NEW PRODUCTS LAUNCHED AT APAC
This post is contributed by One Drop founder – Kai Tan.
The first ever Young Living APAC Convention completed in Kuala Lumpur over the weekend of February 23 to 25th with some greatly-welcomed and highly anticipated product launches. Some of these items include products previously launched in the USA market and not yet available in our regions. And the rest were brand new never-seen-before products that are being made available first in the Asia Pacific Region. Here’s a quick look at these exciting products that will be available for order in the various APAC markets over the course of March to April.
Specifically, Singapore is launching items 1-5 from 12 March 2018 onwards.
1. Savvy Minerals
This gorgeous chemical-free range of cosmetics stole the show at the Internatonal Grand Convention in 2017. Built on Young Living’s advocacy for a sustainable green and clean lifestyle for all, this bold product launch fills a gap sorely unmet for a long time for discerning women who want confident solutions without compromise in ingredients. Read these blog posts to learn about the Savvy Minerals.
2. Mirah Luminous Cleansing Oil
Formulated with essential oils like Sandalwood, Rose, Jasmine and put carrier oils like jojoba and argan, this facial cleanser removes pore-clogging impurities without stripping away the natural oils our skin needs. This gem is super gentle on skin but tough on make-up, dirt and oils that clog. I love how easily the formula can cleanse in ONE round, how it washes off easily with water and how it leaves the skin nicely moisturised! This rockstar will very quickly top as one of the favorites in your YL cleansing regime.
3. Mirah Lustrous Hair Oil
This is a luxurious, multi-tasking hair treatment formulated to help keep your locks soft and shiny, no matter your hair type. Infused with Abyssinian, Monoi, Camellia and Argan oils; PLUS Ylang Ylang and Rose essential oil, this hair treatment is ideal for conditioning, styling and finishing.
Say goodbye to flyaways, tangles, frizzy damaged hair. You get to nourish your hair health back to its glory with this formula that is vegan friendly and contain no of the harsh paragons, sulphites, phthalates and synthetic petrochemicals.
4. AromaSpinner
Here’s a nice twist to the popular fidget spinner! The AromaSpinner has 3 custom-designed buttons that allow you to add essential oils to. This fun, on-the-go way to diffuse essential oils offer parents and kids hours of fun and focus simultaneously,
5. Gentle Mist Personal Diffuser
Portable, compact and battery-operated, this travel-friendly diffuser allows you to diffuse your favourite essential oils on-the-go in planes, cars or gym. Such a darling to have to keep your skin and space fresh and invigorated!
6. Kunzea Essential Oil (Single)
Native to Tasmania Australia, the Kunzea oil is distilled from the leaves and green branchlets. Kunzea was used for centuries by native cultures and is referred to as the “White Cloud”. Comparable to Tea Tree oil, Kunzea shares similar properties but offers a more pleasant aroma and milder feel when applied topically. The active components of the oil trigger the body’s own healing process to relax muscles and ease mild discomforts from areas of inflammation. The aroma of Kunzea supports relieve of nervous tension, stress and mild anxiety.
Currently an APAC exclusive, Kunzea will only be next available at the Young Living International Convention in June 2018
If you are interested in trying out the Young Living oils, or would like to find out more do drop me an email at kaye@onedrop.sg or sign up here to buy the products.
SELF CARE FOR BUSY MOMS
This post is contributed by One Drop member – Faith Teo
Ah when Mdm Ranna asked me to write an article on self care for moms, I must admit, I chuckled.
Me a mom who immediately associate GUILT with PLEASURE (self care). #imgettingbetter
Who gets antsy when she didn’t get stuff checked off her long long to-do list.
Who is definitely not the mom who is all put together, ZEN like, who can intone to you from Mt Enlightenment HOW TO DO SELF CARE.
But then again:
- I’m stay at home parents with my ever loving hubs Jon
- We have 2 young feisty active kids, who are in 2 different school times, 3 hours each. So they are with us except 30 mins daily where their school times mercifully overlap.
- We chose not to have a live in domestic help or car.
