Today we are back with part two of my conversation with Marisa Mender, owner of Midtown Bramble & Bloom, a Memphis-based flower farm, floral studio, and retail storefront. Marisa, formerly a teacher, started her business with a post to her local Buy Nothing group asking to grow flowers in other people's yards. She did not anticipate what would happen next: within minutes, the offers came pouring in. A year and a half later, florals became her full-time job — and the farm still grows across borrowed backyards all over the city.

Today I am sitting down with Marisa Mender, owner of Midtown Bramble & Bloom, a Memphis-based flower farm, floral studio, and retail storefront. Marisa, formerly a teacher, started her business with a post to her local Buy Nothing group asking to grow flowers in other people's yards. She did not anticipate what would happen next: within minutes, the offers came pouring in. A year and a half later, florals became her full-time job — and the farm still grows across borrowed backyards all over the city.

We discuss how she runs three separate businesses as one entity, and how her raging ADHD makes that possible rather than impossible. Marisa came to business ownership under capitalism reluctantly, and she has since built something on her own terms: a staff of ten with hours she keeps steady through the slow season, and a company whose stated purpose is creating good jobs in a way that honors her commitment to justice. Her word for that approach is not "soft." It's "radical."

New York Times bestselling author Alex Elle did not plan on any of this, on any of what she's known for today. She was an only child who wrote, as she puts it, cringy novellas and sad poems. She was a college dropout who still wondered where her incisive and inquisitive mind would land. She was a mother at 18 trying to figure out how to make rent, but also how to model a version of personhood that would break generational cycles.

And become an anchor for her daughter to fully realize her own life. She was a 19-year-old in therapy after struggling with anxiety and depression when she received the suggestion that would change her life, to try writing herself notes of compassion instead of notes of grief. What Alex now calls "love notes to self". That small redirection ultimately became a body of work, and 14 years later, with several self-published books that led to a traditional publishing career, and millions of copies of books now sold. She's become a New York Times bestselling author whose latest book, The Company We Keep, is a national bestseller. Alex joined me for Creativity in the Time of Capitalism to answer the question I ask everyone here. How did you come to support yourself through your creativity? What followed was one of the most candid answers I've received. She tells the story of quitting a nonprofit job on the spot after a manager called her quote, "a low-budget employee" and of standing on a corner in DuPont Circle with her MetroCard, now deactivated out of spite by the same manager, saying to herself, "I'm either gonna fly or I'm gonna fail, but I'm not going to not try." Two weeks later, she booked her first paid speaking engagement. "No one believed in me but me," she says. "My whole career path has been a practice in believing in myself."

Alex is now the mother to three girls, and we also talk about how her oldest, an 18-year-old now herself, is leaving for art school at the same age Alex was when she became a mother to her, and the mantra that she returns to anytime they're in conflict:" "That before I am your mother, I am a woman, and before you are my daughter, you are your own." Inspired by her latest book, we also get into the power of pruning in both our gardens and our relationships.And we land somewhere I keep thinking about. Self-care not as a purchase, but as a practice, not as an indulgence, but as an act of community care. How the mundane, unrem ar how the mundane, unmarketable stuff that creates real life, the routines and rituals, are all that we have at the end of the day. And how we move through them matters. Alex reminds us that we are the only ones who can guarantee that our needs make it to the top of our daily to-do lists and that in doing so, we can help to lift not only ourselves, but our families, our friends, and our communities in the process. Let's dive into our conversation.

New York Times bestselling author Alex Elle was an only child who began writing with, as she puts it, "cringy novellas and sad poems". She was a college dropout who still wondered where her incisive and inquisitive mind would land. She was a mother at 18 trying to figure out how to make rent, but also, how to model a version of personhood that would break generational cycles. 

She was a 19-year-old in therapy after struggling with anxiety and depression when she received the suggestion that would change her life, to try writing herself notes of compassion instead of notes of grief. What Alex now calls "love notes to self". That small redirection ultimately became a body of work, and 14 years later, with several self-published books that led to a traditional publishing career, and millions of copies of books now sold. She's become a New York Times bestselling author whose latest book, The Company We Keep, is a national bestseller. Alex joined me for Creativity in the Time of Capitalism to answer the question I ask everyone here. How did you come to support yourself through your creativity? What followed was one of the most candid answers I've received. She tells the story of quitting a nonprofit job on the spot after a manager called her quote, "a low-budget employee" and of standing on a corner in DuPont Circle with her MetroCard, now deactivated out of spite by the same manager, saying to herself, "I'm either gonna fly or I'm gonna fail, but I'm not going to not try." Two weeks later, she booked her first paid speaking engagement. "No one believed in me but me," she says. "My whole career path has been a practice in believing in myself."

