While in Costa Rica on a study-abroad trip to learn about animal behavior, Brandie Maraziti, 24, found inspiration in an unfamiliar setting. There, she was motivated to make natural bath and beauty products.
“It was my first time out of the U.S., and they have a totally different way of life [there],” Maraziti said.
After her Costa Rica trip, Maraziti said, she wanted to learn more about plants and herbs and how they could be used.
The students on the study-abroad trip went on guided tours and learned about how the locals in the area used the plants that surrounded them, Maraziti said.
“I started making my own sugar scrubs, like you see on Pinterest, and it just went from there,” Maraziti said.
Maraziti started her own business, Blue Morpho Apothecary, in December 2011. She makes and packages all of her products herself.
The name for her business originates from one of the butterflies that Maraziti said she saw often during her time in Costa Rica.
“I was inspired by its beauty,” Maraziti said.
The first product that Maraziti sold was a “bath bomb.” She said these products moisturize skin in the bathtub as a person soaks in the tub.
“I’ve done lots of research,” Maraziti said. “I make different products based on different ailments.”
Some of Maraziti’s customers make special requests, and she makes custom products for them.
“One of my friends has psoriasis, and I make a special cream for her,” Maraziti said.
Her products include scrubs, lip balms, lotions and liquid soap, Maraziti said.
Maraziti makes her products to order and said the farthest she has shipped one of her products is Luxembourg.
There are benefits to using natural products on your skin, she said.
“One of the benefits is knowing exactly what’s in your product,” Maraziti said. “I always list all of the ingredients on the label.”
She said the listing of ingredients on her labels allows customers to get to know the product, along with the person who is making it. Instead of using fragrance oils to add scents to her products, Maraziti uses essential oils.
Aside from her full-time job at a foot and ankle clinic in Conway, Maraziti said, making natural bath products allows her to relieve stress after work.
“It’s a hobby, and I’m hoping to turn it into my ‘real’ job,” Maraziti said.
She said she would like to someday open a brick-and-mortar store to sell her products in a retail environment, but until then, Maraziti said, she will continue selling her products online.
Maraziti’s favorite product to make is what she calls a “3-in-1 bar.”
“It’s made with cocoa butter
and sugar,” Maraziti said. “It basically exfoliates, cleanses and moisturizes at the same time.”
More information about Blue Morpho Apothecary is available at www.etsy.com/shop/MyBlueMorpho.
Staff writer Lisa Burnett can be reached at (501)244-4307 or lburnett@arkansasonline.com.