In many ways, Emma Wayne is your average sixth grade girl. She takes dance and gymnastics, focuses on homework, and participates in afterschool activities at Henley Middle School in Crozet. But Emma has an unusual hobby: She runs a business.
Emma and her 8-year-old sister, Julia, started Blush Daisy, a makeup manufacturer, last spring. It began with Emma’s curiosity about her mother’s cosmetics. “I was always melting down my mom’s makeup and trying to make new stuff,” the 11-year-old said. She got interested in reading labels and noticed that popular products “had bad stuff, like lead and stuff,” and she started researching how to make it better for young skin.
By kids, for kids
Lip balm is the flagship product of the Blush Daisy line. The girls make it with all-natural ingredients in their Crozet kitchen (“You don’t need that much space”) in batches of 20 or 50, and eight popular flavors are ready for sale. Choices include ooey-gooey caramel, red velvet, and marshmallow fluff. Each of the flavors has a name that ties into “text speak,” which the girls came up with. There’s BFF (best friend forever), ROFL (rolling on floor laughing) and TTYL (talk to you later). They sell for $3.99 each.
Mom Danielle helps a little with the packaging, but lets the girls do the lion’s share of the work, and she’s grateful for the lessons they’re learning about working hard and waiting for results. “It’s more priceless than something you can learn in a classroom,” she said.
A business with heart
For now, sales are limited to their website (blushdaisy.com) and an occasional appearance at the Charlottesville Farmer’s Market, but the duo hopes to do more.
They currently donate a portion of their proceeds to Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation for Childhood Cancer, and they’d like to pair up with area schools for fundraisers, keeping only enough to cover the cost of the materials while the school gets the rest.
“We’ve always wanted to do something charitable and help others,” Emma said. Julia likes the thought of giving back too, but wouldn’t mind more exposure in the meantime. “I hope we’ll be in CVS or toy stores or Harris Teeter,” said the Crozet Elementary third grader.—Lynn Thorne