Brand Focus: Seascape Island Apothecary and the Blurt Foundation.

I am back after a brief respite over the Christmas period-I hope you have all had a wonderful and festive time!

This blog post today is a little different to my usual reviews, as you will discover shortly, and it is an absolute honour and privilege to be writing it!

First of all, I would just like to say a huge thank you to Stuart over at Seascape Island Apothecary for sending me a box full to the brim with their amazing products!

I will give you an overview of the brand and my thoughts on the products in just a second, but first I want to explain why this post is a little different.

In my correspondence with Stuart from Seascape, he mentioned their collaboration with The Blurt Foundation. For anyone unfamiliar with their work, they help to increase the awareness and understanding of depression and mental health. Those of you who are regulars to this blog will know that I am a psychologist and passionate about mental health due to my own struggles with Anxiety, and I have been a fan of the Blurt Foundation and their work for a while, so I was delighted with this news!

One thing they do over at Blurt is something called 'Buddy Boxes', which are essentially self care packages for those who need them most. They have different themes and always contain lovely items to help improve mood and act as a pick me up to the person receiving the box. It's a hug in a box! The offer rolling monthly subscriptions starting at £12 for the BuddyBox Lite and £21.50 for the regular BuddyBox, and you can also purchase a one off box as a gift to yourself or someone else- check out the website (linked above!) for more information!

Seascape products have featured in BuddyBoxes in the past, which is where their collaboration comes in! The brand have seven different ranges and have over 40 awards to their name, producing amazing natural bath and body products with aromatherapy benefits. They are 100% British and all their products are free from nasties such as parabens, SLS, silicons, micro beads and petroleum, as well as being completely cruelty free.

They believe that aromatherapy has a multitude of benefits for the mind, body and soul and can really help your wellbeing in a poistive way, Each of their seven ranges are specifically designed to evoke certain feelings and emotions on using them, so can be tailored to the way you want to feel, or to enhance your current mood.

The ranges are as follows:

• Uplift

• Unwind

• Soothe

• Refresh

• Les Petits for babies and children

• Homme for men

• Revive Haircare

I was sent a mixture of the first four ranges, so I will go into a little more detail about them and their benefits.

The Uplift range has won 10 awards and I can totally see why! It contains a number of essential oils including Eucalyptus, known for its stimulating properties, Lime to energise and Lavender to refresh your senses. From this range, I was sent the Awake Oil and the Sea Salt Scrub, which has been named 'WINNER: Best In Category' 4 times by the UK beauty industry. I use oil every morning when I wake up, using the rollerball applicator to run it over my pulse points. I adore the smell of this-it really is uplifting! I am not a morning person at all, but one whiff of this makes me feel much more alert and ready for the day ahead. The scent lasts for ages too-much longer than some of the perfumes I wear! As for the body scrub- I can see why it is a multiple award winner! Again, a truly beautiful scent and so gentle to use compared to some other scrubs which can be quite harsh, I use this in the shower twice a week and it really does give my mood a boost, as well as making my skin feel amazing. I truly believe that self care is something we should make more time for and when you use products that also incorporate aromatherapy, it can make you feel so good for the rest of the day!

The Unwind range contains Lavender to help relax you and Ylang Ylang which is known to help ease tension in the muscles and balance the mind too. I was sent the body lotion from this range and not only is it a huge pump bottle for ease of use, but it has the most gorgeous formula, leaving my skin silky soft and subtly scented for hours after! Using this, I have definitely noticed an improvement in my stress levels and it is almost therapeutic to apply it because I know it does me good! It also smells delightful-not at all overpowering but enough to have a positive effect on my mood!

The Soothe range has received 9 awards, largely from the mother and baby community, as it is maternity safe. It contains Lavender oil to calm and soothe, Ylang Ylang to balance the mind and Mandarin and Neroli Oil to rejuvenate the skin. I was sent the sleep oil and body mist from this range and wow- does it relax you! I use the body mist during the day, especially on days I know will be stressful. The scent, as well as being stunning, lingers for ages and everytime I move, I get a whiff of the scent, which is instantly calming! The bottle is huge, so it will last me ages (which I am so happy about!) and I actually prefer it to a couple of my more expensive perfumes! I also spray it on my pillow every night before I go to bed, and in conjunction with the sleep oil, which I apply to my pulse points the same as the awake oil, they help me to drift off into a restful sleep. Those suffering from mental health problems will know what an issue sleep can be, and I know when my anxiety is bad I can often lay awake all night contemplating and worrying about everything, so these products have been a total god send!

The Refresh range is specifically for the hands and it contains Lavender to soothe and calm, Geranium to balance and cleanse and Lemongrass to tone and refresh. It also contains Jersey Beeswax and Shea Butter to nourish the skin and cuticles. It is also an award winner, taking Best Everyday Handcream at The Beauty Shortlist awards. I was sent one of these award winning creams, and I absolutely love it! One thing I have always done is look after my skin, from my head to my feet, but my hands are probably the part of my body that take a battering more than anywhere else, so it is only right that I give them a treat! This handcream smells incredible and leaves my hands feeling pampered and refreshed!

I was also sent a wonderful little pot of their Peppermint Lip Balm, made with Jersey Beeswax, Peppermint Oil, Jersey Honey and Jojoba Seed Oil. Not only does this smell lovely and minty, it feels a joy to apply and has really made a difference to my lips. In the winter particularly, my lips can get really dry and chapped, but this has put a stop to that!

So those are all the amazing products that I was sent to try. I can definitely see why aromatherapy is so popular, I honestly cannot believe the difference these products, and their amazing scents, have made to me! Scent is such a powerful sense, it can evoke so many emotions and bring back so many memories, and Seascape have taken this and turned it into something wonderful. Their work with the Blurt Foundation could not be better suited, as aromatherapy is a potentially very powerful tool in the fight against depression and mental illness.

A review from a Blurt Box recipient highlighted that even just a nice smell on a hard day can have a dramatic impact: "As a regular subscriber to their (Blurt Foundation) monthly buddybox, I found your (Seascape) items helped me so much through some of my hardest times, even if it was just a nice smell because I deserved that even on difficult days. I used the sleep oil to help me relax and have a number of different items I have received as gifts since….. I was so surprised to see how much difference they can make! I was never a sceptic but never avidly into anything like that either but I've been won over.”

As have I! That review could have been written by me, as it totally reflects my feelings too! I was never a sceptic- as a psychologist and beauty enthusiast, I am always keen to try new things and explore alternative therapies- but I wasn't ever really into aromatherapy. I didn't understand how much benefit could come from a simple smell, or combination of smells. But now I know, and I am completely converted! The link between mental health and beauty/self care is a lot stronger than we realise and I, for one, am all for it!

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