How scent from my garden became an act of self-care

Posted in In the garden, lifestyle, Perfume, Scent, Uncategorized, Wellbeing by
Cut roses from garden by my workspace
Scented roses from the garden

I had a busy work week and last Friday, I found myself heading off to the A&E to have a sebaceous cyst looked at, after the nurse at my GP said they couldn’t help me further after a course of antibiotics the practice had prescribed.

When I finally returned home after the long wait to see one of the consultants, knowing that I had to go back on Saturday, because they couldn’t treat me that day, I turned to my happy place; the roses that I had planted about 3 years ago, now coming beautifully into bloom.

Cutting a few stems and placing them in a vase on my desk made me feel happy, a welcome distraction from hospitals and what that entailed. I cut some rosemary and placed this in a vase so it would sit on my windowsill behind my desk.

The science of the “Happy Place”

We often think of comforting fragrances as a luxury, but modern science proves they are a physiological intervention. There is a profound medical field called Psychoneuroimmunology—the study of how our emotional brain interacts directly with our nervous and immune systems.

When we experience sudden trauma or work related stress, our bodies flood with cortisol (the stress hormone). In clinical studies, high cortisol levels have been shown to delay physical wound healing by up to 50%*. It slows down cellular repair and constricts microcirculation.

Scent can be a shortcut straight to the limbic system—the brain’s ancient emotional control centre. 

So when you inhale an authentic, uplifting botanical fragrance, your brain instantly signals your nervous system to switch off the “fight-or-flight” response. By dropping your cortisol levels, a happy scent physically allows your body to redirect its resources toward cellular recovery and healing. 

My garden brings comfort to my mind, and it is also a way to help repair my body.

I have to admit that I had not tended to the roses and only purchased soil improver to ensure the roses would bloom over the coming months and some rose fertiliser, sprinkled around them and raked in.

From Garden to Bottle: Bringing the Antidote Indoors

They are now entering their most beautiful phase of growth, so each morning before doing anything else, I will take a pair of secateurs and give them a light pruning, taking away spent rose heads so that the plants continue to bloom well into autumn.

While I am fortunate to watch Gertrude Jekyll and The Poet’s Wife bloom right outside my window, you don’t need a mature cut-flower garden to harness this therapeutic power. The beauty industry has long looked to these exact heritage botanical profiles to create scents that do more than just make us smell good—they alter how we feel.

The roses were an investment – I guess looking back little did I know they are also an act of self-care.

If you are looking to bring this grounding, anti-stress ritual into your daily routine, you can explore it through fragrances such as:

  • Affordable budget friendly High-Street Everyday Mist: For a light, accessible burst of morning optimism, The Body Shop’s British Rose offers a clean, dewy, straight-from-the-flowerbed freshness that acts as a perfect midday pick-me-up at your desk.
  • Historic rose scent : To truly replicate the timeless, old-world rose experience, look to L’Occitane’s classic Rose Eau de Toilette. It beautifully captures the elegant, velvet depth of traditional rose species—the very same historic heritage varieties you can source and plant in your own space via David Austin Roses.
  • Luxurious and Aromatic: If you want the a sophisticated pairing of floral and herbal notes with white musk, Jo Malone London’s Rose & White Musk Absolu is the ultimate luxury. By weaving authentic rosewater with sharp, earthy rosemary, it has a crisp scent that helps with mental clarity.

Cataract Surgery & Skincare: Discovering new anti-aging products

Posted in beauty, eye care, Make-up, makeup, Skin Care, Skincare, Wellbeing by
Waterless cleansing routine with Curel makeup remover

Cataract Surgery and elevating my skincare

I wanted to share this post with you as I found that whilst there is plenty of information about what a cataract is and how to treat it in terms of surgery, I found that there was very little written about skincare, make-up for women and how to navigate skincare during the recovery process.

About the surgery – I am very short sighted and as I mentioned in my previous article I relied on multifocal contact lenses and varifocal glasses. But recently, the prescription kept changing so after some appointments with the consultant and optician, I decided to have Multifocal cataract lenses (intraocular lenses or IOLs) paying a premium and going through the surgery through health insurance instead of the NHS in the UK. The procedure would be about a month apart, fist the left eye then right.

