3 Years In…
It all begins with an idea.
It started in 2022. But it truly began in the early 2000s, when I first fell in love with naturopathic formulations. Or did it begin in the ‘90s, when I pretended to be a witch and made “potions” to test on my little sister?
A robbery, a traumatic cross-country move, a trip to Italy, and a wedding gift all crashed together to push me over the ledge, and I opened an Etsy store. I infused each herbal oil by hand, one by one. I set up a dedicated room, printed labels, purchased supplies & packaging, and started my formulations. Each month, I expanded my breadth. Each batch was better than the last. Before long, my products were getting traction. It started with witchy stuff, and it quickly snowballed until I had developed a focus and discovered what was and wasn’t working. Now, this grand project is a perfect balance of herbal art and science-supported healing.
All of my research is taken directly from clinical studies (National Library of Medicine/Pubmed), not distilled articles or think pieces (Links to research can be found on the Facts & Research page, and if you have any interesting or informative links, please share them!).
What is my philosophy? I know that every living being deserves respect and safety, that sex work is work, that ancient wisdom is priceless, and that energy is powerful.
I have a full-time job, but I find myself getting lost in Butterbitten as a joyful procrastination. It feeds my desire to accomplish goals, solve problems, relieve burnout, and create magic. This is just the beginning. My self-doubt can’t see the future expansion, but based on my (relative to similar businesses) rapid growth, it must be logical that the next few years are full of momentum.
I am working on a patent for my Simplexa formula, because it’s incredible. It’s remarkably effective, it contains a combination of ingredients that I’ve never seen in any other product, and I truly see it changing the landscape of HSV treatment. Pharmaceutical companies and big businesses have been spending years looking for a new topical treatment for herpes; while I don’t believe they’d ever blend something like this properly, and their product would lack several active synergistic compounds, this recipe is valuable. Technically, it should be priced much higher. Personally, if I was shopping this site, I would get in while I’m still ignorant about accurate pricing! This level of ingredient value is part of the reason that no other formulations can match mine (that I’ve seen) - there is a significantly higher cost to include all of these ingredients. Not only do we have the Herpes Heavy Hitters (lemon balm, olive leaf, propolis, turkey rhubarb), a variety of supporting herbs/resins/extracts fill in any gaps and add luxurious full-spectrum skin nourishment & repair. I’ve searched, and all other HSV products tend to include only 1-4 herbal ingredients. OTC cold sore treatments tend to be “workarounds” to lessen irritation. It should be stated that OTC and herbal remedies are not a substitute for prescription medicines! They are intended to work in tandem with pharmaceutical treatments, for severe cases that can’t be managed without medication.
I can’t wait to look back at this first blog post, one year from now!
The Dangers of Stigma
It all begins with an idea.
They say that silence is death.
(Placeholder for future post - I want to launch this site ASAP)