10 years ago today I was walking out of a hotel conference room at the Modern Language Association when my phone started vibrating nonstop.
Not texts.
Not emails.
Shopify notifications. Hundreds of them.
At the time Sabbatical Beauty barely existed beyond a few formulas I was making for myself and friends. I had no launch plan. No PR strategy. No idea what I wad doing.
Then I realized why.
A Slate article had just gone live—about Korean skincare, feminist academics, and radical self-care. I was in it. So was my work. And suddenly, people were searching for Sabbatical Beauty. Within a few hours, I was completely sold out.
That moment changed everything.
I was deep into an academic career that looked glowing on paper—newly tenured, highly visible, even being headhunted—but my body was done. I was burned out. Resentful. I felt a pit in my stomach thinking about devoting my life to continuing as a professor.
The publication of that essay—and the deluge of orders—told me something very clear:
I could leave.
I had an idea people believed in.
I could make skincare the way I believed it should be made—focused on quality ingredients that actually transform skin, not viral marketing.
So I did. I quit my job the following year and have been running Sabbatical Beauty full-time ever since.
The past ten years haven’t been easy. I’ve lost friends. I’ve made mistakes as a business owner and as a boss.
But one thing has stayed constant: if I claim an ingredient in a product, it needs to be there in a meaningful amount.
Because of that, I’ve watched people’s skin calm down, strengthen, and stop hurting. I’ve met customers who’ve been with me since the beginning.
The serum mentioned in that Slate piece—Dorian Gray’s Serum—is still made the same way today: densely concentrated with quality ingredients, without the dilution that’s common in most serums.
If you’ve ever bought from us, replied to an email, or trusted one of our formulas—this anniversary belongs to you too.
If you’re in Philly, come celebrate with us in person this Friday at the Bok building, 5-8pm.
If you’re not, this is a good moment to try (or return to) the formulas that have carried us this far—especially Dorian Gray’s Serum, which still embodies everything I believe about how skincare should be made.
Grateful for 10 years, and grateful for you.
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