The minute I heard Tisserand was launching a new Wellbeing range, I got in touch. Their Signature Blend Hand Cream lives in my bag and as for their bath range… #Gorgeous
Unreal as it may sound, it’s Christmas in July on the press front right now (brands are showcasing their December launches to the long lead mags) and Tisserand is a brand that’s constantly on to my Christmas “give list”.
When I contacted Tisserand about the Wellbeing launch, they asked me which products I’ve been recommending and how does aromatherapy play a role in my life…then I thought, why not do a proper Q&A and post it on the blog?
Which Tisserand products have you tried and love? I haven’t had a chance to try their natural Fragrance Oils for skin yet, have you? I like the look of the Orange Blossom one for summer? Easy to travel with, too.
One of Tisserand’s for-the-skin natural fragrance oils (you can’t use all aromatherapy oils on the skin, so check first!
And Tisserand’s new Sweet Dreams – one to burn with a candle before bed…
TEN MINUTES “ME TIME” WITH TISSERAND
Tisserand: What’s in your Tisserand “Therapeutic Toolkit”?
I love the idea of a toolkit! Mine changes depending on the season or what’s going on in my life. In winter I use a lot of citrus-based products, blends like Tisserand’s ENERGY BODY OIL (with Lime, and Grapefruit and Orange Leaf)
In summer I tend to wake very early – too early! But vaporising oils like SWEET DREAMS and magnesium before bed seem to help me sleep longer (and also get to sleep if I’ve got a to do list ringing in my head when it’s a very busy week).
“Tisserand’s Sweet Dreams Vaporising Oil and magnesium before bed seem to help me sleep longer – and get to sleep if I’ve got a to do list ringing in my head when it’s a very busy week”
I’ve almost always got a Tisserand HAND CREAM in my bag – right now I’m half way through the Signature Blend one.
My hand cream “du jour”, and Tisserand also sell Moisturising Gloves for £5, five fingered saviours if your hands are very dry, to repair skin while you sleep
I normally switch between the Signature and the Lavender Blend (Lavender, White Mint and Damask Rose) and I like the fact that they’re made with natural essential oils, they’re like a mini-aromatherapy ‘hit’ if you’re in a stuffy or claustrophobic environment like the Tube in London or on a plane.
Tisserand: Mental and emotional anxiety often manifests in the body – as back pain, stiffness, eczema or hair loss, for example…which products would you recommend first hand, for stress?
Sometimes we forget that something like back pain can be – at the very root of it – stress or anxiety-related. I know quite a few mums who have back pain at the moment, for some reason, so something like the MUSCLE EASE BATH OIL with Ginger, Lemongrass and Rosemary, or the Muscle Ease Body Oil would be good to use. I’m always recommending the Bath Oils to people because they’re so luxe, effective and affordable.
Often, a bath – if you’re lucky – instead of a quick shower, is all the “me time” you can squeeze into a day. Or a relaxing Lavender Blend bath which is such a soul soother. Making extra time for ourselves – even if it means buying it back in some way to free you up a bit! – is so important. I’ve had to be quite brutal and ditch anything that “doesn’t serve” me. I try and pad a busy day with little pockets of time, like mini helpings of breathing space to clear my head. Even if it’s just getting off our chairs and out of the house or office for a couple of ten minute walks a day…
Tisserand: Why, and when did you first start using aromatherapy?
I’ve always veered towards those “happy” essential oils like lime, bergamot, grapefruit…and I love fig! It reminds me of our summer holidays in Greece, sitting down to lunch, in the cool shade of a fig tree. And jasmine still takes me back to the nights we’d take a shortcut down a jasmine-filled path to a little Greek island beach bar – it’s amazing how scent can transport you right back to a particular place, person or time.
These days I use aromatherapy very “therapeutically”. Peppermint oil for concentration (work) is fantastic, I’ll use lavender before bed (sleep), and eucalyptus is good if you feel a cold coming on (cleansing). Sweet orange can help if you’re feeling a little down or anxious (uplifting).
I’m not a cold weather person (at all!) but there’s nothing like an invigorating pine oil or a warming winter orange blend – they’re so comforting, joyful and festive.
Tisserand’s “Inspired by the National Trust” Collection, four blends in a box. £14
(I use the National Trust collection Lavender Walk Hand Wash – divine)
As an advocate of Slow(er) Living, if someone is feeling overwhelmed by the rush-rush relentless pace of modern life, what advice would you offer them?
I know. Back to our big 21st century problem – there’s never enough time!
I honestly think you’ve got to be incredibly single-minded in winning back time for YOU. Cut out any and all unnecessary details, errands, meetings, TV, coffees – anything which makes you feel over-obliged, time poor or stressed out. (Including certain people.)
“We seem to have lost our “OFF switch”, we’re not using it enough”
I’m teaching myself to make quicker decisions these days. This or that? That!
It’s quite liberating if you’re one of those on-the-fence people. I bore myself with my inability to choose between two things, it’s such a time-waster. Unless it’s a critically important decision, I just choose one over the other now and move on to something else.
For making time stretch longer or freeing up some time I find rituals can make time feel more abundant. A tea in the morning and afternoon buys you ten or fifteen of those all-important quiet time minutes. Yoga. Or ten minutes meditating (I need to start!) Half an hour with a really good book before bed. I never watch the news before bed – violence, upsetting images and negativity all seep into the psyche. Not good just before you hit t
he pillow.
It’s vital to draw a thicker line (in permanent black marker pen) between work and play, our work and our life. When the day is really “done” you enjoy your family and the evening much more. We seem to have lost our “off switch”, we’re not using it enough! Less ON, more OFF. Less doing, more being. Less buying, more recycling. And so on.
“Aromatherapy has the wonderful power to link us to nature, it’s like a mindfulness meditation.
You’re sitting in your London flat in January, burning an orange blossom room oil, and soon you’re in a Marrakech garden in June… “
Aromatherapy has the wonderful power to link us to nature, it’s like a mindfulness meditation. You’re sitting in your London flat in January, burning an orange blossom room oil, and seconds later you’re in a Marrakech garden in June…
Every year, when the entries come in for our Beauty Shortlist Awards, almost all of us dive into the aromatherapy products first!
It’s one of the reasons I love the beauty industry so much. Aromatherapy is so comforting, uplifting and emotionally healing. I think that’s why I’m so drawn to it.
Discover the new Wellbeing Collection, new summer launches and all of Tisserand’s timeless beauty heroes at:
Tisserand.com
Summer Showers