Loree Powell, left, of Dutton, has opened an herb and gift shop on Main Street in Gloucester. Her daughter, Alexis, shown, helps out with the family business. Photo by Sherry Hamilton

The Nurtury, a new apothecary and gift shop on Main Street in Gloucester, offers herbs, herb-based body products, and an assortment of handmade gifts. Everything in the shop is from local and regional herbalists and craftsmen, and owner Loree Powell of Dutton and her family make many of the products themselves.

Inside the shop, shelves are chock-full of fragrant plant products with names like alfalfa leaf, calendula petals, slippery elm and yarrow powder. Powell makes a variety of hand creams, soaps, shampoos, all-natural cleaners, pet insect repellants and other products from the herbs, which she grows in her own garden.

Alfalfa leaf is great for every part of the body, she said, while calendula petals make a wrinkle cream that "costs less than what you buy at the store, and you can pronounce everything that’s in it."

On the gift side of the shop, Powell carries wooden bowls and wine stoppers, handmade jewelry, quilted and hand-sewn jackets, handbags and hand-painted glassware. There are also Christmas ornaments and painted glass bottle hummingbird feeders, as well as an assortment of other items.

"We’ll always be having new things," said Powell. "That’s the nature of creative people."

For the weary shopper, there’s a sitting area where tea and cupcakes are served, and there’s a play area for small children.

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