We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Krista Lee a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Krista, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
I didn’t set off on this soapmaking path with a purpose, or even looking for one. I like to be busy, to be in the middle of the fray and to always be learning something new. I’m a DIY junkie to the max, obsessed with self improvement and all things audiobooks! I have a passion for learning and sharing knowledge with others. Gardening has provided that for me.
I don’t remember how far back my gardening “hobby” goes. I call it a hobby, my husband might say it borders on obsession. As a child, I adored traveling to my Grandmother’s garden and helping her. I even got to pick my own pumpkin from her patch to take home and carve each year. As I grew up and became independent, finding a space for these interests was always a priority. Luckily, my husband understands (or at least pretends to) and helps me hold space for the things I love.
We were fortunate enough to find a home where I could plant multiple fruit trees and enjoy a large vegetable garden. I loved being able to provide my family with back-yard picked fruit and veggies year ‘round. I loved that I knew how my food was taken care of, what was (and wasn’t) done to them and that it didn’t come in plastic to be shipped across the country. I loved the community of people that have come with the journey and the friendships I’ve made along the way.
A friend of mine and I organize a monthly crop-swap where other like-minded people in our community meet to trade our garden/kitchen/craft bounty. We reduce food waste, reduce food packaging and amplify our efforts by collaborating with others. At one of these swaps is where I was first introduced to hand-made soap; I knew I had to try it.
I am constantly fidgeting with new ideas, pet projects and weird experiments. I’ve made my own vinegar, yogurt, vermicomposting bin, microgreens, mead and more! Soapmaking naturally fit into my usual M.O.
This one was different though, and I saw it immediately. I wasn’t bored after completing my goal of making all-natural soap, I wanted to learn more techniques, try more ingredients and break each process down where it could be mine from the ground up. I acquired seeds for calendula, yarrow, chamomile, lavender, loofah and more to grow in my garden for future ingredients. I built a solar wax melter and learned to process my own beeswax in the cleanest way possible from my hives. I press many of the flowers used in my soap and soap dishes. I have learned to distill fresh herbs/flowers for essential oils and hydrosols all from my yard. I have met the goats where my local raw goat milk comes from (I know, hubby won’t let me have goats…yet). I enjoy and am proud of each ingredient, where it comes from and how it’s processed.
I began to find purpose with soapmaking as I met those around me with similar goals and values. I love being able to provide something others need and I find purpose in educating others. If you have been to an event with my observation beehive, you know I could talk about bees all day. I like helping people understand and learn ways to take care of our bodies, how to be sustainable, reduce plastics and find better alternatives for a healthier life and earth.
Appreciate the insights and wisdom. Before we dig deeper and ask you about the skills that matter and more, maybe you can tell our readers about yourself?
We’re a small family run company in the hills of La Mesa, CA. We’re committed to quality, hyper-local, sustainable, family friendly products.
We have three small boys at home and we use a lot of soap! We grew tired of the single use plastic containers and unpronounceable ingredients and wanted something we trusted to use with our family. From there our idea grew, and raving reviews kept coming and coming from family and friends, our idea was born.
We’re avid gardeners with a passion to eat local, sustainable and clean. We grow much of our own fruits and vegetables and that passion expanded to our natural soapmaking products and ingredients. Many recipes are garden inspired (our first passion) and several contain ingredients from our own backyard, including mint, calendula, lavender, luffa , yarrow, honey and beeswax. We became passionate about growing even more of our own ingredients for our soaps and we continually strive to add to that list as well as gather other hyper-local ingredients.
We’re committed to sustainability and locally source as many ingredients as possible including our honey and goat milk, use and you will never find plastics in our packaging.
All of our website and product photos were taken by us, from our gardens and using our local ingredients, we’re kinda proud of that.
I’m excited to share that you can shop our products at Kai’s refills, an amazing zero-waste/sustainable shop for many home goods in La Mesa as well as Di’Torr Store, a beautiful gift and home decor store in Hillcrest. Dark Horse Coffee Roasters carries our coffee soap in their shops and we’re opening soon with a new gorgeous shop in Lakeside, YB Normal Designs. You can also find us popping up at the Little Italy Farmers Market Wednesdays, Hillcrest Farmers Market, Chula Vista Farmers market and La Mesa Farmers Market on occasion with more locations in the works. Stay tuned.
Thanks for checking us out!
Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?
The words that best describe success in my journey are: curious, hard-working and passion. I’m continually curious about how things work and why and I love to investigate the details along the way. I have always been hard working and have learned to follow my passions.
My advice to those starting the journey is to: 1- follow your curiosities. Research, ask questions, volunteer and get involved in areas you enjoy and want to learn more about. 2- Work hard, then work harder. It sounds like a cheesy motivational poster but it’s true. Everyone would be successful if it was easy. LUCK = Labor Under Correct Knowledge. 3- Follow your passions. Work doesn’t feel like work if you’re doing something you love. Dive into those passions and your path will find you. Don’t give up.
Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?
The biggest challenge we are tackling in our business is becoming more sustainable. We currently use no plastics in packaging and use ingredients grown from our yard and community. Majority of our oils come in refillable/plastic free containers to reduce waste but there is always more that can be done. We are working towards becoming Green Network certified through the city and look forward to making more improvements with the sustainability consultant’s recommendations.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.helixsoap.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/helixsoapco
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/helixsoapco
Image Credits
Owner photos by Ariana Brookshire Other Photos taken by Eric, Helix Soap Co
