About Me...

My passion for skin and skin care started when I turned 18 and had my first real acne breakout. It was seemingly overnight, and was pretty severe.  I had never had acne before and this was unexpected and I had no idea how to deal with it.  It was painful and I had trouble hiding it with makeup.  After going to the dermatologist and given an oral medication, I felt so helpless in the face of this new problem.  I wasn't given any advice on how to clear up my skin which physically hurt and caused me shame.

I went several years battling acne and also started developing rosacea which wasn't diagnosed at the time.  The otc treatments for acne worsened my rosacea and caused some permanent skin discoloration. I learned how to put on my makeup in such a way as to hide most of my redness and uneven texture.  I lived in fear of my makeup getting rubbed off and exposing my 'disfiguring' acne.  It was very stressful.  

I was good enough at hiding my acne that I was hired by a store to sell Dior makeup.  This gave me a boost in my abilities and it made me want to help others 'hide' their 'flaws'.  After working there, I was hired as makeup artist for a day spa and that is when my journey towards being an esthetician began.

I would often have to wait for customers at the front where we sold our skincare.  It was during my down-time that I would read over ingredient lists and then write things down and search in books (before internet!) about these ingredients. I learned enough that the estheticians would actually ask my advice on which products to recommend.

I decided to go to esthetics school to get my license so I could help others with their skin woes.  I flew through esthetic school and then started working as an esthetician.  It was not what I'd expected!  Most of what estheticians learned was through marketing from the companies that sold the products.  If you didn't like a product from a brand, you were treated by the store managers and product reps as though there was something wrong with your thinking.  You had to go along with what was being told to customers as if it were true even if you discovered that it wasn't. It was eye opening but frustrating!

I navigated this over the years by picking products piecemeal from the brands we carried.  I always wished that I had more to offer my clients though.   

Finally, after many years, I opened my own spa and have never looked back!  I was free to be honest with my clients, which they VERY much appreciated and would search for products for them that would benefit their particular needs.  I still felt frustrated however, because I often wished there were products that were 'perfect' or close to perfect, but that wasn't a reality. 

Before starting my own business, I had started battling autoimmune issues and began a journey into natural living and health to find out how I could heal and live a better quality of life.  It was during this initial stage that I found out that much of what we eat and alot of what we put on our bodies can affect our health in dramatic and life changing ways.  I took biology courses and also taught myself basic nutrition and studied (and continue to study) herbal medicine.  

I finally decided, I wanted to create my own skincare line. One that had potent actives for real change, but also SUPER clean and free of comedogenic and hormone disrupting ingredients.  I first contacted a chemist and had them formulate a serum for me, but after literally a year of back and forth on it, I decided to learn on my own and do it myself.  The way chemist's work is VASTLY different from the way a holistic esthetician with real, hands on experience does.  I would constantly have to 'educate' the chemist on why I did not want certain ingredients because they were looking at it from a 'how will this serum appear to the customer' way, and I was looking at it from 'how will this affect their skin' way!  

I set up a small lab, bought some small equipment and began teaching myself cosmetic chemistry.  It was a process!  Much trial and error but after my first successful serum was made, and it tested negative for bacterial or mold growth, I was beyond happy!  I offered my clients the test batches and was met with much excitement and encouragement!  My clients gave me invaluable feedback and for that, I am extremely grateful!  Most of them continue to use my products and rave about them today!  They have been my biggest advocates!

Now, about my line.  I formulated it with the intent of having the cleanest line possible, with the least amount of unnecessary ingredients, but with the highest amount of actives to give your skin JUST what it needs, nothing extraneous or unnecessary.  This means, my serums may not be clear in color, because that requires adding chemicals that are unnecessary and only add to the aesthetic value of the product. I also do NOT and NEVER will use any micro plastics because these can penetrate the skin, circulate throughout your body and possibly disrupt hormone function.  They also end up in our water systems and near break down!  NOT good!

My desire is to have a line that feels great on your skin, protects and nourishes it and is completely safe!  I also know from my studies that the top layer of skin, the stratum corneum, is very impenetrable to most things (the first line of defense for our immune systems! But impedes product delivery!  To overcome that, I incorporate two natural and harmless ingredients to push actives deep so they can actually DO something! 

 I welcome any and all feedback as we can all continually learn and grow! So, feel free to message me and I will try to respond as soon as possible!

Thank you for looking into and trying Celula, it is my passion and I want you to consider it yours too!