If you had told 21-year-old me that one day I'd be helping Mandy with the creative, marketing, and branding side of running her esthetician business, I probably would have laughed in confusion.
Back then, Mandy wasn't "my esthetician." She was my best friend's older sister. I'd babysit her kids every now and then, and when I was chasing my photography dreams, I even took their family photos. We had no idea our paths would cross again years later in such a meaningful way. Looking back now, I truly believe God had a plan for both of us long before either of us could see it.
Fast forward to 2022. I had just turned 30 and was suddenly dealing with the worst acne of my life during a very turbulent time with my mental health. My confidence was at an all-time low, and like so many women, I was desperate to figure out what was happening to my skin.
Around that same time, Mandy had just become a Certified Acne Specialist and was looking for a model for her new Acne Bootcamp program. I became one of her very first acne clients. What I thought would simply be a skincare program ended up changing so much more than my complexion.
Yes, my skin improved. But more importantly, the way I understood and cared for my skin completely changed. Instead of feeling like I was constantly fighting against it, I finally started learning how to support it.
Before working with Mandy, I thought acne was pretty simple. If I was breaking out, I just needed stronger products, more exfoliation, or the latest skincare trend everyone on social media was talking about. Looking back, I wasn't taking care of my skin—I was constantly trying to "fix" it.
If you had asked me back then what caused acne, I probably would've shrugged and said not washing your face enough or stress. I had no idea how much there was to learn. And honestly? That was the beginning of everything.
Before Mandy, I didn't know a dang thing about my skin barrier, if we're being honest. I was raised on St. Ives Apricot Scrub and Noxzema astringent pads. Let's just say my skin barrier never stood a chance. 😂 I thought the goal was to scrub my acne away. If my skin felt tight, dry, and squeaky clean afterward, I assumed the products were working.
Turns out, I was doing what so many of us have been taught to do: fight my skin instead of support it.
Little by little, Mandy started connecting the dots for me. She taught me that healthy skin starts with a healthy skin barrier. That ingredients each have a purpose. That more products don't automatically mean better results. That consistency matters far more than perfection. And that our lifestyle—from stress and hormones to sleep and nutrition—can have a huge impact on our skin.
But the lesson that completely changed my perspective was this:
Acne isn't cured. It's managed.
I know that might not be what you want to hear if you're in the thick of your acne journey. Trust me—I didn't want to hear it either. But strangely, that truth didn't make me feel defeated. It made me feel empowered in a way.
Instead of chasing the idea of "perfect skin forever," I learned how to understand my skin, recognize what it needed, and respond to breakouts without panicking. That shift gave me something I'd never had before: realistic expectations and the confidence to care for my skin instead of constantly trying to fix it.
Don’t get me wrong—I am still very much human. I still have days where a breakout knocks my confidence or makes me want to cancel plans. I’m not immune to those feelings just because I know more about skincare.
The difference is that I no longer believe every breakout means I’ve failed. I know my skin. I know acne is managed, not cured. And I know one bad skin day doesn’t erase all the progress I’ve made.
Somewhere in the middle of all of that, something shifted for me in a big way.
It started with Mandy asking me to help her run her social media and create content to help market and grow her business. The more I immersed myself in creating educational skincare content for her, the more I found myself genuinely falling in love with it all.
From there, I started managing a beauty store where I made it my personal goal to become as knowledgeable as possible about skincare and ingredients. I became so passionate about sharing everything Mandy had taught me that I couldn’t help but talk about it with customers, friends, anyone who would listen—and before I knew it, women were being referred to me through Facebook groups for skincare advice.
Suddenly, the girl raised on St. Ives and Noxzema wasn’t so clueless anymore. I didn’t set out to become the “skincare girl.” It just slowly became part of who I was learning to be.
And honestly, I think that realization didn’t just change how I saw skincare—it changed what I started gravitating toward in general.
Because once you’ve sat in enough conversations with women who feel overwhelmed, confused, and frustrated with their skin… you start to realize how much of skincare is just education being missing.
And I think that’s where everything really started to come together for me.
Mandy was the one doing the treatments, the formulations, the acne education in a clinical sense—but I found myself drawn to something slightly different.
I became obsessed with how to translate it all.
How do you take everything she was teaching me—barrier health, ingredients, acne management—and make it make sense for the girl who feels like she’s tried everything and is about to give up?
That’s what I started leaning into more and more.
And while Mandy was building Maevora as an esthetician and acne specialist, I naturally stepped into the role of helping bring it to life through branding, content, and storytelling.
Not as the “expert.”
But as the girl who used to be completely lost, trying to turn everything I was learning into something other women could actually understand.
And that’s really how Maevora (and Lavender Glow Co.) started to feel bigger than just products and services to me.
It wasn’t just skincare—it was education, experience, and everything I wish I had when I was sitting in my bathroom feeling completely overwhelmed and convinced I was doing everything wrong.
And now, every time I sit down to write or create content for Maevora, I think about the girl I used to be.
The one standing in front of the mirror, frustrated and overwhelmed, feeling completely hopeless and defeated.
I think about how badly she just needed someone to slow it all down and explain her skin in a way that didn’t feel intimidating or out of reach.
Because once I finally started understanding my skin instead of fighting it, everything changed—not just my routine, but the way I felt about myself.
That’s what Maevora represents to me. Not perfect skin. Not quick fixes. Just understanding.
And if you’re reading this in the middle of your own skin journey, I hope this feels like a small reminder that you’re not alone in it.
xoxo,
Meg
