Eight Weeks in the Dark: The Ancient Amber™ Steep

The short answer: Ancient Amber™ is a slow, staggered infusion — frankincense resin and dried carrot steeped in olive squalane for the first weeks, rose petals added for the final stretch — eight weeks in total, in the dark, with each botanical removed at its peak. It's the base of our new Body Cream and Face Oil, and it's the reason they carry a warm, amber, faintly rosy character no bottle of plain oil could.

Why an infusion instead of an extract

You can buy botanical extracts in a bottle. We don't, for the same reason we don't buy pre-rendered tallow: the slow way keeps more of what we want. Steeping botanicals in a carrier oil over weeks pulls out their oil-soluble character gently, at room temperature, with no solvents and no heat. It takes patience and a dark cupboard. It also means every batch is made, not mixed.

Three ingredients, staggered by time

Frankincense resin goes in first. Resin gives up its character slowly, so it needs the full run — it's what gives Ancient Amber™ its warm, grounded base note.

Dried carrot goes in alongside it. Carrot is one of the classic oil-infusion botanicals, prized for its color and the golden warmth it lends an oil. Together, resin and carrot steep for the first several weeks.

Rose petals come last, only for the final weeks. Rose is delicate — leave it too long and it fades or goes stale rather than richer. Adding it late means it's pulled at full strength and removed at its peak, so the finished oil carries rose as a bright top note rather than a tired one.

The whole thing lives in the dark for eight weeks. Light degrades botanicals; darkness keeps them honest.

Where you'll find it

Ancient Amber™ is the infused olive squalane at the heart of the Bison Tallow Body Cream and the Face Oil. It's why both have a character you'll recognize the moment you open them — and why neither could be made in an afternoon.

It's the same instinct behind the way we make everything else, too: we now render our own bison tallow, one hand-trimmed batch at a time.

Frequently asked questions

What is Ancient Amber™? Our eight-week botanical infusion of frankincense resin, dried carrot, and rose petals in olive squalane, steeped in the dark with each botanical added and removed at its peak.

Why are the botanicals staggered? Each releases its character at a different pace. Resin and carrot need the full steep; rose is delicate and is added only for the final weeks so it's captured at peak strength rather than left to fade.

Which products use Ancient Amber™? The Bison Tallow Body Cream and the Face Oil.