Smoking a Joint on the Red Carpet with Brett Heyman

Ellen Scanlon (00:00):

This podcast discusses cannabis and is intended for audiences 21 and over.

(00:11):

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Brett Heyman (00:55):

Cannabis does so much for us. It should be something that feels like it can be social and beautiful, and I think we just need more people speaking about cannabis who look different than everybody who’s been speaking about cannabis for all this time.

Ellen Scanlon (01:12):

Welcome to How To Do The Pot, a podcast helping you feel confident about cannabis. I’m your host, Ellen Scanlon.

(01:25):

You just heard from New York based Brett Heyman, the founder of Edie Parker, a vintage inspired handbag company, and Flower by Edie Parker, a line of colorful cannabis collectibles for friends in high places. Edie Parker Flower’s accessories range from floral rolling papers to fancy tabletop lighters that look like old-fashioned jello mold fruitcakes. They’re bright, they’re bold. And Brett was recently featured in a great article in the Sunday New York Times.

(02:00):

She was talking all about Edie Parker Flower’s launch of pre-rolls, vapes, and flower in New York. New York makes six states where you can buy Edie Parker’s THC products. Brett is one of the few women founders whose cannabis products are available in more than one state, which is truly a feat given the very complicated regulatory environment for cannabis. Brett is also a mom of three. Kind of superwoman stuff.

(02:34):

In today’s show, I’ll talk to Brett about what she sees as the future of weed style, how she brings cannabis into her daily life, and smoking a joint, many joints, on the red carpet at one of fashion’s biggest nights, the CFDA Awards.

(02:52):

But first weed style. Yes, I said it. What does it even mean? Let’s try a little experiment. What comes to your mind when I say these two words together? Weed style. My guess is that your mind either draws a blank, or it conjures up something in the realm of tie-dye or pot leaf jewelry. And for the past 50 some years, these have been the precise styles associated with cannabis.

(03:27):

Yet I love fashion. I wanted to be a fashion designer when I was a little kid. I love getting dressed. I love thinking about style and how to incorporate it into my life. And I don’t really connect with those weed styles. I never have.

(03:45):

As cannabis becomes legal across the country, I think it’s ready to move from a subculture to being part of the culture. And that evolution means that we’re ready for a new kind of weed style, from the grandma who can finally put on her favorite lipstick after applying her topical for arthritis pain. The tired mom, me, who feels more creative after a microdose and puts together a great outfit that makes a night out feel more special.

(04:21):

And in today’s episode, we’ll hear about how weed is making its way to high fashion, and what that can mean for all of us.

(04:36):

Before we get into this week’s episode, I am so grateful to the people who have been asking how they can support the show. Please tell all your friends. Word of mouth is a great way to help us grow our listeners. Another thing you can do is sign up for How to Do the Pot’s Newsletter. It’s a twice a month resource that helps you feel confident about cannabis for health, wellbeing, and for fun. There are already thousands of subscribers reading and replying with comments and tips. And the more the merrier. We couldn’t do this without you. Please go to dothepot.com to sign up. Thank you. I really appreciate your support for the show.

(05:29):

If you’ve read anything about Brett Heyman, you’ll know that she started her career in fashion at Dolce & Gabbana and was the director of public relations at Gucci. She founded the accessory company Edie Parker in 2010 and got into the cannabis accessories business in 2019. Brett helps us get to know Flower by Edie Parker a little better.

Brett Heyman (05:52):

We make a lot of accessories. Our brand tagline for Flower is for a good time. And really stick to that ethos across both of our brands. We believe that while cannabis is a magical plant and there are so many health and wellness benefits to it, what we love about cannabis is just that it’s fun to get high, and that it’s fun to get high and do activities that you love.

(06:13):

And so our accessories represent that. And whether it’s a fruit pipe or an ice pipe, something that’s meant to be displayed, something that’s meant to be shared, something that’s meant to be enjoyed, or even something like our rolling papers, which are branded for a reason. It’s supposed to be fun to roll a joint. It’s supposed to be fun to show people that you’re smoking an Edie Parker joint and feel proud about it.

(06:33):

We have this weedy collection of handbags, and this bag that we launched which has this retractable lighter bag, is all based on the idea of it’s a party trick. It’s even if you don’t smoke cannabis, it’s this idea that you’ll never lose your lighter and that you can light anybody’s cigarette, you can light anybody’s joint, you can light the candle on the table at the restaurant if you laugh so hard that you blew it out. It’s just something that should be fun and pleasing and make you stop. And because our original handbags were really well known for handbags with words on them or your name in this really big bold way. And that’s a conversation piece. You don’t need another handbag, you don’t need a clutch. So it’s like if you’re going to have something, it should be conversational and fun and engaging.

