The Revolutionary Power of Floriculture ft. BLK FLWR MRKT Founder, Kehmari Norman | Ep. 83

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Flowers are vehicles for storytelling, resistance, and cultural connection. On this episode, we speak with Black Flower Market (BLK FLWR MRKT) Founder Kehmari Norman about the profound power of floriculture as both art form and conversation starter.

Kehmari's relationship with plants began during her college years at Temple University, where financial necessity sparked curiosity about growing her own food. Inspired by urban agriculture initiatives and the teachings of Dr. Sebi, she developed a deep appreciation for the practical and philosophical dimensions of gardening. This foundation eventually blossomed into Black Flower Market, a floral design firm that transcends conventional boundaries by centering storytelling and cultural exchange.

Through her workshops and installations, Kimari creates spaces where participants discover shared traditions around herbs and flowers, building what she calls "proverbial bridges" between different backgrounds and experiences. One remarkable example is her "Ceasefire" installation at Art in Bloom 2024, where she used white iris (Palestine's national flower) and cotton balls to spark conversations about global conflicts. This gentle yet powerful form of resistance drew crowds in Washington DC's affluent DuPont Circle, demonstrating how beauty can become a vehicle for meaningful dialogue.

Beyond their symbolic power, flowers have been profound teachers in Kehmari's personal journey. She speaks eloquently about learning seasonality from her botanical companions – understanding that like plants, humans need periods of dormancy and rejuvenation.

For those inspired to deepen their relationship with plants, Kehmari suggests starting with community gardens, which serve as gateways not only to horticultural skills but also to civic engagement and neighborhood connections. She also shares personal wellness practices involving plants, from eucalyptus shower bunches to dandelion tea for hormonal health.

Follow Kehmari's work at www.blackflowermarket.com or @BLKFLWRMRKT on IG, and join the growing community of "flower buds" exploring the intersection of nature, culture, & social change.

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Related Episode:

• Ancestral Wisdom w/ Amber Holmes | Ep. 68

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Hosted by Buzzsprout. See the
joined by Kimari Norman.
Hi Kimari.
Hey Flowerbeds, hey Aaliyah, oh,I love that I'm so excited to
have you on the show today.
So I always love to share howI've met someone or how I know
of their work, and I was justtelling Kimari and reminding her

(00:23):
that a little while back, colorGirls Liberation Lab by Jen
Roberts, who has been a guest onthe show before, had a skip day
retreat at Balian Springs,which is a spa that I love, and
Kumari came in with herincredible business, black
Flower Market, and did abeautiful workshop with me and
all of the guests there.
We had an opportunity to make Ithink they were smudge sticks

(00:45):
or sage sticks with flowers andherbs and, oh just, it was
really powerful.
I brought my grandmother and, assomeone who yes, who loves like
gardening and flowers and herbsand all that good stuff?
She loved it too, so it was areally beautiful experience that
I still remember to this day.
So I'm so honored to have youon the show.

(01:05):
Thank you.

Kehmari Norman (01:06):
That warms my heart, especially with Granny
there.
That is so so sweet.

Aliya Cheyanne (01:11):
Yes, I take her everywhere.
Um, I would love to turn itover to you, for you to share a
little bit more with thelisteners who you are in the
world today and how you'd liketo be known.

Kehmari Norman (01:24):
Yes, yes, so I'm Kimari, Kimari Norman, and I am
a business owner and creativein the mid-Atlantic region of
America, specifically in myhometown, Washington DC, and in
the world right now I'm agardener again, a creative, and

(01:45):
really honing into mybusinesswoman persona as well.

Aliya Cheyanne (01:51):
Yes, I love that .
I love it.
I love to see it.
I'm so grateful to haveexperienced just a little bit of
your work as well, and I'm soexcited to dig into our
conversation so folks can hearmore about that.
But first I kind of want totake it a little bit of a step
back, talk a little bit moreabout how you got to this place
of being a businesswoman andowning Black Flower Market.

(02:13):
I know that flowers and herbsmean a lot of different things
to a lot of different people,and I'd love to talk more about
your experience with them andwhat kind of sparked your
connection to them and howthat's evolved over time for you
.

