Her Layered Life

Cherie Hager: Building SALT, ending period poverty, and designing work-life integration

Cherie Hoeger, founder and CEO of SALT, shares how a personal family need turned into a purpose-driven company creating reusable period care products. This conversation covers the origin story of SALT, the impact of period poverty worldwide, and how Cherie has built a business, family life, and leadership rhythm around intention and service.We discuss product innovation, global distribution, motherhood, entrepreneurship, and the mindset shifts that helped Cherie grow from a technical writer and mother of six into the CEO of an eight-figure company.

Key topics

• Cherie explains how a call with her aunt in Venezuela revealed how inaccessible basic care products had become for women and families there.
• She shares her first experience with menstrual cups, discs, and period underwear, including why they felt more comfortable, longer lasting, and more dignified than disposable products.
• The conversation explores period poverty as a global issue affecting over 500 million women and girls, and why reusable products can create a longer term solution than disposable donations alone.
• Cherie describes SALT’s give back model, including donating over 160,000 products across 60 countries.
• She talks about designing products for multiple uses, including periods, bladder leaks, postpartum recovery, discharge, and sweat.
• Cherie explains how SALT positioned itself as a trusted, mainstream brand through packaging, branding, and a retail-ready product strategy.
• She recounts the pivotal buyer meeting that led to Target taking the brand nationwide in its second year.
• Cherie reflects on her earlier layers, including Capoeira, e-commerce, real estate, and technical writing, and how each one prepared her for building SALT.
• She shares how motherhood and entrepreneurship overlap, especially in the need for leadership, planning, emotional resilience, and energy management.
• Cherie outlines her philosophy of work-life integration, including family councils, quarterly goals, a 90-minute morning routine, and an in-office preschool.

She started Pink Desert with $500, a baby on the way, and a one-bedroom apartment. Sixteen years later, she sold it. 💛

Darci Schurig built Pink Desert into one of the most recognized names in modest fashion — and then made the courageous decision to let it go. In this episode, we talk about what happens when the thing you've spent years building is no longer yours, and who you are when the title changes.

In this conversation, we cover:

🌵 Starting from nothing — the $500 investment, the fear on the freeway after meeting her manufacturer, and the pushback from people who told her modest swimwear would never sell

📈 The Pinterest post that went viral and gave her the momentum she needed to finally hire her first employee

⏳ Two buyers who fell through years before the right one appeared — and why she believes the waiting was God ordering her steps, not a closed door

📱 The scary, vulnerable decision to announce the sale on social media before she even had a signed offer — and what happened within two weeks

💔 What grief actually looks like when you let go of something you built with your whole heart, even when you know it's the right decision

🩰 How she's leaned on a lesson she learned once before — after an ACL injury ended her ballet career — that an ending isn't the end of the story

⏰ What she's calling "the gift of time," and the next chapter she's stepping into with her family

This isn't just a conversation about building a successful company. It's about identity, purpose, letting go, and having the courage to step into a new layer before you can clearly see what comes next.

Because her life is layered — and her influence can change the world. 💛

Follow Darci: @darcischurig | darcischurig.com

If this episode encouraged you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a woman who needs the reminder that waiting isn't wasted — it's where we practice hope.

Nobody ever really arrives — we're all just becoming. This week, Amanda talks with 22-year-old teacher and content creator Riley Meckley (@alwaysrileymeckley) about growing up online in real time: building confidence through speech and debate, landing a teaching job right out of college, and why she just rebranded her page to make room for more than fashion.

✨ How speech and debate built Riley's confidence from the ground up

👗 The real link between getting dressed up and feeling confident

🔄 Why she changed her page name from "Always Dress Best" to "Always Riley Meckley"

💼 Treating content creation as a hobby, not a hustle — and why that's freeing

🤝 Her rule for brand partnerships: only promote what she'd already wear

💰 Getting into investing young — mutual funds, the S&P 500, and starting small

🙏 The layer of her life that's required the most faith lately

💬 What being high school class president taught her about handling critics

Confidence isn't something you wake up with one day — it's a choice you make daily. Tune in for a conversation about style, faith, finance, and the courage to keep becoming.