Ellen Scanlon (07:12):

Part of what’s fun about working in the cannabis and the podcasting industries is how new they both feel. I think it’s what drives a lot of us in these emerging industries, being part of something that’s growing so quickly. Brett is inspired by the opportunity to make a creative impact on the future of cannabis style.

Brett Heyman (07:37):

What’s exciting about cannabis and why it feels stylish, at least to me, is that it feels new and exciting, whereas something like fashion doesn’t feel new and exciting at all. It feels kind of tired or maybe frivolous and maybe expensive and wasteful. I mean, I think there’s just so many things in fashion that have just become kind of a drag. Cannabis feels the opposite. Cannabis feels like the beginning of something.

(08:06):

There’s a reason that so many people who worked in fashion and who worked as creatives are now coming to work in cannabis, because they see the opportunity, not just the financial opportunity, but it’s a whole new frontier. It’s creating what this retail experience is going to look and feel like. What are brands going to look and feel like? What is merchandise going to look and feel like? Anybody who thinks that cannabis is going to look in five years like it looks now, I think is absolutely incorrect.

(08:34):

And to be a creative person with the potential to affect any of that and affect something that’s going to be so huge in this country in terms of job creation, revenue growth, et cetera, that’s just really thrilling. And therefore, of course, people with great taste or interesting taste or exciting taste or just makers are going to be defining cannabis style for the next 10, 20 years.

Ellen Scanlon (09:00):

With all the opportunities to create a new kind of cannabis style, I asked Brett where she turns for inspiration.

Brett Heyman (09:07):

Edie Parker has always nodded towards the past. The acrylic bags that we launched with were clearly inspired by bags made in the fifties and sixties and by post-war trends in this country where we were sort of setting fashion trends globally and really innovative, and this use of plastic as part of that innovation. I kind of saw the parallel to where I think we are now in cannabis. I think that this country is once again going to set that trend globally.

(09:31):

And the Virginia Slims ads, while they seem ridiculously dated now, at the time, they were the first cigarette ads that were targeted towards women and they were totally feminist. They were saying that, “Look how far we’ve come. Let’s get out of the kitchen. Women are in the workplace now and they deserve their own cigarettes.” I love something that feels vintage and retro, but that feels meaningful still and relevant. I think this idea of women in cannabis is still somewhat revolutionary.

(10:02):

I think it’s great that women are coming to cannabis and they’re largely driven by wanting to relieve menstrual cramps. But for me it’s like where are the women who just want to get high, want to have sex, especially if you’ve been married a hundred years like I have.

Ellen Scanlon (10:16):

If you don’t remember, the Virginia Slims ads were the first cigarette advertisements catering exclusively to women. They came out in 1968 with the slogan, “You’ve come a long way baby,” and switched in the 1990s to, “It’s a woman thing”.And while cigarettes are no longer really in fashion, don’t women still deserve cannabis products and accessories that are catered to us?

(10:52):

Brett is not only a talented designer, she has a lot of fun with the public relations side of her business. So I asked where she thinks weed needs to improve on its PR.

Brett Heyman (11:04):

Oh my God, how much time do you have? I know the value that I have in cannabis and the value I absolutely do not have. But if we want to reach more people, I think a brand like ours and the way that we speak to our existing customers and our new customers, is so important in terms of changing perception, or not even changing, but just expanding perception about cannabis. That cannabis is not just for burnouts or for stoners or this antisocial anything. Cannabis is a magical plant. Cannabis does so much for us. It should be something that feels like it can be social and beautiful, and I think we just need more people speaking about cannabis who look different than everybody who’s been speaking about cannabis for all this time.

Ellen Scanlon (11:53):

When a woman with expertise and success in one industry comes to work in cannabis, people seem very curious about how much weed they actually consume. I asked Brett how she works weed into her busy day-to-day life.

Brett Heyman (12:08):

My cannabis use is mostly at home. With my husband, I talk a lot about cannabis and sex, and so it’s a lot of we’ll get high together and we’ll have sex or we’ll watch a movie or we’ll hang out. I smoke a Maui Wowie if I feel like being creative. I’m not really going out to dinner and socializing necessarily, but I will if I feel like being creative, if I feel like doing something, doing a project, that’s when I would smoke a Maui Wowie.

(12:31):

I’m not a strain nerd. I smoke a lot of Sour Diesel. My friend grows Nigerian Haze and Kushalope. But other than that, I don’t really care. I’m just not that esoteric. I want consistent, I want reliable, and that’s kind of it for me.

Ellen Scanlon (12:48):

I agree with Brett. Consistently knowing how I can expect to feel is really important to me. You may need less weed than you think to have a good time.