Kehmari Norman (02:27):
Yeah, that's such a great question.
My intentional start and startof my relationship with flowers
and herbs began as a collegestudent, as a sophomore.
At Sophomore at TempleUniversity, I found a space
where I can merge my studies andmy trade and set design in the

(02:50):
theater school at Temple with mygrowing passion of agriculture.
So at that time in my life,again I was a sophomore, maybe
about 18, 18 or 19.
Again, I was a sophomore, maybeabout 18, 18 or 19.

(03:17):
And as a first generationcollege student, I had no idea
of the financial responsibilitythat college was and almost the
financial burden that it cancreate.
And so, for lack of better words, I was broke as a joke.
I was very minimalist when itcame to money and didn't really
have a lot of people to ask.

(03:38):
And when I was introduced togardening through one of my
colleagues, alex Epstein, whostarted a nonprofit called
Philly Urban Creators, I waslike wide-eyed and so open to
learn, open to do, not onlybecause of like out of necessity

(04:02):
.
Like out of necessity, like Ireally wanted to um use as many
resources that I had, but alsoout of like curiosity a friend
of mine at the time, his oldersister, was studying under Dr
Sebi in Miami.

(04:23):
He had like an institute inMiami and the stories that she
would share and that he wouldtell about her experience was
just so inspiring.
I was like just starry-eyed atthe work that Dr Sebi was doing
through plants and herbs and Iwas inspired to at least like

(04:47):
experience it in my own littleway in North Philly by growing
my own herbs, growing my ownvegetables and taking the
initiative to eat them and trustwhat would come from that.

Aliya Cheyanne (05:00):
Yeah, yeah, oh, my gosh, you said so much there.
That's really powerful.
Thank you for sharing yourstory.
I feel like we come from ageneration and there are a lot
of folks coming up now to aschool that really don't
understand the financial burdenand responsibility like of
school, like taking on studentloans and stuff like that be
vulnerable about.

(05:21):
That is really importantbecause it might offer
perspective to someone elsewho's listening, and I love
these pieces of inspiration fromdifferent businesses,
nonprofits, dr Sebi and everyonearound you to really encourage
you and inspire you toexperiment with something new
and develop a love and a passionfor it.
So thank you for sharing that.

(05:42):
So I want to talk a little bitmore about Black Flower Market,
because we've mentioned the namea couple times but everyone
who's listening might not knowwhat that is, and it's more than
just flowers.
You have a background increative design, like all these
different things, so can youtell us more about Black Flower
Market?
Yes, yes.

Kehmari Norman (06:03):
Black Flower Market is this project where I
merge people's cultures andfloriculture and do workshops
through experiences like brandactivations or installations,
for example.
It's a space where we reallyget to tell the truth about

(06:27):
flowers and experience the truthof flowers and herbs as a
connector, a glue of humanity,that value.
Because it's a space where wetalk about familial traditions

(06:47):
and how herbs and flowers aredominant there.
When one flower bud would sharehow their elder in their family
would use, let's say, clove,for example, for a coat, another
flower bud will express howtheir auntie would use the same
herb, but for a different reason, and it just creates these like

(07:10):
proverbial bridges that makesus a lot more closer than we
could, we could assume.
So Black Flower Market is likea living, growing project.
I'm still like defining what itis in its entirety, but at its
core it's a floral design firmbased in Washington DC and we

(07:34):
tell stories and make momentswith flowers.

Aliya Cheyanne (07:38):
Yes, yes, that's exactly what I think about the
storytelling.
I remember getting chillsduring the smudge workshop,
especially having my grandmotherthere, because she knows a lot
about herbs and flowers andlistening to you talk about them
, listening to other flower budsin the room share more about
their experiences, what theylearned from their mothers,
their grandmothers it's justreally like it connects you to

(08:02):
the past, the present and thefuture in such a beautiful way.
And I was actually going to askyou like what has been sort of
maybe a favorite exhibition orevent that you've like curated
with your work, or maybe onethat you're dreaming up that you
hope to happen soon?
I would love to.
I'm so curious about that.

Kehmari Norman (08:23):
Oh, yay, I love this question, so one of my past
favorites or standout momentsand honestly, I love this
question so much because I feellike sometimes I just go from
project to project to projectand I don't value the time of

(08:46):
like just rest and just likerecognizing the moments that
passed.
But recently I did sit with aninstallation that I did last
year, in 2024, for Art in Bloom,and Art in Bloom is like an
annual flower festival based inDC.