What happens when the thing you spent years learning for yourself becomes something you give away? Today I'm sitting down with Rae Pito — model, modeling coach, and connector extraordinaire — to talk about confidence, representation, and what it actually looks like to teach someone to believe in themselves.

Rae grew up in Long Beach, California, never imagining modeling would become part of her story. A $150 photo shoot (funded by her sister's belief in her) turned into a career, and eventually into Salaiasina Talent — her modeling coaching business, born out of a simple realization: women needed to see someone who looked like them before they could imagine it for themselves.

In this conversation, we talk about:

🌸 What it actually felt like to be the only woman of color in a room of 70+ models 🌸 Why "fake it till you make it" might be the most underrated mantra out there 🌸 The four-session breakdown of what modeling coaching really teaches (hint: it's not just posing) 🌸 Why confidence isn't something you build from scratch — it's something you already have 🌸 How Rae's faith shapes the way she sees purpose, timing, and "fulfilling the measure of her creation" 🌸 The moment she finally let herself say, out loud, "I'm a model" 🌸 Why the best investment isn't money — it's time, and who we spend it with

This one's for every woman who's ever felt like an imposter in a room she was fully meant to be in. Rae's story is proof that once you can see something in your mind, you're already halfway there.

✨ Connect with Rae: Personal IG: @RaePito Coaching IG: @salaimasinatalent

This episode is brought to you by Halftee — use code HERLAYEREDLIFE for a discount on your next order.

If this conversation encouraged you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a woman who needs to hear it. When we stop comparing and competing and start supporting and creating together, we all rise.

She was 35 weeks pregnant with her third son when a flu that should've cleared in four days turned into organ failure, an induced coma, and a fight to breathe on her own.

Today, my friend Tesiah Frame is back on Her Layered Life — and this time, we're finally telling the full story.

The first time Tesiah was on Her Layered Life, we only scratched the surface: business, motherhood, a life she loved. But there was a layer underneath it all we hadn't gotten to yet — the hospitalization that changed everything, the addiction recovery program that helped her rebuild, and the seven-year journey to finally feel whole in spirit, mind, and body.

This conversation goes deep. We talk about ICU delirium and the trauma your body holds onto even when your mind has moved on. We talk about narcotic withdrawal disguised as grief. We talk about rage, survivor's guilt, and the moment Tesiah realized she needed help before she hurt the people she loved most. And we talk about the prayer that changed everything: "Change me. I don't want to live like this anymore."

If you've ever felt like your life split into a before and after — through a diagnosis, a loss, a betrayal, or a moment you never saw coming — this episode is for you. Because healing isn't about going back to who you were. It's about becoming who you were always meant to become.

What we cover in this episode:

🔹 The medical emergency that changed Tesiah's life at 35 weeks pregnant

🔹 What ICU delirium is — and the real trauma it leaves behind

🔹 Coming home to her kids after weeks on life support

🔹 The rage and post-traumatic stress that surfaced six months later

🔹 Why she joined a 12-step addiction recovery program — and what it taught her about the Atonement

🔹 How COVID disrupted her healing and forced her to keep going alone

🔹 The physical, cellular toll trauma took on her body for years afterward

🔹 The prayer that finally unlocked her healing: "Change me"

🔹 What she'd tell any woman whose life has changed overnight

Tesiah also updates us on everything since our last conversation — her republished book, her new podcast studying women in the Old Testament with Becky Squire, and her business, Happy Sacrament.

Follow Tesiah:

📸 Instagram & TikTok: @TesiahFrame

🎥 YouTube: @TesiahFrame

🌐 Website: tessiaframe.com 🕯️ Business: happysacrament.com

If this episode encouraged you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a woman who needs the reminder that every layer of her life — even the hardest ones — can draw her closer to God.

Because her life is layered — and her influence can change the world. 💛

I am so excited for this conversation because I think every woman, no matter her age or season of life, has wrestled with this question: Am I becoming the woman I was created to be?

It's easy to spend so much time looking around that we forget to look within. We compare our lives, our bodies, our families, our businesses — and before we know it, we're chasing someone else's definition of success instead of discovering the woman God created us to become.

Today's guest is Lindsay Harper, who has built an incredible community by encouraging women to become happier, healthier, and more confident. What I love most about Lindsay isn't just what she teaches — it's the permission she gives women to grow, to evolve, and to embrace the journey without pretending they've already arrived.

