🌿 The Roots of Wellness and Wildflowers Market and Better Health Botanicals 🌿

A story of healing, artistry, and building something meaningful together.

Long before Wellness and Wildflowers became a marketplace, and Better Health Botanicals became a brand, it was a kitchen project, a backyard experiment, and a family conversation about how to feel better naturally. It began not with a business plan, but with pain.

Eric Mandella, a lifelong grower, outdoorsman, and master craftsman, had spent decades living with chronic pain. Frustrated by conventional treatments that did not work and dissatisfied with synthetic pharmaceutical options, he turned to what he knew best - plants. Through studying herbalism, holistic healing, and traditional methods, he began creating his own topical rubs.

At the time, his son Brian Mandella was nearby. With a biochemistry degree, a sharp eye for plant taxonomy, and a deep respect for the natural world, Brian became an essential part of the process. Together, Eric and Brian explored which botanicals were best suited for pain relief, which extraction methods worked most effectively, and how to bring herbal tradition together with science-based knowledge. Those early batches were more than tests. They were acts of hope and the beginning of something much larger than they imagined.

The pain relief rub they created worked! So well, in fact, that friends and family began asking for it. Eric continued to improve his formulations soon expanded to address more than pain. He developed antimicrobial salves, healing balms, and a reef-safe sunscreen. Each product was crafted using clean, plant-based, organic ingredients and made in small batches with care and intention.

Meanwhile, Heather Mandella, Eric’s daughter and a gifted artist, was navigating her own chronic health challenges. As she continued to explore new dimensions of artistic expression, she also found healing and comfort in the remedies her father and brother created. Her art - joyful, reflective, and vibrant - became part of the family’s creative identity. You will often find her work featured in displays, packaging, and the visual spirit of the pop-up shop.

At the helm of bringing everything together is Eric’s wife, Goldie Mandella. With the heart of a giver and a business mind shaped by years of leadership in healthcare and operations, Goldie saw how people responded to her family’s creations. She stepped in, not to change the scope of the work, but to help scale its impact. From branding and vendor sourcing to logistics, additional product curation, merchandising, and storytelling, she infused the family’s vision with strategy and direction. Her role helped transform a growing effort into a mission-driven business.

Together, this is the foundation of Better Health Botanicals, the herbal wellness branch of the Mandella family’s work, and Wellness and Wildflowers, the marketplace it helped inspire.

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🌸 What Wellness and Wildflowers Is Today

Wellness and Wildflowers is more than a shop. It is a living expression of a family’s values. The business is based in Oregon’s McKenzie River Valley with an online presence, but it is rooted in something deeper - the power of nature, the joy of beautiful things, and the love of making something with your own hands.

The market features a blend of the Mandella family’s own handcrafted products, including herbal remedies for pain relief, healing, and skin protection. It also includes a curated selection of goods from around the world. Many items are handmade, handcrafted, fair trade, or sustainably sourced. Others are simply joyful and unique, chosen not because of a label, but for the joy they bring.

From terracotta incense owls to one-of-a-kind soaps, colorful scarves, woven baskets, books, and art, you will find items that uplift the spirit, spark curiosity, and invite us into a slower and more intentional way of living.

Not everything is available online. Many of the items sold at the market are one-of-a-kind or produced in very limited quantities. We believe this is part of what makes the experience so special. This is not just retail—it is a ritual of discovery.

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🌼 A Family Legacy in Bloom

At its core, Wellness and Wildflowers is a family endeavor. Each member contributes a vital thread to a larger story:

• Eric, the master grower and formulator, grounds the herbal products in lived experience and a deep understanding of the land.

• Brian, the botanist and critical thinker, brings scientific insight to the artistry of plant medicine.

• Heather, the artist and advocate, uses her creativity to amplify the brand’s spirit and remind us of the healing power of beauty.

• Goldie, the organizer and connector, builds a thoughtful and sustainable business that carries the mission forward with care.

This is a marketplace born from healing. A place where pain sparked purpose, and a family’s bond became a growing legacy.

Come find us at a pop-up market, visit us online, or follow the journey as it continues to unfold. We are here to help you give with intention, care for yourself naturally, and celebrate the small wonders that make life beautiful.

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🌼 Join Us

Come experience the difference.

🛍️ Shop online at https://wellnessandwildflowers.com

📍 Visit us at one of our pop-up events in the McKenzie River Valley

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