The Story of Our Iconic Designs

Alpine Provisions grew out of a wilderness vision. Our founder, Joshua Onysko was in the desert and he had a vision of the animals with whom he shares his space. Those animals, he believes, hold space for the world they live in. It’s our job to protect them because they can’t protect themselves. He said, “When I am walking through a forest, I can feel the energy of this space they call home. We need to respect them and give them the space they need to exist.”

When he got home he reached out to Marisa Aragón Ware, a local artist and poet and friend who created a few tattoos for him and described his vision. She drew the deer, which now graces the front of the Fir + Sage Castile Body Wash, and Joshua felt, “that’s it!”

He had her draw his favorite animals who share his property in Boulder with him. Marisa’s detailed, almost geometric work captures perfectly the respect and love for those animals. “The fox is kind of a portrait of my dog, Echo,” she says. “And I love the gentleness and innocence of deer. Also, stags represent protection. And who doesn’t love owls? They are so magical. I can hear one hooting in my backyard in the middle of the night.”

Joshua’s desire to create animal faces on the Alpine Provisions products are meant to inspire everyone who sees them to pause and make a connection with them as a way to feel the impact products we produce have on our earth and all the life that inhabits it.

The owl on Cedar + Sandalwood Body Wipes

The stag on Fir + Sage - Castile Body Wash

The kestrel on Rosemary + Mint - Shampoo & Conditioner

The mountain lion on Vetiver + Sage - Shampoo + Conditioner

The fox on Lavender + Juniper - Magnesium Deodorant

Joshua knows it’s our job to protect this world for these animals who are kin to us. We need to be the voice of the voiceless because they cannot protect themselves from us. And, we need to bring up the next generation to want to do the same. From that one vision, Joshua also saw that being in nature and learning to understand and love it is what sparks the desire to protect nature. He wanted to make sure that kids who might not even have access to a day hike would get to be in wilderness and learn to love and want to protect their new wild home.

Alpine Provisions does just that, partnering with the Colorado Outward Bound School to provide young adults with scholarships for outdoor leadership programs in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, Utah, Alaska, and Wyoming. 1% of all our sales go into this scholarship fund.

Even if you don’t live in the Rocky Mountains, you are still part of an ecosystem. Joshua mused about this: “Even if you live in New York City, you are cohabitating with animals and they were here before us and they keep the balance of the place we live. We are the species that is putting things out of balance. So it’s important to understand that we share space with them and it is our job to have the lowest amount of impact we can and help them hold the space.

So know when you buy, use, gift, or recommend Alpine Provisions, you are part of the vision. You are both engaging with the smells, the animals, and the ethos of a mountain adventure while also making sure that future generations can find their space and protect and love it. It is part of who we are and how we do business that we protect our world.