MY LIFE IN BEAUTY
Aromatherapist, sound-healer and Ila founder Denise Leicester talks to GH about joy, nature and how she gets her glow
Denise Leicester shares her skincare secrets
One of the first things I do every day
is light a candle. Pure essential oils have a powerful way of centering us and evoking a sense of security. Food can do this, too. When we had a difficult day recently, I told my husband I’d make bread – it has the most delicious, nurturing aroma. That, and our Orange Blossom Candle For Higher Energy (2), £40, help me feel surrounded by goodness. Our retreat in Languedoc-roussillon opened in 2019 and we were lucky enough to spend lockdown there.
This part of France feels like the most untouched place on earth. Our guests go wild swimming, do forest-bathing, eat supper outside and have beautiful sound-healing and body treatments. Going ‘on retreat’ is about learning how
to take better care of yourself. Small, positive changes, such as resetting your nervous system with a magnesium 1 bath when you’re feeling stressed, have far-reaching effects. Make time for rituals – they don’t need to be lengthy!
Joy is a huge part of my life. It’s inside all of us; sometimes we just need help to access it. I ask our guests to write a list of 30 things that bring them joy. Every day, they pick two things to incorporate into their lives and fill up their ‘joy bank’. I favour a natural glow over make-up.
I want my skin to glow and my eyes to sparkle. Diet and happiness are just as important as skincare. When I look at happy women, I see it reflected in their skin. I created Ila because I’m hyper-allergic to everything. I can’t tolerate much make-up but I don’t react to Bare Minerals Bounce & Blur Eyeshadow Palette (1), £27, or Dr. Hauschka Tinted Day Cream (4), £29.50. I have to be careful with hair products, although I can use Tigi Bed Head Wax Stick (5), £7.50. We’ve just launched a CBD range. CBD is a compound taken from the cannabis plant, which interacts with the endocannabinoid system in our bodies to regulate mood, sleep, pain and inflammation. I met a CBD expert in New York, who encouraged me to look into it. Over six months of research I discovered that cannabis is the smartest plant on the planet. CBD works on a mental, emotional and physical level, which ticks all my boxes! I take our Better Day
Drops (3), £48, to help me manage a stressful day, and my husband finds that massaging in the Concentrate Balm
(6), £46, helps with back and neck pain.
Support is crucial when experiencing the menopause. If you have no energy, it’s impossible to feel positive about anything. I take zinc, magnesium, vitamins D and C, and a B complex every day, along with maca, ashwagandha, and shatavari supplements. They are all adaptogenic herbs, which I mix into my smoothies and food to help balance my hormones. I also make a big pot of tea with liquorice root every morning, which I dip into throughout the day. It’s great for nipping sugar cravings in the bud and nourishing any adrenal fatigue. Getting older has brought me self-acceptance. I was hypercritical about my appearance when I was younger. Then when I was 40, I trained with an amazing Ayurvedic doctor who said to me: ‘We look for what is right, and we build from there.’ It stayed with me for ever. You can lug a rucksack around full of all of your ‘wrongs’, or you can put it down and carry your ‘rights’ instead. I feel most beautiful when I’m happy.
Particularly when I’ve just done yoga, meditated, or when I’m singing. Identifying what nurtures you is key to learning how to care for yourself. I question what is nourishing and what makes me feel good, then look to bring more of it into my life.