This is the Body Liberation Photos Ask a Fat Creator (and Allies) series, in which we find out more about the lives, work and breakfasts of all kinds of large-bodied and marginalized creators.
Today, I’m talking with one of the owner of Laughing Goddess Apothecary, Eve Enzweiler.
Here’s how Eve describes herself:
“I’m queer fabulous out and proud fat positive bellydancing witchy rootwoman living my best life in the mountains of New Mexico with my beautiful butch wife of 17 years. I have been on a journey of living a fully present and unapologetically fat and sex positive life for about 22 years and am loving all of the amazing experiences and people that I get to encounter every day. My lifelong passion for herbalism began its formal journey about 10 years ago and it was only a matter of time before I combined my love of fat activism and making plant based potions.”
– Eve Enzweiler
Tell me about you! What’s your name? What pronouns do you use? Where do you live? What do you like to eat for breakfast?
Eve: My name is Eve Enzweiler 2) I am a femme who prefers she/her pronouns 3) I live in the East Mountains of New Mexico 4) My favorite thing to eat for breakfast would be whatever my happy fattie tummy is craving at the time. The novelty of being an adult who can eat whatever she wants at breakfast still hasn’t worn off….lol!
What is your business, and how does it make a difference in the world?
Eve: My business is Laughing Goddess Magickal Apothecary where I create all manner of flabulously fat positive bath, beauty, magickal goodies. 2) love seeing how transformative it is for people to to use products that are meant to pamper, love, and comfort fat and/or lgtbqia bodies instead of diminish or shame them.
“Everything I make is loudly and unapologetically fat positive from the mission statement all the way down to the images imprinted on my product labels. All of the formulations and potions that I create are specifically with the fat body in mind. Being a lifelong fattie myself, I make all the products that I wish I had growing up to help me feel beautiful and present in my body.”
– Eve Enzweiler
Why is what you do important? How does it change the way people see or how they feel about their bodies?
Eve: People who undertake the journey to living a fat positive life encounter so much resistance from society and within themselves that any respite from this oftentimes overwhelming toxicity serves as a very refreshing mental and spiritual oasis. I absolutely love creating bath, beauty, and assorted potions to make that oasis a place of magick. 2) For many people, just seeing an entire website full of products with the term “fat” used as an unapologetic term of descriptive beauty and/or loving endearment in the product name and description is very healing.
How does body positivity or fat positivity make your business different from others in your field? What has your experience been like?
Eve: Everything I make is loudly and unapologetically fat positive from the mission statement all the way down to the images imprinted on my product labels. All of the formulations and potions that I create are specifically with the fat body in mind. Being a lifelong fattie myself, I make all the products that I wish I had growing up to help me feel beautiful and present in my body. 2) My experience has been quite the joyful rollercoaster because it honestly takes people a while to wrap their heads around the concept of bath, beauty, and magickal products created specifically with the purpose of honoring not apologizing for fat bodies. When I’m vending in person it honestly takes people 2 or 3 visits to my booth before they are convinced that what I create and sell is for real.
Can you share an instance where you made a real difference for a customer, or had some really great feedback from them about your body-positive work?
Eve: The best feedback that I get from customers is when they tell me how using my products enabled them to see themselves as beautiful and how it affects the way they allow themselves to be treated by fat phobic individuals.
How did you discover body acceptance or body positivity personally? What kind of difference has it made for you?
Eve: I discovered body positivity when I took my first bellydancing class. I had just come out of the closet into a very fat phobic queer women’s community and I was desperate for a way to see my body as a work of art not a work in progress the way I did in my eating disordered teenage years. 2) It has made all the difference in the world in every facet of my life.
I no longer view myself of only deserving to be treated like a priceless jewel when I am at a certain weight. I would not have met the love of my life if I hadn’t stopped viewing myself as someone people would only sleep with out of pity or lowered standards.
“I no longer view myself of only deserving to be treated like a priceless jewel when I am at a certain weight.”
– Eve Enzweiler
What advice do you have for other people who are learning to love and accept their bodies?
Eve: In our media saturated society, it is of the utmost importance that you are aggressively and proactively surround yourself with people and media that are not just fat but in your face fat positive.
What advice do you have for other business owners who’d like to incorporate body acceptance into their work?
Eve: Incorporate fat positivity into your products in a way that also sustains you personally. The joyful energy and pride you feel about your products always shines through to your customer.
Where can we find more of your work?
Eve: You can find me at my online store: http://laughinggoddessapothecary.com. In the warmer months, I can be found vending at local craft fairs, pride events, and healing fairs.
Find Eve at:
- Instagram: @laughinggoddessapothecary
- Website: http://laughinggoddessapothecary.com
- Facebook: Eve Enzweiler
Every Monday, I send out my Body Liberation Guide, a thoughtful email jam-packed with resources on body liberation, weight stigma, body image and more. And it’s free. Let’s change the world together. Subscribe »
Hi there! I'm Lindley. I create artwork that celebrates the unique beauty of bodies that fall outside conventional "beauty" standards at Body Liberation Photography. I'm also the creator of Body Liberation Stock and the Body Love Shop, a curated central resource for body-friendly artwork and products. Find all my work here at bodyliberationphotos.com.