You ever meet someone who seems to have life in balance? Not often, but one such woman that I ran across has spent her life putting her own and others life in sync, and loving every minute of it.
Creativity was always part of Marnie. From childhood, she would create things from wood or cardboard or any other material she could get her hands on. Her family was not a fan of this creative spirit and encouraged her to go to school and get a real job. During this time, however, Marnie found that she was not happy with any job she had. She graduated from Illinois State University with a bachelor’s degree in Social Work before moving to Arizona to pursue her masters. That plan was sidetracked, happily, when she met and married her husband and began a family complete with two happy and healthy children. Never one to be complete watching someone else’s life, Marnie spent time running between games and practices for her kids as well as becoming certified in lifestyles and weight management and later gaining her personal training certificate. Marnie later completed an Interior Design program as well as Feng Shui and Reiki. Tired yet? I am and didn’t even do all that! As if she needed more, Marnie is a fitness nut herself and practices kickboxing and yoga and has completed 2 half marathons.
With all that running, Marnie understood that health and wellness goes beyond the gym so she began to learn more about nutrition and organic living. This lead to looking much closer at what products she used on the outside. This human dynamo decided that simple is better and began producing a line of skin products that used simple, natural, cruelty free ingredients…you know, things that are actually natural and good for you and have names you can pronounce!
One of Marnie’s favorite ingredients is actually unrefined coconut oil of all things! After doing some research for a friend, she found that it had gotten a bad rap in the “ban the fat” thinking of today’s society when in fact it is an amazing product. Because coconut oil is antiviral and antibacterial, it becomes and amazing base for many of her skin products without worrying about bacteria growth.
When Marnie was building Playa Blu, she was confronted with the reality of internet marketing and dove right in. She admits that her business takes more time than any other “real” job she has had; between creating products, packaging, shipping, and marketing; but also says that because she loves it, it doesn’t feel like work.
Marnie is willing to offer encouragement to others seeking to join in the handmade marketplace and tells them to believe in themselves! While you may never get rich in handmade, that is not what it is about, but about doing something that you love. You will get discouraged from time to time, but never give up if you believe in yourself and your product.
Are you ready to see what this amazing mother creates? Well, Playa Blu is easy to find on her website, her blog and on Facebook. Stop in and say hi and see what amazing all natural products are waiting for you.