24:
aromatherapy for pregnancy
I am a mother of two toddlers that keep me pretty busy! During my first pregnancy I was very ill, morning sickness for months on end, leg cramps that would last 10 minutes, headaches and feeling exhausted, as this was before I discovered the power of essential oils to heal and cure ailments. I was lucky enough to be working at Escents during my second pregnancy. Every time I had a pregnancy related issue I would look up cures in our on site recipe binder or I would use the great recipes in the Fragrant Pharmacy by Valeri Ann Worwood. These recipes helped me and I thought I would share the three top recipes’ that saved me from discomfort and pain.
MORNING SICKNESS
Spearmint saves the day! Drop two drop onto your pillow and/or into your diffuser when you go to bed. After 3 days your morning sickness will be cured. During the day I would put two drops onto a tissue and inhale to ease off nausea! I had morning sickness for less than a week.
Spearmint eases the digestive system, relieving vomiting, constipation and nausea.
LEG CRAMPS
I used lotion and rubbed on my legs every night when I got home from work after working 8hours on my feet. I only had one night with leg cramps because the next day I found this recipe and used it diligently.
5 drops of geranium
10 drops of lavender
2 drops of cypress
Blend into 50 ml of any unscented carrier oil
-Geranium eases tension, stress and is very healing.
-Lavender has a calming scent which makes it an excellent tonic for the nerves and helps in treating migraines, headaches, anxiety, depression, nervous tension and emotional stress.
-Cypress is helpful in relieving muscular spasms in limbs. It also induces a calming, relaxing and sedating effect on the mind and the body.
EXHAUSTION
I put this into an unscented roll-on base so I have it with me at all times. During the last trimester I felt tired and fatigued. This recipe gave me the energy I needed to get through my day at work or to play with my toddler who was running around the house while I wanted to sleep.
10 drops of Lavender
10 drops of Grapefruit
10 drops of Coriander
-Lavender is a refreshing aroma which removes nervous exhaustion and restlessness and increases mental activity.
-Grapefruit uplifting effect on the mood and helps with stress and depression. It is used with great success to combat muscle fatigue and stiffness while stimulating the lymphatic system and thereby clearing the body of toxins.
-Coriander is beneficial for relieving stress, anxiety and insomnia.
My second pregnancy was so much easier than my first due to all the aromatherapy I did. This when the power of essentials oils really hit me! Now every time I feel ill I look to essentials for relief!
By Jessica Leavitt
08:
The Olympic Blending Contest
The Escents Aromatherapy ‘Olympic’ Blending Contest is officially underway! Every Escents retail store will be competing to submit 7 NEW aromatherapy blends. Each store must select the best blend from each of the following categories:
1. Fresh (crisp & clean)
2. Unwind (herbal)
3. Indulgence (rich & sweet)
4. Energize (citrus)
5. Passionate (floral)
6 Balance (earthy & woody)
7. Wellness (healing)
So get together, work together and work competitively! Submit to a un-biast judge who will then help select what blends will be submitted from each store. Again, seven from each store must be submitted. Each employee should participate at each store. The winning blends will then be selected and developed as new products for 2010. We will work with the “master blender” to decide the names of each blend. We will also decide if the blend will be launched in any other product formats.
The deadline is February 27th, 2010. Winning blends from each category will be chosen and announced by March 12th, 2010. This is a great opportunity to get store customers involved in selecting the best blends to submit. Wow, I am so excited to see what comes my way - Get blending and have fun! I can’t wait to see who takes gold in this one…
08:
Natural Cure for Smelly Feet
Just like a million other people, I too experience some unpleasant odor coming from my shoes now and then. There is a great recipe that I use to get rid any unsavory aromas coming from my shoes, but want also to share a story on what not to do. About a week ago, I deodorized my shoes with an amazing blend we have made up in the store. And it works great for me and my smelly shoes.
Use 100ml Unscented Aroma Mist
To the above base, add the following:
20 drops of tea tree
10 drops of lemongrass
10 peppermint
10 drops of lavender
That was the right thing to do. Here is my story on what not to do… The other day we where trying to prepare for our annual inventory. Due to being so busy I forgot that week to add my “makes shoes not smell” spray into my shoes. I was sitting down at the computer entering data for the inventory when all of a sudden I got a wiff of some unpleasant odor coming from my shoes. I tried to ignore it, but the smell was over powering and also distracting. Embarrassing as that was of course, I really did not want to take my shoes off for obvious reasons. Instead, I grabbed a vile of 100% pure lemongrass and put a couple of drops on the side of my shoes. Wow instant gratification. The smell was gone and I could focus on my inventory count once again.
Until that night…
When I got home that night I took my shoes off and was amazed on how much I could still smell the lemongrass. Sat on the sofa and my fiancée commented on it as well. “Wow you smell lemony”, he commented. Later on that night when we where getting ready to go to bed, I noticed something on my foot when I took my socks off. Where I dropped the lemongrass in the shoes, the skin that was exposed to that bore now 2 large brown/yellowish spots. I went into the bathroom to scrub my feet but to no avail. I managed to stain my feet. I had to go wedding dress shopping the next day with 2 large brown spots on my feet!! Lemongrass is a 100% pure essential oil and should not be used directly on the skin. This just served as a reminder and I sure learned my lesson the hard way. I would definitely recommend Nina’s Wonder Spray rather than the pure lemongrass. Thanks Nina from Escents Park Royal for this great recipe!