(09:08):
It's in this like historicalmuseum in DuPont Circle and for
anyone that's not familiar withWashington DC, dupont Circle is
like a pretty affluentneighborhood.
You have neighbors like youknow Jeff Bezos, oh Lord.
Like you have these Howe Worthresidents that live in this part

(09:32):
of the district and the museumthat Art and Bloom is housed is
called Anderson House.
It's a huge reflection of thewealth and just the overall feel
of the community.
So it's super like bougie, andyou know you want to like clutch

(09:57):
your pearls a little bit, but Iit was my second time hosting
an installation there withnearly like 40 other floors
throughout the district and thecore of Black Flower Market
again is making moments andtelling stories using flowers

(10:17):
and the installation that I did.
There it was titled Ceasefire,there it was titled Ceasefire
and it was about a six foot tallbanner white banner made of

(10:38):
florals, made of white iris andhydrangea, and even some natural
cotton balls were in there.
And I used those specificflowers, like the white iris,
which is the national flower ofPalestine, and the cotton ball,
which is such a prominent herbin Black history, black American
history, specifically to usethose flowers and their cultural

(11:01):
values to kind of elicitconversation, like cultural
values to kind of elicitconversation.
Had folks talk about what'shappening in the world.
At that time it was March 2024,just maybe about eight months
or so into the war in Gaza.
My goal again was just toreally invite conversation.

(11:23):
I didn't realize how impactfulthe installation was to the DC
community.

Aliya Cheyanne (11:34):
There was like a line for people to check it out
and take photos with it and Ireally attest that, to like the

(11:59):
political heaviness of the worldat that time and still today
and allowing flowers to usingthe word gentle.
But it's still an act ofresistance, an act of protest in
a lot of ways too, and I thinkthat's such a beautiful way to
do it and to spark conversationand I'm so happy to hear that it
was well received, that peoplewere lining up to see it and

(12:20):
talk about it and share it andtalk about it and share it, and
even your choices for what youincluded to make the banner out
of flowers, like the connectionand using cotton of all things
too, especially because it's aconnection to our past as well.
And I say often in personalconversations too and in

(12:43):
non-personal conversations, thatresistance and struggles and
civil disobedience and civilrights here in the United States
is very closely tied toPalestinian liberation.

Kehmari Norman (12:55):
You know our memories are intrinsically
linked.
A thousand percent, a thousandpercent.
So yeah, I was honored to beable to at least have folks
again receive it and talk aboutit.

Aliya Cheyanne (13:09):
So yeah, that was super special gardening
through flowers, and I feel likeart is such a powerful medium
for a number of different things, sparking conversation,
revolution, resistance, all ofthese different things too.

(13:30):
And I'm very curious for youpersonally.
You know, we know that flowerscan be beautiful.
They can mean a lot of thingsbeyond that.
They can be medicinal.
They can mean a lot of thingsbeyond that.
But when you think about yourwork and Black Flower Market,
like your mission, in terms ofthe message that you hope people
receive when they see your work, what you hope they take away

(13:52):
from it, I'm very, very curiousabout that as well.

Kehmari Norman (13:56):
Yes, the mission , the mission, the mission is to
really connect, to converse.
The name of my business isBlack Flower Market because I am
creating this world of flowersand this world of commerce
through my specific Blackperspective.

(14:19):
But it's also Black FlowerMarket because it's like this
underground, kind of under thebrow, under the radar, type of
storytelling that we provide,like the aesthetic it can
overshadow the story if you'renot careful enough to be mindful
of the story.

(14:40):
And so, yeah, my largestmission with my business is to
connect folks and really againspark those conversations, no
matter how small or how likeimpactful they may be to other
people, really like creatinglike these intimate moments

(15:01):
within humanity.
That's my largest goal.

Aliya Cheyanne (15:12):
Yeah, and it's such a big one, and I think that
you are executing thatperfectly and beautifully in
your own way.
I know it's continuing toevolve, you're continuing to
figure things out, you'regrowing, but even the impact
you've had on me as one personwho's only been able to attend
one thing so far, like it's alasting memory for me, and I I
feel, like your, your work isdefinitely touching everyone who

(15:32):
sees it.
Thank you for sharing that withus and I love witnessing you.
You know make your missionhappen and live in your purpose,
so it's a beautiful thing.

