**Tahi and Rose closed Jan 2023 when we moved to Western Australia, I make refill pouches of Skin Saver Balm, Oils and Magnesiums twice a year. Stock is limited and available until sold out via the website**
Hi! I'm Rhea and I'm the owner and creator behind Tahi and Rose Skinfood. Fun fact? Rhea is short for Rheannon, and I was named after the fantastic Fleetwood Mac song, just spelled a little different. I have gone by Rhea for a very long time, and it's pronounced with a silent 'a', Rhea like the sea.
Tahi and Rose was developed as a way to share the things I have learned (and continue to learn) on my journey to create a less toxic life for our children (Tahi is our sons middle name, meaning One in Maori, paying tribute to his Maori heritage as the first grandson to our NZ family. Rose is my daughters second name)
When Little Rose was born she suffered numerous sensitivities and I needed to learn how to reduce her toxic burden, I did so by creating my own skincare and household products to start with. I took courses in natural skincare formulation and researched how to make DIY home cleaning solutions to help minimise her reactions. I started sharing my creations and this soon grew into Tahi and Rose Skinfood.
When Little Rose was 3, her health started to rapidly decline. We came very close to loosing her as she became a shell of herself, we spent years searching for answers and trying everything we could. After lots of doctors, specialists, immunologists and tests, after her skin became red raw, her weight plummeted, her hair and sparkle were leaving her unable to do normal childhood things like play, swim, dance or even attend preschool we finally worked out she was suffering from a condition known as Red Skin Syndrome (also known as TSW, or Steroid Induced Allergic Disease). If you would like more information on TSW please head to ITSAN (the International Topical Steroid Awareness Network).
Our journey through TSW was brutal and lengthy, we focused on gut health, auto immune and specialised healing diets, specialised monthly IVIG treatments to assist her immune system and keeping her toxic load as low as possible. We are all still healing but life is a lot more normal these days with gut health our number one priority.
During the hardest months of TSW, Little Rose would spend hours and hours (up to 8 hours a day) soaking in the bath as it was the best relief for her skin that was literally melting off and was too exposed to even have a fresh breeze brush past without causing her crippling pain.
We tried every cream, lotion and balm available, all of them caused irritation or stung. I worked tirelessly to create a solution for her, and after much trial and error the Skin Saver Balm was created. Little Rose called it her Skin Saver so that's what we named it. It was the only thing that would bring her relief, we offered it to friends we had met dealing with eczema and skin conditions and next thing we knew we were being asked by complete strangers for it!
It became our biggest blessing, the sales of this little balm not only helped us cover the constant cost of medical needs but it brought such relief to so many families and individuals. I have been brought to tears countless times with feedback of how this creation has made life liveable again for others, from eczema, burn patients, chemo patients, parents finding a Steroid free option that works for their babies and even some feedback that it has been the final piece of the puzzle in healing their skin.
I have a home based studio where I make the Skin Saver, as well as Magnesium Balms, face oils, and non toxic baby powder. I sell online Australia wide and have a beautiful, loyal customer base not only here locally but also New Zealand and as far reaching as the Netherlands.
It is an amazing pleasure to be able to share the things we've learned, and an even greater joy to hear how the things I am able to create are bringing joy, relief and health to others.
This business is my passion business, and is not my full time gig, I am grateful to be able to fit this all in amongst the adventures of life, but being a one woman show is a juggling act, so I often retreat from social media to reconnect with real life, and I close the online store every year over Dec/Jan.
As of June 2022, Tahi and Rose products will only be available from the online store, with small batch runs made once a month. Once products have sold out, there is a pre-order option so you don't miss out on the next batch (wait times vary from 7 - 14 days typically) Please see the 'contact' page for more information
I thank you for your understanding and patience, love and support x
Thank you for joining me on this journey!
Rhea x