Labeling your formula's

Desiree

I have been working with creating formulas from my tinctures (most based on Doc Jones teachings) and I was wondering how everyone labels their formulas on the jar. I keep a journal of every preparation I make so the details are all available in it. Do you label with a shortcut name with the dosage or do you put all the information on it?

When I make tea blends I include all the ingredients as well as instructions for use and what it is used for even though I have it in my journal too.

Torey

@desireet02 I put all of the info on the labels. No shortcuts. That way it is quite clear to someone else who may be looking for something in my apothecary. Name (Common & Latin), Date, Ratio (1:2 or 1:5, etc.), Fresh or Dried and Alcohol Strength (% not proof). I don't put the dosage on until I am making a bottle up for a client as dosages are not always the same for different individuals. The same for blends. I don't usually blend tinctures until it is being prepared for someone. So for a blend I would put the names of the individual ingredients and their proportion in the blend. (3 parts xxx, 2 parts yyy and 1 part zzz), I probably wouldn't include the tincture ratio for each ingredient. I might try to figure out what the average alcohol content is for all ingredients and put that on the blend label as well.

Good for you doing it in a journal as well. That way you can add more information such as where you got the ingredients, brand of alcohol, weather at the time of picking, abundant harvest or not, etc. etc.

Desiree

@torey thank you that makes total sense. I guess I was only thinking of me being the only one looking at the label knowing I have the journal. I will start making a new label template :)

My journal is pretty detailed with the information you mentioned. Since I harvest from my own property for the majority of herbs I use I have had to get detailed about where I picked from. I harvested some catnip last year and wasn't very clear where I got it from and had to hunt this year for it. Sometimes my plants disappear and then show up in a new location too which blows my mind when I am looking for something specific.

dottile46

@torey you are such a wealth of information! So appreciate your sharing your knowledge for us fledglings.

SherryA

@torey That happens to me, too! Plants disappear and show up in a different place. It's fascinating, isn't it? This spring I had flowers come up for the first time from seeds I planted 3 years ago. They have a mind of their own.

kfoto

Another idea is as an aromatherapist I have one file with for each client I add what and when I have to them. Then the recipes go into a recipe binder for handy formulation as @torey says with all the ratio, dilution ect At the bottom of my recipes I list whom I made this recipe for so I can look at more details and it was used . Never can have too much information in numerous spots

andrea745

I am so impressed. I am just getting into herbs, however with my essential oil blends, I was constantly having problems with the labels because the essential oils usually eventually erase the letters and the labels are so small. What I have been considering doing for awhile is a similar system that I have used with my beading supplies. I literally just number of letter each item and then keep the description in a notebook that goes along with the lettering system. What do you think? Would this work? My remedies are not for anyone but me and my family.

shllnzl

@andrea745 I like your idea and may do the same thing myself. I am already keeping a card file of herbal recipes I have made. (I go back and forth about whether digital or hard copy information is easier to search. Certainly, hard copy info is easier to organize and preserve.)

kfoto

@andrea745 trying to understand you system- your putting an alphabet next to your EO blend? To me this is confusing for my brain. Won’t you run out of letters. I put Eo blend recipes in a binder labeled recipes. Example tabs bath blends, face, wounds etc. It needs to be a simple reference. If you need face care what will be easy to be to find.? A tab label face or a letter? As this grows I will have a cross reference of each oil added. Then I have a EO book that has each oils properties in a binder and I add referencing tab in there about a recipe I created. This is all a work I’m progress. But I love creating blends and need to know what I’ve done and what has work or not. So far my brother label maker has not wiped of the titles on my EO blends.

Ferg

I use the page number of my journal and the date so that if the label gets messy usually I can still read that bit.

kfoto

@Ferg you can add packing tape over the label to help the smear.

Annie Kate

Wow, I have only just started mixing remedies and oils etc. I hadn't thought about detailed labelling, though I do have a journal. Thank you all for the suggestions!

KimWilson

When labeling jars of things, I label both the jar and the lid.

shllnzl

I found a neat solution today for storing and labeling my loose tea. The canning jar is better than the cellophane wrapper in original packaging. The bottom of the tea box fits the quart jar perfectly while keeping light off of the tea leaves.

seeker.nancy - Central Texas

I use return labels, then put clear tape over them for protection. I label what it is or the name of the blend and the date it was made. The clear tape (clear packing tape works great for bigger labels) helps the label to stay attached to the bottle and it also protects the writing from the inevitable spills. When I had my aromatherapy business there was more information on the label. I also found some labels that were made for color ink jet usage (that was the printer I had at the time) from onlinelabels.com. They were really good at not letting the colors run when the product was used or if it got wet. Of course if essential oils were routinely spilled the print would begin to run or fade a bit. I bought several sizes for different products I made. I had saved all the blends and the way each product was made in an online site as well as hard copies in a binder. Now I just try to remember to put it in a small notebook designated for that purpose. I only make stuff for myself and my adult children now.

karenjanicki

That's actually what I do too. I have a journal where I keep info on the herbal remedies that I make. I list where I got the herbs, what herbs are used including their scientific names, how it was prepared, date it was made and dosage instructions. I also label mine with batch numbers. Then when I label my formulas they list what they are, the date they were made and the batch number so that I can reference them if need be. I also keep a list on my computer with corresponding pictures to help identify if needed. I ordered some pretty brown labels online and use them to label the bottles.

Wendy

To label my herbs, I write the info on a sticky flag (basically half a sticky note) then cover it with packing tape. I write the name of the herb, month, and year. For tinctures, I add a label stating what it is, and what percent alcohol. For teas, I add a title, herbs included, dosage, and steeping time. I keep a list of all ingredients in a journal as well for my personal record keeping.

Calcium Tea

Use 1.5 tsp per cup, steep 15 minutes

Ingredients: Mint, dandelion leaf, red clover, plantain, mullein