I was twenty-one the evening I met my partner, back when people met each other in bars. He leaned over a pool table and asked if I’d like to join him for a game. He was confident, maybe a little too good at pool, and I was immediately drawn to his easy charm. We ended up talking all night about our lives and aspirations—how I wanted to own a spa someday and how he dreamed of being a nanny and a mechanic for old cars. The nanny role never materialized, but he has become the most loving father to our daughter, and he now restores vintage cars with the same passion he brought to that first game of pool.

Eight years later, we stood beneath the glass dome of the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park and said our vows. By then, I had started experimenting with my own skincare formulations. The more I discovered about natural ingredients, the more I wanted to create products myself. Finding truly high-quality raw ingredients proved surprisingly difficult, and that challenge fueled my desire to learn the art of distillation.

As a wedding gift, my husband surprised me with a copper still—unconventional, yes, but it would end up changing my life. On our honeymoon in Maui, he arranged for us to take a distillation class together, and there we first met rose geranium. I still remember how the heady mix of floral and herbal notes filled the air. Watching steam transform the leaves into a hydrosol felt almost mystical, as though I’d captured the plant’s essence in my hands.

When we returned home, I filled our Sausalito micro-farm with as many varieties of rose geranium as I could find. We’re now cultivating about twenty different varieties, each with its own subtle variations in fragrance and appearance. Beyond its enchanting scent, rose geranium hydrosol has become indispensable in my skincare formulas. It balances the skin beautifully—hydrating yet somehow perfect for oily complexions—and its androgynous, herbal-floral aroma never fails to captivate. Plus, its natural antibacterial and antifungal properties lend extra strength to most Botnia products. 

Distilling quickly became a shared passion between us. There’s something deeply satisfying about tending to the still together: filling it with fresh botanicals, lighting the flame, and waiting for that first rush of fragrant steam. Now, when I look at my still, I’m reminded of how our paths first crossed, how our dreams began to intertwine, and how far we’ve come since the night we spent talking about futures that felt distant and abstract.

Today, that original five-gallon still—a gift that changed everything—sits quietly in my greenhouse, like a small monument to daring first steps. I started my company with that still before eventually retiring it for a larger model, but I keep it close as a reminder that sometimes all it takes is a simple “yes” to the unknown. My husband, Christopher, saw my passion for skincare early on and refused to let me settle for anything less than making that dream a reality. When I see the light catch the battered copper, I’m reminded of the nights we spent refining formulas, turning curiosity into craftsmanship. In its reflection, I see not just the origin of a business, but the story of how Chris and I built a life by believing in each other’s ambitions—and never being afraid to try.