Kehmari Norman (15:43):
Thank you, thank you so much.
Yeah, so it's a beautiful thing, thank you.
Thank you so much.

Aliya Cheyanne (15:46):
Yeah, so I know we've talked about the
storytelling component.
We've talked a little bit abouthow different people have
expressed how their families,their familial lines, have used
different herbs for differentthings.
But I also know that flowersand herbs have their own seasons
.
Like there are seasons forbloom, there are seasons when

(16:08):
they're dormant, resting to comealive again, and I'm very
curious to learn from you howyou've learned from flowers and
herbs in your work.
Have they taught you anythingabout creativity, patience,
alignment, like you knowanything like that?

Kehmari Norman (16:25):
Yes, as flowers are such great, great teachers.
I think I've been the mostobedient to my lessons from
flowers in this past season,particularly in like the flow,

(16:45):
that circadian flow of thingsand really respecting that
everything has a place and time.
So my largest lesson is whatyou hit on is seasonality and
allowing myself to rest, yes torest, yes To rest, like even how

(17:11):
like that message is reflectedin the word in so many different
ways Just sitting my little beddown, scheduling time for
almost everything and honoringthat schedule, honoring that
ritual that I make for myself.
That has been such a pivotallesson that I've learned from

(17:34):
flowers.

Aliya Cheyanne (17:36):
Yes, and that's a beautiful lesson Like we all
need rest.
I feel like I am one of thosepeople who feel like we go
against nature so much.
We need to be doing what theseasons do, like we should not
be grinding in the dead ofwinter, like coming alive when
things are blooming in spring,like we go against nature so

(17:58):
much.
So I love to see Black women,especially, resting.
Amen, and yeah, so I'm veryhappy to hear that for you and
that's something that you'velearned from them.
And you mentioned the wordritual.
Like there are so manyspiritual traditions, too, that
are tied to flowers and herbs,and I think that's really

(18:19):
powerful and important.
So thank you for sharing that.

Kehmari Norman (18:22):
It's my pleasure .
Thank you for asking thatquestion.
It's so important.

Aliya Cheyanne (18:25):
So thank you for sharing that.
It's my pleasure.
Thank you for asking thatquestion.
It's so important.
Yeah, okay, so I know firsthandthat running a business is not
all glitz and glamour.
Like there are highs and lows.
Entrepreneurship is for manypeople, but it's not for every
person.
So I would love to talk about,like to the extent that you're
comfortable like, some of yourbiggest joys in this work, and

(18:48):
then also some you know toughchallenges that you've overcome
with Black Flower Market.
Yeah, let's start with yourbiggest joys.

Kehmari Norman (18:56):
Biggest joys hands down are the relationships
Relationships, relationships,relationships, relationships,
relationships, relationships.
I cannot stress that enough.
That has been one of, like, thelargest blessings of black
flower market is meeting so manyincredible people, um, who are

(19:19):
just blessings.
They're just angels.
You are.
Are you included?
Because, truly, truly, theanswers to everything is yes and
amen.
And so when I ask for things,let's say how you are a blessing
in my life, for example, howthis relationship is so

(19:41):
appreciated, is so appreciated.
I've been asking and I've beenlike writing down and wanting to
one, express myself more, justarticulate myself freely, and

(20:08):
two, build intimacy just everyday with everyone, and so to me,
that means like just kind ofmoving away from a transactional
relationship with everybody.
I don't want to have atransactional relationship with
anyone unless it's likeblatantly sick, and so with that
one of mine, and even justputting it out in the world by
writing it in a journal, right,wow, you emailed me asking me to

(20:33):
join your business and yourpodcast, which is centered on
communication and community, andso that's how God has is one
way God really works in my life.
Again, his answers to me are yesand amen, and so when I ask for
something, they always come andthey always happen.

(20:56):
It's just about me recognizingthose blessings.
So relationships have been likethe answers to most of my wants
and goals, honestly, and on theflip side of that, some of,
like, my hardest challenges andheartbreaks in business has been

(21:19):
strategies on relationshipbuilding.
So taking the time to nurture arelationship and understanding
what it is and what is not, sothat it can be respected and

(21:42):
valued for literally what ittruly is.
So some relationships I'vegiven so much and I just didn't
articulate what I needed inreturn or what I wanted in

(22:06):
return, and so really learninghow to nurture relationships
like spending the time that'snecessary to build them, asking
the questions and just beingvulnerable enough to understand
what I'm doing with this personor with these people.

