Lather and Soul

Morning Ritual - The make, cut, + chatting on YouTube
"Maybe I'm more successful than I think"

After ten years of running my small business, I'm still learning that sometimes the little things are actually the big things. So maybe I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be.

https://youtu.be/n1Yy9Qtxxhk

The soap sold out. The mission didn’t. 💜

Every single bar of “Root + Rise” sold out, + I cannot thank you enough for the love + support you’ve shown this very personal Suds for Change release.

But we’re not done just yet.

I managed to get my hands on a small amount of the original fragrance, which means “Root + Rise” is back for a limited encore… this time as a parfum!

Featuring the same warm, comforting + flower agate crystals, these little bottles carry the same symbolism of grounding, growth, confidence, renewal, + rebirth.

+ most importantly, 25% of proceeds from every parfum will be donated to DOVE, Inc. (Domestic Violence Ended), a Massachusetts organization supporting survivors of domestic violence.

Whether you missed out on the soap, fell in love with the fragrance, or simply want another way to support this cause, here’s your chance.

“Root + Rise” parfums are available NOW, in very limited quantities.

To root is to find solid ground again. To rise is to grow from it.

Buckle up, it’s gonna be a long one because I have a lot to say + my heart is swollen with joy. 🥹

This weekend I packed up my little business + brought it to Providence on Saturday, then turned around to do it all over again in Boston on Sunday. 𝑩𝒐𝒕𝒉 𝒎𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒆𝒕𝒔 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒂𝒃𝒔𝒐𝒍𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒓𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆.

By Sunday night my social battery was somewhere around -47%. I passed out on my couch embarrassingly early, but this is the kind of exhaustion that feels worth it.

Markets are a LOT. There’s the prep, packing, setting up, standing + talking for hours, breaking everything back down, loading the car AGAIN, driving home, + somehow finding the will to unload it. Sometimes you wake up the next morning + do the whole damn thing again. But weekends like this remind me why I still love doing this after 10 years.

There is something incredibly special about watching people experience the things I make in person. Watching someone smell something + immediately light up. Seeing familiar faces come back to restock. Meeting people who have followed my little corner of the internet + finally get to shop with me in person. Hearing someone turn to their friend, “stop, you GOT to smell this.” It’s the connection.

I spend so much of my time working by myself, formulating by myself, making everything by myself, packing orders by myself. Most days it’s just me, my thoughts, + a YouTube video I have playing in the background.

Then I get weekends like this where I get to actually see the people on the other side of all of it.

Somehow, in the middle of all of that, something else happened this weekend that hit me on a completely different level.

Root + Rise officially sold out.

I knew when I created this soap that it was different. I wasn’t just making something pretty. I was sharing a piece of my own story as a survivor of domestic violence. Creating this meant taking something that came from one of the hardest chapters of my life + turning it into something that could hopefully do a little bit of good for someone else.

25% of the proceeds from every bar will be donated to DOVE, Inc., an organization that was once a resource for me when I needed one. 𝑨𝒏𝒅 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚 𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒍𝒆 𝒃𝒂𝒓 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒈𝒐𝒏𝒆.

Some of you bought one because you loved the soap, or the cause meant something to you personally. Some of you shared pieces of your own stories with me. Some simply wanted to support an organization doing incredibly important work. Whatever your reason was, you became part of this with me.

Now something born from that chapter of my life is helping support the kind of organization that helped me survive it. I don’t think I’ll ever be able to adequately explain what that feels like.

Yes, my body is tired. My social battery needs approximately 3-5 business days to recharge. But my heart? My heart is so freaking full.

Thank you, Providence + Boston. Thank you to everyone who stopped at my booth, bought something, came back to see me, told me your story, made me laugh, or simply took a moment to appreciate something I made with my own two hands. Even more, thank you for helping Root + Rise become something bigger than me.

I have always believed that every action, large or small has a rippling effect. I stand ten toes down in that belief.