Alex is now the mother to three girls, and we also talk about how her oldest, an 18-year-old now herself, is leaving for art school at the same age Alex was when she became a mother to her, and the mantra that she returns to anytime they're in conflict:" "That before I am your mother, I am a woman, and before you are my daughter, you are your own." Inspired by her latest book, we also get into the power of pruning in both our gardens and our relationships.And we land somewhere I keep thinking about. Self-care not as a purchase, but as a practice, not as an indulgence, but as an act of community care. How the mundane, unrem ar how the mundane, unmarketable stuff that creates real life, the routines and rituals, are all that we have at the end of the day. And how we move through them matters. Alex reminds us that we are the only ones who can guarantee that our needs make it to the top of our daily to-do lists and that in doing so, we can help to lift not only ourselves, but our families, our friends, and our communities in the process. Let's dive into our conversation.

Our first ever "where are they now" with our first podcast guest on Creativity in the Time of Capitalism, Ilana Kohn. It's been a year and a half since we last spoke, and in that time Ilana: closed her namesake brand, filed for bankruptcy, got married, and started a new apparel line called Samet. In our conversation, we pick up right where we left off. Ilana walks us through the final days of her clothing brand and brick & mortar, Ilana Kohn to now—running Samet as a nimble, founder-run brand with the support of her husband, Ryan Leyba. Operating blissfully and intentionally employee-free, we will learn what life is like for the designer as she eschews scale for quality of life. If you missed our first conversation, catch up there first, or just dive in today—the ground we cover today will also catch you up to speed. 

Miranda here popping in with several updates in between our next long form interview!

A new Ask an Expert with Dr. Kristie Wood on People Pleasing is now live!

Upcoming interviews with: Cass Marketos, Alex Elle, Ilana Kohn, and...Me! I will be sharing my story later this Summer. 

We also touch on a new project, composting my Miranda Bennett Studio deadstock! Literally, composting. 

Also! I just launched a new project called Milky Time about being a new parent, if that speaks to you, take a look :)

Today we continue our conversation with Amanda Lee McCarty, host of the Clotheshorse Podcast and Clotheshorse Consulting. If you missed part one, please pause and begin there. 

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In case you missed the launch of the new suite of programming here on Creativity in the Time of Capitalism, I recently aired two special preview episodes from our newsletter, which I consider the home base of this project. It included our new Ask an Expert interview series, where we unpack a theme from the previous long form conversation, and our new hotline episode, where audience members like you share personal experiences about the same topic. 

Our new theme, based on this conversation with Amanda, is people pleasing. We will discuss this topic as well as its origins and the ways in which it can manifest in our personal and professional lives, first with our next Ask an Expert interview with psychologist Dr. Christy Wood, then our following hotline episode with your audience stories will follow.

And this is where you come in. If people pleasing is something that you have felt affected by, embodied, or overcome, I would love to hear from you. I've personally only recently uncovered the depth of influence that people pleasing has had on my own life—from growing up as a little sister to many, many foibles in people management. Being liked is linked to our capacity for survival in so many ways. In my case, I found it to be a magnet that drew me away from my own center for most of my adult life. 

To participate in the hotline episode, you can record a voice memo sharing your own people-pleasing insights or experiences, and email it to me at hi@creativityinthetimeofcapitalism.com. Don't worry about speaking perfectly or having some very concise and super polished statement. What's most important is just sharing something honest and authentic to your experience. Your stories will be compiled and shared in the next hotline episode on the Creativity in the Time of Capitalism newsletter. I cannot wait to hear from you and thanks again for being here. Until soon. 

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PROMPT ALERT: Our next hotline prompt is about people pleasing. Do you have a history of people pleasing? If so, when did you realize it? What have you done to remedy it? What does people pleasing bring up for you? There are no wrong answers here. Record a voice memo of your answer and email it to: hi@creativityinthetimeofcapitalism.com and it will be included in our next hotline episode at the end of this cycle.

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Calling all sustainable fashion fans! This week on Creativity in the Time of Capitalism we are joined by fast fashion buyer turned activist, consultant, and podcast host, Amanda McCarty. Their podcast, Closehorse, is a masterclass on what actually goes on in the opaque underbelly of the fashion industry. Amanda is also especially gifted at reminding us all that with every purchase, we shop with our dollars, and in this way,

We have the means to deploy ethical consumption under capitalism. Amanda spent close to two decades inside the fast fashion machine, working as a buyer for major brands and startups alike, helping companies like Urban Outfitters decide what clothes we'd obsess over for a few wares and then quietly discard. Behind the glossy campaigns, they witnessed the burnout, the cutting of corners, the sad desk salads, and the emotional dysregulation that set the tone for far too many workplaces. For Amanda, as their awareness grew that so much of what they were helping to bring into the world would ultimately end up in landfills, so did their disillusionment with the fashion industry as a whole. When the pandemic hit, they were laid off from their role as the original buyer at the recently launched apparel rental company, Nuuly.