Aliya Cheyanne (22:29):
And so yeah, yeah that's really moving, oh my
gosh.
Well, that touched my heart ina lot of ways.
So I love that.
Scripting is something thatsupports you, like writing down
in your journal and like seeingthat come to life.
Like that's really beautiful.
I resonate a lot with that andI feel that energy in terms of
like calling in alignedrelationships.

(22:50):
So I think that's reallypowerful.
And I think the toughest part ofone of the toughest parts is
like being comfortable withasking for help and being
vulnerable enough to share whatyou need.
Like that is such a challengeand I noticed that especially
especially for us, for Blackwomen.
Oh my gosh.

(23:12):
You know we might be leading inthe category of starting
businesses, but you know, whenyou break down and analyze the
types of businesses, a lot ofBlack women are struggling and I
think it goes back.
There are a million factors forthat, but part of it, too, for
us, is being comfortable withbeing vulnerable enough to ask

(23:33):
for help.
And I think what you said aboutrecognizing what different role
different relationships play inour lives what we can give, but
also what we are able to receivebeing open to receive is so
powerful.
But also just staying connected, even in small ways Like there
are.
So there are so manyrelationships where I may speak

(23:54):
to folks and stay connected tothem more frequently.
There are other ones it's notas frequently, maybe it's
quarterly and there's a catch upat hey, I'm doing this.
Keep me in mind for thisKnowing and recognizing
different people, for how we cansupport each other and being
comfortable with saying, hey, Ineed help or hey, I would love
to be considered for this.

(24:14):
Please keep me in mind.
So many things happen becausethere are people in rooms we
might not be a part of whoremember us and are mentioning
our names.
It's so powerful what you saidand it breaks my heart to know
that you've had many, like youknow, big heartbreaks with your
business.
But I also know that the workyou're doing is so powerful and

(24:36):
transformative that I willcontinue to mend with time and I
know more aligned relationshipswill fall in place for you.
So I hope to see that bloom Athousand percent.

Kehmari Norman (24:48):
I receive that.
Thank you so much, Aaliyah.

Aliya Cheyanne (24:50):
Yeah, I think that's really powerful.
So I don't have the best greenthumb in the world.
My grandma does, though she hasa great green thumb.
I'm trying to learn and getbetter.
I'm trying to put more effortin the garden with her and

(25:17):
become a better gardener and abetter plant mom.
I'm doing my best.
It could be flowers.
It could be wanting to growtheir own herbs.
It could be just like acreative, a fun, creative outlet
, Like is there any advice thatyou would give them for, you
know, finding their own path inthe space and trusting the
process?

Kehmari Norman (25:33):
Absolutely so, when I'm not running my business
, black Flower Market.
I had the pleasure and honor ofbeing a public servant working
for the District of Columbia inDC's Parks and Recreation, which
is one of DC's largestlandowning agencies, and we have

(25:56):
over 40 community gardensthroughout the city of the
District of Columbia, of theDistrict of Columbia, and I
would encourage folks to tapinto their local city or towns
or counties community gardensdatabase.
You can volunteer with acommunity garden or you can take

(26:19):
the rain and get your own plot.
Honestly, I started gardeningat 19.
I know some fabulous gardenerswho are like five years old.
I was a little bit like behind,I was a little bit late to the

(26:39):
game, but honestly, I take thatback.
There's no, you're never toolate to start gardening.
It's just like riding a bike.
Once you learn these skills,it's almost hard to forget them
and it's such a meditativepractice.
I would encourage everyone to,if you're in DC, definitely

(27:02):
check out DPR Community Gardensand tap in with me.
We have a few gardensthroughout the city that need
plots holders.
Rather, they have plots thatare available and if you are
just out here in this world, inthese streets, just Google your
local community garden and takethe initiative to ask how you

(27:24):
can be of service.
No gardener says no, I don'tneed help Literally.
So it's all about just takingthe time out and spending the
time.
You'll get better each andevery time.

Aliya Cheyanne (27:39):
Yeah, that's so beautiful, yeah, that's really
powerful too.
I think that's so cool.
There's a big park protectedpark that's not far from where I
am, and every now and thenthere are like community
cleanups and like there are waysto get involved locally.
And actually in my neighborhooda new community garden came
online last year.
Not 100% sure what's going onwith it right now, but every

(28:09):
time I pass by like I try to seeif someone's like there, like
if it's open yet like what'sgoing on there, and that'll be a
great opportunity to getinvolved.
I know my grandmother wants totoo.

