Solana Simply
Meet the Maker of Solana
“My name is Linnea Steffy, I grew up on a farm in East Tennessee and graduated from the University of Tennessee in 2015. I live in Knoxville with my incredible husband and our two Siberian Huskies!
In 2018, my mom was diagnosed with stage 4 mantle cell lymphoma, which is a very rare form of Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. As I watched my mom's journey through chemotherapy, radiation, and a stem cell transplant, I started learning about what causes cancer and the carcinogens we are exposed to in our everyday life. I am now a passionate advocate for clean living and consumer awareness about environmental toxins.
I didn't set out to start a business; I actually started by making candles because I couldn't find an affordable candle on the market with ingredients I could get behind. My husband and friends convinced me to sell what I was making, so I started an Instagram in December 2020 during the pandemic, and it grew into Solana!
Sustainability and ingredient transparency are extremely important to me. I source all of our ingredients from small businesses (primarily woman-owned) that are based in the US, and choose the highest quality ingredients available that are sustainably and ethically sourced. We avoid plastic in all of our processes including making, packaging, and shipping, we use recycled and recyclable shipping materials, and we refill our products for our local Knoxville customers to reduce waste.
I am inspired every day by the incredible people who believe in my products and support my brand, by the female entrepreneurs and makers in my community who lift me up, and by my mom, who is currently in remission! I believe that consumers have the power to create change by supporting conscious, small brands like Solana and local makers in their community.”
Waterbody Skincare
Meet the Maker of Waterbody Skincare
“I’m the Founder and creator of Waterbody, and I have the incredible honor of spending my days immersed in Southeast Alaska’s misty, forested, blue green coastal beauty.
Time spent in wild places has always been the greatest reset button for my whole self. In the woods, on the water, under the stars; removed from the noise and expectations of the world; living in rhythmic union with winds, tides, and waves; I can feel parts of myself coming home. Old skins shedding, new joys sparkling up, and a spirited sense of lightness and freedom.
In these wild places, I connect to the truest parts of me. I come to intimately know and love the beauty and utility of my body. And I feel intrinsically connected to, restored, and changed by the natural world.
I created Waterbody to hold on to those feelings, and to share them with others. To help you access that same sense of wildness, that deep connection to self and to nature. To celebrate Alaska’s wild nature, and invite you in to this landscape, all through the simple but sacred daily rituals of caring for our bodies.
Blending a love affair with Alaska’s landscape, a dedication to actively loving on our bodies, and a commitment to living in close union with the Earth, Waterbody is my offering to you: wildly natural skincare that is both good to your body and kind to the Earth.”
-Angie Flickinger