I pour my heart and soul into my craft.

I hope you feel that passion and purpose, along with the powerful healing magic of the forest, every time you use something I’ve made.

Infusing forest plants into my products is my way of helping you reconnect with the healing power of the wild world.  

MY STORY

I've been reinventing myself my whole life, from corporate finance and banking to teaching in public school, then as an outdoor educator and wilderness mountain guide, 15 years as an artist creating mosaic art and traveling with Jeff to art shows to sell my work. All the while becoming a hobby soap maker and self-taught herbalist, and dabbling in the skincare arts.

Before escaping to Colorado in 1991, I had earned a degree in finance and economics from the George Washington University in 1987. I worked for a large bank in South Florida, then moved to NYC for a job in corporate finance.

I returned to school in 1989 to pursue a degree in secondary education and subsequently taught business skills in adult education. I was, ostensibly, heading towards law school.

But something was amiss; I was anxious and depressed, and frankly, I found South Florida, where I was raised, more and more unappealing. The culture, climate, and lifestyle weren’t a good fit for me, and I just could not stop thinking about the ski trips to the Rockies that my parents took us on when I was in college!! I remember looking out at the vast, rugged, snow covered alpine landscape that seemed to go on forever and thought - I could life here! Years later, while teaching adult education while planning my next move, I took up oil painting. So obsessed with the mountains in my head, I’d stay up all night painting landscapes filled with those imaginary mountains. I knew I had to EXPERIENCE LIFE in that landscape. Then, in the summer of 1991, I made my escape. With just the “mountains of Colorado” as my destination and the determination to never look back I began my journey.

I landed in Crested Butte quite by accident after a tour through Aspen, Telluride and Boulder. When I found CB, it was love at first sight. These mountains instantly calmed me, and escaping the insanity of the urban world, the peace and calm of this magical place breathed life back into my spirit and quieted my mind. The anxiety eased, the depression vanished, and I finally felt like a round peg in a round hole! I knew I had found my place. I felt as if I had been born again among the wildflowers, rainbows, magical forests, woodland creatures, and beautiful, free-spirited out-doorsy friends. I continue to be captivated by the quietude of this magical place to this very day.

Since I rode off into the sunset on that fateful day in 1991, I’ve carved out a beautiful life. I fell in love and married Jeff, a brilliant man who shares my love for places wild, the natural world and outdoor adventures. Since we married in the summer of 2002, we’ve climbed rocks and mountains, skied deep powder, ridden the wild waves of rivers, learned to hunt and fish, built a home, and enjoy a peaceful life with our baby dogs. Together we continue to this day to discover wild foods and plants medicine, and have become lifelong, avid amateur mycologists.

In the summer of 2015, I launched Colorado Real Soap with a folding table, a stack of my Olive Oil soaps, a dozen jars of Paw Bliss, and a pop-up tent at the bustling Crested Butte Farmers Market. I sold out in 2 hours. I knew I’d just stepped onto yet another new path in life. I retired from the art show circuit and dove headfirst into a new career at 49, with the goal of opening my own store in my small town.  

In May of 2017, I opened my first boutique in Crested Butte and then In June of 2021, I moved to my current location and expanded my offerings. When I am not working in my lab or connecting with customers at my boutique, you’ll find me outside, exploring my backyard, gardening, and foraging for wild plants with Jeff, and our (current) two beautiful poodles, Pippin and Runa.

In loving memory of my Mom

My dear mother, Dr. Diane Berman, born Diane Roberta Cohen-Perkus, passed away in March of 2008 after a terrible, rapid decline from Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (CJD), a rare, fatal neurodegenerative disease caused by the accumulation of abnormal proteins called prions in the brain.

My mom was truly an angel on earth, kind and caring, beautiful both inside and out. Always striving to help others, she loved people and animals alike. Dr. Berman was a brilliant childhood psychologist who helped innumerable people in her practice. She was my best friend and supporter. She loved my adventurous spirit and encouraged me to always follow my heart. She never tried to hold me back. My mom always looked perfect and beautifully dressed! While I, on the other hand, was the rough and tumble black sheep and tomboy - always playing outside and coming home smelling like my pony! I remember once, I was just 12. I ask my mom if it was okay not to bathe that night, since I would just smell like my horse the next day. She laughed and sent me off to bathe nonetheless.

It was very hard for her when I left Florida to live a different life, and it pains me to this day to think how devastated she was - but she never ever held me back and never made me feel regret or guilt for leaving her behind. What more could a child ask than the true devotion of such a loving and brilliant woman? Her love and acceptance of me allowed me the freedom to pursue my life even though it took me far from her. After I settled here, she visited often. She would tell me it was her heart home too, and that soothed me greatly. She graciously and so generously helped me purchase my lot here in town when I wanted to start putting down roots.

I began selling my soap many years after she had passed away, so sadly, she never had the chance to see this part of my life unfold. She did get to try my handmade hobby soaps, though, and I made many special ones just for her. When I opened my little boutique in downtown Crested Butte, I made it a tribute to her, a place that she would fall in love with. I believe her spirit visits there often, and there are a few poignant instances that lead me to believe that her spirit guided me on this path to pursue my endeavor and that she watches over me, always helping me on my path. I say this because when people come into my shop, they often comment how they can smell the delightful aromas of my soap all the way down on the street! Since my store entrance is on the porch of the building and faces Main Street, the aroma has to travel quite a way before it can be detected! So, how can this possibly happen when it occurs even with the doors and windows closed?! I must be my beautiful mom wafting the scent down to the courtyard and enticing people to climb the stairs to check out my store.

Her ashes are buried along with our precious first dog and mom’s first grandpuppy, Tessa. They rest in one of our favorite secret places next to a mountain stream under a canopy of Aspen and cottonwoods. She keeps Tessa company, and Tessa keeps Mom safe. I miss them both very much, but what I miss most is her infectious laugh!! She was always smiling and laughing! I can picture her smile and hear that laugh in my heart so clearly as if it were just yesterday.

If you made it here to end and read my story, thank you for taking the time to connect. Love, Valerie