Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Symone Lee.
Ashley, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
Since I was a child, I’ve felt an intense connection between the natural world and my own spirit. I’ve always seen plants as allies – known that to solve the world’s greatest mysteries we should look to plant life.
I initially started working with flower and plant remedies in searching for alternative treatments for my depression. Once I was diagnosed, the first thing suggested was that I see a psychiatrist for a prescription. I needed relief, but after growing up and seeing my mother struggle with dependency on multiple prescription anti-depressants, I wanted to do everything I could to avoid prescription drugs. In addition to this, I was coping with previously repressed memories of assault, and a hormonal imbalance that made life both emotionally and physically extremely painful. I decided to see an herbalist who was doing sliding scale consultations near my home.
She prescribed a tincture with an Ocotillo base – a plant that I’ve always felt a deep connection to – and I experienced a total transformation in the level of physical pain I was experiencing. I was recommended the flower essences Gentian and Beech for relief of my sadness, heavy feelings and the resentment and intolerance towards myself and others that developed as a result. I felt an immense change, and the longing to expand my knowledge of plant life and medicinal herbs found me. I launched Selene in my bedroom in the Spring of 2019. The first essence I made was the Selene Signature Essence. When thinking about how to approach that project, my first instinct was to explore the herbal traditions of my ancestors.
A product of my personal feelings of displacement, uprootedness, a precarious family life and sparse resources, the signature essence combines the essences of ethically sourced California wildflowers with the essences of plants found throughout my extended family’s places of origin in Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and other parts of the South that were commonly used in black folk medicine and slave herbal remedies and recipes. I like to think of this as my lineage in a bottle, connecting my immediate familial roots in Los Angeles with my ancestral roots in the South, and created it with the intention of addressing feelings of trauma, displacement, and bringing forth a sense of self. I’ve since launched a few other essences and have had some great platforms for sharing Selene in the public sphere. I’m still in the bedroom phase right now, but my ultimate purpose in expanding this project is to open a sliding scale, non-binary spa and healing center that serves as a safe space for self-care and self-realization for people of all ages and abilities, that is especially accessible to black people in my community.
Has it been a smooth road?
I started Selene with no resources or outside funding. I invest my own money in small-batch bottles, droppers, labels. I do all of the graphic design myself. I’m investing my own resources, which can be discouraging if I feel like what I’m making isn’t received well, or if my finances feel like they are a hindrance. On the other hand, it makes what I do that much more rewarding and reassuring when I look back on how much I am capable of putting forth on my own.
So, as you know, we’re impressed with Selene – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
Selene is flower-based herbal healing for emotional well-being. I specialize in flower essences, flower-infused wines, and herbal cocktails, tonics, teas, and also offer flower essence readings that recommend remedies for personal deficits based on the birth chart. The ultimate goal from this point is to expand my offerings and find funding for the spa and wellness center I mentioned previously. Selene essences are multi-use, and I wanted to focus on promoting emotional and spiritual well-being in a way that was fun, beautiful, and accessible. In short, I guess I’m most proud of Selene’s purpose, and of course the fact that I’ve even been able to make it happen!
Let’s touch on your thoughts about our city – what do you like the most and least?
Like many people, I have a love/hate relationship with Los Angeles. I was born here, and have been here my entire life. I love that there is so much opportunity here – so many ways to make a platform for yourself, build something of your own. I love that the natural world is so near from where we are. I take road trips alone or with my partner as often as I can – deserts, mountains, lakes, beaches, rolling hills – California is the most nourishing. That said, my stomach turns when thinking about how expensive things have become, how inaccessible safe housing is for so many. As someone who has been displaced several times, I think the people moving here who are driving gentrification need to take more steps to guard against displacement and homelessness. Move here from the Midwest, sure, but what can you give back? It’s obviously attributable to issues much more complex than individual people choosing to relocate, but this is does contribute hugely. Do your research on ways to relocate here responsibly, especially so if you are white moving into a historically black/brown neighborhood. At the end of the day, my roots are here, I feel whole driving through the places where I grew up – South Central, Koreatown. I hope to one day add to the fabric of this city in a significant and responsible way.
Pricing:
- Selene Signature Essence $10
- Selene Signature Blend Tea $12
- Sliding Scale Flower Essence Readings $5-$30
- Moon Bloom Bath Tea $10
- Ocotillo Flower Essence $10
- Jacaranda Flower Essence $10
- Desert Lily Flower Essence $10
- Matilija Poppy Essene $10
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @selene.losangeles
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