VK Lillie is a unique and beautiful mother-daughter collaboration between Vanessa & Kira Lillie. Their journey began with Kira's desire to share her mother Vanessa's profound wisdom and healing knowledge with the world.
Central to their collaboration is an exploration of the Earth's incredible healing properties and our inherent connection to it as humans. This exploration finds expression through their modern approach to crafting medicine bags, which lies at the core of their creations. Vanessa's journey with these special bags began in the early '80s when her passion for beadwork, Native American culture, and the intention of creating meaningful jewelry led her to craft her first medicine bag. These lovingly crafted bags were initially shared with friends and family, evolving in both skill and style throughout Vanessa's twenties and thirties until she eventually passed on the tradition to her daughter, Kira.
Kira's own path led her to Milan and Paris, where she honed her eye for aesthetics while working as a fashion photographer. Drawing from her experiences and creativity, she breathed new life into the medicine bags, creating a contemporary iteration that she and her mother continue to handcraft. While the bags' designs have been updated, their purpose remains unchanged: vintage leather and hand-selected stones are worn close to one's heart, serving as a perpetual reminder of personal energetic intention.
VK Lillie beautifully bridges the realms of aesthetics and healing, naturally attracting art enthusiasts and individuals who yearn to infuse spiritual intention into their daily lives and practices. Each creation from VK Lillie embodies the profound connection between humans and the Earth, bringing forth a harmonious blend of artistry and healing energy that resonates deeply with those who embrace it.
VANESSA LILLIE
Vanessa Lillie has dedicated her life to the study and practice of healing. Raised at the base of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, Vanessa connected profoundly with nature from an early age. She quickly immersed herself in the study of Native American culture, spirituality, and herbology. Her mother was the president of the Institute of Taoist Education and Acupuncture while her father taught Co-Counseling, and is currently a Trauma Release Practitioner. Vanessa learned bead working techniques from her mother, alongside wild flower and herb identification from her father. She incorporated these skills into her reinterpretation of medicine bags—leather pouches she created and filled with combinations of stones, crystals, plants, and herbs, implemented for their healing properties.
Over the past 30 years, Vanessa has dedicated her life to the expansion of spiritual awareness; traveling to the Yucatan to various sacred sites for the 11/11 ceremony, attending sweat lodges and shamanic journeys with Native American teacher Red Eagle, and studying astral travel in Guatemala at Las Piramides del Ka. Vanessa additionally attended the United Nations World Conference on Women in Beijing with a group of Co-Counselors.
Vanessa has ardently followed a path to honor the Earth as Mother, developing a multidimensional healing practice. She has taught Biodynamic Craniosacral and Acupressure, and is a reiki master. Her extensive knowledge of healing includes the likes of practices such as pre natal massage, chakra balancing, doula training, and foot massage. Vanessa has additionally studied Zero Balancing body-mind therapy, Hypnotherapy, Dream work, Earth Energy Healing, Tui Na, Connective Tissue, Shiatsu, Thai massage (in Thailand), Breema, and Swedish Massage. She currently has a private practice in Boulder, Colorado.
KIRA LILLIE
Kira Lillie's artistic journey is rooted in a lineage of healers, infusing her work with a deep passion for the earth and a purposeful impact. Raised amidst alternative medicine practitioners, her father, Karl, is a skilled acupuncturist, while her mother, Vanessa, practices massage, acupressure, and is a Biodynamic Craniosacral teacher.
At 18, Kira embarked on over a decade-long adventure from Santa Cruz, California, landing in Florence, Italy, where she explored the worlds of fashion photography, filmmaking, and performance art, spanning all across Europe.
In 2011, Kira and Vanessa launched VK Lillie, a jewelry line that revitalizes medicine bags with modern aesthetics. Rooted between in Paris and Colorado, their creations artfully blend timeless healing practices with contemporary elegance.
Currently Kira works on a captivating multi-sensory project, INCORP, celebrates the fusion of food and performance art, mesmerizing audiences with unique and transformative experiences.
Most recently Kira has launched INCORP World again with her mother and a large community of artists; bridging fashion, luxury, and art with the transformative powers of alternative medicine, healing, and intention.