Review: Eco-Friendly Refresh Energy Boost Home Candle

A candle loses nothing by lighting another candle. James Keller

It was my pleasure to commemorate my friend Terri Wingham's birthday a couple of weeks ago by contributing to her Adventure of Hope. Imagine my surprise when she contacted me a few days later at my Facebook page to tell me I won the giveaway from CV Skinlabs and O&N Collective, Inc.

I won several items, but my favorite is the Refresh: Energy Boost Home Candle by Neom Organics. I have to tell you how much I love this candle.

A delicious, bracing fragrance hit me before I even opened the box. It's described as a "cheerful blend that enlivens the body and recharges the soul. The perfect morning energy boost or pre night out pick-me-up." And it really is! If you're feeling groggy, unfocused or just plain tired, this is the fragrance for you.

More exciting than the fragrance is how it's delivered. As I learn more and more about the chemicals we take in and the cancers they cause, I've been less willing to burn candles in my home. Plus, soot is a nasty problem. That's why I'm so excited to discover this candle. It's made using only vegetable wax and pure essential oils (rather than synthetic fragrances) so it burns without releasing harmful pollutants, toxins and soot.  

Plus, it works as a powerful holistic treatment as you breathe in the scented air. I'm burning it right now as I write this post and I'm inhaling deeper, enjoying the smell and feel of the air in my lungs. Anything that encourages me to stop and breathe is a very good thing.

I love the beneficial ingredients:

• Paper and cotton wicks that are lead free
• 100% all-natural vegetable wax only (NO paraffin wax - so no carcinogens and no black soot)
• 100% pure essential oils (NO synthetic chemicals or fragrance)
• Recyclable packaging - specially sourced, eco friendly
• No "binding chemicals" that make the wax stick to the sides of the glass, so every last drop is used and there is no waste.

So, thank you Terri and O&N Collective, Inc., for the wonderful surprise of actually winning something (which never happens to me.) That it is safe, non-toxic, organic and natural makes it that much better. I'm a convert.

Have you been looking for safer, non-toxic alternatives to bring into your nest? This is one of my happy discoveries (another serendipity moment!) Try it yourself, or think of it if you need a great gift. I highly recommend it! I also recommend checking out Terri's Adventure of Hope. She's a woman on a mission lighting candles wherever she goes and I'm proud to support her and hope you will too.

123RF Stock Photo and O&C Collective, Inc.

(FTC Disclosure: I received this product for free. The opinion in this review is unbiased and reflects my honest judgment.)

Happy nesting,

Debbie

5 Tips for Creating Sacred Space

Your sacred space is where you can find yourself again and again. Joseph Campbell

Our lives are so busy and noisy, that we often forget about the healing power of silence. When we're out in the world, it's not usually possible to control the noise level. At home, we can usually turn down the noise, but why not take it a step further and create a sacred space of peacefulness and healing?

After my surgery, I had lots of down time to sit and be and was often drawn to a certain chair in my living room. The chair was comfortable, the room quiet (no television) and the view from my window was lovely during those many spring weeks of disability. I returned to this chair again and again, to meditate, or just to rest.

Gradually, that space became sacred to me. I brought meaningful items into it by creating a makeshift altar. On a tray on the coffee table I gathered votive candles, pictures of my family, and two small Buddhas. A small carved elephant I found in an antique shop became very special to me. I was dealing with a lot during that time and meeting with an oncology therapist for support and guidance. One day she told me I had the emotional memory of an elephant - whatever I remembered, I felt again. That elephant became a symbol to me of how I processed my emotional pain.

You can get started creating a sacred space for yourself by following a few easy steps:

1.  Decide what "sacred" means to you. Do you need a space for yoga, meditation or spiritual connection? To me, sacred means uplifting, peaceful and spiritual. What does it mean to you?

2.  Dedicate a spot in your home that can become sacred. It doesn't have to be a whole room. It can be a corner of a room, the top of a dresser, or any other space you can find. My space is in the middle of my living room. When I am there, alone, it's sacred. When my family is in the space, it's just as sacred, but in a very different way.

3.  Create your own altar.  Find personal items which are meaningful to you. Next to my candles, pictures, Buddhas and elephant, I have a small piece of tile. I found it while taking a walk around my neighborhood and it is really beautiful. To me, it symbolized the importance of getting back out into the world and finding gifts of cancer in places I didn't expect to find them.

4.  Surround yourself with inspirational icons. Fill your space with meaningful quotes, spiritual symbols, calming music, plants, and any other items that uplift your spirit. Connecting with our spiritual selves opens up an amazing well to drink from when stresses come our way.

5.  Create a ritual. Once you've created your sacred space, how will you honor it? Will you use it to meditate for a few minutes every morning? Will you just sit, with your eyes closed, enjoying a few minutes of peace and quiet? Your ritual can be simple or complicated but, whatever you elect to do, make it meaningful to you.

Take a few minutes to bring peacefulness and healing into your nest by creating sacred space. It's not hard to do and has immense rewards. If you already have a sacred space, I'd love to hear about it.  If I've inspired you to create one, I'd love to know how you made it meaningful to you. 

