Dear Jamie: A Local Beauty Brand to Watch Out For

A few weeks ago, I stumbled across the Dear Jamie brand while taping the third season of The Parent Files at The Parenting Emporium. Their sleep tincture begged to be bought and Maricel of Parenting Emporium warned me that if I didn’t have the time to sleep a full 8 hours on it, I might run the risk of feeling jet-lagged throughout the day. I was too intrigued not to take it home.

My husband Carl and I tried it that night and became instant fans. On nights when the stress from work seems overwhelming or when thoughts dance through your head making the chance for restful sleep slim, half a dropper-full of this wonder potion really works.

I was impressed that I decided to ask Dear Jamie‘s owner Angeli to share more about the brand for my readers. Learn more about Dear Jamie and their other products below.

How did Dear Jamie start?

Growing up with allergies and sensitive skin can be frustrating, sometimes even the drugstore meds that made me better had a certain side effect that causes other allergies to surface and that had me looking for better natural alternatives. I find that in this quest the more I use natural products the longer I go without the daily random rash I usually experience. Dear Jamie started after attending a series of workshop with one of the best mindful makers we know and love today, Ana Gutierrez. What started as something I wanted to create for myself and for my family blossomed to a business when I gave out the things I made to family and friends during the Christmas time of 2015, and got requests of repeat sets only this time they’re not getting it for free they actually wanted to pay for it so I can make more for them. It overwhelmed me at first but then through the guidance of Ana and my constant research I started making small batches and the line expanded as my needs and the rest of my family’s concerns surfaced. This time wearing my Mr. fix it hat, I made one remedy after another from soaps, to body wash, scrubs, to healing balms, to sleep solutions, to the modern apothecary arsenal that we have on our product line today. Each mindfully made with no shortcuts. and long testing periods.

It’s a unique name for a brand. Can you share the story behind it?

Jamie is a fictional character with a gender-neutral name symbolizing my hypothetical child who I may or may not have in the future. I’ve always been fickle about having kids, sometimes I think because I’m so career oriented that I may not be able to parent one well. Real or reel / fact or fiction, My thoughts linger to the moments I would care for an actual child and the many stories, life lessons and messages I would impart to him or her. Dear Jamie handmade soaps and modern apothecary is for all the Jamies of the world—dedicated to each person who will experience our bath and modern apothecary care line; to each individual going through a happy or rough stage in life; and to each living soul wanting the most out of everyday. Jamie is you, your spouse, your friend, or your loved one. Each Dear Jamie soap is meticulously wrapped in a semi-transparent paper representing clear thoughts and easily perceived feelings. As you open each soap, the packaging reveals carefully written notes of love, comfort and advice for Jamie’s milestones and fleeting moments she will experience. On the how to use section of some Dear Jamie products you’ll also find reminders not just on how to use the product but pieces of advice that might help with your usual struggle growing up. I.e. stress at work, being beautiful, being careful where you go, bad hair days, complicating things, letting go etc. Because every Jamie will feel different emotions in his/her life—happiness, sadness, triumph, defeat, anger, disgust, melancholy, self-loathing, surprise, anxiety, revulsion and many more. With different moods, sentiments and circumstances, each lather (and letter) and handmade remedy will remind Jamie of his or her mother’s words—gentle, aromatic and affectionate—feelings that will hopefully linger the rest of Jamie’s life.

Which products are you most proud of?

Being the brains and crafter of Dear Jamie, it’s really hard to answer this question. I feel one product will be tampo of the other when I pick *laughs*. Hmmm.. But I am most proud of the deep sleep tincture, which I made because I always find it hard to sleep at night tossing and turning until dawn and getting only 3-4 hrs. of sleep. I usually wake up tired. After 4 hard and long attempts at making a tincture that will work for me, I shared it with my brother and some friends who I usually talk to at the wee hours because we all have trouble sleeping. I was hesitant to include it at first in our product line but was so surprised at the number of people who has the same sleep condition as myself. After launching it in a small batch of 20 bottles, the requests kept coming and growing and I had to make them wait another 90 days for the next batch to cure. Clients have been kind enough to wait on it and as a mindful maker I truly appreciate their patience on the craft. The magnesium line is gaining attention as and our soaps.

