*how this tincture was made*
i wait until late summer to early fall when the earliest queen anne’s lace has gone to seed and curls up like bird nests.
then i go out to my known patches of queen anne’s lace and pick flower tops in every life cycle phase (pictured).
i have spent most of my life on our land and there isn’t a poison hemlock or water hemlock population on our property.
only once did i find a single specimen in a marshy area.
i tinctured the flower tops in all phases of life, paying special attention to the ones that have gone to seed and tinctured
+ sealed them immediately in vodka to preserve the complex oils.
as always, i make my tinctures quite strong.
dosage guidelines and considerations are listed below.

a general note on foraging safety:
queen anne’s lace needs to be foraged with care and mastery.
to the untrained eye it can look like a poisonous relative, poison hemlock or water hemlock.


*general actions and information*
queen anne's lace is a stimulating carminative, diuretic and emmenagogue.
it is diaphoretic and will open the pores to induce sweating.
it stimulates movement and action in terms of digestion, water metabolism and menstrual cycle.
it tends to clean and correct spaces. birds use it in their nests to prevent pests.
it has been used for liver issues and shows promise in research regarding inflammatory disorders.
i think it's a new consideration for certain autoimmune situations.
it also is a reliable specific for osteoarthritis and for mineral deposit imbalance issues that lock up joints.
(i do think you need some deeper support like reishi to shift the environment so the specific can work unfettered)
queen anne's lace is a pituitary stimulant that helps invigorate the body when torpor has set in.

what does that mean?

it can be used as a digestive aid to stimulate peristalsis, clear air out of the digestive tract
and induce urination to clear water retention. it has been said that it’s excellent for beer bellies and clearing water weight from the belly.
it has historically been used for diabetes and gout, as it’s a relatively strong kidney stimulant. (be careful with stimulating diuretics if you have weak or compromised kidneys. reach out for questions and support! nettle + nettle seed is an important remedy here. lots of safe options.)

it also tends to clean and clear spaces and benefit the circulation at large.
everyone has something about themselves where the system can be apathetic about doing something it's supposed to.
you could also think of it in terms of circulation. it’s common for people to have raynauds due to weak nerves or neurovascular spasm.
it’s also common to hold water weight in their legs due to poor circulation.
this can happen with the menstrual cycle as well.
is it ultimately a weak point in circulation? often times, yes.
by reading the overall presentation and picking it apart, we can discern what remedy or formula can address a pattern of disharmony at hand.

*cycle imbalances and other female uses for queen anne’s lace*
for women it’s very possible (and common) to constitutionally have weak circulation to your reproductive system.
dark clotting with craming/pain during your period is a classic symptom of stagnation.
there are lifestyle factors that can cause or exacerbate this imbalance-
not bundling up, letting yourself get too cold, *letting your feet get too cold*
eating cold or raw foods, *drinking cold or iced drinks*
having more than a moderate amount of caffeine or alcohol-
any of these factors, especially during or around your period, all big trouble.

women can feel bloated and stuck before their cycle begins.
they can have cramps, emotional upset and digestive discomfort- all very common.
if for any reason your period is late and you need to bring it on,
you can take 5-10 drops of queen anne's lace every few hours until onset.
it's nice to follow it with a mug of hot water.
it is a diaphoretic herb, so it is very likely to induce sweating.
this is part of its opening and clearing actions.

a note on dosage:
once you get to know the remedy and how it personally affects you,
you can adjust your dose accordingly.
it may be fine to take a dropper full up to a few times a day when you need it,
but it’s better to take the scenic route than to end up in an uncomfy situation.
i get a lot of emails from people who didn’t follow dosage guidelines and then they feel scared.
be mindful and respectful in your explorations!
you can always send me a message and i typically respond promptly.


queen anne’s lace can be used palliatively to bring the period on when there is a delay or when there is a prolonged congested feeling and it’s coming on in a slow, clunky way. but you can also use it low dose regularly for a month or longer to help the body to quietly address these stagnation issues throughout the month, leading to cleaner, easier cycles and improving fertility. it’s common for fertility to be dampened by these poor conditions in reproductive spaces. you need healthy blood flow and clean, clear reproductive spaces to conceive- it is often, but not always, as simple as that. they say that because queen anne’s lace cleans and clears reproductive spaces and thins the lining of the uterus, when you stop taking it and everything is squeaky clean and nice- the lining of the uterus thickens and is healthy and strong. that’s an important factor for strong fertility!

there were several ancient cultures that used queen anne's lace as birth control.
in the not so distant past, that includes folk herbal traditions from the american south.
queen anne’s lace thins the lining of the uterus, which makes the environment unfit for implantation. they would take tea or tincture (lots of literature about women chewing the seeds) a few times a day around their fertile days. i’ve read studies and personal/professional accounts that this is very effective. i don’t say that lightly, the results were impressive.


i do want to mention that queen anne’s lace is a bit high in stimulating volatile oils. that means it’s actions are pretty forward and it’s important to start at a low dosage to keep you comfy. you *need* high quality remedies for this remedy to work well and comfortably. tincture from fresh flower tops in all phases of its life cycle is so important. you cannot capture those complex oils from bulk queen anne’s lace or from tincture made from just any dried or bulk queen anne’s lace. you can use fresh or wild foraged and nicely dried flower tops in all life stages, the ones that have freshly gone to seed are the most potent. if you’re wild foraging yourself, i would use it within the first year of drying it. it needs to be stored nicely, not just out in the open.


i do want to note that there are *tons* of remedies for cycle imbalances.
i consider queen anne's lace to be specific for: birth control, delayed periods, certain patterns of infertility.
it is also a known galactagogue for those who are nursing or struggle with nursing.

unless you are using queen anne's lace to bring your period on,
it would be likely that the queen anne's lace person may also deal with some of the following:
-have an imbalance with sweat one way or the other (no sweat or too much sweat)
-holds onto water weight or tends to hold water weight in their belly
-struggle with bacterial, viral, parasitic or fungal overgrowth in some capacity
-issues with stones at some point
-inflammatory disorders/autoimmune type issues
-liver issues
-there may be a strong divide between the spiritual self and the practical self.
can you integrate the polarities in a meaningful way?
are your spaces, environments, boundaries clean and healthy? spiritually/emotionally/physically

i consult for free and would be so glad to help you find the most minimal, safe and effective remedy or regimen to support your specific situation.
please feel free to reach out any time or to send me an outline of your situation. i do my best to respond promptly!

safely packaged

cool room temp out of light/humidity/strong temperatures

it depends on the situation at hand. please consult for personalized info!