05:
DIY Facial Mask
Why not invite some friends over and whip up your own spa experience at home? Great company, chick-flicks, popcorn & a rejuvenating facial mask… what better way to spend a cold Friday night in the middle of winter? Chelsea from Escents Coquitlam submitted this easy DIY recipe for a refreshing, uplifting facial mask that anyone can easily make at home.
1 large strawberry
1 tablespoon of yogurt
1 drop rosemary essential oil
2 drops lavender essential oil
1 teaspoon of cosmetic clay
Mash the strawberry with the yogurt. Add the essential oils and clay to the mixture. If you have dry skin, add ½ teaspoon of almond or jojoba oil to the mix. Clean face and apply. Wait for 20 minutes then wash off with warm water. The strawberries and yogurt with help soften the skin and Lavender and Rosemary will stimulate cell renewal. Enjoy!
29:
Yoga Mat Sanitizer
January marks the busiest time at yoga studios and gyms alike. Most of us put on the standard ‘December Fiver’ as I like to call it over the holidays and are now looking for ways to get back into shape. Yoga is incredible for both mind and body making it a hugely popular exercise choice to help shed those pounds. Yoga mats can start to give off an unsavory smell after a few classes, especially if you enjoy Bikram’s Hot Yoga. The sweat from the pads of our feet and palms of our hands accumulates on the mat and bacteria can start to build up. It’s important to clean your yoga mat after each use and this great aromatherapy recipe submitted by Alina from Escents Coquitlam will do the trick! Not only will this recipe leave your mat smelling fab, it will also disinfect and sanitize it. This mist is also great for cleaning other gym equipment.
12 drops Tea Tree Essential Oil
15 drops Lemon Essential Oil
9 drops Renewal Aromatherapy Blend (optional)
Mix the essential oils into an unscented aroma mist base. If you have a mister at home, just blend the oils into 125 mls filtered water. Shake and it’s ready for use!
26:
This Friday is the last Fortune Friday at our Commercial Drive location for this year. It’s your last chance to have astrological readings done between 1-3. Come by for a visit, we’d love to see you.
21:
Come by our Commercial Drive store (1744 Commercial Drive) for Fortune Fridays, from 1pm to 3pm, running now through the end of November. Customers can come in and have their tarot cards read, for a donation, by Ruben Ferrera who has over 23 years of experience. Astrology is a universal symbolic language that can provide us with valuable information otherwise lost or unavailable. Give it a try…!
Also at our mall retail locations will be handing out candy on Halloween, so come by for a treat!
16:
Jessica (District Manager) says, “I love the bath melt bars! My bath smells fabulous and my skin is so soft and smooth afterwards! If anyone should try something new, the Willow bath melt bar gets my vote.”
Mariana (Manager, West Broadway location) says, “My favorite product is the unscented salt scrub. I love the fact that the salt is antibacterial and anti-inflammatory. The exfoliation is deep and the price is fantastic.”
My favourite Escents product is the Lavender Provence Gentle Scrub. I love how it smells, and the lavender helps tone down redness in my pale skin.
What’s your favourite, and why?
29:
Last week I got a great email from Nina, our store manager at Park Royal. She sent me a list of reasons why Escents is a unique company, and I thought I’d share it with you:
1. Our customer service: Escents staff know all about our products because we love to use them ourselves, and we can always help people find exactly what they need.
2. Custom blending: where else can you find a huge range of unscented products that can be blended with oils in endless combinations?
3. Escents is proud to be Canadian, and that shows in our community outreach and our policy of no animal testing.
4. Our products are unisex and for people of all ages. Escents blends are for everybody.
5. Our products are scented with pure essential oils. They smell good and are good for you.
6. Our packaging is attractively simple: all our efforts go into what’s inside.
Thanks for the great list, Nina!
ETA: Got another email, this one from Fanyee at the West Broadway location. She agrees with a lot of Nina’s points, and adds:
-We focus on natural ingredients: no parabens, no artificial colors and organic!
- We are a family of closely knit stores that share the same passion and dream: great products and customer service!
- We have loyal customers that have been with us since the beginning
- We are constantly developing new products with the customers in mind (e.g. organic baby line, matcha tea)
- We take the time to get to know our customers when developing a scent or blend for them
- We have great promotions that allow customers to try new products
- We are an excellent source of knowledge for our customers and are committed to learning more!
Thanks Fanyee!
06:
Hello, everyone! The move went well last week; a very stressful process, but positive in the end.
It’s quite busy in the Willowbrook Escents today. There is a group of young cheerleaders in the center court of Willowbrook Mall, promoting their cheerleading school. It’s pretty cute. They are taking little volunteer girls ages 3 and up and gently throwing them up in the air. It made my day, as they are all so happy and cheerful to watch.
The weather this week has been unbelievably hot, yet enjoyable! I’ve been soaking my self in Revitalizing mist (Peppermint, Eucalyptus) to cool off during the evening. It’s meant for your feet but it works for your entire body as well.
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