Mackenzie and Bree are two free spirited beings that thrive off of good vibes and sunshine. Hailing from the Southern California Coast, they share their active and healthy lifestyles on their blog, Two Little Birds Wander West. For all things wellness, fashion, and skincare, these natural beauts are our go-to’s!
1. How did you ladies start working together?
I guess you could say it was all Bree...because it truly was. Bree was working at a clothing line in Downtown Los Angeles and they had just started their endeavor in the e-commerce world. It was building and the CEO of the company told Bree that she needed to hire on another person to handle the PR/Social Media aspect part so Bree could focus on Creative Directing. So me and all my annoying glory kept popping up on Bree's Instagram feed, and at this point we were just acquaintances from our home town, but for some reason she thought I would be perfect for the job. We met for coffee, I had an interview, and a week later we were working 5 feet away from each other for the next 2 1/2 years in LA.
2. What made you think of starting a blog?
We ate, drank, and slept blogging and social media. One of our main jobs were to reach out to this blogging community to get our clothes shown and known to the masses. Blogging was still just starting out, and still growing. It wasn't until one day we decided to go to the beach (shocker) together, and as we were sitting, enjoying our fish tacos, we both had the thought of, "we could totally do this. . .together!". We love fashion, we have a lot to say (if you couldn't already tell), and we know a lot about a lot. So we started it as hobby. We both went home that night and immediately started to think of names. One of us came up with Two Little Birds, and the other Wander West and there in that texting conversation Two Little Birds Wander West was born!
3. How did you meet?
We've actually known of each other for a big chunk of our lives. We both grew up in the same hometown, went to the same dance studio, and then ended up on rival dance teams during high school. We had some of the same friends, but were just never friends. Went to the same dance studio, but were never in the same classes. We would see each other from time to time and say hello, but that was as far as we would get. It wasn't until we were both on the set of the MTV television series Awkward and Bree was sitting alone at a table reading a book. I walked past the table and did a double take thinking, "I totally know that girl". I walked over to the table and said, "Bree?", she looked up and for the next 2 days on set we hung out. We did the whole, "oh we should get coffee" thing. . .never got coffee UNTIL she offered me that job. So you could say we owe our friendship to that one clothing line.
4. Any advice for being so young and creating a brand?
GO FOR IT! Starting so young you have so much time. Time to explore, experiment, and figure out what YOU want your niche to be. It didn't just happen over night for us. It's been 3 years of non-stop work and trying to figure out what makes sense for us. That's probably one of the biggest questions to always keep at the fore-front of your mind. . ."does this make sense for me?". A lot of the times it won't, and that's okay! Just because it works for someone else doesn't mean it should work for you.
5. Is it hard to work with your best friend as a business partner?
Honestly... we hate each other. We just do it for the likes.
Ha! No but seriously, not really. It's actually such a blessing when you're in tears, and your belly hurts on the reg because of how much fun you have together whilst working. When you've been working side-by-side with the same person for over 5 years you understand when to back off if someone is having a bad day, or when to actually push. We've both grown together through the biggest growth period of our lives, our 20s, and everything will continue to change, but we know how to handle it together.
It's also nice because even though Bree and I are SO much alike, we are also very different in a sense. Bree has the business brains, and not only does she have those brains, but she LOVES IT. The analytics, all the information, she's like a human encyclopedia on social media influencing alone, but also her creativity is untouched. She is also a very Type A personality, and likes to overbook sometimes. That's where I come in *raises hand*. I have a very laid back personality in the sense of business. I bring Bree back down to Earth, and help her when I have to say things like, "we won't have time for that, we are not superheroes". I also say things sometimes to people and I have no filter, and Bree bounces off of that. Sorry we are ranting now, but it's just such a balance so the answer would be NO. We love each other!
6. What's coming up for you guys in the future?
So much! We are growing and evolving. Our biggest thing is always providing a place for our followers to feel comfortable in and grow with us! We want to stay true to our branding and always deliver value to everyone who chooses to let us in their world. With every post, collaboration and meeting we are learning and growing in to the brand we have been chasing after since the beginning. The future is limitless and we're stoked to see where we end up.
How do you get your #RoeGlow?
Makenzie: I've never been an eye cream person, mainly cause it's just one more thing to put on my face, but "eye-bags" for lack of a better word run in my family. Figured I would give Dr. Roebuck's Down Under a shot and I ended up falling in love!
The Bondi Hydrating Mist is beyond amazing. The smell reminds me of summer, and the spray is so refreshing. I'm a fitness instructor so a lot of the times I can't get home super quick to wash my face, and moisturize. Instead I wash my face right after working out, and spritz my face, and BOOM hydration!
Bree: The Bondi Hydrating Mist keeps my skin feeling so clean and hydrated, I seriously look forward to spraying it on my clean face after a shower. The mist also helps me wake up in the morning after washing my face. Then there's the True Blue Serum, oh boy that serum not only smells good but literally makes my face feel so fresh, hydrated and clean. **sings: so fresh and so clean, clean. At first I was combining the serum with my other serums (random brands) and now I'm fully hooked on just one, the Dr. Roebucks, my one and only.