What had felt like a crisis at the time ultimately cracked open the possibility of a very different way of working, one that would disrupt Amanda's entire career trajectory up to that point. In this episode, Amanda shares how losing that job forced them to reckon with a lifetime of scarcity thinking, the belief that work was only about survival, and their deep disillusionment with an industry that had never felt like home.

To go behind the episode and to learn more about this project, visit the Creativity in the Time of Capitalism newsletter for bonus content and more

This is a special preview of the kind of content that is typically only available to paid subscribers of the Creativity in the Time of Capitalism newsletter. In this episode, listeners from this audience called in to share their own mistakes, how they felt, and what they learned.

For around $1 a week for annual subscribers you can receive more conversations like this (and and without ads!). I hope you enjoy this preview and if you'd like to learn more, you can visit CreativityInTheTimeOfCapitalism.com.

Thanks so much and onto the show.

This is a special preview of the kind of content that is typically only available to paid subscribers of the Creativity in the Time of Capitalism newsletter. In this episode, we chat with Alyza Brown, a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW) and therapist about how to recover from mistakes.  

For around $1 a week for annual subscribers you can receive more conversations like this (and and without ads!). I hope you enjoy this preview and if you'd like to learn more, you can visit CreativityInTheTimeOfCapitalism.com.

Thanks so much and onto the show.

Welcome back to part two of my interview with Wooden Spoon Herbs founder, Lauren Haynes. 

If you missed part one, please pause here and give that a listen first. Today we resume at the cliffhanger Lauren left us with regarding the rollout of her brand’s national launch at Whole Foods.

My next guest has managed to do the impossible: exited her dream job (and before it became a nightmare) while still managing to steward the dream. Meet clinical herbalist Lauren Haynes, the founder and current Chief Herbal Officer of Wooden Spoon Herbs, a wellness company based in the United States that utilizes heritage techniques and regional herbs to offer enduring remedies for the physiological impacts of modern life. I have watched her brand from afar as it transitioned from cozy kraft paper and farmer’s markets, to the darling of independent trade shows like Shoppe Object—a gateway platform that landed her in some of the country’s most exciting indy boutiques—to covetously designed packaging matched by buzzy and highly effective formulations available at Whole Foods nationwide.

In this two part interview, we will uncover Lauren’s origin story, what led her to both herbalism and entrepreneurship, and what the transition from an idyllic workshop in the woods to a supermarket mainstay felt like for the woman at the helm. Lauren also discusses with candor and clarity the kinds of experiences that founders rarely share: how simple miscalculations can lead to five figure losses, and how her dedication to wellness goes beyond tinctures, but to nonnegotiables about her quality of life. This first episode will set the stage for a part two that you will absolutely not want to miss.

Welcome back to the second installment of my interview with photographer and artist, Zoë Ghertner. If you missed part one, please pause here and give that a listen first. Today we resume just as Zoë was describing how she creates sets that are conducive to her methods of connection storytelling. 

Presently considered one of the leading voices shaping fashion photography, Zoë Ghertner has shot campaigns for many of the industry’s most venerable brands, including, though not limited to, Chanel, Gucci, Dior, Celine, and Miu Miu. Her distinct timbre contains a study of the feminine as something unfettered and powerful—at times feral and exuberant, at others stoic yet determined. Her subjects are rooted in the body natural, and their presentation eschews fashion’s predilection for the male gaze. I cannot wait to share this glimpse inside of her world.

“My work and my life are intrinsically linked by an ethos. Everything I create is born out of a set of values I hold, namely trying to put good out into the world.”

—Zoë Ghertner

Welcome to part two of my conversation with Sara Berks, the founder and former CEO of MINNA (2013-2025) who operated from the principle that good design considers far more than aesthetics or even function. Sara and MINNA, her B-Corp certified, artisan produced line of textiles for the home, have been featured in such publications as Vogue, Domino, Dwell, and Martha Stewart. Today we will continue to learn about Sara’s journey at the helm of MINNA, as well as the new project she is currently working on: Portals. 

Join me in welcoming my next guest, Sara Berks. Sara is the founder, former CEO and creative director of MINNA (2013–2025), an artisan produced universe of ethically made goods for the home that championed and preserved traditional techniques native to Latin America. Her collection was manufactured through reciprocal relationships with over 400 creators across Mexico, Guatemala, Peru, Uruguay and Bolivia.