Happy nesting, 

Debbie

What Makes A House a Home?

Yes, your home is your castle, but it is also your identity and your possibility to be open to others. David Soul

David Soul is the guy who played Hutch in the TV series "Starsky and Hutch" and sang the one-hit wonder "Don't Give Up on Us." But, the man has a point.

If we look at our homes as a canvas upon which to paint our personalities, it should be clear to anyone who visits who we are.

If you walked into the room on the left, what would it tell you about the inhabitants:

1.  They probably don't have children or animals, given the use of white upholstered furniture.
2.  They really hate clutter, to the point that they own nothing.

Now, look at the room on the right and tell me what you learn from it about the people who live there:

1.  She collects vintage pieces, such as the bull's eye mirror, Chinese urns, candlesticks and old books. If you ask, she'll tell you that many pieces were picked up at garage sales and flea markets.

2.  She loves decorative plates (especially vintage souvenir plates from across the US) and displays them proudly.

3.  The wooden box, used now for firewood but originally meant to hold Champagne, came out of her mother's garage. No one has any idea how it got there, but that's part of its charm.

4.  She likes warm colors, textured fabrics and intimate nooks for reading, hanging out and relaxing.

5. They have children, as you can tell from the handmade Valentine's hearts perched on the mantel.

6.  The pictures of her mother and her when she was a baby, and her husband with his mother as a toddler, are treasured family photos.

Remember, we only invite people into our home who we want to be there. That makes it sacred ground.

Take the time to look around and ask yourself what your home is revealing about you. Is your home telling the story you want to tell? Are you being open to others and truly celebrating you in your space?

If not, it's not a hard thing to do. Collect what you love and display it proudly. In the iconic words of designer William Morris, "Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful." All you have to do is choose to live with what you believe to be beautiful. How you express that is entirely up to you.

Happy nesting,

Debbie

123RF Stock Photos and Emmi Interiors, LLC

Five Decorator Tips to Bring Cheer & Healing into Your Nest

A house is much more than a mere shelter, it should lift us emotionally and spiritually." John Saladino

As a place to reconnect, re-energize and reflect, our homes support our healing from all of life's stresses and maladies. A house is truly a home when it lifts us up, especially when we are struggling. Here are five simple tips you can use right now to bring cheer and healing into your home:

1.  Let in the Light:   Natural light is a stimulant. In fact, the lack of natural light affects some people so much that they suffer from depression during the colder winter months. Look at your windows and ask yourself if they are letting in enough light. Are your drapes heavy and covering the window?  A decorator's trick is to move your curtain rod out beyond the frame of the window so the drape covers mostly wall and just the vertical edges of the window. This trick makes your window appear larger and you'll see a huge difference in the amount of window you've opened up. If you have a view which doesn't make you happy, put up sheers. They will let light in and soften the view.

2.  Wake up with Color:  Color is directly tied to mood. We all know that there are colors that engender happiness, such as yellow and red. No need, however, to paint the entire room bright yellow!  Use accessories to bring in pops of color. Scatter throw pillows, vases, flowers, throws and the like around the room. This trick brings in just the right amount of color and can be accomplished in an afternoon after a trip to the local home store.  And the best part? When you tire of a color, simply change it out. You can't do that with a paint can!

3.  Surround Yourself with Things You Love:  A long time ago, I went to a new client's house. Although the house was beautifully decorated, I noticed there wasn't one personal item to be seen except for a few family photos on one wall. It turned out that the house, formerly the neighborhood's show house, had been bought complete with all its furnishings. This created an interesting problem for my client, who was afraid to move a stick of furniture out of place.

As much as my client loved her new house, it wasn't yet a home because it didn't reflect the family who lived within its walls. Without personal items, such as books, souvenirs, family pictures, children's art - the list is limitless - the house had no soul and was still just a show house. Take the time to identify items you love, which speak to you of experiences, relationships or beauty, and display them proudly. If you love them, you will love seeing them in your home.

4.  Revel in Personal Collections:  An easy and cost-free decorator trick is to group collections. Often, clients tell me they don't collect anything. At the same time, I see interesting items scattered around the house which, when brought together, become a collection. Look around your house right now for multiples. Decorators say that three or more of anything is a collection. Don't be limited by labels. Items of the same shape or color can also form a collection. I bet you have an interesting collection right now, just waiting to be discovered and celebrated.

5.  Bring in Natural Accents:   There's something about flowers, pine cones, acorns, branches and leaves that bring life to the indoors. Using natural elements in the home creates a connection between the indoors and outdoors, which lifts our spirits.  Keep it simple and stay away from plastic, which is one of my decorating pet peeves. Whatever you can find in fake flowers will never approach the beauty of just a few cut branches from your backyard. A beautiful vase of real flowers is a focal point that helps rest your mind and calm you.

Wherever you are on your journey, you deserve every bit of support you can find. Our home environments are a huge part of that support system. Do what you can, even if it's just something small, to bring cheer to your home and it will reward you. It was an ancient Greek poet, Pindar, who said, "The best of healers is good cheer."  I'd love to know what little thing you did today to bring cheer and healing into your home.

Happy Nesting,


Debbie

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