Author Archive
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
WHAT IS EXFOLIATION? the topical removal of dead surface skin cells by particles (see below) or a chemical application (e.g. glycolic, lactic or other acids) sugar, salt, nut or seed particles (e.g. walnuts, almonds), grains (e.g. oatmeal, rice), or synthetic granular materials are used within a lotion, cream or butter/oil base to gently massage skin to remove old surface skin cells which can otherwise clog pores, leave skin looking dull, sallow, or with blotchy pigmentation discoloration, and feeling rough or uneven textured. → Read more
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
There are lots of wonderful skincare “extras” to pamper and treat your skin in the most luscious way, and we’ll talk about in blogs to come: peels, masks, serums, moisturizing fragrances, etc.
Starting out right now, let’s kickoff the year with 3 FUN, SIMPLE and EFFECTIVE STEPS aka the basics:
CLEANSE EXFOLIATE MOISTURIZEFirst, let’s talk CLEANSING → Read more
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
Do YOU still even think about New Year’s resolutions? Those things some of us promise we’ll revolutionize in an amazing way about life, love, work, and everything in our personal universe? I’ve noticed that it seems almost passe to host this New Years resolutions mindset in 2019. Talk of resolutions has gone into hiding.
In it’s place, there’s a lot of talk about commitment to new ways of looking at things. Or, thinking about how we want to feel? How we want to care for ourselves to help us to feel the way we want to feel?
Is this the same thing as resolutions with a new spin, or does it truly inspire something more innately successful at motivating, with the secret potential to motivate in a way that resolutions fail to do?
What do you think? Do you love writing down a to-do list of resolutions, or would you prefer to dream about how you’d love to feel in an ideal world of your making, and then take baby steps, or jumps if you like, into creating that world?
Whatever works for you – jump in, let’s shake things happen, make some dreams come true in 2019!
If resolutions work, super! If a new mindset (committing to wearing new glasses, so to speak), looking at your life from a fresh perspective or reflecting upon how you want to feel, and then taking actions to make you feel this way seems intriguing, why not try it on?
However we choose to think about our lives in 2019, why not toss our skincare routine into the mix?
How we look is more than skin deep. It’s indicative of our overall health, and expresses to the world how we feel about ourselves. Let’s make it absolutely F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S, dig in, and have fun!
THIS YEAR, before we chat about skincare mindsets or making a list of how we’d like to feel, and a list of ways in which we can help ourselves to feel this way (yes, I’m going with that), a few mindful words:
Celebrate the beauty of who you are, inside and out. Be compassionate with yourself, how you look and feel, and all else will fall into place. → Read more
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
Want to shine, shimmer and dazzle this season, but feeling like you’re sliding into overdrive? Thanksgiving travels, or family in from out of town? Black Friday, Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday,…what’s next…marketing names and games to get you out of the house and into the stores (or on-line) for uber holiday shopping. Entertaining family and friends, and parties sweep you away on a magic carpet of energy and excitement. You love all this, but it can also leave your head spinning and your skin fatigued and stressed out.
Skin, the largest organ of your body will show the first visible signs of lifestyle imbalance including excessive dryness, inflammation, acne, eczema, itchiness and irritation. Beautiful skin, at its foundation, begins with healthy lifestyle choices. Your skin is effected by every thought, feeling, emotion and action. If you are stressed out trying to do it all (in a seemingly effortless manner), chances are, so is your skin.
By the way, your mind can be comfy in de-Nile, but your skin will tell the truth. Listen to your skin.
10 Ways to reduce and manage stress naturally this holiday season with healthy lifestyle choices (we’re talking big rewards for just a few common sense easy ideas, no major overhaul):
Oct 22
The Best Bath Ever!
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
Take a bath tonight, cherie.
The bath is your isolation tank. It’s where you keep it real! An oasis to reconnect with your genuine self. Let go of all the stuff that you won’t remember next week. Feel work, family and worldly you melt away, leaving only the real you that deserves the best bath ever! We’re here to inspire you to create this super fab bath just for YOU. → Read more
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
ONE OF THE MOST OFTEN ASKED QUESTIONS: What are the differences between a lotion, creme and body butter? And most importantly, what’s best for my skin?
There’s no better time to take a deeper individual look at what YOUR skin needs as our seasons transition.
You’ve probably heard the chat about “seasonal skincare”? It’s been in the beauty industry news everywhere we turn. It should be. Mother nature changes, and as she does, so does our skin.
I’ve always talked about understanding the essential nature of seasonal skincare needs, and specifically, learning how to listen to what our skin wants and needs as the seasons change. If you live in the midwest with four seasons, the ideal treatments to cleanse, moisturize, protect and heal our skin are not the same year round.
So Red Note Botanica, the fresh natural luxury skincare line for the bath that I formulated, based on my training, knowledge and experience as an holistic healthcare practitioner and a certified aromatherapist is founded first and foremost as a healthy product line designed to rejuvenate and bring out the best in your skin, and secondly to delight and celebrate your beautiful playful spirit with uniquely fresh fragrances all year round. It’s founded on seasonal skincare from the start, and always will be.
Our skin, as the largest organ of our body, absorbs at least 60-70% of what we apply to it topically. That explains why patches and dermatological creams, ointments, serums, etc. are very effective at healing and protecting troubled skin, and even ceasing addictions like smoking.
With that in mind, it’s essential to formulate and use skincare products which have vitamin and nutrient rich oils, butters, and other healthy ingredients that will treat our skin gently with effective results. Skincare that keeps its promises is a must.
It is my personal feeling that all skin is sensitive, and should be treated as such. Treating your skin as anything less is not something I advocate. Even if you are blessed with great skin now, it’s essential to protect it to ensure that it retains its natural beauty for years to come.
