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Mind, Body & Soap – Yellow Mountain Garden
Written By: Donna Rhodes | Issue: 2018/05 - May | Photograph By: Marjorie Christiansen Photography
Everything, from the clothes we wear to the food we eat to the metals and plastics molded into our digital gadgetry comes from the earth.
Hannah Moss Banks, whose family tree sprouted from a Cashiers agricultural lineage, says, “It wasn’t that long ago that America was an agrarian nation. Now farming is a gargantuan industry crowding out traditional family farms. We’ve lost touch with our roots, literally and figuratively.”
But she and her husband/business partner Malcolm are not disheartened. They’re on a mission, doing their part to reconnect us to our earth origins through their organically grown produce, handcrafted soaps, a line of boho clothing, and a movement called Hippie Nation.
They haven’t divorced social media, for it is a great tool for spreading their message about a simpler, healthier, more earth-oriented lifestyle.
But on the flip side they advise, “Put your phone down and dig in the dirt.”
That’s what their Yellow Mountain Garden Co. is all about.
With a degree in Horticulture from Clemson, Hannah’s not just blowing smoke about the importance of living off the land. She follows studies that prove digging in the dirt really does make you feel better. Flower fragrances calm you. It’s not magic. It’s science.
She uses that science (chemistry) and tradition (old-timey recipes using wood ash and essential oils) to create beautiful, fragrant, soothing soaps. Yellow Mountain’s high-quality products require a lengthy curing process, taking several weeks from mixture to hardened bar. And that doesn’t even include growing the organic botanicals and the creation of Hannah’s original graphics on packaging.
Their soap experimentation grew out of necessity. Malcolm had a serious foot irritation. They researched herbal cures and came up with an effective soap balm. That success launched a soap business. Their budding business now blossoms. They have a strong local following, and ship all over the country.
Malcolm says, “We mostly market on Facebook and other social media, plus door-to-door and the Cashiers Green Village Farmer’s Market, as well as the flea market in Franklin. Fourth Street Market in Highlands now carries our products.”
For more information call (828) 331-8720 or visit yellowmountaingarden.com.
