Two women, two small businesses, and a friendship built in the middle of the mess.
The founder story of Dusty McLean of Pixie’s Pantry and Amanda Carmichael of Momma Jane’s Cleaner—and why this relationship felt personal long before it ever felt commercial.
Meet Amanda Carmichael
Amanda is the founder and “Momma” behind Momma Jane’s Cleaner, a family-run cleaning brand with Colorado roots. Her public profile places her in the Greater Colorado Springs area, and her own brand story sounds exactly like the person behind the product: a mom of three, a DIY-loving clean-it-up kind of woman, somebody who likes plants, likes making things shine, and—more than anything—likes making people’s lives a little easier.
Momma Jane’s did not begin as a glossy corporate launch. Amanda has described it as a side hustle that grew into a much bigger mission. She started from the same kind of question a lot of small-business founders start with: why does the obvious option have to be the only option? She wanted a cleaner that could deal with genuinely nasty sticky messes without feeling like another bottle of mystery chemistry under the sink.
The flagship Sticky/Resin Cleaner is intentionally simple: Momma Jane’s currently lists citrus lemon peel oil and lemongrass essential oil as the concentrated formula. From there, the line grew into resin care, household cleaning, refills, samples and bundles—but the personality stayed very Amanda: useful, unfussy, cheerful and built for real houses where real people make real messes.
That matters to me because I do not just want products with pretty labels. I like founders who can tell me why the thing exists, who answer their own messages, who care whether the customer actually understands how to use it, and who are still close enough to the work to celebrate the little wins. Amanda is that kind of founder.
Amanda is the founder and “Momma” behind Momma Jane’s Cleaner, a family-run cleaning brand built around plant-based formulas and the idea that people should not have to choose between something that works and something they actually feel good about keeping in their homes.
On Momma Jane’s own site, Amanda describes being a young mother of three who became increasingly uncomfortable with how little consumers often know about the products used around their families. That concern—paired with a lifelong love of cleaning and plants—became the foundation for Momma Jane’s.
The flagship Sticky/Resin Cleaner is intentionally simple: Momma Jane’s currently lists just lemon and lemongrass oils in the concentrated formula. The brand has since grown from sticky-residue cleanup into resin care, household cleaning, refills, samples and bundles.
The version above is the heart of why I liked this story in the first place. The longer version simply fills in the person around it: the Colorado roots, the family-business energy, the side-hustle beginnings and the fact that Amanda’s personality is still visible in the way Momma Jane’s talks to customers and teaches people how to use the product.
Pixie’s Pantry was never supposed to feel like a faceless shop.
Dusty McLean built Pixie’s Pantry around a simple belief: people deserve better information, better care and products that have a real reason to be on the shelf. The store is part boutique, part education library, part testing ground and part love letter to independent makers who are doing something genuinely useful.
That means the best partnerships here rarely begin with a corporate pitch deck. They begin with a conversation, a recommendation, a weird little internet moment, a founder answering her own messages, or somebody caring enough to explain why her product exists.
Amanda fit that world immediately.
This friendship story starts with Dusty accidentally promoting Amanda’s cleaner on somebody else’s cleaner video.
Mari Andino—the founder of Glass Bath Shop, a completely separate cleaning brand—posted a video showing one of her Glass Bath products in action. Dusty saw a satisfying glass-cleaning video, did not realize the account belonged to the woman who actually owned the cleaner being demonstrated, and cheerfully dropped into the comments asking, “Have you ever tried Momma Jane’s Cleaner?”
Mari Andino replied and explained that she was, in fact, the owner of the cleaner in the video.
Dusty was mortified.
Her immediate instinct was not to defend the comment or turn it into brand-versus-brand nonsense. She messaged Amanda because she was worried she had accidentally offended Mari Andino while trying to recommend Momma Jane’s. Amanda reassured her. Dusty then reached out to Mari Andino directly, formally introduced herself, explained what had happened and apologized.
And instead of the internet doing what the internet so often does—turning an awkward moment into rivalry—it did something better.
That story matters here because it says more about these businesses than a polished “brand values” paragraph ever could. Nobody had to tear another woman’s company down to make her own look better. Nobody had to pretend only one cleaning product could exist. The relationship grew because the people behind the products were willing to be kind, honest and human.
I did not meet Amanda through a networking event. I met her because I thought I might have put my foot in my mouth.
Here is what actually happened.
Mari Andino—the founder of Glass Bath Shop, a completely separate company—posted a video using the cleaning system she created. I watched the video as a customer and creator, not realizing that the woman posting it was the woman who had actually built the product I was looking at.
So I did what I naturally do when I see somebody cleaning a piece: I jumped into the comments and recommended another cleaner I liked. I essentially asked, “Have you ever tried Momma Jane’s Cleaner?”
Mari Andino answered and very reasonably told me that she was the creator of the product in the video. In other words: I had walked into a founder’s own comment section and recommended somebody else’s cleaner underneath an advertisement for the cleaner she had invented.