Navigating the weeks following cataract surgery meant being careful to follow the advice, antibiotic eye drops that tapered from four times a day down to one.

Navigating hygiene, healing, skincare after Multifocal Lens Surgery

I had given a lot of thought during the lead-up to the operation in terms of how I would need to update my skincare routine. I didn’t want to take any chances during recovery, so I searched for an effective cleanser that did not need water. I found individually wrapped Neutrogena wipes.

Neutrogena makeup removing sachets
Neutrogena sachets, a hygienic way to cleanse after cataract surgery

The surgeon said standard care was fine, but in my marketing career, I’ve learned to mitigate any risk is the key to a successful launch—or in this case, a successful recovery.

In fact the recovery in terms of my sight returning was rapid, by the following morning, I could see rom the eye that I had the surgery and within a week, my sight was better than the eye (with contact lens).

It was however a challenge in terms of skincare, because I needed to maintain hygiene by ensuring no water would get into my left eye, having been told for years during my time wearing contact

lenses that tap water included water borne bacteria, I wasn’t going to take any chances until my eye had fully heald. The surgeon avoid getting water in my eye for a week, but I decided I would keep my eyes away from water for at least 2 weeks. And by the final week of my eye-drop schedule, I attempted to return to my “normal” routine.

It was January, and my skin was vulnerable, the cold air outdoors would leave my face feeling taut red and stinging, I realized that returning to my previous routine with water was making my skin taught and uncomfortable. I could start wearing make-up by week 2, but I worried about removing make-up especially any make-up around the eye.

Cleaning without water: Why I Switched to Curel during recovery

This is where my recovery journey turned into a discovery for my daily life. I realised that if my skin was this sensitive during a medical “stress test,” it deserved a more sophisticated, less aggressive approach every single day.

The Mature Skin Revelation On my return from work one evening, I made a quick stop at Boots drug store on my way home and looked for a cleanser that would be gentle and need no water. I had previously used the foaming Curel cleanser, which is very gentle but needed water. I found the brand also has a waterless product called Curel Makeup Cleansing Gel. Instead of water and rubbing, this gel uses Ceramides, which would help to repair the skin barrier while swiping away heavy sunscreen make-up and impurities. The gel is highly effective, and felt like “comforting” sigh of relief to my stressed skin.

A Bee-Powered secret: Using IUNIK propolis for Mature Eye Care

To compliment this, I focussed on the most delicate area: the eyes. I traded my old creams for IUNIK, a Korean brand featuring Propolis. This “bee powered” ingredient isn’t just for healing; it has anti-aging properties. Proplis acts as a natural antimicrobial shield while deeply hydrating to prevent fine lines, a perfect cream to use during the immediate days after surgery.

What started as a necessary skincare routine after surgery has become my go-to for aging gracefully. By treating my mature skin with the gentlest of products, “zero-rub” care required for medical recovery, I’ve found a routine that doesn’t just clean—it restores.

A New Lens: Navigating Cataract Surgery, Menopause, and the Scent of Recovery

Posted in eye care, Health & Wellness, lifestyle, Perfume, Scent, Uncategorized, Wellbeing by
L'Occitane Eau de toliette. Now has new packaging
Visit L’Occitane’s site for Vervine Eau de toilette with new packaging

Hello again,

It’s been a while since I last shared a scent story here. Life, as it often does, required a bit of a “pivot.” For the past few months, I’ve been navigating a journey that many women face but few talk about in the world of lifestyle and beauty: experiencing Menopause, High Myopia, and Cataract Surgery.

Clarity and Contrast: Navigating Menopause and Cataract Surgery

The last few years have been hectic, helping my daughters find their way through higher education, balancing that with the ever increasing pace of change at work, but always finding personal enjoyment through scent. But as my estrogen levels shifted, so did my sight. I learned that for those of us with high myopia, the “menopause ” can sometimes bring cataracts forward much earlier than expected.

The Reality of Mid-Life Vision Shifts

I found myself like many people, getting older also meant getting reading glasses or in my case a combination of multi-focal contact lenses and high strength multi-focal glasses. It was manageable, but for the last couple of years, I struggled with both near and far sight and couldn’t focus. It was on my last visit to the opticians where during the consultation, the optician told me that I had had the cataracts for years but they had been very small and were gradually getting worse. It was time to get a referral to the GP to get an appointment with a specialist.

