Style
Polish Your Beauty Routine with Poppy and Petunia
The owners of Springfield-based Poppy and Petunia want your bath time routine to be as healthy as it is relaxing.
By Hanna Flanagan
Jan 2019
Ashley Ensley and Lauren Ladd are two Springfield supermoms. In addition to homeschooling their children—Ladd has seven, and Ensley is a foster mom who hosts anywhere from three to six at a time—these church friends manage their own line of all-natural bath products they’ve dubbed Poppy and Petunia out of their homes. After posting a photo of a homemade bath bomb back in 2016, Ensley received several Facebook messages and comments from people who were interested in purchasing the product. The demand was there, so Ensley decided to turn her hobby into an actual business. Ladd jumped on board shortly after, and, in two years, the women graduated from filling Facebook orders to shipping inventory internationally via Etsy. They’ve even earned several store partnerships throughout Missouri. “We want to have a wide reach, but we want to hold our values as the most important thing,” Ensley says.
“We want to have a wide reach, but we want to hold our values as the most important thing.”— Ashley Ensley
Whether you struggle with stress or migraines or deal with external ailments including eczema, psoriasis or dry and sensitive skin, Ensley and Ladd can offer relief. The Poppy and Petunia line includes bath bombs, wax melts, candles, menthol rubs, soaps, scrubs, beard oils, shower steamers and more. Each product is infused with ingredients that Ensley and Ladd have researched extensively. They’ve found that tea tree oil can help fight off lice and the flu, CBD oil can aid in anxiety and pain relief, baking soda detoxifies, colloidal oatmeal can exfoliate and moisturize and mineral salts are a great source of magnesium. And, CoxHealth Med Spa aesthetician Whitney Wade says a few of Poppy and Petunia’s most popular essential oil scents, lavender and peppermint, can increase relaxation and help with headaches. Even without perfumes and colored dyes, this line holds its own when it comes to aesthetics. Ensley says the fizz and foam from a Poppy and Petunia bath bomb is as satisfying as that of a competitor’s. “Poppy and Petunia makes all of their products in small batches to ensure quality,” MaMa Jean’s Wellness Education Specialist Margo Schwartz says. “Carrying Poppy and Petunia has been a fantastic addition to our stores.”