I immediately felt awful. Not because Mari Andino had been rude—she was not—but because intention and impact are two different things. I had meant to be helpful. I also knew how I would feel if somebody came under one of my own product videos and unknowingly redirected the conversation somewhere else.
So instead of pretending it had not happened, deleting the comment, or getting defensive, I did the next useful thing: I checked the relationship. I reached out to Amanda and said, essentially, “Oh my God, I think I may have just offended this woman while recommending your product.” Amanda reassured me that I had not committed some unforgivable industry crime.
Then something really funny happened. As we talked about the two products, I said, “You know what? I bet they each have their own use.” Amanda came back with the same basic thought: she bet they each had their own use too.
From there, I reached out to Mari Andino directly. I introduced myself properly. I explained what I had meant, acknowledged how the comment could have landed, and treated her like a person instead of a competitor I needed to “manage.” That conversation did not end in an awkward apology and a goodbye. It opened a door.
At the same time, the fact that I had reached out to Amanda because I cared whether I had represented her badly opened another door. I was not asking either woman for something. I was trying to do right by both of them.
That is how Amanda and I started really connecting. We kept talking. We started sharing ideas, comparing notes, talking through what was working and what was not, and eventually collaborating. What began as “Did I just offend somebody?” became a relationship where we can celebrate a win, talk through a problem, throw out a half-formed idea, or say, “Okay, this did not work—what do we do next?”
Today, I collaborate with Amanda and Mari Andino every week—separately. They are different women, with different businesses, different products and different strengths. I am lucky enough to have a real relationship with each of them. And one of the things I genuinely hope to do next is bring the two of them together.
How an awkward comment became two real industry relationships
There is no magic DM that makes somebody important become your friend. What happened here is repeatable, though—not the exact comment, but the way I handled what came after it.
I did not enter Mari Andino’s comments with a collaboration pitch. I was genuinely reacting to content and talking about something I already used and liked. Real relationships usually start easier when the first interaction is actually real.
Mari Andino told me she made the product. I did not argue about what I “meant.” I accepted the new information. That sounds tiny. It is not. People remember whether you become defensive when you are embarrassed.
I checked in with Amanda because I cared whether my comment had put her name into somebody else’s space in a disrespectful way. Nobody ordered me to do that. The fact that I cared was part of the relationship-building.
“I bet they each have their own use” turned the whole situation around. Instead of trying to crown one cleaner, Amanda and I started thinking about where each product actually shines. Curiosity creates far more doors than territorial thinking.
I contacted Mari Andino directly, introduced myself, explained the context and apologized. Public comment sections are terrible places to build nuance. A respectful private conversation gave both of us room to be normal human beings.
The next message was not “Now send me free product.” We talked. I learned what she was building. She learned what I was building. Relationships get shallow very quickly when every conversation is secretly an extraction attempt.
This is the piece people skip. Networking is not collecting contacts. It is follow-through. We kept talking, troubleshooting, sharing progress and finding places where helping each other made sense.
Celebrate their launch. Send the idea. Make the introduction. Share the lesson you learned the hard way. Help when something is annoying. The relationships that changed my business grew because the support went both directions.
Why Pixie’s Pantry carries Momma Jane’s
Because there is a difference between adding “another cleaner” to a catalog and carrying a product you can explain, demonstrate and genuinely understand.
Resin, adhesive, labels, sticky residue and stubborn household grime are real annoyances. Momma Jane’s was built around those jobs.
Amanda does not just sell a bottle. She talks about ingredients, before-and-after results, use cases and changing old cleaning habits.
The concentrated Sticky/Resin formula and the separate All-Purpose Cleaner give the brand a life beyond one narrow glass-cleaning use case.
Pixie’s Pantry loves founder-led products where the customer can still feel the person who built the thing.
Amanda’s bigger idea: cleaning as care
In a 2026 interview with Beard Bros Pharms, Amanda described one of the cannabis industry’s challenges as breaking old harsh cleaning habits and educating people about plant-based alternatives. She also framed the future of cannabis culture as more visible, more hospitality-oriented and more intentional about how people care for the tools they use.
That idea overlaps naturally with how Pixie’s Pantry approaches education. A beautiful setup is still a tool that needs maintenance. Good glass deserves to be cared for. Quartz should not stay caked in yesterday’s residue. A clean session is not about making something look sterile for a photograph; it is about taking care of the equipment, the experience and the people using it.
What Momma Jane’s looks like at Pixie’s Pantry
Resin Cleaner
The concentrated option Pixie’s Pantry reaches for when glass, tools or removable pieces need more than a quick rinse.
All-Purpose Cleaner
The household side of the brand: everyday surfaces, sticky kitchen messes, appliances, bathrooms and the regular chaos of a lived-in home.
Refills
Because the product makes more sense when you can keep using it instead of treating every bottle like a one-and-done purchase.
Two founders who would rather build a table than fight over a chair.
