This weekend marks the first anniversary of the “Spellbook Saturday” series, and at the time I wrote, “One of the unexpected joys of starting Hedge Witch Botanicals over a year ago has been the community that I have encountered. I love seeing herbalists recommending resources, witches discussing activism, and people sharing in knowledge and experiences. With sharing in mind, and a love of the written word, I’m happy to introduce a new (definitely recurring, likely not weekly) feature I’m calling Spellbook Saturday. In this context, a ‘spellbook’ doesn’t have to be a tome of magical incantations, but a book that has enchanted, impacted, or influenced me in some way, leaving me spellbound.”
Since then my business has grown and my community has expanded in such unexpected and beautiful ways. It has been catalyzing and transformative and challenging as hell, exploring this path, and one spellbook I have very much appreciated throughout this journey has been Jennifer Armbrust’s Proposals for the Feminine Economy.
Regular readers may remember I’ve discussed (bastardized?) Armbrust’s work before in the context of a commitment to radical self-care and the current pandemic, but Proposals has been something of an inspiration for some time. Armbrust’s “work explores the collisions and collusions of art, business, gender, embodiment and economics.” Part manifesto, part art publication, Proposals asks, “If Capitalism is an economy that values masculine traits, what could another economy look like?”
With her “12 Principles for Prototyping a Feminist Business,” Armbrust offers readers a path to explore the institutionalization of empathy, connection with the earth, and the embodiment of our values. “As entrepreneurs, we have the opportunity to agitate the current social, political & economic order by experimenting with new business models that honor our values, our humanity, and the earth. A feminist business can model new ways of living, working and being together. This is about transforming our relationship to money, to work, to the earth, to our bodies, and to each other. This is about redistributing power & resources, based on feminine principles. This is about radical social transformation. This is about making the world we want to live in.”
As an ardent feminist, a queer woman, and a business owner, exploring such questions has been formative to the growth of Hedge Witch Botanicals. How can I support myself as I strive for sustainability, connection, and a positive impact through my work? I highly recommend this book to fellow business owners, feminists, or those asking themselves similar questions, particularly as we imagine a new, post-pandemic future.
Interested in a sample of Armbrust’s work? Check out the video below, then shop Sister for Proposals for the Feminine Economy.
Past Recommendations
Spellbook Saturday: Gallant by V.E. Schwab
This week’s #spellbooksaturday feature was a bit unexpected for me, as I am not typically a fan of YA literature, but I was pleasantly surprised by… Gallant by V.E. Schwab★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆[Content Warning: Suicide, death of a parent, etc.] Olivia Prior has grown up in Merilance School for Girls, and all she has…
Spellbook Saturday: Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
Trust me when I say that I really wanted to like this week’s #spellbooksaturday, and so it is with a heavy heart that I share a critical review for… Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆ Natalie lives a traditional lifestyle. Her charming farmhouse is rustic, her husband a handsome cowboy, her six…
Spellbook Saturday: Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas
This week’s #spellbooksaturday continues my horror streak with a solidly enjoyable adventure novel. Vampires of El Norte by Isabel Cañas★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆ As the daughter of a rancher in 1840s Mexico, Nena knows a thing or two about monsters—her home has long been threatened by tensions with Anglo settlers from the north. But…