- We also juggle a multi million dollar Young Living business, over 90% in residual income, which we are exceedingly grateful for, in helping us to be stay at home parents for our kids.
So ok lah, I think I can send some light on this #momlife and self care thing. 😉
Here’s 5 tips I have for you. All oils mentioned – I like to apply over my heart and on my forehead and inhale the rest deeply from my palms:
1. Get clear on why self care is important to you.
I mean honestly, we can preach the Heavens to you but if you don’t see why you need it or you feel that your family CANNOT do without you, then well… NOTHING happens. So get clear get clear.
Oils to use: Clarity, 3 Wise Men, Release, Sacred Mountain.
2. Ask for help.
I was in the same never-ending loop of business-family-business-family until one day I bottomed out my well of giving. I literally felt that I couldn’t take another step further and I was shutting down. It is only then, then I asked my hubs Jon, “Please help me.”
I think we women are magnificent superwomen. We literally give ALL OUT (because oh dear biology wires us that way) then we get frustrated, resentful, angry on why no one helps us. Especially the damn husband / mother / mother in law. (Hahah, sorry Jon!)
Thing is we women come with a couple of flaws. Firstly we think that people can read our minds on what we need and render help accordingly. Or we say something vague once or twice, hoping peeps take the hint. Then SURPRISE! It didn’t happen.
Secondly I think women have a hard time asking for help. We like to soldier on until something gives out, we flat out, then ok… then we CONSIDER asking for help.
ASK. And ask for it with a bright loud voice. You need it. Dang you are worth it.
Oils to use: Humility, Transformation, Harmony, Hyssop
3. Perfectionism isn’t so perfect for life after all.
Repeat after me… “I will let the house be messy today so I can do my favourite thing. I can go have a cup of tea / read my favourite manga / eat that last piece of chocolate cake / add pleasure here.” No one dies from messes at home. And your sanity is worth any messes. Or dirty laundry piling up.
Pssst… I have this long black sofa in my living room and my clean laundry has been setting up camp there. To prevent it from growing into Mt Clean Underwear, we take clothes from it to wear after baths instead of from the wardrobe. Yup, my sofa is my wardrobe sans doors. Best thing, you can lie on it too!
(If you are judging me now for my terrible laundry habits, ah… tsk tsk that perfectionism thing is kicking in for you. :P)
Oils to use: Surrender, Family, Fun, Oola Balance
4. What’s your pleasures?
Ok time to let your hair down! What would you love to do? Go go go!
Ok time to let your hair down! What would you love to do? Go go go!
Tip 1: Usually it’s the stuff that you feel a sense of #momguilt, just thinking about it.
Tip 2: If you are feeling that you couldn’t do this self care shebang because you don’t have time or only have xx minutes, then would you be open to be present for your self care in that period of time? Being intentional EXPANDS our experiences.
Oils to use: Present Time, Joy, Orange, Valor, Inspiration
5. PRACTISE!
C’mon, you won’t get used to this self care thing unless you intentionally practise. Schedule time in your calendar, ask for help in a bright voice, kick that perfectionism to the curb.
Above all, we are more than just moms. 😃 We have our passions, our interests, our quirks, stuff that makes life worth living! WHOLE LIFE LIVING. SUCCULENT LIVING.
Isn’t that worth it? Plus! You get to show your kids how MOM does it. And they learn how to do that for themselves too when its their turn to be parents.
You got my permission. 😉
Now go on, claim THAT LIFE for yourself!
Oils to use: Joy, Lady Sclareol, Live with Passion, Light The Fire
Faith is a member of OneDrop. She and her team supports oil users via their facebook group – Let’s Add Oil and their blog – School of YL. If you like Faith’s articles and would like to purchase the Young Living oils, please feel free to get in touch with Faith or sign up directly here.
THE POWER OF “THIEVES”
This post is contributed by One Drop member – Ranna Seah.
Thieves was a signature oil blend made by Gary Young in about 1990 – 1991. It was created as a result after his many hours spent in London library researching about oils and oil history. Gary found 17 different versions of the story of ‘Thieves’ during the plague of the 1700’s and also Thieves was mentioned in another plague in the! There are versions with just 4 thieves, some with 40 thieves…there are just so many stories!