The part Pixie’s Pantry is proudest of is not pretending every woman-owned small business exists in its own perfect little lane. Real businesses overlap. People sell similar things. Founders recommend each other, accidentally step on each other’s toes, apologize, collaborate, share customers, swap ideas and keep moving.
Dusty and Amanda’s relationship works because it is rooted in that kind of reality. There is room to say, “I love this product.” There is room to ask questions. There is room to support another founder publicly. There is room to be a customer, a collaborator and a friend at the same time.
That is the kind of small-business ecosystem Pixie’s Pantry wants more of.
The part nobody puts in the polished founder bio
Amanda and I are not just sending each other congratulations when something goes right. We are becoming the kind of business friends who also see the unpretty middle: the trial, the error, the idea that flops, the shipping problem, the “is this even worth doing?” day, the tiny breakthrough, the good message that changes the whole mood, and the victory that finally makes the previous month make sense.
I have the same kind of growing relationship with Mari Andino. I collaborate with the two women separately every week, and each relationship has developed its own rhythm. That is part of why I do not want to flatten their products into a fake rivalry. The founders are more interesting than that, and the businesses are more useful than that.
My hope is eventually to get Amanda and Mari Andino into the same room—literal or virtual—not because they need to become one brand, but because the story that began with me accidentally recommending one woman’s product underneath the other woman’s video deserves a better ending than “competitors.” I would rather see what three women can build when everybody gets to keep her own lane and still help widen the road.
A real networking case study from the cannabis and smoke-shop industry
If you found this page because you searched how to network in the cannabis industry, how to connect with brand founders, how to get collaborations as a small creator, or how to build business relationships without sounding like a cold pitch, this is the lesson I want you to steal from my story.
I did not move closer to Amanda and Mari Andino by making myself look bigger than I was. I moved closer by being genuinely interested, correcting myself quickly, following up like a normal person, and then continuing to show up after the first conversation. The connection became valuable because the relationship became real first.
That does not mean you should manufacture awkward moments or comment on somebody else’s product hoping to recreate mine. The repeatable part is the behavior afterward: curiosity, accountability, usefulness, consistency and the willingness to support somebody before asking what they can do for you.
Questions people ask about networking with brands and founders
How do you network with cannabis brands if you are small?
Start by becoming part of the conversation instead of immediately requesting a collaboration. Follow founders, pay attention to what they are actually building, ask intelligent questions, buy or genuinely use products when that makes sense, and contribute something useful. A small creator who consistently shows up with substance can be easier to remember than a larger account sending a copy-and-paste pitch.
What should you do if you accidentally offend a founder online?
Do not disappear and do not over-explain. Acknowledge what happened, clarify your intent without using intent as an excuse, and move the nuanced conversation somewhere private. My relationship with Mari Andino at Glass Bath Shop grew because I reached out directly instead of pretending the awkward comment never happened.
How do you approach a brand without sounding like you only want free products?
Do not make the first conversation transactional. Learn what the founder is trying to accomplish. Offer an idea, a useful observation, a piece of content, a connection or sincere feedback before turning the relationship into a list of asks. People can usually feel the difference between curiosity and extraction.
How do small business collaborations actually become long-term?
Follow-up. The exciting introduction is easy. The relationship is built in the ordinary weeks afterward: checking in, remembering what somebody is working on, celebrating launches, troubleshooting problems, sending the useful link, showing up when a plan goes sideways and being there when it finally works.
Are Momma Jane’s Cleaner and Glass Bath Shop the same company?
No. Momma Jane’s Cleaner is Amanda Carmichael’s company. Glass Bath Shop is Mari Andino’s company. They are separate founders with separate products. This story connects them because one accidental comment led me into real relationships with both women.
There is a bigger story here than a bottle of cleaner.
Amanda’s story sits at the intersection of motherhood, plant-based cleaning, cannabis normalization, founder-led retail and the very unglamorous work of turning a small side hustle into something built to travel nationally. The way our friendship formed adds another useful angle: what authentic networking looks like when nobody begins with a pitch.
If you host a podcast, write about women in cannabis, cover small-business founders, run a smoke-shop or dispensary publication, or want a practical conversation about building brand relationships without fake networking, this is an open invitation to keep digging.
Amanda can speak from direct founder experience about:
- building a family-run cleaning brand from a side hustle;
- why cannabis accessories deserve the same care as the rest of the home;
- plant-based cleaning and consumer ingredient awareness;
- retail and wholesale growth for an independent product brand;
- motherhood, entrepreneurship and building in public;
- the difference between competition and complementary products;
- what founders wish creators understood before asking to collaborate.
Momma Jane’s Cleaner at Pixie’s Pantry
Explore Momma Jane’s Resin Cleaner, Sticky Cleaner, All-Purpose Cleaner, refills, samples and bundles—and learn why we brought the brand into our cleaning-care lineup.
Shop Momma Jane’sVisit Momma Jane’s Official SiteRead Mari’s Story