Meet Micki Washington | Architect, Interior Designer & Skincare Specialist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Micki Washington and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Micki, can you walk us through the thought-process of starting your business?

I created Micole Essentials during the Pandemic initially as a means to maintain my own skincare routine with the ingredients I had available to me and with what I could purchase online. As I ran out of my store-bought products, I looked for ways to create a homemade version. I simultaneously looked for ways to improve or tailor formulas based on my skin sensitivities and needs.

I have always believed in ingredients that not only could I pronounce, but I could also trace back to a source of origin. So simple and natural ingredients have always been what I gravitated towards, both in the foods I ate (or create as I love to cook from scratch) as well as what products I used on my skin.

My skin and body work better with natural ingredients as it knows what to do with them, it knows how to absorb the nutrients from them and it shows in how quickly my skin is transformed and glows (and I love a natural glow).
So, as I continued to create more products for myself, I began to do more research and experiment with different combinations of natural ingredients to focus on specific needs (dark circles, wrinkles, hyperpigmentation, exfoliation, acne, balanced hydration for face and body, etc.).

As I began to experiment on myself, my circle of friends would either ask what I was using after noticing results, or I would ask them to try out my experiments to see if the products would work on them as well.

I am still in the early development stages, and still fine-tuning formulas, packaging, etc,. I know it works on anyone that has tried my products, but now I am focused on growing my brand exposure, and turn what started off as a passion project of necessity into something that can help so many more men and women looking to adopt or maintain a skincare regimen based on natural products.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
My skincare line came out of a desire to maintain some sense of normalcy during a time when my world along with everyone else’s world was flipped upside down. I created Micole Essentials because I wanted to give myself love and focused time to pour back into myself. I wanted to take my passion for natural ingredients, pair it with my love of making things from scratch and create something that I knew every ingredient, the source of where it derived, the benefits it would provide my skin, and ultimately have something that would make me stop and dedicate even 10min to myself. The bonus or the gift is that it actually works! The ingredients do what they are supposed to do, naturally, and it smells good, so it provides aroma therapy while working on improving the skin.
I love that I can also tailor the formulas based on specific needs, such as oils for evening out dark spots, or rejuvenating skin. I’ve been told often that my skin seems to be reversing in time, so I know it’s working.
I am proud to have found something that doesn’t just work, but that it made of basic, simple, ingredients that are the essentials to what they provide naturally. I am thrilled to hear from varied people of diverse skin tones, age ranges and skin sensitivity types that it works on them as well. It makes me happy to hear that it makes people have created a routine for themselves, as they want the continued benefits from its usage.
How I got here was not a direct path however. My background is as a licensed architecture and interior design in Texas. I have been in corporate for almost 25 years and still enjoy it. I am leading and serving on several boards within my industry as well, so I was used to a lifestyle of deadlines, meetings, traveling, high-stress and high demand on the mind and body. I admittedly did not really make time for myself as often as I should have or practiced self-love in the form of skincare.
When the pandemic hit, the world was forced to slow down. I was forced to change behavioral patterns that comes with working in a corporate environment (no matter how amazing that environment may have been) and especially when adding volunteer organization involvement as well. I had a very inconsistent skincare routine, which definitely did not involve any amount of dedicated time to pamper myself. It was treatment on demand; if I had an acne break out I treated that, if I started getting bags under my eyes, I treated that, etc.
But when I was forced out of my day-to-day routine, coupled with not being able to venture out to the store like normal, I decided to use what I had on hand, and give myself a reset, or rather, create a new normal for my home-based routine.
Those early days of experiments were crude, but effective. They did not start with the right ratios or blends of oils, fragrances, or consistencies, etc., but they still worked. So, I kept at it, and started researching more, and experimenting more, and finding friends who were in a similar need for self-care.
So, I sought to create something based on simple ingredients, that anyone could use, that would encourage the creation of a self-care routine. When I dedicated time to myself (on myself) not only did my skin improve, but my mental peace also improved, my stress reduced, I began to become healthier, naturally, and it showed on my skin.
Using Micole Essentials is not just about using natural products or trying another skincare product, as there are many natural skincare lines. It’s about a lifestyle of self-care, externally and internally. Whether starting with a basic routine or indulging in a more extensive one that includes masks, scrubs and the like, Micole Essentials focuses more on giving yourself attention to what you need, allowing yourself the time to love yourself, your skin, your body, by giving it natural ingredients that your body knows what to do with, and simultaneously using that time to do nothing other than focus on you.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Houston’s food scene is unmatched. I would always start my itinerary with best places for food & bevs, and then add on attractions around those areas. From Tex-Mex, BBQ, and everything in between, I would say El Tiempo or Ninfa’s on Navigation for the fresh tortillas and Margaritas, Gatlin’s for BBQ, Lucille’s for Brunch, Trez Art Bistro & Wine Bar or Kulture for dinner, drinks and live music, just to start. I love Jinya’s Spicy Chicken Ramen and tempura Brussel sprouts, Georgia James Butcher Board is an absolute must, Ousie’s Table’s Curry Chicken with Lemon Ginger Rice is life changing, and so many more. I’d definitely make sure to catch all of the wonderful pop ups from some of Houston’s best chefs, Chef Michelle Wallace of Between The Slices, Chef Dawn Burrell from Top Chef and maybe sign up for a class with Chef Monica Pope of Sparrow Cookshop. But there’s so many new lounges, bars, cafes, brunch spots, happy hours spots, fine dining or walk up stands that anyone visiting Houston would need to check what’s new at that time, as they’re all amazing!

You have to visit our Museum District to catch all of the exhibits at the varied musems, the zoo, and even the twighlight epiphany skyspace at Rice university at dusk is breath taking. Head to the silos as well to catch the markets, the artist pop ups, etc. I’d take a visit to our amazing parks and attractions from Discovery Green, try to catch a performance at Herman Park and enjoy the walking trails at Memorial Park.

Might need more than a week to really explore Houston 😉

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I want to give a special shoutout to someone who was the first volunteer to try my products, even the not-so-great ones, but still encouraged me to keep going. Bighani “Tsunami” Energy, who is the founder and creator of a global movement called Catch These Compliments (also formed during the Pandemic), has consistently affirmed my passion, believed in my mission to create a natural skincare line so much that she’s been almost my right hand from the beginning. We all need someone that can motivate us through our doubts, that can give constructive feedback that will help push us to the next level and that’s willing to go through the trials and triumphs with you.

So I definitely want to shoutout Bighani for her continued support and investment into my passion project from the beginning. I also have to give a special thank you to my circle of friends who have continued to push me, gave feedback, liked, commented and shared my rudementary flyers and non-labled sample/ testers. I would not have continued to build this passion project into a business if it were not for all of them.

Website: https://micoleessentials.mystrikingly.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/micoleessential/