Brett Heyman (12:59):

This is all I talk about, because I think I smoke less weed than anybody I ever talk to in cannabis. I think this is a problem with sort of almost everything. Alcohol, empty [inaudible 00:13:08], everything. It’s like you just need less than you think. And so for me, I am a one or two puff girl and I am really happy. I think it’s like you need a little bit to feel all of the good feelings and all the ways that the plant is supposed to work, but you don’t need so much that you’re sort of out of consciousness and just useless. For me, I need very little to feel perfectly high and perfectly happy.

Ellen Scanlon (13:34):

On top of running two companies, Brett is also a mom of three. That’s a lot of jobs, and she tries to focus on what she knows she’s good at.

Brett Heyman (13:45):

I think being a mother and being successful is just knowing that you’re going to be failing at something all the time, whether you’re failing at personal care, whether you’re failing at your relationship, whether you’re failing at parenting that day, whether you’re failing at work. And failing seems dramatic. I just mean one of those things is suffering a little bit.

(14:01):

And so I think for work, I have no ego about things I’m good at and things I’m not good at. I think I’m good at the creative stuff. I’m really good at the PR stuff because it comes naturally to me and I have the most fun with that. So those are the things by and large that I’m focused on. And then there’s people that are much better at product development and costing and everything else, and I do not get in their way.

(14:22):

I think relinquishing control when you’re a mother is really important. Do the things that you do well, and then have people around you who do the other things.

Ellen Scanlon (14:31):

Talking to your kids about cannabis is something we’re going to get into on some future episodes. Stay tuned. For Brett, the cannabis conversation with her kids is similar to how their family talks about alcohol.

Brett Heyman (14:44):

How do I talk to my kids about cannabis? Do I smoke in front of my kids? It really speaks to the stigma that is still really associated with cannabis. And look, I think there is a legitimate conversation to be had, especially if you’re a house that has edibles in it, about just not letting kids eat things that they find in your room or your bedside table or all those things. I think that’s important.

(15:06):

But for us at home, I mean, we’ve always, always, way pre-legalization, had pipes around and talked about cannabis just like we talked about alcohol, which is like, “At a certain age, when our brains were developed, we enjoy this responsibly.” And certainly now, I mean, my kids know that I’ve been doing these journeys just about how cannabis is a plant and how magical a plant it is and just really respecting it.

Ellen Scanlon (15:30):

I knew I really wanted to talk to Brett after I listened to her being interviewed on another podcast. She told this great story about bringing joints to the CFDA Awards, the Council of Fashion Designers of America. It’s an award show where the international fashion community honors new and upcoming American designers. It’s one of the fashion industry’s big nights, and it’s a fancy, glamorous party.

Brett Heyman (15:59):

The first year I brought a bag full of joints. I mean, I used my little acrylic clutch, which already doesn’t fit much, and I thought, I don’t need a lipstick this year. I’m just going to fill it up with joints. I think what’s good and bad is that I’m at this table with very famous, not only celebrities and designers who I won’t name because I already got in trouble because I posted one picture at the time and I had to pull it down. But I think that speaks to the problem, which is like, A, I was being cheeky lighting up in the middle of an awards dinner with Anna Wintour literally at the table next to me.

(16:27):

But this idea that everybody at the table, with maybe one exception, partook and wanted to smoke that joint and it was fun and we were celebrating and we were all excited. But there was still that, “Oh my God, I can’t believe you posed with that picture. Pull it down.” And this secretive activity that we were participating in. And that obviously speaks to the problem.

(16:49):

A year later, if you want to speak to progress, I took Julia Fox to the CFDA Awards. And she was amazing, and she was so game to just light up a joint, have me record her, share it with lots of people who were around. She was totally cool if I posted it. And both because she’s a provocateur and she’s amazing and she gets the value of that attention, but she had no stigma. She has no shame. She has no stigma. And we need that. We need people like that in moments like that if we want to expand and change public perception.

Ellen Scanlon (17:22):

Thanks to Brett Heyman for talking with me about cannabis style, motherhood, and more. Check out Flower by Edie Parker for some really fun weed accessories, and you can buy their THC products in six states, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, Massachusetts, Ohio, and Maryland.

(17:44):

Creating items made in the US that are as unique as Edie Parker’s takes a lot of time, expertise, and specialized product design. If you’re lusting for something from Flower and want to dip your toes in first, I recommend their rolling papers or crush cones, which are super cute. We’ll post some fun photos on our Instagram @dothepot.

(18:12):

Thanks for listening to this episode of How to Do The Pot. For lots more information and past episodes, visit dothepot.com. That’s also where you can sign up for How to Do the Pot’s popular newsletter. If you like How to Do the Pot, please rate and review us on Apple Podcasts. It really helps people find the show.

(18:34):

Thank you to writer Johanna Silver and producers Madi Fair and Nick Petrie. I’m Ellen Scanlon, and stay tuned for more of How to Do the Pot.