Staying Close to the Work

I use what I make.

And I think about it.

Staying close to the work is one of the ways I continue making it.

Once a composition leaves the studio, it doesn’t stop changing. It settles. It ages. It becomes part of a routine.

Sometimes it's exactly what I hoped.

Sometimes it's not.

So, from time to time, I choose a handful of compositions, let them rest for a month or two, and then begin using them again with that purpose in mind. I pay attention to the texture, the aroma, the finish, and just as importantly, whether they still fit into everyday life.

These are some of the things I noticed.

Eye + Brow Butter

The revised composition settled exactly where I hoped it would.

It remained soft, smooth, and remarkably elegant in use. Gathering easily from the jar, absorbing quickly, and leaving behind a light, velvety finish.

I tend to use it immediately after a shower, when my skin seems ready to welcome a little more nourishment. Sometimes I pair it with Botanical Facial. Sometimes I use it on its own. Both have earned a place in my routine.

I think the pearl adds a subtle brightness, though that’s never been the point of this composition. I wasn’t trying to create an illusion. I wanted to create something that left the delicate skin around the eyes feeling comfortable, nourished, and well cared for.

Months later, this is still one of the compositions I reach for regularly.

⟡ Eye + Brow Butter is available in the Apothecary

Nipple Butter (and the Companion Tin)

Texture and grip remain my favorite parts of this composition.

Nipple Butter feels almost impossibly buttery in the jar yet gathers beautifully. It absorbs into the skin with surprising grace. That balance matters to me. I want it to feel substantial while you’re using it, with a clean finish.

One of the things I noted had less to do with Nipple Butter itself than with where I kept it.

The larger jar stayed tucked away, while the companion tin lived on my desk. I found myself reaching for it throughout the day.

(it is nice on the lips)

Keeping it close at hand changed how I used it.

⟡ Nipple Butter and the Companion Tin are available in the Apothecary

Triptych

I’ve had a tube of this that I’ve been using off and on for roughly eighteen months.

The aroma remained clean. The color stayed true. The texture, however, had become a little drier, with a slight grit.

It hadn’t failed - it had simply aged.

Natural materials change over time. The question isn’t whether a composition remains exactly as it was on the day it was made, but whether it continues to be worth reaching for.

After eighteen months, Triptych reached the point where it no longer reflected what I believe it should be. And what stood out wasn’t that it eventually changed - it was how gracefully it held together before it did.

Most people will finish a lip balm long before it reaches this point, but if you happen to rediscover an old tube of Triptych after a year or more, don’t be surprised if it no longer feels quite the way it did when it was new.

⟡ Triptych is available in the Apothecary

Rising Sun

Rising Sun continued to impress me with its finish.

It gathers nicely, melts beautifully, and leaves behind what I can only describe as a remarkably clear feeling on the skin.

I found myself using it around my nose more than anywhere else. The gentle lift of the Japanese yuzu stayed with me just enough that I’d catch it throughout the day. That scent is what kept drawing me back to it.

Yet...

The yuzu is pleasant and gentle, but I’d like it to have a little more presence. Not because I’m dissatisfied- not exactly - but because I think an already enjoyable experience still has room to grow.

⟡ Rising Sun is available in the Apothecary

MintNight

Mint Night has become one of my favorite evening compositions.

The texture is beautiful, the application a joy, and the mint has settled into something wonderfully restrained. After application, I catch the faintest hint of mint when I breathe through my nose.

MintNight makes my lips feel comfortable.

And that’s exactly what I hoped it would do.

⟡ MintNight is available in the Apothecary

Nail Tender

Nail Tender has a lovely matte surface.

I enjoy the way it gathers with a slow swirl of a fingertip before softening almost immediately with its warmth.

I don’t use it in a hurry. It’s something I reach for when I have a few minutes. I work it into my nails and cuticles, let it settle, and then carry on with the day.

That small routine has been worth keeping. My nails have remained healthy, the skin around them comfortable, and I haven’t found myself wanting to change the composition.

⟡ Nail Tender is available in the Apothecary

Boundary Butter

Boundary Butter taught me a lot.

From the beginning, its performance on the skin was exactly what I wanted. It absorbed beautifully and left behind the finish I’d been chasing. The texture, though, still had somewhere to go.

When I gathered Boundary Butter from the tin, small plate-like pieces would sometimes form. They melted immediately with body heat and never changed the way the composition cared for skin, but they asked for just a little more attention than I wanted them to.

Boundary Butter contains a generous amount of murumuru butter, a remarkable butter from the Amazon basin that gives the composition much of its body, finish, and protective character on the skin. Those little pieces were simply one of the characteristics of working with such a structured butter.

I noticed it most when applying Boundary Butter somewhere I couldn’t easily see - behind a knee, beneath an arm, or along the back of my neck.

It was a distraction.

That wasn’t the experience I was after.

I wanted Boundary Butter to be guided by touch, not by sight.

So I went back to the studio.

Now, Boundary Butter gathers in one smooth, continuous motion while preserving the finish that made me fall in love with it in the first place.

⟡ Boundary Butter is available in the Apothecary

Botanical Facial

Botanical Facial has become part of my routine.

I love the way it feels as it moves across the skin. The different botanical blends - the rituals - each have their own character, but they all share the same slow, effortless glide. An hour later, my skin feels comfortable, nourished, and at ease.

What surprised me most wasn’t the composition itself, but what happened while I was using it. A product like this encourages you to slow down. As I worked it into my face, I found myself paying attention to things I normally wouldn’t - the contours, the places that hold tension, the shape of my own face beneath my fingertips.

That’s something I hadn’t expected.

The composition doesn’t just care for the skin. It encourages you to spend a little time with it.

⟡ Botanical Facial is available in the Apothecary

These notes aren’t final judgments.

They’re simply where the conversation stands today.

Every composition teaches me something once it leaves the studio and becomes part of everyday life. Some confirm exactly what I hoped. Others reveal opportunities that only time could uncover.

That ongoing conversation is part of how I stay close to the work. It’s also part of every composition that finds its way into someone else’s hands.

Explore the Cult of Bees Apothecary

On Studio Notes

Everything created at Cult of Bees begins in the studio, not the marketplace. These works exist because I believe care deserves to be studied, refined, and given form.

Whether it is a photograph, a jar of balm, or a jar of honey, the discipline remains identical: to observe carefully, to decide deliberately, and to make something honest. Each piece exists to answer a question about how touch, material, and attention shape our daily experience.

That is why these notes exist. The words are not marketing; they are part of the work - a record of what was learned through the making, and a reminder that even the simplest object can carry texture, memory, and meaning.

— Len Luterbach, Maker