Bug Off — What’s In It and Why We Made It
Every summer we get asked some version of the same question at the market.
Do you have anything for bugs?
For a while, the answer was no. We were focused on facial skincare and we didn’t want to throw something together just to fill a gap on the table. We’ve never made products that way and we weren’t going to start.
Then we actually sat down and formulated something. We looked at what plants have documented insect-repelling properties, how different formats serve different needs, and what we’d actually want to use ourselves on a long evening at the farm. And we didn’t stop at one product. We made two, because a mist and a salve do genuinely different things and there are times when you want both.
Bug Off is now one of the first things people reach for from May through August. Here’s everything that went into it.
Why We Made Them the Way We Did
Most conventional bug sprays work. We’re not going to pretend they don’t because plenty of them do exactly what they say. But they also contain ingredients that a lot of people would rather not put on their skin or their kids’ skin, DEET being the most obvious example. That’s a personal decision and we respect it. But for people who’ve already switched to cleaner skincare and are paying attention to what goes on their bodies, reaching for a conventional repellent spray in the middle of summer feels like undoing a lot of intentional choices.
We wanted to make something that worked, was made from plants we actually trust, and didn’t require you to hold your breath while applying it. Something you’d feel good handing to your kid or spraying on your face. Both products are built around that same standard. Real botanicals with documented repellent properties. Nothing synthetic and nothing you have to second-guess.
Bug Off Botanical Mist
The mist is a hydrosol-based spray built entirely from distilled plant waters. Because it’s hydrosol-based, it’s light, absorbs clean, and leaves no sticky or greasy residue. The botanical compounds are already in a bioavailable, water-soluble form that goes directly onto skin without needing to be diluted or processed.
Catnip distillate is the one that always gets a reaction at the market. People laugh. Then we tell them about nepetalactone, the compound responsible for catnip’s effect on cats, and that it’s been studied and found to be genuinely effective as an insect repellent, particularly against mosquitoes and ticks. Then people stop laughing and start buying. It earns its place in the formula!
Lavender distillate is calming on skin and insects alike. It repels and it soothes simultaneously, which means if you do end up with a bite, lavender is still doing useful work. It also contributes a beautiful, grounding scent that makes the mist genuinely pleasant to use.
Lemon balm distillate is a member of the mint family with a gentle citrusy character. Insects tend to avoid it and skin tends to love it. It’s anti-inflammatory and calming and it softens the overall scent profile of the blend in a way that feels intentional rather than medicinal.
Yarrow distillate is one of the most storied plants in herbal medicine with a history that goes back thousands of years. For skin, it’s astringent, anti-inflammatory, and protective. As part of a repellent blend, it contributes an herbaceous, slightly medicinal quality that rounds out the formula.
Peppermint distillate adds a genuine cooling sensation that feels especially good in summer heat. It’s refreshing on application and the intensity of the scent is part of what contributes to the repellent effect.
We also include a radish root ferment filtrate as a natural preservative. It keeps the formula stable without synthetic preservatives, which matters to us because the whole point of this product is that it’s clean.
To use: shake gently before each spray since the distillates can separate slightly. Mist generously over exposed skin before going outside. You can spray it directly on your face with your eyes closed, on your arms, neck, behind your knees, wherever you need coverage. Reapply every couple of hours or sooner if you’re sweating heavily or in and out of water.
Bug Off Pulse Point Herbal Salve
The salve is a completely different format designed for targeted, longer-lasting protection. Where the mist gives you broad coverage that refreshes easily, the salve gives you a concentrated barrier at pulse points that holds up over time. They’re complementary, not competing.
The base is our pasture-raised pork tallow combined with sweet almond oil that’s been infused with responsibly foraged catnip and rosemary. Tallow as a base matters here because it creates a breathable occlusive layer on skin. It doesn’t just sit on the surface either. It works with skin’s natural lipid structure, which means the botanicals it’s carrying have better contact with skin than they would in a synthetic base.
Catnip in the oil infusion brings the nepetalactone repellent properties again, this time in a slow-release fat-soluble format that stays on skin longer than a water-based spray. Rosemary has its own insect-deterring properties and has appeared in natural repellent formulas for a long time for good reason.
Locally-sourced beeswax gives the salve its texture and helps it hold on skin rather than absorbing immediately. That staying power is exactly what you want at a pulse point application.
The essential oil blend is doing the heavy lifting on scent profile and repellent depth. Litsea cubeba has a bright, intensely citrusy quality that insects avoid and that smells genuinely good on skin. Peppermint cools and repels and adds a familiar freshness. Sweet basil is a surprisingly effective repellent and contributes a clean, slightly sweet herbal note that keeps the blend from reading as heavy or medicinal. Cedarwood grounds everything with a warm, woodsy quality. It’s also one of the most well-documented natural insect repellents there is, particularly effective against certain biting insects.
To use: apply to pulse points where you naturally generate heat: wrists, inner elbows, behind the knees, neck, ankles. It will absorb into skin rather than sitting on top, so you get lasting coverage without feeling like you’re wearing anything. Reapply every few hours as needed.
Using Them Together
Both products work on their own and both are worth having. But they work especially well as a system.
Start with the salve on pulse points before you go outside. Those areas generate heat and warmth helps diffuse the scent, which is part of what creates the repellent effect. Then mist the botanical spray broadly over exposed skin for full coverage. Throughout the day, refresh with the mist as needed. The salve at your pulse points will keep working underneath it the whole time.
It’s a low-effort routine that covers a lot of ground and uses nothing you’d hesitate to put on your skin.
Seasonal. Small batch. Grab both here while they’re available, or find us every Saturday at the Downtown Des Moines Farmers Market.
