62 | FRONTDOORS MAGAZINE Nature’s Blend, Beauty’s Friend Queen Creek Olive Mill’s family venture brings olive oil skincare to the spotlight KITCHEN DOORS Photos courtesy of Olivespa BRENDA REA, her husband Perry, and their children moved from Michigan to Arizona in 1997, seeking sunshine and new opportunities. Eight years later, they opened Queen Creek Olive Mill, a destination known for its fresh olive oils and farm-to-table dining. Over the years, the family’s venture expanded to include an onsite restaurant, a second location at Kierland Commons in Scottsdale, and Olivespa, a line of olive oil-based skincare products. “I started using olive oil to make skincare products in the early 2000s after reading about it and doing some research,” Rea said. “I tried it on my own skin and liked the results. I use essential oils to offer different scents while keeping it all-natural.” The first iteration of Olivespa skincare products was created in Rea’s kitchen. She started selling them at the Queen Creek Olive Mill in 2010. By 2013, Olivespa’s demand required a dedicated production room at the mill. “There weren’t many options for all-natural skincare products at the time,” Rea said. Besides the dietary benefits of olive oil, it is also packed with vitamins and antioxidant properties and works well as a moisturizer. To complement the bath and body products, Rea added candles, all-purpose cleaning spray, baby products and men’s products to Olivespa. With a focus on sustainability and community, Olivespa donates products to local women’s shelters. In November 2024, Olivespa’s growth prompted the opening of a larger facility in Phoenix, consolidating production, office space, a warehouse and a retail store. “It’s great to have everything in one location and to have so many people using our products and enjoying the benefits,” Rea said. Olivespa products are available online, at the Queen Creek Olive Mill, the Scottsdale location and the Phoenix store. Bestsellers include olive oil soap, lip balm and face oils. The products are available in several scents, the most popular being lavender and vanilla. Rea is currently developing a natural perfume, which she hopes to launch soon. “I’m passionate about Olivespa because it’s rooted in what I believe in,” she said. “It came from a need for all-natural skincare products for myself and my family. I wanted to share it and make it available to others.” To learn more, go to olivespa.com .

FRONTDOORS MAGAZINE | 63 KEN SNYDER, DDS Executive dental director of St. Vincent de Paul H I S T A K E “This is a book that keeps on giving 365 days a year. Actually, 366 days — Cohen even includes a passage for Feb. 29. Each day offers a one-page lesson on how we can best deal with the speedbumps and hurdles we all face in our day-to-day living. I find it to be the perfect way to jumpstart my day. It keeps me grounded and enables me to handle the day’s challenges. It also reminds me to be grateful and aware of the day’s many blessings that lie ahead. Each vignette is a real-life example of how we can use our unique talents and assets to turn our lives into all we want them to be. Cohen concludes each page with a quote or mantra to impress on us that day’s takeaway. The lessons are timeless, so as each new year approaches, I simply move my bookmark to Jan. 1 and begin again.” St. Vincent de Paul’s charity dental clinic provides treatment and preventive care to children and adults without insurance and inspires thousands to healthier hygiene every year. RECOMMENDS by Alan Cohen “A Daily Dose of Sanity” BOOKMARKED