We talk about:

• The moment Lindsay's confidence was completely rocked when she moved to Utah her junior year of high school — and ate lunch alone in her car
• How she turned that season around with one small, brave goal: introduce herself to one new person in every class
• Growing up bullied, and how it shaped the "no boys allowed, this page is for the girls" heart behind her platform
• Her double jaw surgery at 17 — and what it taught her about seeing a stranger in the mirror
• Why she believes confidence isn't about being the prettiest or smartest person in the room, but about keeping promises to yourself
• The difference between how she shows up on TikTok versus Instagram, and why authenticity looks different on every platform
• Why comparison and competition are two of women's greatest weaknesses — and creation is our greatest strength
• Her "30 seconds of insane courage" challenge for building confidence one small action at a time
• What she hopes her future granddaughter learns from her story

One thing I've learned is that becoming doesn't happen all at once. It's built in the small, everyday choices — courage over comfort, growth over fear, faith over comparison. Little by little, those choices shape who we're becoming.

My hope for you this week: create something that blesses someone else, and in the process, discover that God is creating something beautiful in you too.

If today's conversation encouraged you, subscribe, leave a review, and share it with a woman who could use the reminder. When we stop comparing and competing and start supporting and creating with each other, we rise together.

Season 2 kicks off with a conversation that is raw, hopeful, and honest all at once. I sat down with Maddie — a mom of two young daughters who got married at 18, moved 14 times in five years, and is now navigating separation and starting over at 23.

Maddie opened up with me about growing up as one of eight kids in Highland, Utah, choosing motherhood young and without regret, and the moment she found her strength as a single mom just two weeks postpartum when her husband left. We talked candidly about grief that isn't linear, the grace she's learning to give herself and others, and how leaning on faith — and family — has carried her through the hardest season of her life.

This episode is a tender reminder that starting over isn't the end of the story. It's just a new layer.

• Growing up as one of eight kids and getting married at 18
• What people misunderstand about becoming a young mom
• The moment she realized "I can do this" as a single mom
• Choosing what to share online — and what stays private — during divorce
• Grieving a life you pictured versus the life you got
• Leaning on faith, family, and friends to carry the load
• Giving grace to herself, her kids, and her ex-husband
• What she hopes her daughters remember about her someday
• Finding a new purpose through social media and brand partnerships

"Healing isn't linear."

"Everything is already working out — because God knew long before I did."

"There's no point in holding on to anger. So just move forward with grace, and your life will be so much easier."

Season 2 is here! Instead of bringing you a guest this episode, I wanted to open this season by sharing what an incredibly full few months has taught me. Between a wedding, becoming a grandma for the first time, leading Trek for nearly 300 youth as a trail boss, and welcoming my son home from his mission, life has been layered in every sense of the word. Here are 4 lessons God's been teaching me through it all:

🕰️ The greatest investment I can make isn't money — it's time, and who I choose to spend it with

❓ I'm learning to ask whether my relationships are drawing me closer to God or distracting me

⚖️ Best days and worst days have shown up right beside each other this year — and I'm learning that's okay

🎒 Mortality means picking up weight — the question I keep asking myself is what weight, and why

🙏 I'm realizing waiting isn't wasted — it's where I'm practicing hope and building faith, even when I can't see it happening

I also share the story of picking up my missionary son from the airport, and what his changed prayers taught me about the ways God prepares us long before we realize we're being prepared.

"When women stop comparing and competing and start supporting and creating with each other, we rise together."

This episode is sponsored by Hafty — use code HERLAYEREDLIFE for a discount.

Because my life is layered — and my influence can change the world. 💛

It's our Season 1 finale — and we're going out with everything we've learned. After 9 months and dozens of incredible interviews, I reflect on the lessons, stories, and moments that defined this season before heading into a maternity pause. 🎉

THE BIG LESSONS FROM SEASON 1

✨ God orders our steps. Trust the timing, even when it doesn't make sense. (Thank you, Alyssa, for a phrase that carried us all season.)

✨ Women build differently. They don't just create products — they create solutions, spaces, and impact. Mel (Tobiq), Shannon & Ash (House of Foils) all proved it.

