So honored to be asked by Whole Living Magazine to share my thoughts about natural beauty and be in the company of such a respected group of Natural Beauty Gurus.
Name: Jessa Blades
Natural Beauty Expert and Makeup Artist
Location: NYC
Who is your beauty inspiration? My answer is simply
real women. Everyday I meet another woman who is inspiring and luminous.
Women who are passionate, have their own sense of style, who love
themselves... this is something that you can actually see radiate and I
find this "glow" very inspiring. Most recently I've been inspired and
motivated by a teacher of mine, herbalist healer and elder
Rosemary Gladstar. She
blends cross-cultural herbal remedies and tradition with common sense
advice about living a healthy life. Rosemary is in her 60's and full of
energy, love, compassion, and just a ton of plain-old goodness.
What product/treatment/beauty indulgence do you spend the most on?
I would probably have to say eating really high quality food. I
believe that a healthy skin and beauty regimen starts within and I try
to get all my vitamins and nutrients through my food. I definitely treat
myself to a diet that is local and seasonal, which when you have my
taste, can add up—but it is totally worth it! I also treat myself to
massages which relax me, bring me back down to earth and are an
essential part of my beauty indulgences.
What do you spend the least on? Body moisturizer. I just use high quality, organic oils, sweet almond or coconut all over my skin.
I
don't spend a lot on shampoo either—I find that the less I wash my hair
the better. I use organic shampoo and to that I'll occasionally add in
some apple cider vinegar and baking soda—to clarify, condition and
clean. [
Ed.: Learn how to make similar DIY beauty treatments from common pantry items.]
What does age mean to you? To me, aging feels
exciting and it also means wisdom and patience. As I get older I'm
thrilled and relieved to experience an overall feeling of calmness as I
get to know myself better.
What’s the most interesting thing you’ve learned about skin/hair/nails/beauty this year? The
most interesting thing that I have learned lately is about the deep
connection that herbs and plant medicine have for our beauty and
wellness. I've spent all summer studying herbs and while I have always
known that plants are healing and an essential part of many skincare
ingredients, I now have a much deeper understanding of how and when and
why to use them. I've also learned to use less soap and wash less. We
are simply not that dirty and all of the scrubbing and exfoliating is
stripping our bodies of the necessary oils that we need to balance our
skin back to heath.
What’s the one thing you do (not product-based) that you think affects your appearance more than anything else? Relaxing.
I know it is annoying to hear that kind of advice, especially when you
are really stressed. But stress is so dangerous to our body and our
skin. I also try my best to make sure that I get enough sleep and drink
plenty of water. Trying to stress-less is super hard, especially in this
city, but at least being aware of how powerful it is helps me to avoid
stress as much as possible.
Why naturals? Using natural, simple, healthy products is the
logical direction for us all. Many of the formulations and ingredients
are remedies and recipes that we have been using for centuries to heal
and beatify. We simply got a bit off track with the boom of the enormous
business of beauty and started to trust them instead of trusting
ourselves. I love teaching about why coconut oil is healing or why to
use calendula and why to drink nettles. It is time to take back the
power from the big beauty companies and put it back in the hands of the
people and the earth. We can re-learn how to listen to what our bodies
need and how to use products and ingredients that are truly
helpful—without all the toxins, preservatives, fragrances and hype from
the marketing world about what we need or should have in our products.
My mission is to share this exciting message about naturals and actually
help heal and empower women (and men) to live their healthiest and best
life.