Which products were the hardest to formulate?

The Magnesium Lotion and Deep Sleep Tincture definitely. For when other products took only a day or two to formulate after research, and then proceed with testing. These two took me months, so much research and sleepless nights to get the right amount of magnesium and butters, and to make the right portions of herbs in the tincture, I need to make sure I make something that will work immediately AND safely, longer curing time, longer testing time, longer everything but proved worth the effort in the end, I even had tears in my eyes the very first day I woke up feeling recharged and not tired at all when I used them both. It was surreal.

You seem to use magnesium quite a bit in your products; can you share how you discovered that?

I accidentally came across magnesium as I was researching for something that would help for my migraines and nighttime cramps. I cannot believe that it opened a whole array of things it can heal. There are over 300 types cells in our body that rely on magnesium to be healthy, and most of us walk around with a pretty serious deficiency hence the migraine, mood swings, cramps, low energy, palpitations, depression, panic attacks, fatigue, anxiety, tension, feeling tired and even trouble getting a shut eye at night. From my research I found out that this amazing mineral is a miracle worker for our overall health. It inspired me to make good use of magnesium and find the most efficient way we can get more of it and use it daily.

Who do you formulate your products for?

Honestly, for myself. Because remember, I am allergy girl, and sleepless girl, and easily bruised girl. *laughs* I do not have a single product in the Dear Jamie line that I did not need first. Then after myself, for my family. My family is the most brutal guinea pigs I ever had. It forced me to deal with honest product issues at it arise on R&D stages. I am a very OC person, and I have no chill. I take things standing up with a sense of urgency and pour my heart and mind to it, and knowing I have a set of allies that will not sugarcoat things for me helps in making a larger batch for the market to enjoy and experience something that is not made haphazardly just to sell.

What makes you different from other beauty/wellness brands?

I think what makes us different is that we don’t just create products, we create memories attached to them. Memories of comfort, relief, relaxation, letting go and carefully formulating every mindful remedy. In a world where everything has become tainted with harsh chemicals, our skin suffers. We believe that organic all natural should be an honest to goodness advocacy and not just something we loosely say and put on our label. Also the focus of our line is apothecary, in olden days the term is used to describe a neighborhood botika with hebs and concoctions they bring home to cure their ill loved ones. Today we think of that and imagine a barriotic albolaryo and I wanted to take away the stigma that comes with it through our modern apothecary line. It is still all plant based, only this time we supplement it with essential oils and the finest raw materials naturally available to us. That coupled with a series of life talk that comes with the packaging and on each Instagram post and I guess little by little we’ll see the modern apothecary with fresh eyes in a different light.

Where can people try your products? We have pop-up bazaars we attend and post our schedule of events on our Instagram handle. Half of our products for momma and baby care are also available at The Parenting Emporium. We believe in their advocacy of shared parenting and that it takes a whole village to raise a child.

Is there anything else you’d like to add? At Dear Jamie, we don’t overpromise or perform miracles. Dear Jamie is all about happy people making better discoveries about themselves. We go back to basics and simply use all natural herbs, flowers, extracts, raw materials, and essential oils for our bath and modern apothecary care line. The best natural tonics for beautiful skin and well being are of course, fresh air, exercise, nutritious food, plenty of sleep, relaxation, and a good support system in your inner circle—but with some Dear Jamie products in your arsenal, you have the recipe for a healthy, happy, mindful living life.

Dear Jamie Products can be purchased online via Instagram or Email: dearjamie.ph@gmail.com

You can also send an SMS to +63 917 8703263.

They can also visit The Parenting Emporium at #29 1st street, New Manila QC. +63 917 6247246

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