I’m Liz.
Beekeeper,
Reiki master / practitioner,
Herbalist.
BEEKEEPER
We’ve kept one or two colonies of honeybees in our garden for the last 5 years. We love having them close, so we can really see and feel them: in the summer months there’s a thrum of activity and buzz in the air, it’s mesmerising, inspiring, and therapeutic!
I don’t keep bees primarily for productive outputs - honey or wax - although I do take a small harvest of their surplus. My passion is for connection with nature and the cycle of the seasons, and you feel it so deeply when you connect with the honeybees!
I bring my kids along on the beekeeping journey, and they find it fascinating too. From hive checks to making drinking water pools, honey harvesting to label design, they get stuck in.
If you are interested in learning more about gentle beekeeping, or would like to explore opportunities for workshops or experiences which bring you closer to the bees’ amazing world, I would love to hear from you.
REIKI iii MASTER / PRACTITIONER
Reiki has the potential to transform your life. For me, it’s been a way to self-healing and has opened my heart, mind and senses to a fuller, happier, healtier life. I am so grateful for my Reiki journey, which is never-ending.
In 2018 I experienced Reiki for the first time when a friend gave me a treatment to help support me at a time when I was struggling in the darkness of a traumatic experience. I learned that Reiki isn’t just about supporting the body’s ability to self-heal physical issues, but it can support emotional wellbeing and mental health. After one session I felt a peaceful acceptance, and I decided to learn about the Reiki system for myself.
That year I undertook Reiki I training, followed by 5 years of self-practice when I deeply integrated the Reiki Elements. The 5 Precepts are now fundamental to my life - I use Reiki teaching to be calmer, less worried, less overwhelmed, more present.
By the start of 2023 I knew I was ready for Reiki II (Okuden) and I worked on the practitioner level Certificate, and a year later in February 2024 I completed Reiki III, Master level (Shipiden).
I practice traditional Japanese Reiki (Usui Reiki Ryoho) a system for energetic connection which has been passed to me by my teacher Maija Kovalevska. This system uses natural healing energy, intuitively guided by the Reiki energy, with a focus on supporting self-healing.
HERBALIST
I think preparing herbal remedies, growing healing plants, and creating my medicinal garden is a love language - for myself and in service to others.
It has surfaced from seeking a more hands-on, purposeful, gentle and nurturing outlet for my work. For 20 years I had been a Landscape Architect, gaining valuable skills in delivering engagement events and hosting workshops, and regenerative design. I’ve always had an interest in ‘plants with purpose’, which nourish, heal or sustain us in a way. But I wanted a deeper way of working with plants:
In 2019 I undertook a ‘Herbs for Healing’ evening course at the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, and in 2023 I expanded on this with the Scottish School of Herbal Medicine’s correspondence course in Herbal Medicine. These courses have given me a foundation of knowledge and skills — and the realisation that I’ve been a practicing Herbalist for years!
I’m not a medical herbalist: I am a home / community / kitchen / garden / folk herbalist and I love sharing years of experiences and insights of working with herbs for health.
From the herbal teas I grow to the botanicals I extract in oils for balms, and the tinctures, salts, vinegars and salves. From the Elderberry, Hawthorn, Rose and Seabuckthorn I forage in the local area to the ever expanding collection of healing plants in my apothecary garden. I have a relationship with these plants and it’s a privilege to host workshops to share this knowledge.
Gentleness
Beekeeping, herbalism and Reiki will all deeply connect you to the land, seasons and cycles. The honeybee’s mood so often mirrors our own, their behaviour a response to the environment. So be calm, carry a good intention, and send the bees - and herbs - your love.
My vision is to consciously cultivate a place which promotes wellbeing for people and nature, to help restore the health and vitality of the land.
My aim is to bring you into a closer connection to the beautiful world in which we live.