Origins of Thieves
After going through all the versions and records, Gary summarizes what he gathered and here is the story that he concluded:
- The thieves could have been merchants and spice traders, that explains why they knew about the power of the oils.
- Then when the plague hit, the kings of the various countries sent out a mandate closing down international commerce and shipping, hence those merchants and spice traders couldn’t engage in their business and were going broke.
- And so they decided to loot the dead bodies, take their things and set up a pawn shop trade…that’s how pawn shops evolved too!
- Then the king issued the proclamation to have the thieves captured, but the constables were afraid to touch them because they had been touching the dead bodies of the plague victims and they didn’t want the plague.
- After executing a few constables, the authorities finally caught the 4 thieves.
- The king gave them an opportunity to confess the secret of their immunity. Confess and be hung by the neck, or and if they didn’t give up their secret, they would be burned at the stake!
- They chose to hanging and have to give up their secret. Which was then published and plastered all over the town.
Oils Used in the Stories
Gary concluded that Oregano, Cinnamon and Clove are definitely in as they were oils that were traded during that time. Most of the 17 stories listed Clove and Cinnamon, so taking that into consideration, Gary went through the oils and studied their chemistry structure to determine what goes into the blend of ‘Thieves’. Taking in mind that ‘Thieves’ has to be an oil blend that is extremely powerful in dissolving excess mucous in the body and suppressing the acid production in the body.
And finally, these are the chosen oils for Young Living’s ‘Thieves’ blend:
- Clove was chosen because of the eugenol in the oil.
- Rosemary (this is Rosemary Officinalis), very powerful oil.
- Lemon oil was very plentiful because it was pressed and it worked then.
- Cinnamon, Lemon, Rosemary and Clove are 4 of the oils mentioned in various versions out of the 17 different stories.
- Cinnamon bark has cineol and eugenol in the oils.
- Eucalyptus Radiata. Do note that Eucalyptus Radiata wasn’t used in the formula in the 1700s simply because it wasn’t available back then. But Gary personally had very good experience with this oil and had chosen to include it in the blend.
Power of Diffusing
Diffusing will protect your home from the chemical environment. Diffuse Thieves especially, to fight bacterial organisms in your home. Just let the diffuser run for a couple of hours a day.
More Tips from Gary:
- In a 2-ounce glass, mix vinegar + a few drops of Thieves Vitality and take it every morning. This will reset the pH of the stomach and set the digesting of excess acid in the body.
- Gary said that he really like to see homes with overhead fans because this really moves the oil through the home and rooms when you diffuse.
- Mix Thieves with Spruce or Pine to empower the oil. You can empower your blends by adding another single oil!
I hope you had benefited from the summarized points above. For more powerful details and the full transcript, please download from Learning Vault.
If you like my articles and would like to purchase the Young Living oils or have further clarifications, please drop me a message here or email me at fabulana@gmail.com. If you are ready to sign up as member to purchase, you can click here. I would love to support you in using the oils for yourself and your loved ones.
BABY PRODUCTS
This post is contributed by One Drop member – Ranna Seah.
In 2004, a study spearheaded by the Environmental Working Group (EWG) in collaboration with Commonweal, researchers at two major laboratories found an average of 200 industrial chemicals and pollutants in umbilical cord blood from 10 babies born in August and September of 2004 in U.S. hospitals. Tests revealed a total of 287 chemicals in the group. The umbilical cord blood of these 10 children, collected by Red Cross after the cord was cut, harboured pesticides, consumer product ingredients, and wastes from burning coal, gasoline, and garbage.
You may read the full article here: https://www.ewg.org/research/body-burden-pollution-newborns#.Wrdqp58RWpc
So…what did this study proved? I don’t know about you, but for me, I really feel like flipping the table…jumping on top of a mountain, hammering my bhest and shouting out to everyone….”The environment we are in…the products we use…the air freshener, perfumes… laundry soap et etc…all plays a part!!!”
