DISCOVER CUCAMANGA

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celia@cucamanga.com

 

Cucamanga specializes in wildcrafted artisanal skin care products, utilizing wild harvested and organic botanicals from the Laurentian Forest in Quebec, Canada. Cucamanga's vision would be to transport you from your apartment in a concrete jungle into the depths of the forest for a moment, while supplementing your skin with natural, wild nutrition.

The majority of my harvesting season is in the spring and summer months in the forest. This forest which holds space for abundance. There are many plants that populate our boreal forest, and they are, conveniently, ones I really enjoy working with. When we think about living sustainably, and in this case, harvesting sustainably, it would mean not over harvesting from plants that struggle to reproduce. The majority of these plants that grow so abundantly are actually considered "weeds”.

Our boreal forest is bounteous with such powerful plants and so it is no wonder than many more people are starting to tap into this collective consciousness and create holistic products. I feel driven by a desire to connect more with the plants and share this knowledge with people, whether it be in the form of a finalized Cucamanga product, or talking with people about how they can start working with plants.

For me, ecstasy is the forest, and everything that is involved with the forest. The sweet aromatic smell of all that is living & blended into the air. Nothing is more euphoric to me, than being in nature. As nature is a place where complete stillness exists, and yet in that stillness there is so much creation. Plants themselves are innately powerful, not just in their rich vitamin and mineral content, but in the stillness of nature. They hold much wisdom and can seemingly transport you in space, connecting you to the forest. 

Here at Cucamanga, we aim at using botanicals harvested from our Canadian forests, as well as sourcing organic plants we cannot harvest ourselves as well as organic oils.

There is an abundant array of naturally occurring elements that each have their own particular healing and cleaning benefits, these in turn can be combined in infinite combinations to produce various synergistic effects. I use a combination of knowledge acquired through research and experience as a canvas for my intuition and creative energy where essentially each batch of products is a unique combination of science, art, and experimentation.

Some of the wild harvested botanicals we use to create powerful plant based products:

Spruce Resin: Known for its antimicrobial properties. Supports and restores the skin. It can be applied to dry or irritated skin, cuts, wounds, burns, rashes, bruises. The smell of the spruce resin is absolutely delicious, if you love being in the forest, this will transport you into the heart of the wilderness.

Labrador tea: High in antioxidants, helps with cracked, inflamed and itchy skin. 

Fireweed: Known for its antioxidant, antibacterial & anti-inflammatory properties, especially good for acne prone skin. 

The boreal forest floor is flush with Labrador Tea and just so happens to be the plant I first connected with. It is what inspired me to create my Boreal Forest Line. 

My first memory with this botanical was 10 years ago when I first started tree planting in the Ogoki region of northern Ontario. Every time I bent over to plant a tree I could smell this incredible aroma swirl past me and I would try to follow it to find out its source. The moment I found it was the moment my love affair with Labrador Tea began.  

Based out of the Laurentian's, Celia, owner and creator, has studied and practised art for the majority of her life. She has a BFA in photography from the university of OCAD.