Sara defines good design as something inseparable from consideration for people, the planet, and its resources. In this way, she cultivated a path for herself and her collaborators that saw profit as a means to create dignified, consistent employment and fuel for future collaborations that prioritized cultural preservation and locally sourced materials. 

Learn more about Sara’s experience at the helm of MINNA, why she made the decision to close, as well as what she is up to today, a new project called Portals.

Description: Today I am joined by Liza Belmonte of Every Body Gets Dressed and a guest co-host, multidisciplinary artist Bec Mapes. We often don't see the effort that it takes to fail, nor do we know the sometimes damaging feats undertaken in the name of avoiding it. But when it comes to failure, what can often feel weighty, shameful, or even hard to admit is in fact, if you ask me, more of a door than a dead end. Bec shares how she confronted the term "failure" head on. And our guest, Liza describes how quick strategic failure became the key that unlocked the door to a life she never knew could have been possible. For me, my own failure says, “I tried”. And in my case, failure was also having the courage to stop, the declaration that I am more valuable than the cost of letting go.

“You can’t outsource community. You have to build it.” A conversation with the multidisciplinary designer on creating community through networks of resilience. 

I’m very excited to introduce you to my next guest, Christa Clark. She is a multidisciplinary designer with a background in UX (user experience) who stepped away from the corporate sphere to focus on issues that affect her immediate community—from food scarcity and mutual aid to textile recycling and circular economies. Christa is currently been working on several projects, including Material Union, an in-development a textile recycling facility and community resource center that has the potential to create a replicable model for use across the USA where textile recycling infrastructure is sorely lacking (currently 85% of all textiles end up in landfills).

Christa reminds us that when the macro feels as dire as it does right now, one of the most liberating things that we can do is to dig deeper into our local communities, forming networks of resilience and mutual aid—something that is rooted in dignity and community, not charity or systems that uphold disparity.

My hope with today’s conversation is that everyone can walk away with a bit of hope, license to act, and curiosity. And perhaps a few ways to reframe regular day-to-day decisions—changing the dial just ever so slightly to bring in more empowerment, optimism, collaboration, and engagement with our local communities.

Please visit the Creativity in the Time of Capitalism Substack to learn more and for episode resources. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

Christa Clark

Mutual aid

UX/UI design

ATX Free Fridge

Food waste

Redistribution of resources

Material Union

Textile Recycling

Free Fridges 

Apparel waste

Upcycling

Circular economies

Welcome back to part two of my conversation with Shana Tabor. If you have already listened to part one, you're right where you need to be. If you have not listened to the first part of our conversation, I would definitely recommend pausing here and going back to last week's episode. 

This week, we're going to go further into Shana's journey with In God We Trust, including what those last years looked like, the shifts in her personal life that cracked open a new perspective, and the less obvious driving force behind Shana’s creative business. But perhaps even more than that, we're going to move forward with Shana to where finds herself now. She's spent these past few years in deep consideration of those nearly two decades of running her business—what it looked and felt like on the inside, and not just the outside, what the unconscious motivators were behind some of her decision-making, what she wished she had known then, but is grateful to know now—essentially all of the things that can only be known in hindsight. There are some really key points and interrogations here that will be truly worthwhile for any creative entrepreneur, no matter where you find yourself in your journey.

My next guest is Shana Tabor, the designer and business owner behind In God We Trust (IGWT)—a string of boutiques in Brooklyn and lower Manhattan that carried its own branded collections from 2005-2021. 

IGWT specialized in women's and men's apparel, jewelry and accessories. Walking into any one of those spaces was like walking into another world. Tabor’s storefronts were beautifully and holistically merchandised—creating a complete environment through everything from the brand’s aesthetic and even sewn in labels, to the shop fixtures and old Americana touches. Shana also opened up her own production facility right in Brooklyn and trained many aspiring jewelry and fashion designers along the way. The period of time that IGWT existed saw wild changes in the independent fashion space, like the advent of social media, a couple of recessions, COVID, and more. I'm truly so honored to be able to share Shana's story now and to give her the space to share it in her own words. She has been reflecting on her time running In God We Trust over the past few years and the insights that she has gleaned are utterly poignant, some a true punch in the gut, others gentle reminders for all creatives. This will be the longest set of interviews that I've published on creativity in the time of capitalism to date. And it is wholly deserved in order to give Shana the space to lay out her creative path. So without further ado, let's get started. And my deepest thanks to Shana for the trust with sharing her story.