April Apothecary Trading Cards-A Peek-a-Boo Project.

I been intrigued by apothecary and curiosity cabinets most of my life. I enjoy searching for hidden treasures is roadside junk shops and random thrift stores. I love the mystique behind the apothecary lifestyle and a more holistic way of viewing our world. Although Apothecary has been misunderstood through the centuries at their core they are herbalist or pharmacists.  The labels on the jars of ointments, elixirs, and cures are the inspiration behind this artwork.

Supplies:  GSLC-Small Tag Set, GSLC Chunky ATC Blanks, Vintage Script Index Pages, Weldbond, Paintbrush, Distress Stain-I used Gathered Twigs and Scattered Straw, Acrylic Paint I used Pale Green, Nickel Azo Yellow, and Titan Buff, Small Plastic Palette Knife, Apothecary Labels Stickers or Printed Images, Emboss Ot Dabber Clear, Seth Apter Vintage Beeswax Embossing Powder, Heat Tool, Metallic Copper Paint and Fluorescent Blue Paint, Pieces of Flannel Shirts, Awl, Micro Screws, Screwdriver, Matte Gel Medium,

1.  Gather Supplies.

2.  Use Weldbond to Adhere Torn Vintage Script to GSLC Chunky ATC Blanks.

3.  Distress with Distress Stains Randomly. Sealing with Matte Gel Medium.

   

4.  Use a Small Plastic Pallet Knife to Randomly "paints" GSLC Small Tags with Pale Green, Nickel Azo Yellow, and Titan Buff Paints. Seal with Matte Gel Medium.

   

5.  Choose Apothecary Labels and Stickers to Embellish the GSLC Small Tags.

6.  Once Fully Dry use Emboss it Dabber and Seth Apter Vintage Beeswax Embossing Powders to Age the Prepared Tags. Cure with Heat Tool.

7.  Add Patina and Interest Using Dry Brush Technique and Metallic Copper Paint and Fluorescent Blue Paint.

8.  Cut Scraps of a Flannel Shirt and Fray the Edges.

9.  Use an Awl, Micro Screws and a Screwdriver to Assemble your Trading Cards.

   

Some Final Thoughts.

How sad to think that some herbalist and apothecaries were accused of practicing witchcraft when in many cases they were just trying to cure people's ailments. many of them held the belief that plants have a "signature"-color, texture, shape, sent, even the environment in which they grow that resembles the body parts and diseases they heal. For example blood root whose roots when cut ooze red were thought to heal blood disorders and hasten wound healing.  The concept of using herbs and minerals as cures is both ancient across numerous cultures and healing traditions.   

In Medieval Europe There was a close connections between Christianity and Herbalist. Paracelsus was a 16th-Century Swiss physician, alchemist, and philosopher wrote "God does not want things to stay hidden, which he created for mankind's benefit and which He gave man as his property God did mark upon it outer, visible signs that are special marks." as if God himself divinely  orchestrated a scavenger hunt for us to find herbs healing powers.

With the advent of modern medicine, herbalist fell out of favor and nowadays is mostly viewed as pseudoscience. But as with most things in more recent years it has had a resurgence as many people are now weary of the conglomerate overpriced medicine of Huge Pharmaceutical Companies.  

As with many things there are two sides to the story and we should adhere to the cautionary saying "Don't throw the baby out with the bath water" meaning something good id eliminated when trying to get rid of something bad, or rejecting the favorable along with the unfavorable.