Kehmari Norman (28:19):
Aaliyah, that's such a great point because
gardening is kind of like agateway space to get into your
local governance and learninglike who's like your council
members and your A&C members andwho are the church leaders, the

(28:40):
community that you are, becausethere's so many stakeholders in
that plot of land that's likelyowned by the city or the state
or some private entity.
Yeah, it just opens so manydifferent conversations to help
you get more like implanted intoyour community.
So I definitely welcome that.

Aliya Cheyanne (29:02):
Yeah, I think that's powerful too and it's a
way to show up for and in yourcommunity now, especially during
this time and in this politicalclimate.
Like I think gardening and, youknow, getting involved with the
community and learning about,like your local stakeholders,

(29:22):
the people around you, is reallyimportant, so important.
Yeah, yeah, there's that, okay.
So one of the sweetest things Ilove to see or hear in the
world is whenever you say, hey,flower bud, can you talk about,
like, where that came from?
Cause it's, I noticed it's likeyou're greeting for emails, so

(29:43):
you, you greeted the show withthat.
Like I would love to hear aboutthe origin story for that.

Kehmari Norman (29:48):
My gosh.
That tickles me.
Honestly, aaliyah, I cannotthink of the birthplace for hey
Flower Buds.
I think it kind of rolled offthe tongue.
And in my past life, past lifein high school in high school I
wrote poetry very often, and inmiddle school, since I was a

(30:08):
child, honestly, and in collegeI dibble-dibble.

Aliya Cheyanne (30:14):
I dibbled into rapping.

Kehmari Norman (30:15):
So I'm a bit of a wordsmith.
Yeah, I believe it.
Yes, so it kind of just rolledoff the tongue and I just stuck
with it.
I've trademarked it.

Aliya Cheyanne (30:27):
Yeah, good, good .
I think it's so sweet.
I love to hear it and I love tosee it, I've been like oh me,
yes, and it's just the cutestthing I like.
Um, so before we go because Iknow we're getting at time very

(31:01):
soon I would just love to askyou a couple of like last
questions about just herbs andflowers, like things that you do
for yourself, like I thinkcommunity care and self-care is
so important, especially giventhis time, especially as an
entrepreneur.
So I would love to know, like,what are some of your favorite

(31:22):
herbs or flowers for?
Like, maybe, if you want tosoothe, like you're having a
relaxing day at home, is thereanything that you might use in a
tea or anything you might liketo see around you that helps you
feel comfortable and relaxedand soothed?

Kehmari Norman (31:38):
Love this question.
I'll start with a shamelessplug.
Okay, yes, the eucalyptusshower bunch, the Black Flower
Market eucalyptus shower bunch,is transformative to like my
self-care routine.
Whenever I have like a fresheucalyptus shower bunch in the

(31:59):
shower, I just I stay until thewater turns cold, like it's just
such a long meditative space inthe shower where I'm either
like having this mini concert orI'm listening to the word,
where I'm just kind of justpresent in this space.
So the eucalyptus shower budgeis one one of my favorite tools

(32:23):
for relaxation.
Um, tea, the tea that changed mylife is a weed that almost or
there's so many people in thisregion, the mid-Atlantic region
of America they just detest.
It's dandelion.

(32:45):
Yeah, oh, my gosh, dandelionTea.
I was introduced to DandelionTea maybe about when I was 18,
around the same time that I wasgetting into gardening.
One of Dr Sebi's students, chefAki she's based in Atlanta and

(33:08):
her and her team were like veryahead of the game when it came
to holistic and naturalmedicines, and so she introduced
me to dandelion and you know mymenstrual cycle it.
It allowed me to take controlof my menstrual cycle.

(33:29):
Actually, I did like a fast,just a short fast three days
with just water, teas and nutsand fruits actually, and my main
source of like a liquid was thedandelion tea.

Aliya Cheyanne (33:45):
Wow.

Kehmari Norman (33:46):
Hot or cold, and I noticed that when I would be
mindful of my intake, like aweek or two before my menstrual
cycle, I can like allow my cycleto last like three days or two
days, like it's really powerfulfor like our reproductive system

(34:08):
and it also transformed my skin.

