Why I Started Wave + Summit

At WAVE + SUMMIT, our mission is simple: create nurturing skincare using all-natural ingredients, packaged in materials that can be reused, recycled, and returned to the earth without harm.

But this didn’t start as a business idea. It started as a personal need.

I live surrounded by two environments that have shaped my life in every way: the ocean and the mountains. The New England coast has always felt like home, while the nearby mountain ranges have offered both challenge and stillness when I’ve needed it most.

Over the years, as I spent more time outdoors, something became clear.
My skin was constantly dealing with the elements. Salt water, high winds, sun, cold air. It wasn’t occasional exposure. It was a lifestyle and my skin needed more than what I could find on a store shelf.

Most products felt like they were sitting on the surface. Some left a residue that didn’t feel right. Others relied on long lists of ingredients I couldn’t pronounce, let alone trust. They weren’t built for real exposure. They were built for convenience.

Then there was a moment I haven’t forgotten.

I was in the water at my local beach, looking out across the surface, when I noticed something that stopped me. A visible sheen drifting on top of the water. It wasn’t natural. It was coming from the lotions and sunscreens washing off swimmers around me.

It was subtle, but once you see it, you can’t unsee it.

That moment shifted everything.

I realized that what we put on our bodies doesn’t just stay with us. It returns to the places we love. Our oceans, lakes, and trails are absorbing the byproducts of everyday routines, often without us even thinking about it.

If I wanted something different, something better for my skin and the environment, I was going to have to create it. That’s how WAVE + SUMMIT began.

From the start, the goal was clarity and simplicity. Fewer ingredients. Ingredients that serve a purpose. Nothing unnecessary. Nothing harmful. Formulas that work with your skin, not against it.

Every product is made in small batches using ingredients including grass-fed tallow, jojoba oil, and sweet almond oil. These are time-tested, stable, and effective. No fillers. No shortcuts. Just what your skin actually needs.

But this is about more than skincare. It’s about a way of living.

A belief that taking care of yourself and taking care of the environment don’t have to be separate things. That small, intentional choices matter. That what you carry with you into the ocean or onto a trail should leave no trace behind.

WAVE + SUMMIT exists to bring things back to that balance. To restore a sense of connection between people, their routines, and the natural world around them.

Simple. Natural. Effective. No Exceptions.

This is where it starts.