Toxic accumulation started way way way…earlier than we realise! YET somehow, mothers always get the blame for…on a smaller scale, baby acne…to a larger scale, birth defect…
We get questioned…was it something you ate when you were pregnant? Did you sew on the bed when you were pregnant…whatever it is, mothers always get the blame! And we already have so much coping to do! Leaky boobs and post-delivery pains. Physically and emotionally we are already facing so much changes! And now we have to get all these accusations and blames! It’s no wonder that postnatal blue hit so many of us in various scale!!!
And if i had known earlier about this, I would have hopped on the oily wagon with Young Living much much earlier on! And do the ditch and switch asap!
Now…let us take a look at those super duper cute packaged for baby products…
One of the moment that shocked me during my training as a infant massage instructor was that baby oil is actually mineral oil! and Mineral oil is made from petroleum! It’s really omg! omg! omg!!!
I did not believe my instructor and I really went in to the nearest supermarket I can find, grab hold of a J&J Baby oil just so I can read the label and…tadah!!!
What have we been putting on our babies??????? I must say J&J has marketed themselves very well. So well that we are happily putting petroleum stuffs on our babies and INHALING them deeply off our babies for decade! Thinking its good for them… OMG!!!!NOT ONLY THAT… do you see the word fragrance?!?! That is J&J’s way of adding anything they want into the product and not having to declare it. It could be vials of synthetic perfumes that is going onto tthe baby’s skin!
Lesson deeply learnt…from now onwards, you and I, lets make a pact to never ever assume that anything with a cute baby logo or icon on the packaging means it is good for the baby, ok? Let us promise to read the labels diligently and not just trust blindly. Let us equip ourselves with the basic knowledge and know what is good for us and what we should avoid.
So I present to you a piece of very exciting news…well, in case you don’t know about the Seedlings range, Young Living launched a special range dedicated to babies during convention in 2017.
Here’s why you should be excited about Seedlings:
- Products are formulated to be naturally safe, gentle and pure.
- They are free from harsh chemicals.
- They are infused with Young Living calming blend made of Ylang-ylang, lavender, bergamot, coriander and geranium. (and you know we have the best essential oils ever!)
- Formulated without alcohol, parabens, sulfates, lanolin, chlorine, mineral oil, phthalates, petrochemicals, synthetic fragrances, synthetic preservatives or synthetic dyes.
- Dermatologist tested and hypoallergenic.
- Formulated with plant-based, naturally derived ingredients.
This is definitely something I will feel smug about to give to parents with newborns as it is also a great opportunity to share with them the awareness of reading product labels.
Do refer to the blog entry here for details about the details of Seedlings range here
I can’t wait to start an infant massage class with mommies using the Seedlings baby oil! The calming blend is SO NICE!
One of my favourite question to the mommies in my group is this question… “Will you put the moisturizer you are using on your baby?”
To my surprise…All of them said no.
“Why not?,” I prompted. ,”Because subconsciously you are aware that there is something inside that is harsher and not good for the baby. So why are you putting them on yourself???”
It was an enlightening moment…I will like to end this blog with this message to all mommies and daddies that you deserve as much care and attention and organic stuffs just as much as your baby. We all deserve the best~
If you like my articles and would like to purchase the Young Living oils or have further clarifications, please drop me a message here or email me at fabulana@gmail.com. If you are ready to sign up as member to purchase, you can click here. I would love to support you in using the oils for yourself and your loved ones.
ART SKIN CARE RANGE
This post is contributed by One Drop Founder – Kai Tan
So we’ve been teaching so many classes on the importance of toxic-free living.
There are tonnes of chemicals we could list but here are the 5 common ones from facial care products that you can start looking out for and chucking out from your daily regime:
1. Sodium lauryl sulfate
Known in short as SLS, this ingredient is what makes your product foam and bubble; and leave that illusion that your face is squeaky clean.
Do you know that this ingredient is also found in car washes, garage floor cleaners and engine degreasers. According to the American College of Toxicity, this corrodes the fats and proteins that make up skin and muscle. SLS is also a penetration enhancer, meaning that its molecules are so small they’re able to cross the membranes of your body’s cells. Once cells are compromised, they become more vulnerable to other toxic chemicals that may be with the SLS. It also strips the skin of its natural oils that are needed for protection.
