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Many Gen X and Millennial Latinas embrace habits associated with their abuelas, such as gardening or baking. Mexican American Christina Kelmon and Chilean Ann Murray-Dunning, both in their forties, embrace slow-living movement that focuses on well-being. The movement—known among Latinas as their “señora era”—is about cultivating inner peace and creating a loving, stress-free environment through prioritizing self-care and nurturing relationships while embracing simple, meaningful practices that bring calm and joy into life.
“Ancestral practices are an excellent blueprint for our lives,” Murray-Dunning says. “Abuelas are incredibly strong and resilient. They know when to rest and when to push forward.”
Kelmon and Murray-Dunning combined their señora era experience and written their highly anticipated debut book Radical Señora Era: Ancestral Latin American Secrets for a Happier, Healthier Life, which will be released April 29, 2025. Their señora-themed TikTok profile has reached six million views with more than fifty thousand followers, and their newsletter reaches fifty thousand subscribers.
Before they entered their señora eras, Murray-Dunning worked in public relations and Kelmon in finance. When they met, they were two of the few Latina angel investors in Silicon Valley. Together, they saw a need for clean beauty for Latinas.
Utilizing ancient herbal knowledge from Latin America, Kelmon and Murray-Dunning created Vamigas, a clean beauty line in 2021 that focuses on natural solutions for specific skin issues Latinas face such as hyperpigmentation. Vamigas products are made from vegan, naturally derived, ethically sourced, organic, botanical ingredients including yerba mate, rosehip babassu, prickly pear, and chia. Products include face oil, cream, toner, and lip oil in glass bottles. The entire collection is Leaping Bunny certified and free of dyes, synthetic fragrances, phthalates, sulfites, and parabens. It’s sold at Target and other retailers.
“We know urgent deadlines, nonstop conference calls, and the pressure to succeed. It’s a beautiful thing to see Latina excellence in the business sector and observe the incredible growth and wealth creation of the last few years. The problem is Latinas are likely to feel pressured to have a perfect home and work life,” Murray-Dunning says.
The cofounders embraced the señora era and saw it as a movement away from the often-toxic girlboss culture that was imposed upon millennial women in the workforce. The Latina Pay Gap results in Latinas making significantly less than non-Latino white men with a similar education and professional background for the same amount of work. Pair that with the relentless immigrant work ethic, and Latinas were hit particularly hard by hustle culture, which makes it challenging to embrace a healthy work/life balance.
“We’re not asking Latinas to work less. It’s critical to push the needle forward, take positions of power, and shrink the Latina Pay Gap,” Murray-Dunning says. “We want to abolish the idea that to be successful we’ve got to destroy our personal lives and get lost in our work lives. There’s more to life than the hustle culture. It’s OK for Latinas to rest.”
On the Vamigas TikTok, they built a following not from product videos or their jefas lives, but from posts showcasing how they were slowing down, living life more meaningfully, planting a garden, and getting a chicken coop. Social media posts showcase that you’re in your señora era when you air out your bedding weekly, go to sleep earlier, prioritize wellness, and become a homebody.
But the señora era movement is more than a social media trend—it’s an effort to encourage Latinas to implement more culturally appropriate self-care often rooted in ancestral traditions from Latin American homelands and create a calmer, more grounded life. Kelmon and Murray-Dunning see the señora movement as a powerful lifestyle shift where millions of Latinas are embracing getting older, tuning into their homelands, and prioritizing a strong work/life balance.
Murray-Dunning’s señora era is modeled after her abuelas. “They had a set of time-tested practices for the home and garden passed down for generations,” she says. “I was a casual observer when I was little, but in my forties the habits I remembered from my abuelas helped me get through experiencing the pandemic as a new mom, moving to a new city, being closer to my parents, and health issues.”
Other examples she shares include going out to the patio upon rising before the kids are up, sitting down with a cafecito, getting some light in your eyes, and creating a moment of morning peace before the craziness of work and chaos of parenting begins. Or going into the garden and watering plants in the evening, after everyone is in bed, along with some tecito. “These moments of peacefulness are easy habits to add to your routine—it’s almost like a meditation,” she says.