Today we’d like to introduce you to Adrienne Ferreira-Bachis.
Hi Adrienne, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up watching my mom treat skincare like a daily ritual. She was a flight attendant who always brought home the best products from Korea and everywhere else she flew. Some of my favorite memories are sitting in the bathroom with her, watching her get ready for flights. She was so intentional, detailed, and consistent with her routine.
When I moved from Brazil to the United States and started modeling full-time in my early twenties, I began learning about the other side of the beauty industry. Sets and runways had every product imaginable, but many of them irritated my skin. I started questioning what was actually in these products. Around the same time, my agency pressured me to get a cosmetic procedure because I was considered “disproportionate” and they believed it would help me book more jobs. I went along with it.
About a year after the surgery, I discovered I had a benign ovarian tumor, and my hormone issues began. There were surgeries, birth control pills to save my ovary, and later uterine fibroids. My body was struggling, but I didn’t fully connect the dots yet. Looking back, I believe both the stress and the demands of the industry played a role in what I was experiencing.
I eventually returned to the holistic lifestyle I was raised with. I started reading every ingredient label, swapping products, and focusing on cleaner options. Still, things became more challenging. I had heavy metals in my system, my liver was overloaded, and my fertility hormones had flatlined. In 2018, during a very emotional prayer, I learned about breast implant illness and realized many of my symptoms aligned with it. The following year, I had my implants removed. That was a major turning point.
In 2020, I got married and became pregnant, but I lost our baby when my fibroids grew aggressively during the pregnancy. In 2022, I underwent a full hysterectomy and entered surgical menopause at 37. My skin changed shockingly fast. It became extremely dry, reactive, thinner, and nothing seemed to work the way it once had.
Back in 2019, a close friend had introduced me to tallow, and it came back to mind while I was trying to adapt to this new phase of life. When I tried it, my skin loved the hydration from its natural fats and vitamins. The results were incredible, but the beefy smell wasn’t for me. I tested every small brand I could find, yet nothing felt quite right for where my skin was at.
After years of researching ingredients and navigating my own health and skin challenges, I decided to create exactly what I needed: a clean, effective tallow balm designed for women experiencing the changes that come with midlife and menopause. That’s how Skin Linen began.
It’s been a long journey, but every challenge taught me to listen more closely to my body instead of following what the beauty industry was telling me I needed. Skin Linen was born from that place—a desire to create something honest, effective, and genuinely supportive for women going through real-life changes. I’m grateful to share what I’ve learned along the way, and I hope it helps other women feel more confident, comfortable, and at home in their skin.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
It hasn’t been the easiest road, but I’ve learned that some of the biggest lessons come from the challenges.
Skin Linen is still funded by my day job, so for now, I wear almost every hat. I’m the formulator, photographer, marketer, customer service department, and shipping team. Luckily, I have an amazing husband and partner, to help support our partnerships and help at events. But, there are days when everything goes according to plan, and there are days when jars suddenly go out of stock, suppliers change timelines, or packages disappear right before a grocery store delivery.
I’ve had moments where I’ve wondered how I was going to make it all work. I finish my workday, and then spend my evenings packing orders, answering emails, making product, and preparing for the next day. Some nights, it’s just me working long in our basement.
But every bump has taught me something valuable. When a supplier lets me down, I make sure to find at least 2 backup plans. When a shipment goes missing, I learn how to prepare further in advance. Every mistake becomes a note in my notebook so I can do better next time.
One of the biggest hurdles has been working in a very small space. When you’re making products, storing inventory, photographing content, and packing orders all in the same area, organization becomes essential. As frustrating as it can be at times, it’s also taught me to be intentional. Every tool has a place, every ingredient has a purpose, and every decision matters. In many ways, it reflects the philosophy behind Skin Linen itself: thoughtful and focused on what truly works.
These challenges aren’t always fun, but they’re helping me build something meaningful. They’ve taught me patience, resilience, and how to create a business with a solid foundation instead of rushing the process. Looking back, I wouldn’t trade those lessons. They’re shaping not only Skin Linen, but also the person I’m becoming as I build it.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Skin Linen?
Skin Linen is a small skincare company I started after going through my own health and hormonal journey. We create grass-fed tallow creams, balms, and botanical skincare designed to support skin through every season of life, especially during times when it feels drier, more sensitive, or simply different than it used to.
My goal was never to create another skincare brand. I wanted to create the products I couldn’t find when my own skin changed after surgical menopause. I was looking for something natural, nourishing, and effective, but also beautiful to use every day.
Our tallow creams are the foundation of Skin Linen. They’re designed to moisturize, support the skin barrier, and simplify skincare without sacrificing results. Because they’re rich in nutrients and highly concentrated, a little goes a long way, and one jar often lasts for months.
We also offer a lightweight botanical serum inspired by the Korean skincare rituals I grew up watching my mother practice. She was a flight attendant and often brought home skincare products from her travels. Those early memories sparked my love of skincare and taught me that taking care of your skin can be a daily act of self-care, not just another task on a to-do list.
What makes Skin Linen different is our approach. We start with grass-fed tallow as the foundation and thoughtfully pair it with botanicals, plant oils, and essential oils chosen for both their benefits and their beautiful scent. One thing I heard over and over when trying tallow products was that people loved the results but struggled with the smell. Creating formulas that felt luxurious and smelled beautiful without losing the benefits of tallow became incredibly important to me.
Every product is inspired by my own experiences navigating hormonal changes, skin challenges, and the process of learning to work with my body instead of against it.
More than anything, I’m proud that Skin Linen meets women where they are. It doesn’t promise perfection or try to fight every sign of change. Instead, it’s about supporting healthy skin, embracing the wisdom that comes with each season of life, and creating small moments of care in the middle of busy days.
Let’s talk about our city – what do you love? What do you not love?
The people, no doubt.
I live in Sylvan Lake and recently opened Skin Linen’s office in Pontiac, and one of the things that has surprised me most is how supportive this community has been. The women here have embraced Skin Linen from the beginning. They come to pop-ups, share our products with friends, and genuinely want to see small businesses succeed. As a founder, that kind of support means more than I can put into words.
I’m also excited about what is happening in Pontiac right now. It feels like a city with so much momentum. Downtown is charming and walkable, new businesses are opening, and there’s a creative energy that makes you want to be part of it. Between the restaurants, local events, and growing arts and music scene, it feels like a hidden gem that more people are starting to discover.
What do I like least? Probably the same thing every Michigan resident would say: construction season and potholes.
I say that with a lot of appreciation for the people doing the work, because the improvements are needed. But there are definitely days when I leave for an appointment and find myself rerouting around unexpected road closures or dodging potholes that seem to appear overnight. It’s one of those things that can make you laugh and sigh at the same time.
At the end of the day, though, it’s a small inconvenience compared to everything this community has to offer. I feel incredibly grateful to be building Skin Linen here and to be surrounded by people who believe in supporting local businesses and each other.
Pricing:
- Cocoa & Marshmallow Tallow $28
- Unscented + Honey Tallow $32
- Summer ‘94 Vanilla Cone Bison Tallow $32
- Vanilla & Golden Hour Serum $52
- Vanille en Rose Bakuchiol Tallow $42
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.skinlinen.com
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/skinlinenbeauty
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/skinlinen
- Twitter: @skinlinenbeauty