On that note, let’s chat about some of the things your skin might be trying to tell you as we head into colder weather temps, dry air, indoor heating, and other stuff that can dry out our skin, leading to potential irritation, inflammation, eczema, and less than healthy skin from which we absolutely do not need to suffer if we treat our skin gently on a regular basis – hey it’s fun, pampering, and the results couldn’t be better, so why not? Let’s go!…
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
You’ve had a wonderful busy week, and now it’s time for YOU.
Halloween costumes for my daughter, myself and our dog (what can I say, HomeGoods had an irresistible canine cow costume, which I promise wasn’t the reason I went there – it was a tablecloth which I couldn’t find, but the costume had our dog Sugar’s name all over it, in my vision, if not in Sugar’s), bags of Hershey’s, Nestle Crunch, Snickers, Red Licorice and Starbursts (that should be anywhere but on our dining room table within my reach – I’m chewing a lemon Starbust as I write this – yumm…),Frankenstein’s illuminated head and hands rise from his grave of leaves along our walkway…
Squirrels know it’s over. Our large oak tree sends acorns spilling everywhere, bounty for a bevy of bushy-tailed hearty squirrels who quickly discover our outdoor pumpkins every year. They’ve make considerable progress taking apart my daughters ornately carved, painted and decorated pumpkins, pull off the wooden witch head inserted at top to make room for mucho nibbling. They’ll eventually make a total mushy mess of no longer recognizable Jack O’Lanterns, and only then will I remove them from the stoop. Right now, I let the viewing and feast planning to gain momentum.
I adore the only holiday that encourages you to transform yourself into someone else for a night. It’s primal. It’s creative. It’s dreamy. It’s freaky. It’s whoever you are or want to be, just for a night. Like fragrance, they’re memories that I want to linger.
Sometimes, my m.o. is why not flow from one holiday to the next? Abrupt transitions imply that one can’t wait to be rid of something that brought joy just a short time ago. I leave old Frankenstein’s head and hands crawling out of the ground out there, long after Halloween is over. He makes me smile. Why not make more days feel like holidays? The calendar may say one thing, but allow your heart to feel whatever it desires. How about you?
Okay, back to YOU TIME and fragrance chat. We promised. We’ll deliver.
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
Are you a Lebenskunstler? It’s one of the most beautiful words I know, and no it has nothing to do with Oktoberfest. The first chill in the air, falling leaves, autumn storms, and a recurring desire to make my hibernation nest cozy and warm makes me want to get in touch with my inner lebenkunstler.
It’s too good a feeling to keep to myself, so I want to share this feeling with you. Maybe it’s time for you to discover YOUR inner lebenkunstler too?
Leben (life) and kunstler (artist) combine to make a yummy word that describes someone who makes an art of her everyday life. Now, who wouldn’t want to be a lebenkunstler?
Don’t worry if you’re not feeling it right now, or never thought of yourself as an artist. No one is born a lebenkunstler, and it’s not at all hard to become one.
We’re not talking about a visual (Picasso) or dramatic artist (Meryl Streep).
A lebenkunstler is more of a ritual artist, a decorative artist in the way she decorates her moments, hours and days, as well as the space in which she lives.
Elements of everyday life touched by creative rituals add love add meaning to our lives. As it becomes clear that colder weather has come to stay, our indoor environments, where we spend more of our time until spring (in Minnesota where I live and in other four season climates) send out a siren call to become the most inviting, genuine expressions of our unique selves.
What are some of the everyday little rituals that add meaning to your life? That make you feel excited to jump out of bed and start your day, or happy to slip between the covers of your winter duvet, read, binge watch Anthony Bourdain (may he RIP) eating strange foods in amazing countries you might never otherwise visit and experience (or maybe you’ve been there and relive the memories),…
Whatever you choose, remember, they don’t have to be monumental to be meaningful and memorable.
I feel my inner lebenkunstler smiling right now? How about you? → Read more
As everything feels drier this fall, why not kick it up a notch by switching to richer body butters for the driest parts of your body?
Keep your thick lotions within reach for overall body moisturizing, but perhaps your neck, decollete, hands and feet could use some special pampering with heavier nutrient rich natural oils like avocado oil and butters like shea, mango, cocoa and shorea.
Listen to your skin. Whatever parts of your skin feel driest, try feeding it a lovely body butter and see what happens . It may be just what your fall skin is craving right now!
If you have any questions about what’s the right product for your skin, please never hesitate to give us a call at 612-964-9303 or send us an email at info@rednotebotanica. It’s our pleasure to help you to find the perfect products for your skin, the ones we know you’ll love.
Happy fall! Get out there and enjoy the beautiful colors of the changing leaves xo
written by Raulla S. Mitchell
Wear your favorite “signature” fragrances year round. If you absolutely love them, the way they make you feel, act, express yourself to the world, and share yourself with those you love, they belong to you every day of the year. Flower Fruit, Good Fortune, Splendor and Tea Party are four of your year-round faves, and we couldn’t agree more – they’re lusciously refreshing feminine fragrances 365 days a year!
If you’re looking to play with new fall fragrances in the chillier months ahead, why not warm up your fragrance wardrobe with notes of sweet vanilla cream, chestnuts roasted in brown sugar, sugarplum or hints of cinnamon, ginger and clove?
Our fragrances are never overtly spicy, and we promise you won’t walk around smelling like a spice cake, but you’ll feel warm, cozy, relaxed and comfy inside, and what a lovely way to feel! Play, explore, discover the fragrances that make you feel cherished as the leaves fall from the trees and the first chill hits the air.
What fragrances do you reach for? I know my favorites. Here are just a few you’ll love to try…