Sorry for bursting that bubble. This foamy business is not very sexy at all.
2. Fragrance
Very innocent sounding. And it does not help that marketing matches it with images of gorgeous flowers and greenery. So let’s establish this fact – most fragrances found in our beauty and cleansing products are made in the laboratory and are no where near being natural.
Do you also know that virtually all synthetic fragrances are stabilized with phthalates, a group of chemicals linked to reproductive problems and birth defects in animal studies? Added fragrances in cleansers tend to be irritating and can dry out the skin.
If you do not know where your “fragrance” is from, let’s perhaps skip them altogether.
3. Petroleum & Mineral Oils
Companies love to use them because they’re cheap, have no odor and never go bad. They are commonly listed on your product as Propylene Glycol, Parraffin, Mineral Oil, Butylene Glycol, Isopropyl Alcohol and Petrolatum
Do you know manufacturers may put this in cleansers as a hydration ingredient? However these can clog pores and lead to breakouts
4. Parabens
Parabens are preservatives found in most cosmetics and skin care products. They are commonly listed as butylparaben, methylparaben, and propylparaben. They can also be listed as Alkyl parahydroxy benzoates
Do you know that parabens can mimic hormones in the body and disrupt functions of the endocrine system. There has been years of debate and research about paraben’s link to cancer.
While the argument ensue around the evidences that paraben is linked to cancer, we prefer to kick it out for options that are way safer
5. Alcohols
Alcohol is used for two reason: to make a thick skin-care product feel almost weightless and to help ingredients like retinol and vitamin C penetrate the skin more effectively. But do you know that alcohol does this by breaking down the skin’s natural barrier?
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We love that the incremental demand for safer products is causing manufacturers to relook at what they are producing. Young Living as well, has a gradually increasing range of skin care items that is effective and safe.
One of their cornerstone range has been the ART Skin Care System. ART actually stands for Age Refining Technology! One of its highly loved ingredients is the nourishing Orchid flower extract. Orchids have been regarded for their ability to retain and use water more efficiently than many other plants. In the ART line, it helps the skin to deeply absorb and retain moisture; while decreasing the appearances of fine lines. Along with a proprietary blend of botanicals and essential oil, the ART range is also preserved naturally from growth of germs, fungus and mold in the container without the need for harsh preservatives like parabens.
This system includes the ART Gentle Cleanser, ART Refreshing Toner and the ART Light Moisturiser. Let’s take a dig!
ART Gentle Cleanser
The essential oils in this light cleanser include Frankincense, Royal Hawaiian Sandalwood, Melissa, Lemon and Lavender. This is formulated to cleanse the skin without stripping its natural oils.
If you have sensitive skin, you will love the gentleness of this winner. But let’s get real – if you are trying to remove super heavy make-up, you may need the help of the newly launch Mirah Cleansing Oil (which we will have to discuss soon!!!)
ART Refreshing Toner
The purpose of toner is to close and tighten those pores that you just opened up with cleansing. So try not to skip this step. Infused with Sandalwood, Peppermint, Frankincense,Lemon and Lavender, this removes any residual impurities without drying the skin.
We’ve had tips to add additional Frankincense in to this charmer to love even more on your skin!
ART Light Moisturiser
ART Light Moisturiser
This lightweight cream absorbs beautifully and it’s particularly nice to know it is also formulated with Frankincense and Royal Hawaiian Sandalwood. What we love most is how it does not leave a clogged or greasy feel and serves as a wonderful base for our favourite Savvy Mineral make up!
The ART range fills that gap in the market for an honest, good to skin, good for our health kind of skin care product. It may not have all that jazz marketed for other commercial skin care range. But if you truly care about what you feed your skin and therefore your body with, this will be the range you can trust!
Kai Tan is one of the 4 original founders of One Drop – a Singapore grown YL team that is fast growing around the world with more than 10,000 members. She is a certified health coach with Institute of Integrative Health (NYC). Follow her on her blog, email her at kai@onedrop.sg or start your young living journey with her here.
