Meet Sarita Mahinay | Reiki Practitioner and Ceramic Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Sarita Mahinay and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Sarita, what was your thought process behind starting your own business?
My business practice has developed organically after moving to Los Angeles October 2019 shortly before the Pandemic.

I received my BFA in Ceramics and Creative writing in 2011. Like many Millennials with a creative degree, graduating during the slump in the economy led me to bouncing around trying to figure out how to shape my life. I went through an array of interesting jobs and roles including prep cook at a ramen shop, waitressing at a sushi bar (which I was terrible at), and teaching elementary art to bilingual students in Shanghai, China!

After four years in China, I was ready to move back to the states–My sister who is also an Artist invited me out to give Los Angeles a try…one month later I was almost ready to give up on LA as a plan, but then I got a Job interview to be an Artist Assistant… so, I took the Job and stayed in L.A.!

Like many in 2020, I was furloughed, and deeply shook by the onset of Covid19. I wanted to seek a parallel practice in healing, so I seriously explored the idea of acupuncture school. I went as far as applying to a school in Santa Fe, but after interviewing and being accepted I realized that the long academic route was fundamentally not for me. So back to the drawing board!
I knew I wanted to help others heal through a hands on methodology, so I continued to research and explore. One day I decided to receive a Reiki session from practitioner Ksenia Luki, who a year later would become my teacher. I was inspired by the simplicity of the way that Reiki can heal, and also it seems to be a natural gift for me to deeply listen to my clients and provide a safe space to release trauma and experience cellular change. It is deeply gratifying for me to see the lightness of my clients after just one session, and hear about the changes that they experience and apply to life after their sessions.

In addition to Reiki I continued to explore what I want to do with my Ceramics and Art. Candles became a focus for me as I began to melt coconut soy wax and explore essential oil combinations for manifestation candles. These candles are unique to each set I make, and are created for others to set intention for meditation. My art practice revolves around the home and comfort of handmade objects. I create intuitive custom designs and find great joy in being a subtle change in how others experience the day to day.

Finally, after much trial and error I can safely say I’ve found my niche in custom made objects, and healing through Reiki. I look forward to growing my practice and client base.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
If I were to choose two words to describe my Art and brand I would choose Personal and Tactile. Each piece has a life of its own even as a simple cup or bowl I want the person holding the work to really connect and cherish the things that I make. I often have thought of the objects that I make as little phrases in a poem. One is bright and blue, the other soft like a foggy morning, one candle might have a collaged patterns on it, the other series is a muted pink. The multitudes of glaze layers and options has always sparked my inspiration, while throwing the vessels I don’t necessarily know what is going to be on them…they become blank canvases.

I also have become enamored with essential oils and scent since discovering candle making, and dabbling in bath bomb making. This part of my practice is an alchemy in the kitchen as I mix and create, a rythme to my making unfolds and stays vibrant. Perhaps I would add one more word: Sensate.

My art practice has become more and more fun as I go along… in college I put so much pressure on the outcome and having a meaning to what I make… now I know I had it all backwards, the meaning comes both from the process and after reflecting meaning unfolds. I feel like I can relax more in my process and accept that it all is a process and its okay to explore and highlight many different things, my art becomes a language of its own.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I would love hosting my friend at my house with my three wonderful roomates. We’d walk around the Silverlake Reservoir, then get some beer and sausage at the Red Lyon Tavern. I’d take them to coffee at Constellation Coffee or La Colombe and walk by the LA river for a bit.

I’d take them for a drive around Elysian Park and then we would picnic some more in that park and watch all the family BBQs on a Saturday or Sunday.

We’d go to the beach, My favorites are Malibu and Zuma.

I would go to the spa with them at Wi Spa!

And of course we would frequent museums Art Museums Galore! All of them!

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I would like to dedicate my Shout Out to my sister Erica Mahinay who is always an inspirational figure for me in making art possible as a career. I would not know half the things I do about what it takes to be a professional artist if it weren’t for having her as my sister. And of course, my dedication also goes to my mother Mari Mahinay who is a Dancer and Healer, with her own practice in movement as medicine. She has always been unconditionally supportive of me, and always inspired us to be ourselves and nothing less!

I dedicate my Reiki Practice and Healing inquiry to Juli Kramer business founder of Radiant Shenti who has profound knowledge in Eastern Medicine, helped me start to see myself as a healer, and spotlights my Reiki Workshops with her online community classes.

I would like to Shout Out to my undergraduate Professors Carey Esser, George Timmok and Paul Donnelly for pushing me to move past the difficulty of school during the hardest time of experiencing major depression, and learn the value in showing up to both my practice, life, and on time for classes! Thank You to Cynthia Martinez, fellow ceramic artist, for Shouting out to me to be in the series!

Website: softlyboldlyhealing.com

Instagram: @sarita_ceramics

Facebook: facebook.com/saritaceramics

Image Credits
Reiki Portrait Photography Credit to ‘Sille’ @audienceink