Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Hall and Chelsea Haddad.
Hi Amanda and Chelsea, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
Hi! We’re Amanda Hall and Chelsea Haddad, the founders of Laughing Tansy. We are an herbal self-care and skin care company based in Savannah, Georgia.
We have created a line of hand-made products that are meant to nourish and support skin health as well as encourage people to engage in the act of self-care. We know that self-care is a huge buzz word right now, but we feel so strongly about its importance that we’re not backing down from using it. For us, it’s not just a fad. On top of that, we feel like our products are really fun and playful, and we try to infuse that same sense of fun into our customer’s lives.
We make products like an amber and herb infused face serum, bright blue honey and CBD face masks that make you look like a smurf, coffee infused body moisturizers, and we are really excited about our candle line that we just released!
The thing that ties all the products and our whole mission of our company together is this: We both feel strongly about the importance of using clean ingredients to care for skin. We are both very passionate about the healing power of herbs, and Chelsea, a trained herbalist, brings an extensive herbal knowledge to the formulation process to harness the power of plants in making safe and effective products. We are also on a mission to change the narrative of the beauty industry. We want to make caring for ourselves a celebration, not a response to shame we feel from the messaging coming at us from the beauty industry.
Since there’s two of us, we’re each going to take a turn telling our story:
Amanda: I wanted to start a self-care company because being a mother made me realize I was conditioned to give of myself until I was completely depleted. I hit a point where I realized my capacity to be there for others was dependent upon the care that I took of myself. At the end of the day I had to ask, “Who is taking care of me while I am taking care of everybody else?”
On top of that, I wanted to make the world a better place for my daughter. I wanted to teach her what it looks like to take care of yourself and that it doesn’t look like giving until you have nothing left. I wanted to teach her that everybody comes in different shapes and sizes and that competing with the person next to you does not mean you have won. Winning looks like inner peace, and that comes by loving yourself and others.
Chelsea: I was delighted when Amanda approached me about starting this company together. First of all, she is one of the most fun people I know.
True to our name, we actually do laugh a lot and have tons of fun together. Second of all, I have had skin struggles as an adult. Over the years I’ve gone from dealing with terrible adult acne to having skin that is healthy and that I feel comfortable in. My training in herbal medicine has been super beneficial for giving us the tools to develop formulas that use skin healing herbs and the right types of nutritive oils. Combining those and steering clear of harsh ingredients has helped my skin so much, and I feel really excited to be able to help others feel good in the skin they’re in!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
We’re laughing when we write this, but opening our business has been as smooth as opening a business in the middle of the pandemic can be.
Obstacles are the nature of being in business, so pivoting has been our motto from day one. We’ve also learned that whenever we start feeling stressed about the business, it usually means we are on the brink of growing, and we’ve learned to shift our perspective from seeing it as a negative to instead seeing it as a natural progression of growing and an opportunity for positive.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
One important piece of the ethos of our company is collaboration over competition. We highlight local businesses in Savannah and the surrounding communities on our social media platforms, and we absolutely adore cheering our community on. We also love connecting with community members in stores and at markets, as well as through social media. When we interact with the community, we are deeply committed to being our authentic selves, as silly and flawed and wonderful as that may be, and we hope that others will be the same with us.
We are so proud of our core product line! This is what we offer:
Royal Tansy CBD Honey Face Mask: a soothing mask to help combat redness and irritated skin, this mask is deeply hydrating helps support skin barrier function and healthy inflammatory levels.
Breakdown Papaya Enzyme Mask: an non-abrasive enzymatic exfoliator made from papaya enzymes, this mask will eat dead skin off your face, leaving you feeling smooth and hydrated.
Body Brew (formerly called Skin Tight): a balm infused with antioxidant rich coffee and chai spices that support skin circulation and elasticity and smells heavenly.
24 Carrot Eye Serum: a rich eye serum with the nourishing power of carrots, sea buckthorn, and our antioxidant blend to support a healthy, hydrated eye area.
Amber Glow Face Serum: Real Baltic amber, gotu kola, coffee, and high antioxidant herbs are extracted to to support healthy collagen production, healthy inflammatory levels in the skin, and offer antioxidant support. The base oils were chosen to be highly nourishing and to soak into your skin quickly, leaving you dewy, not greasy. (If we’re allowed to have a favorite, it’s this one.)
Pink Cloud Coconut Bath Milk: a soothing bath experience using real roses and calendula petals, this smells heavenly and we like to describe it as flowerfetti for your tub.
Georgia Peachy Lip Balm: this lip balm is naturally pink (we dye it with a root) but it goes on sheer. It’s silky smooth and has mango and kokum butter plus our antioxidant oil blend to nourish and protect lips.
Georgia Sweet Peach Candle: 100% soy wax, a cozy cracking wooden wick, and the sweet smell of a ripe Georgia Peach. We worked with a fragrance company that has: no carcinogens, no reproductive toxins, no mutagens, no organ toxins, no acute toxins, and no phthalates. We wanted to make a candle that smelled amazing but that you could still feel good about burning in your home.
Can you talk to us a bit about the role of luck?
We feel incredibly lucky to be in a community that loves to support local. We know that not every community is as fiercely loyal to their small businesses as Savannah, and we feel continuously and deeply grateful for that.
Contact Info:
- Email: laughingtansy@gmail.com
- Website: laughingtansy.com
- Instagram: @laughingtansy
- Facebook: laughingtansy
Image Credits:
Sarah Kohut Photography
Autumn Kulla Photography
