Today we’d like to introduce you to Yvette Montoya
Hi Yvette, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I started my company, The Bratty Brujita officially in 2021 when we were just coming out of the lockdowns and curfews. When covid happened, like many of us, I had to re evaluate my entire life. Was I where I needed to be? Was I taking the steps to becoming the person I wanted to be? I determined the answer was no, so I broke up with my boyfriend of 7 years and moved back to my parents house in Rancho Cucamonga. Needless to say the adjustment was challenging, I started therapy and tried to find a new normal within the confines of the pandemic. For 10 years prior I had been learning about energy work and the magical uses of herbs as well as energetic cleansing but I never felt brave enough to be public about it. It felt like as soon as I was home that part of me flourished. I unintentionally began giving readings and making products for the people in my social media circles, mostly to community organizers, therapists, nurses and teachers as well as people who were participating in Black Lives Matter. At first I was just giving advice and then I realized where the advice was coming from— our spirits guides.
I had been making things like aura sprays and spiritual baths and selling them to my friends and trusted followers for years but I began making them more diligently and recommending them to the people I was working with and things just started to grow naturally from there. Having been a journalist for many years, I made the shift in the topics and themes I was exploring in my work and started writing about spirituality for outlets like Popsugar and Refinery 29. I do live in Rancho but I’m originally from East Hollywood and my family settled in Echo Park in the 50s. I’m also UCLA alumni so LA, especially East Los is where my heart and community are. I’ve had the pleasure of working with BLVD MKT in Montebello and I’ve also been doing sliding scale limpias (energy cleansing) at Earthy Corazon in City Terrace on a semi-monthly basis to give back to my community. In 2023 I transitioned to working on my business full time, although I still write every now and then, and I’ve been working on expanding my products and knowledge ever since.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
It wasn’t definitely not a smooth road but more so because of the crazy inflation, these insane taxes we’re expected to cough up in CA, and how many times we’ve all been shaken up by the changing economic and political landscape since 2020. I’ve definitely learned a lot. I have definitely had to school myself on taxes and inventory and finances, which are things that are not my forte. I think as the creative person running the whole business, it’s been very challenging but I’m learning to take missteps as lessons and also being open to asking for help. I think my biggest challenge has been bootstrapping because I put everything back into my business, I definitely have so many ideas that are on hold until I can afford to implement them, which is why I want to fundraise and maybe take it a step further and get a business loan since I’ve been bootstrapping all these years.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
The Bratty Brujita was created to connect folks with plant allies and with traditional healing to reduce stress, dissatisfaction and anxiety. There is plenty of research that proves that traditional healing practices are helpful in treating anxiety and depression. Religion and therapy don’t provide everything we need to feel safe, understood, and connected to our selves. Most of my clients do therapy, meditation, exercise, self help, etc.—and still come to me feeling like there is something missing. Generally that missing thing is a connection to their culture and their ancestry. My clients tend to be folks who are culturally catholic but also looking to connect more with their ancestors and spirituality.
I’m probably known best for my writing, candle work and energy cleanses (limpias). My realm in particular is referred to as “shadow work” which involves delving into the darker parts of ourselves that we may have repressed or ignored as a way to process and integrate those experiences. I like to think of my approach to wellness as an accompaniment to things like talk therapy and various other healing modalities. My clients are often depressed, anxious, and disconnected from themselves. The fact is 1st and 2nd generation Latines as well as immigrants, are often experiencing a myriad of ailments and mental health issues related to the physical and emotional stress caused by displacement, religious trauma, and forced assimilation among other things.
The Bratty Brujita is broken up into three branches: products, services, and education. Our products range from herbal infused aura mists and oils to candles, tinctures(coming soon), and teas. Our services include traditional energy cleanses (limpias), candle work, and readings. Our education includes workshops and digital downloads to teach folks how to care for themselves energetically and spiritually.
Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
I studied to be an English professor and now through the twists and turns of life I’m here. I feel like I’ve lived a million lives but also like those experiences prepared me for this chapter. Life’s weird man. Like the song says “los caminos de la vida no son como yo pensaba.” I also snuck into Coachella in 2010.
Pricing:
- Aura sprays and Kolonia are currently on sale for $19.99
- Limpias are $170 and I’ll travel to you for $40+$1 per mile
- Candle call out readings are a new service everyone seems to love they’re on sale for $100
- Ancestor altar candles are $6.99
Contact Info:
- Website: https://thebrattybrujita.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thebrattybrujita and https://www.instagram.com/yvetteactually/
Image Credits
Michelle Smith and Mercedes Zapata
