quite a while to try and come and come up with a name to suit my business. I wanted one that was earthy and peaceful and more importantly, a name that meant something to me personally.

As a child, my family and I would visit my dad’s hometown of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania and while we were there our most favorite place to go was a chilly cave and rock shop called Lost River Caverns in Hellertown, a neighboring little city. It was a magical place to me because I have always been drawn to stones and crystals and this place had the wonderment of those earthly things I’ve long admired (although I think these creations were divinely inspired).

This particular place also had some underground caverns that we would tour with amazement and across the street from the caverns was a charming bridge and a beautiful little stream that my sisters and I would wade through while my mom and dad would take family pictures. My memories from this mystical, magical place are some of the fondest of my childhood, so I decided to give my budding business a name that really had special meaning to me.

Upon starting a family and wanting only the purest, most natural and organic everyday products to use on my children and on myself and husband, I became very frustrated at all the “natural” options out there on the market. As I uncovered the fact that most of these products were neither natural or fully organic and many contained dangerous additives and chemicals, I decided that I was going to try my best to make some of them myself!

I began with a simple sugar scrub recipe that served as a daily cleanser for myself and husband in the shower, while the kids thoroughly enjoyed the lovely sweet scent and foaming action in the bath tub.

My next project was something to cool fevers and bump and bruises, so I began sewing flaxseed pillows and smaller “boo boo” pillows for the children. These are so versatile because you may store them in the freezer for inflammation as well as heat them up for a muscle soothing moist heat. I’ll have you know that we use both of my early creations daily in our house and can’t imagine going without either one! My sugar scrubs also quickly became my most popular, best selling items.

Now with these two items developed and sought after by friends and family, I began getting requests for other daily body care products like an alternative to fluoride toothpaste and a natural deodorant that really works. Well I then began researching and trying different combinations and before I knew it, I had a list of available products that was beginning to overwhelm our tiny house!

Not only did I have body scrubs, bath salts & teas, herbal salves, lip balms, clay treatments, perfume oils and more, I also developed an extensive line of herbal teas from pregnancy teas to men’s tonics, and spicy chai concoctions!

It’s been about four years since I first got the idea to experiment with herbs and such, and now I cannot imagine my life without the daily rush to get orders completed and in the mail, and the excitement of developing new products when the mood strikes!

Although I am not a formally trained herbalist, I feel that I have a real intuition for creating effective herbal combinations in my teas and when I begin a new body care recipe, it’s rare that I have to return to the drawing board! The products seem to turn out just right the first try although I frequently tweak this or that to make a more perfect offering.

I love the fact that my kids are getting involved with the process too. They often flock to me when I begin taking jars of herbs from the shelves to mix a tea and my 6 year old daughter even created a tea all on her own which became my best selling blend this Summer! She named it too ~ “Mystical Garden Tea”, a fine name for a delicious beverage!

It’s almost Fall, so I am gearing up for a rush on my Elderberry Syrup for colds and flu; I can’t seem to make batches of this delectable remedy fast enough. I also have some new products and surprises in the works. There is never a dull moment here as I am constantly working on filling an order or running the house and caring for my kids. Since I homeschool 2 of my children, and have one on the way, it’s not always easy to find a balance. But my passions in life, my family and my business, keep me fulfilled, happy and hungry to learn more to nurture both.”

I am highlighting a different business every month, ones whom I totally support and recommend because I believe so much in the products and services they offer. I have a great line up for this fall and winter, so be sure to stay tuned!

To keep up with Connie’s new products and sales, join her facebook fan page.

Check out her shop, Lost River Naturals… it is chock full of stuff not even mentioned in this blog post!

To enter this give-a-way, for Connie’s awesome gift basket, leave a comment below! Check back on Friday to see who the winner is! Good luck, these will be some of the finest products you ever try! xoxo