I'm Nicola (most people call me Nic). I'm originally from Brighton, but have been living in and around London for just over twenty years.
I've been a Holistic Therapist and Wellbeing Practitioner running my own business for twelve years.
But all in all I've worked within the beauty, skincare and wellness industry for nearly thirty years. I started working on the beauty and fragrance counters (including Lancome and Calvin Klein) at Boots as a Saturday job. This job saw me through my last year of school, then college and university.
After uni I moved to London to become Training Manager at Selfridges department store in London working with the prestigious beauty hall. Among many things I spent my time designing and delivering training which I loved. This was a massive period of self development for me. Although one of my highlights was assisting Paul Weller with the purchase of a kids ice cream maker!
From there I moved to L'Occitane en Provence as their UK Training Manager writing and implementing training programmes such as basic and advanced skincare. I also really enjoyed the coaching aspect of my job where I could work one to one with employees. I was even due to start presenting on QVC at this time but developed a huge bout of psoriasis which put paid to that! Never mind. Everything happens for a reason, as the saying goes. This job sparked my love of writing and also my love of New York which I visited several times for work whilst at L'Occitane.
I absolutely love what I do now as I get to combine my passion for helping others to feel the best that they can with my obsession for all things skincare. I really enjoy providing hands on treatments alongside sharing easy and practical tips for positive mind and body. I write about a variety of subjects - stress, sleep, feel good habits, skincare, treatments etc. which I post to the website.
I am resident blogger for Perfumery & Co www.perfumeryandcompany.co.uk writing about all things beauty related. Sharing my knowledge, tips and recommendations. Perfumery & Co are a wonderful independent beauty store offering a comprehensive range of products with amazing personal service. I work with The Body Retreat www.thebodyretreat.co.uk who specialise in wellness retreats for women in the UK and Spain providing holistic treatments for their retreaters in Spain. I also volunteer with Look Good Feel Better www.lookgoodfeelbetter.co.uk which is a leading cancer support charity aimed at boosting the physical and emotional wellbeing of people living with cancer.
I use Neals Yard oils in the majority of my body work therapies. These are high quality natural and organic products. In addition to these I've carefully hand picked effective high end skincare products which I use as part of my bespoke facial treatments.
I've recently got a Peloton (I'm a little bit obsessed with it!) and I also enjoy Pilates, Barre and walking. I like to read, practice mindfulness and be guided through meditation. I also love to travel and take photos wherever I go. I share some of these on my social media, in particular Instagram Stories, but I much prefer to be behind the camera rather than in front of it!
I am always looking for opportunities to increase my knowledge and experience. I'm a real advocate for self development. I've recently completed two professional certificates - An "Understanding & Managing Stress' course which has given me some invaluable strategies to help guide some of my clients and an 'Understanding Mental Health' course which has proved very interesting and will be so useful in everyday life. In addition to these I've gained an accreditation programme with MASCED.UK Melanoma and Skin Cancer Early Detection) to educate myself in spotting the early signs of skin cancer whilst working with my clients. I am just about to embark on a year long qualification about something I know will prove invaluable to my clients (and me). I'lll enjoy sharing some of what I learn along the way.
Please have a browse around the website. I really want it to be a useful resource, a place to gain impartial, practical tips. A calm space.