It’s why I choose to find ways to pay it forward with my small business, even if it means I can donate $100, $200, or more. Or less. Every dollar matters.

The new Root + Rise soaps are more than half sold, which means there are others who empathize with my pain, have lived that pain, + want this pain to stop for others.

I will never get justice for the assault I’ve endured. Reading all the headlines over the past several days, there are so many women who will never see justice either. But I already knew this.

However my justice is that I’ve survived. My justice is rebuilding my life + finding love again. My justice is knowing in spite of everything this world has thrown at me, my heart is still soft. My heart is still open + cares deeply. My justice is that I am not broken. My justice is that I can still smile + laugh loudly. My justice is that I am free.

To any person struggling, you are not defined by what happened to you. It is only one chapter. You get to write the rest of the book. You didn’t deserve it, + it’s not your fault.

+ perhaps that’s where the ripple begins. One person survives. One person speaks. One person reaches back for someone else.

We keep choosing softness. We keep choosing hope. We keep choosing to rise. Then little by little, those ripples become waves.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month, and while making Root + Rise, I'm sharing a little of my own story and why this soap means so much to me. Link to the Youtube Video is in the comments.

Today marks the beginning of Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

This is one of those causes that will always hit deeper for me. Because I know what it’s like to have to start over. I’ve lived + walked this path. I know what it’s like to slowly find your footing again after spending so much time questioning yourself, your worth, your reality, + your own voice.

I also know how important it is to have resources available when you’re trying to figure out what comes next.

DOVE was one of those resources for me when I was navigating leaving my own abusive marriage. + now I get to pay it forward + knew exactly where I wanted the proceeds to go.

Each soap is topped with flower agate, chosen for grounding, growth, confidence, renewal, + rebirth.

Root + Rise is about more than what someone survived. It’s what comes after:

Finding solid ground. Rebuilding. Rediscovering. Learning to trust yourself. Resetting your nervous system. Growing into a life that feels like yours again.

25% of proceeds from every Root + Rise bar will be donated to DOVE, Inc. (Domestic Violence Ended) throughout October.

Root + Rise is available right now.

For every survivor who had to start over, this one’s for you.

To 𝚛𝚘𝚘𝚝 is to find solid ground again. To 𝚛𝚒𝚜𝚎 is to grow from it.

I’ve been holding onto these flower agates for a while, waiting for the right reason to use them.

Known as a stone of grounding, comfort, self-growth, confidence, renewal + rebirth, I knew exactly what I wanted them to represent.

+ with the headlines we’ve been seeing these past several days, sharing this today feels especially poignant.

October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month.

𝚁𝚘𝚘𝚝 + 𝚁𝚒𝚜𝚎
A new Suds for Change soap coming October 1. 25% of proceeds donated to DOVE, Inc..

Come hang out with me while I make my cutest soap, Pumpkin + Ember, and chat about life, motherhood, and one of the worst events I've done. Link in the comments 👇🏻

Let me tell you about this weekend…

Wonderful.
Heartwarming.
Soul filling.
Affirming.

Earlier last week, I had talked about the importance of markets, how small businesses use them as a substantial part of their income, + how crushing it can be when the weather has other plans in mind.

But a Nor’easter didn’t stop you. Instead you happily grabbed your wellies, your raincoat, an umbrella, + a smile, took off to Briggs Garden and Cafe, sipped on one of their seasonal caramel apple lattes from the cafe, + showed your undying support of your local small businesses.

To feel loved by the community… how do you even begin to say thank you?! Honestly, how? Then one of my customers showed me the fortune she got in her fortune cookie last week, made it a point to save it, + then give it to me yesterday. She was out enjoying yummy food, the company of her family, + her fortune made her think of my business + how much she loves my products.

If that doesn’t capture customer love, I don’t know what else could.

So thank you for reminding me how amazing my community is. I get to live my dream because of you.

xoxo,
Pam 💋