Greyback

👋 So, I’m clearly obsessed with fragrance. 👃 🌼 🪵🍊🌹 To know me is to know I have a fragrance closet. It’s so cute and my SF kitchen had one built in (probs for spices). I’m also a Picese moon so I feel all the things. Always. A gift and a curse. But fragrance takes you there. Immediately. Our sense of smell is directly connected to the parts of our brain that process memory and emotion.

That’s why a single scent can instantly transport you back to a person, a place, or a feeling before you even have time to think about it. Your mom’s Chanel No 5 might bring you to tears (depending on when/where you smell it) from your deep connection to her and her smell. Or it can be as light as Hugo Boss reminding me of every hs boy?

We kept coming back to that as we created The Pause. It’s so grounding. And sexy. And warm.

We wanted it to become a ritual like it is for us. A scent your mind begins to associate with slowing down, taking three deep breaths, and coming back to yourself. Even one deep breath counts.

Every detail was intentional.

The engraving. The gold lettering. The weight of the bottle in your hand.

I hope it sits in a place you can view it often, if only for a beautiful reminder to slow down. Love you so much.

xx ABM

🌹 🍊 🪵 The Pause was designed for real life.

Every note was chosen with intention—not just for how it smells, but for the feeling it creates.

Mandarin, clove, and white smoke open the experience with warmth and brightness. Bulgarian rose and guaiac wood bring depth, while cashmeran, sandalwood, vetiver, amber, and leather leave a soft, grounding finish that lingers beautifully.

One of my favorite ways to wear it is as a base layer. I’ll roll on The Pause first, then add a spray fragrance over the top—usually Noir from Le Labo. The combinations are endless, and it makes the scent feel uniquely yours.

I’ve always believed fragrance is one of the most personal things we wear. Once you find your scent, it becomes part of your presence. And because every fragrance settles differently on each person’s skin, The Pause becomes uniquely yours, too.

Available for local pickup in San Francisco.

10 mL | $74

We’ll also offer monthly refills, so you can keep the bottle as a small reminder to pause, take three deep breaths, and come back to yourself.

I hope you love it as much as we’ve loved creating it. DM with any questions!!

Sunday evenings feel like a quiet invitation.

Before the week fills with meetings, errands, and everything pulling at your attention, ask yourself:

What kind of relationship do I want to have with myself this week?

Instead of making a list of things to improve, choose one pause you’ll come back to each day.

Maybe it’s one deep breath before you respond. Maybe inhale an essential oil or something that grounds you.

Maybe it’s softening your shoulders when you notice they’re carrying the day.

Maybe it’s five quiet minutes before bed.

One pause. Every day. That’s enough. Greygirl Sunday ♾️ .

Hi! I’m Alicia, a cofounder of Greyback.🤎

If there’s one thing you should know about me, it’s that I’ve always been a little obsessed with what’s possible.✨

I have this theory that if you say the big thing out loud—even before you know exactly how you’ll get there—it changes what you believe is possible.

Alissa and I dreamed of building a community where women could slow down, reconnect with themselves, and remember that coming back to themselves wasn’t something they had to earn. We said it out loud before we knew exactly how we’d build it.

These days, my life is full of three boys who somehow turn every room into a wrestling match, a career in tech, a husband I adore, and friends near and far that I never get to see enough. Like so many women, I’m constantly trying to make space for the people I love while keeping all the plates spinning.

What motherhood, work, friendship, and the last ten years have taught me is this:

I’ve learned that my life hasn’t been changed by one big reset.

It’s been shaped by hundreds of tiny moments in between.

It’s noticing when my shoulders have crept up to my ears after a day of meetings… and letting them soften.

It’s taking one deep breath before responding instead of reacting.

It’s remembering I don’t have to wait for vacation, burnout, or January 1st to come back to myself.

Those little pauses don’t seem like much in the moment.

But over time, they’ve changed how I move through my life.

That’s what Greyback has always been to me.

Not one dramatic transformation.

Just hundreds of small moments of coming back to yourself, woven into an ordinary day

I’m so grateful to be back here.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll be sharing more about what we’ve been creating, why we felt called to bring Greyback back, and a few new ways to help you find your own pause.

I can’t wait to bring you along.

I’d love to know—what’s one tiny pause that makes a difference in your day? 🤎

Hi, I’m Alissa☺️

I’m the co-founder of Greyback.

Right now, I feel incredibly grateful. I’m back in San Francisco, bringing Greyback back, back in tech (well…AI), surrounded by fascinating, driven people, and feeling more like myself than I have in a long time.

It just took me a little while to get here.

I always joke that my path wasn’t exactly linear and that I’m a late bloomer; as if either of those things are something to apologize for. The last two years brought heartbreak, a lot of grief, unexpected career turns, with a whole lot of perspective.

What I’ve learned is this: you can’t rush healing. You can’t outwork burnout. And you can’t bloom 🌼 🌸 before you’re ready.

Somewhere along the way, I realized I wasn’t meant to get back to who I was. I was becoming someone I’m really proud of. 🦋

That’s why Greyback means so much to me.

Almost ten years ago, Alicia Anderson and I started Greyback because we believed people were craving real connection. Today, I think we’re craving something even deeper: permission to slow down.

To take one deep breath.
To reconnect with ourselves.
To create small rituals that remind us what really matters.

If these past few years have taught me anything, it’s this:

Blooming takes time.

Because we’re human before we’re anything else.

Thank you for being here. I can’t wait to share this next chapter with you. As always, so much love. And if it’s hard right now, keep going. We’re here for you ✨