My name is Kelly Mai and I grew up in Ban Mê Thuột, Vietnam. During my youth, my family didn’t have enough medicine. Fortunately, the city that I lived in was sur- rounded by mountains and lush forest. As a result, my mother would use herbs to treat and cure illnesses for our family.
When I think about my mother and her use of herbs, one story from my early child- hood has been imprinted in my mind. Back in my hometown in Vietnam, my parents worked on a tobacco farm. The environment and overall living conditions were fairly bleak. I played with my siblings and friends in dirt fields. Not only was I physically dirty, but the food I ate was not always the cleanest. I developed itchy patches on my skin, which grew to become bleeding blisters from the incessant scratching. The pain was so severe that I had trouble sleeping. At the time, I was around eight years old. When I looked around, the living conditions were normal to me as a child—I only knew that I was in a lot of pain. My mother called me over one morning. She plucked some of the leaves off a tobacco plant and soaked them in warm water. She then placed me in the bath to soak and scrubbed my skin with the plant. Later that night, my skin was soothed, and the pain had subsided enough for me to comfortably sleep.
I’ve realized how powerful herbal medicine can be. We are all familiar with traditional Western medicine, which can include a long list of side effects. Oftentimes, the side effects can cause more frustration than the actual initial ailment itself. Western medicine sometimes presents an entirely new set of issues that you now must deal with, which only causes further headache and frustration.
I had the opportunity to immigrate to the US in 1994, and my first job was as a hair-dresser and beautician. When my children entered adulthood, I was able to take the time to pursue my true passion of studying herbal medicine. Around seven years ago, I started taking a class and obtaining a certificate from a world-renown herbalist and educator Professor Rosemary Gladstal. This only further fueled my interest. I then learned how to make herbal medicine/supplements and skincare formulation from the California School of Herbal Studies, where I took various classes to expand my repertoire. My thirst for knowledge wasn’t yet satisfied, and I decided to dig deeper into the industry and learn as much as possible. To supplement these in-person classes, I began taking online courses from the award-winning program based in England called Formula Botanica. I am proud to say that I am a Formula Botanica graduate with a total of six certificates and four diplomas in various areas of beauty business management and skincare/haircare formulation.
To see a different aspect of this world, I sought out an opportunity to learn how to make natural perfumes, as opposed to the synthetic perfumes often used in beauty
products. I learned from Mandy Aftel, who is an internationally recognized artisan perfumer, educator, and pioneer in the art of perfume formulation. As her pupil, I am officially a formula perfumer and am currently two classes away from my master’s degree (which will allow me to teach) in natural perfume formulation. Finally, I received three
certifications and the Naturopathic Medicine Advance Diploma from the online academy, Udemy, to further master the areas of natural medicine and naturopathic studies.
Most skincare and beauty companies only focus on the outside of the body, the surface of the skin.
Vitamin and supplement companies works to nourish the inside of the body. My company, MN Mother Nature, does both. We focus on the whole person, both inside and out-
side the body.
Additionally, giving back to the community is a priority for MN Mother Nature. MN Mother Nature is committed to donating a percentage of net proceeds to support cancer and mental health communities.
From my experiences in Vietnam and my mother’s expansive knowledge of herbs, I’ve realized how powerful herbal medicine can be. We are all familiar with tradi- tional Western medicine, which can include a long list of side effects. Oftentimes, the side effects can cause more frustration than the actual initial ailment itself. Western medicine sometimes presents an entirely new set of issues that you now must deal with, which only causes further headache and frustration.
I had the opportunity to immigrate to the US in 1994, and my first job was as a hair- dresser and beautician. When my children entered adulthood, I was able to take the time to pursue my true passion of studying herbal medicine. Around seven years ago, I started taking a class and obtaining a certificate from a world-renown herbalist and educator Professor Rosemary Gladstal. This only further fueled my interest. I then learned how to make herbal medicine/supplements and skincare formulation from the California School of Herbal Studies, where I took various classes to expand my repertoire. My thirst for knowledge wasn’t yet satisfied, and I decided to dig deeper into the industry and learn as much as possible. To supplement these in-person classes, I began taking online courses from the award-winning program based in England called Formula Botanica. I am proud to say that I am a Formula Botanica graduate with a total of six certificates and four diplomas in various areas of beauty business management and skincare/haircare formulation.
To see a different aspect of this world, I sought out an opportunity to learn how to make natural perfumes, as opposed to the synthetic perfumes often used in beauty products. I learned from Mandy Aftel, who is an internationally recognized artisan perfumer, educator, and pioneer in the art of perfume formulation. As her pupil, I am officially a formula perfumer and am currently two classes away from my master’s degree (which will allow me to teach) in natural perfume formulation. Finally, I received three certifications and the Naturopathic Medicine Advance Diploma from the online academy, Udemy, to further master the areas of natural medicine and naturopathic studies.
Most skincare and beauty companies only focus on the outside of the body, the surface of the skin. Vitamin and supplement companies work to nourish the inside of the body. My company, MN Mother Nature, does both. We focus on the whole person, both inside and outside the body.
Additionally, giving back to the community is a priority for MN Mother Nature. MN Mother Nature is committed to donating a percentage of net proceeds to support cancer and mental health communities.
