Milkweed Health and Harmony Emporium
Material Goods/Craft/Flea/Art
About
From their home base in Hopkinsville, KY, just a few miles north of the KY/TN border, Julie-Anna and Taylor Carlisle create a variety of healthy and artistic items that they sell both at their storefront and online at milkweedstore.com. Their handmade creations range from all-natural soaps (and other body products) to primitive leather bags and ceramics. Julie-Anna brings a wealth of creative force to the venture. In addition to holding a BFA in Fine art from Austin Peay State University and being an accomplished photographer and artist, she has worked for arts organizations and conducted workshops and classes. Taylor has lived a creative life through wood, leather, pottery, and words while enjoying a career as an English professor. Through Milkweed, the couple puts it all together in the shape of a business and hopes to provide a variety of products and services that model healthy living, encourage mindfulness, and stimulate creativity. The Nashville Farmer’s Market is their first retail adventure outside of Hopkinsville.
Programs and Partners
Production Practices
Milkweed soap starts with a blend of organic, extra-virgin, unrefined coconut oil; organic, extra-virgin, unrefined shea butter; sweet almond oil; and castor bean oil. Notice, shea butter is the second ingredient, which is why our soap is so moisturizing. This collection of vegetable oils follows many years of personal research and experimentation and achieves what we believe is the best combination of sudsing, conditioning, and cleansing. Each soap variety gets special embellishments, such as 100% pure therapeutic grade essential oils and various botanicals and clays in order to obtain certain effects and benefits. All colors are natural. We don’t use any iron oxides that, while giving some soap vivid color, can contain harmful heavy metals.
Milkweed Moisturizer is a simple blend of rosewater, almond oil, and beeswax. The amount of beeswax we put in makes this moisturizer firm to the touch, but as soon as you start rubbing it on your warm skin, it becomes soft and caressing. Since the beeswax is a natural binding agent, we don’t have to use stearic acid or any such emulsification chemicals to bind the rosewater and almond oil together. Almond oil is gentle enough for a baby’s skin and is thought to provide UV protection and vitamins E and A.
Milkweed lip balm is moisturizing, giving your lips a hefty dose of conditioner. It’s not waxy like that stuff Suzy Chapstick used to put on her lips before hitting the ski slopes. Our lip balm will absorb into your lips, healing and protecting from the inside out. The base recipe consists of castor bean oil, organic jojoba oil, organic extra virgin coconut oil, and vegetable glycerin. As with all of our products, it’s gluten and soy free.
Location
Hopkinsville, KY
Manager
Julie-Anna Carlisle
“I started Milkweed Health and Harmony Emporium in 2015 as a way to combine my interests in natural products, wellness, sustainability, and art. I had been making soap, moisturizer, and lip balm for many years, and I knew many people were like me and needed an alternative to the sometimes harsh and unsustainable commercial products available. I also realized that people just needed help and encouragement in living natural, harmonious lives. I come from a long line of small-town entrepreneurs, where, as a child, I was a junior grease-monkey, “working” alongside my grandfather in his gas station/deli that he and my grandmother owned in the tiny Kentucky community of Kettle. I loved being a part of a small business and learned from my grandparents that everyone deserves fairness and respect; their neighbors and customers were like a second family. As a young adult, I realized that I was an artist at heart, so, after having three lovely children and dissolving a failed marriage, I pursued, and eventually received, a B.F.A. in studio arts (photography concentration) from Austin Peay State University in 2003. Along the way, I presented arts-related programs to local schools, private groups and domestic violence shelters. Between that time and 2015, I paid my career dues with various tough but rewarding jobs including Arts Education Coordinator, Librarian Assistant, and Youth Workforce Development Coordinator. I also met and married my soul-mate and together we raised our children and finally opened our dream store, Milkweed. I continue to pursue my art, especially through photography, showing my work in regional galleries and juried shows, and, of course, at Milkweed.” --Julie-Anna
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