✨ Look in the mirror. If you keep hitting the same wall, the fix might be a small adjustment — not a whole new strategy. Lesson from Danielle.

✨ Stay in your lane. Comparison will take you out. You choose what success looks like. — Bailey, Bailey Rae Studios

✨ Start before you're ready. Elise (Beehive Meals) started with freezer meals and hit $10K her first day. Tess Frame says: if you feel nudged, just do it. Who God calls, He qualifies.

✨ The fake orchid story. Kimber (Pearl Pop) spent years faithfully caring for an orchid — one ice cube a week, perfect lighting, even a babysitter — only to discover it was fake the whole time. God didn't care. He was proud of her for showing up anyway. Sometimes we just need one small thing to hold onto.

✨ Rhythm, not rush. Life has seasons — to build, to rest, to push, to pull back. Stop fighting the rhythm and you'll feel aligned instead of exhausted. — Amy, The Inherit Co.

✨ Give back. Every single woman this season gave back to their community. Every one. When women support each other with intention, the growth is exponential.

✨ Consent is everyone's conversation. Liliana (UCASA) reminded us — this isn't just a women's issue. Find your state's Coalition Against Sexual Assault and get involved.

✨ Shop with intention. Women drive the majority of spending. If we shifted even a small percentage toward women-owned businesses, we wouldn't just change businesses — we'd change lives.

"Start the thing. Trust the timing. Your life is layered too — and it matters more than you think."

Season 2 is coming. We'll see you on the other side. 🌿

What if a piece of clothing could remind someone in their darkest moment that they are still worth caring for? That's the question behind today's guest — and the answer she's building her entire business around.

I'm sitting down with Lauren Bean, founder of Unfinished Apparel, and I went into this conversation knowing very little about her brand. What came out of the next hour completely moved me.

Lauren grew up outside Philadelphia in a household where both parents were CEOs. She watched them pour everything into their companies and swore she'd never do the same. Instead, she set her sights on songwriting and enrolled at Belmont University in Nashville — the only school she applied to. Then COVID hit. She got sick. Her vocal cords were affected by a connective tissue disorder she'd been managing for years, and doctors gave her a hard choice: keep singing until your voice gives out, or stop now and preserve what you have.

She stopped. And in losing the thing she thought defined her, she found something she never saw coming.

In this episode, Lauren walks me through the spiral of chronic illness, the mental health crisis that followed, and the moment she almost checked herself into inpatient psychiatric care — until she heard what that experience actually looked like. Patients being stripped of their clothes. Handed see-through paper scrubs. Left exposed and dehumanized in their most vulnerable moments.

That image never left her.

With a secondhand embroidery machine bought off Facebook Marketplace from a woman at a gas station, Lauren started selling clothing to fund something that felt a little crazy at the time: getting psychiatric patients out of paper scrubs and into clothing that made them feel human again. One TikTok post later, thousands of people responded — and Unfinished Apparel was born.

We also talk about the hard pivots. There was a season where Lauren leaned away from the mission and into fashion, chasing revenue so she could eventually get back to the hospitals. It wasn't working. Then one Sunday, her pastor looked up and said, "You were not put here to make money. You were put here to make a difference." She knew exactly who that was for.

Lauren is now a new mom to a three-month-old, navigating the beautiful chaos of motherhood and entrepreneurship simultaneously — and she's the first to say it's made her better at both.

This one is for every woman who has had her plans completely rerouted, who's wondered if what she's building actually matters, and who needs the reminder that none of us are finished yet.

In this episode:

• How chronic illness derailed Lauren's songwriting career and led to a mental health crisis
• What she discovered about psychiatric care — and why paper scrubs cause more harm than most people know
• How a Facebook Marketplace embroidery machine became the seed of a mission-driven brand
• Why pivoting is not failure — it's wisdom
• What happened when she chased revenue over purpose, and how she found her way back
• How motherhood has made her a sharper, more grounded business owner

Connect with Lauren & Unfinished Apparel: https://unfinishedapparelstore.com/

Enjoyed this episode? Share it with a nurse, a psychology student, a healthcare worker, or any woman in your life who needs the reminder that her story isn't finished. Leave a review, follow Her Layered Life, and come back next week for another conversation that goes all the way to the layers.

Because her life is layered — and her influence can change the world.