Creating a Premium Skincare Line Rooted in Ancestral Wisdom and Sustainability

When I saw friends with children suffering from eczema, I realized there was something I could do. Leveraging my experience as a holistic nutrition chef specializing in Ancestral diets, I knew that specific high-quality, local ingredients could offer relief.

In 2014, while advancing my career as a French chocolatier, I had a spark of inspiration. What if I created a premium quality skincare line using only regional ingredients and revived the traditional use of nourishing, pasture-raised animal fats? These natural elements have long been known to help with skin conditions such as dryness and irritation.

My vision began to take shape. I aimed to elevate skincare by emphasizing sustainability and local resources. As a woman with indigenous roots, I believe in a deep connection to what we put on our skin and use in our homes. This connection to the land, environment, and seasons, along with my community through the farmers’ market, inspired me to build my brand around the Slow Body Movement®.

Each ingredient has a unique story to tell. My goal has always been to source from the highest quality and ethically responsible communities of ranchers and farmers. I wanted to collaborate with people who have a purpose and source ingredients from the local California sustainable and regenerative agricultural community.

By prioritizing these values, my skincare line stands out as a beacon of quality, sustainability, and ancestral wisdom, offering effective solutions for those battling skin conditions.

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Summer Solace Tallow is a small, family-owned business dedicated to producing slow-made, deeply nourishing, organic tallow-based skincare and home goods, established in Spring 2014 by organic chef and gardener Megan Bre Camp in Oakland, California.

Born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, in a Military family and transplanted to the San Francisco Bay Area in 2004, Megan is deeply committed to sustainable living. With indigenous roots in the Central Highlands of Vietnam and the Filipino countryside, respect for animals and the environment and a strong spiritual connection to nature are woven into her genetic makeup.

Whether preparing seasonal and locally-grown foods for family and friends or crafting any of her Summer Solace Tallow balms, soaps, or candles, Megan is dedicated to reviving traditional techniques in all facets of her work. By encouraging the use of all parts of the pasture-raised animal, embracing the Bay Area's seasonal shifts, and prioritizing organic and locally sourced ingredients, Summer Solace epitomizes the Slow Body Care Movement™.

The Summer Solace production process starts with obtaining suet, the fat naturally surrounding the kidneys and loins, from cattle pasture-raised on local Bay Area ranches by Stemple Creek Ranch in Tomales Bay. The suet then gets rendered into buttery tallow, infused with organic Calendula flowers, and combined with award-winning California extra-virgin olive oil grown by the Yoche Dehe Wintun Nation.

This luxurious and soothing blend is the basis of nearly all of our products. In addition to crafting ultra-nourishing pure tallow moisturizers and soaps, Summer Solace prides itself on having an array of aromatherapeutic balms, soaps, and candles, each meticulously formulated to create evocative and unique scent profiles.

As a producer and board member of Fibershed and Fibershed marketplace, Summer Solace has a booth at local Bay Area Farmers Markets where they curate Fibershed woolen textiles and naturally tanned sheepskins.