Taking Flight...
The egg (or the little bird)?!
I have always been intrigued how the power of a scent can spark unexpected memories transporting you back to a different time. It's incredible how our reaction to different odors, good or bad, is completely unique to our personal history with the particular scent!
For me, a whiff of a freshly baked buttery cinnamon roll reminds me of sharing one at the mall food court with my mom when I was a teen. The pungent odor of a permanent marker transports me back to awkward grade school years. And a musty, wooly blanket recalls childhood explorations in my grandparent’s attic. Yay!
The egg cracks and a loud overdue squawk!
After high school I found myself at Florida State University, following in the family footsteps as it were... and a major in studio art seemed the path of least resistance. After graduating and a period of gratuitous travel, I settled down and did a couple production jobs which later morphed into self-taught graphic design work. I landed what I thought was my forever job ~ designing for television at a 24/7 news corporation (after working for a struggling weekly newspaper and a stint at dog grooming!). But something completely unexpected happened... a decade in a highly stressful environment with its mind scrambling graveyard shifts left my shy sensitive artistic self emotionally and physically spent. I desperately longed for an escape... but was a career change even possible?
A few years ago while surfing the internet, I came across a candle making class and signed up. I loved the process, plus it forced me to be sociable and get out of my comfort zone. Soon after I signed up for another more in depth course in candle fragrance crafting, and a couple months later I found myself at a hydrosol making class. I knew I was hooked!
I wanted to explore aromatherapy and its ability to affect emotional and physical well-being. Nature has gifted us incredible building blocks ~ plant essences, oils, salts, and clays ~ that can detoxify, protect, balance, and restore our bodies and our minds. Learning that such simple natural elements have the potential to improve our lives was inspirational. Creating part of a daily care routine that was also meant to help nurture and heal felt empowering, uplifting, and strangely new.
The bald baby bird!
The universe was definitely telling me to take a step back and pause. Now was time to mend and grow. I had been making a couple personal items like sea salt spray for a few years, but I wanted to challenge myself to expand and create other exceptional goods that others might appreciate. Could my art and production backgrounds, education, and research come together to make it happen?! Good question, I needed some feathers!
The work began. I buckled down and studied materials, processes, interactions, and safety. I spent a few years collecting ingredients, researching, designing, and formulating. From conception to creation of exceptional eco-conscious products, Little Bird Apothecary is my labor of love. This includes all the design elements ~ web, graphics, and photography ~ to the packaging necessary to get it to you safe and sound!
Fledgling taking flight!
The launch of Little Bird has been scary and rewarding. I continue to reflect, research, and learn as I strive to improve and grow as an artist, crafter, professional, and female small business owner. It’s my mission to create cruelty free small batch artisan products that are simple, pure, effective, and purposeful with just the right amount of ingredients and some artistic flair.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing this journey with me,
Erin