Aliya Cheyanne (34:15):
It's great for like like hormonal health.

Kehmari Norman (34:17):
Yes, dandelion tea and it's such like an
abundant weed around us like,yes, used every part of that
plant.
Um, and your another point thatreally brings me so much peace
is organization.
Yeah, I used to like, growingup, I'm an only child and so

(34:41):
growing up I always had my ownspace and I used to pride myself
on being able to work and likeorganize chaos.
Yeah, yes, work in likeorganized chaos.
Yeah, like I was reallyconvinced myself that I was good
, like I could function in amess because I knew where I left

(35:04):
my mess.
Yeah, girl, I get it.
Girl, I get it.
So in this era of my life, Iget so much peace and clarity

(35:25):
from a clean space and havingthings in places where they
accentuate function.

Aliya Cheyanne (35:29):
Yeah, so, yes, that has been pivotal in the
last two years for me.
Yes, all of that is soimportant.
Shout out to the eucalyptusbunch for the shower, because I
you know, not a shameless plug,it's just a plug Like those are
great.
Like, especially when theshower is hot and steaming and
you have the, the smell of the.
Yeah, like those are reallygood and I've actually had so.
Amber Holmes, who is a goodfriend of Jen's, who owns Isol

(35:55):
Naturals, has been on the showtoo and she's talked about
dandelion too, and it's so goodfor heart health.
I didn't realize that it's goodfor, like you know, skin
clearing up.
It makes sense that it wouldimpact your menstrual cycle,
because if it's good for hearthealth and your blood, like I
imagine, yeah, so that's really.
That's informative and, like,as a PCOS girly, like I'm always

(36:18):
trying to figure out thehormonal stuff, so-.

Kehmari Norman (36:21):
Yes, same same.
I would really recommenddandelion into your daily, like
your daily T regimen for sure.

Aliya Cheyanne (36:30):
Yeah, I think that's really powerful.
But yeah, a few things incommon, girl.
Like back in the day I used todo a little poetry too.
You know I don't do it too muchanymore, so I did not rap, but
I used to write me a littlepoetry every now and then, so I
love to hear that.
And big on the organizationthing If my space is not

(36:53):
organized and clutter free, it'snot organized chaos, it's just
chaos, and I can't.
I can't so I get you on that, Ifeel you on that.
Oh my gosh, this is so good.
Yeah, so we're nearing the endand I don't want to leave, but
this was amazing this is great.

(37:14):
I loved hearing from you.
I'm glad that you've had thisopportunity to express yourself,
because the world needs to hearfrom you.
You're so brilliant, you'redoing incredible work and I've
loved our conversation.
And I've mentioned on this showa few times in the past that
there's a foraging group that Ioccasionally go out with, like
you know, when the weather'snice, because I ain't going out

(37:34):
there when it's too cold, it'stoo rainy, but, you know, when
it's not too hot.
I've gone with them on foragingadventures, like all over New
York, and it's been someaningful for me to learn from
everyone else around me who'slike, really deep into foraging,
about how to identify differentplants and you know what you

(37:58):
can eat, what you can't, what'sgood for this, what's good for
that, and it's just been a wayfor me to reconnect with nature.
Um, and there are so many folkswho just I don't know.
It just lights us up toreconnect with nature in various
ways.
So this was a big reminder forthat to stay connected to
flowers, to herbs, to earth andall of that.

(38:18):
So that's been really beautiful.
So, thank you, thank you.
Okay, can you let folks knowwhere to support your work,
where to buy products where tobook you for an event like, or
an exhibition or installation?
Can you let folks know where tofind you?

Kehmari Norman (38:35):
Yes, yes, you can find me at
wwwblackflowermarketcom, and youcan also find me online on
Instagram.
Rather, our handle is spelledphonetically.
It's spelledB-L-K-F-L-W-R-M-R-K-T, and I

(38:57):
would love to connect.

Aliya Cheyanne (38:59):
Yes, and I'll make sure to link all of that in
the show notes as well, so it'seasy for folks to find you.
Kumari, thank you so much.
This is such a richconversation.
I've loved chatting with youand I'm so grateful we had a
chance to talk Aaliyah you aresuch a light in this world.

Kehmari Norman (39:13):
Thank you so much for having me.
Thank you.