Inevitably, surgery was the recommended path forward. If you’re thinking about it and have been delaying the idea of surgery. Speak to your optician, explore the options available and don’t wait for things to get worse. I can honestly say it’s the best decision I made to have cataract surgery.

I opted to use my work private health care insurance to have a better type of lens implants. In the UK, the NHS will provide basic monofocal lenses. So for a small premium, I elected to get the multifocal version, the type that would be very similar to how my contact lenses helped me see things at an intermediate and distance range.

I’ll cover off the process in a different post for another time.

Sensory wellbeing: My Recovery Essentials

During recovery, when I couldn’t wear my usual makeup or even splash my face with water, there was one sense that I leaned on: Scent. I found myself returning to one of my absolute favorites from L’Occitane. There is something about the Lemon Verbena—and especially the Verbena with Mint—that helped lift my spirit. During the short recovery after the cataract surgery, the sharp, zesty “frosted lemonade” scent was the clarity and it became the sensory anchor that helped lift my spirits.

What’s Next for The Scented Abode? I’m relaunching this space not just to talk about perfume, but to explore how we navigate the “mid-life shift” with grace and some helpful information that I’ve learnt. Over the coming months, I’ll be sharing:

  1. The Waterless Cleanse: How I redesigned my skincare routine when water on my face was off-limits.
  2. The “Strong Lip” Phase: How I felt “assembled” when I couldn’t wear eye makeup.
  3. Sensory Weight Loss: How I used citrus scents to help me lose 20kg naturally.

Recovery isn’t just about healing; it’s about rediscovering the world through a new lens. I’m so glad you’re here to see it (and through the senses of sight and through scent) with me.

If you’re new to this site, welcome. Please explore other content, such as the home made skincare such as the Rosewater toner recipe

Discovering the perfumed scent of tuberose in the garden

Posted in Chanel, In the garden, Perfume, Scent, Wellbeing by

Polianthes tuberosa, growing in the garden, flowering late in September this year.

It’s been a while since I last posted anything on this blog. Since my last entry, we’ve been in lock down and during this time, I’ve spent more time in the garden, planting for the joy of watching nature come alive.

In May, I planted 5 tubers of the precious Polyanthes tuberosa ‘The Pearl’ in pots. Instructions were simple, put in pots around 3 inches deep in a sunny spot. I put them into 3 pots and waited. I chose them because the scent was described as highly scented and found in many perfumes

Within a month the tubers started to push through the earth and their leaves began to emerge and grow tall. Out of the 3 pots, only one of the tubers I planted showed small buds and bloomed.

In the early morning, brushing past the bloom, it releases a heady scent which I can only describe as sweet, combining the scents of flowers such as irises, roses, lilacs into one floral scent, that feels like sunshine, almost alcoholic as it hits the back of the throat and nose.

Monotheme Tuberose

You’ll find it in Monotheme’s Tuberose Eau de Toilette, a budget perfume that is available in Marks & Spencers in the UK or on Amazon.

For more indulgent luxury, I love the new perfume from Chanel, Gabrielle Chanel.

It has a softer citrus start and includes my favourite scent of Grapefruit, Orange Blossom, Jasmine, Ylang-Ylang, and the rich floral scent of tuberose.

Since the flower has now faded and it’s time to dig up the tuber and store it in a warm place inside the house, it will be a long time before it’s possible to plant it in the garden and watch it grow.

It’s the first time I’ve planted this flower this year, so I’m not sure if I’ll be successful in saving the tubers and getting it to flower again and whether it will be possible to enjoy it’s heady scent in the garden next summer.

So for the time being, I’ll be bringing the sunshine scent back now that the days have grown shorter and colder.

Nuxe nourishing dry oil for unpredictable weather

Posted in beauty, Health & Wellness, Skin Care, Skincare, Sunday Spa Feature, Wellbeing by

 

It’s been snowing this weekend, in the middle of March! when it’s supposed to be spring. The unpredictable weather has caused all sorts of problems in my garden, the daffodils which were just starting to bloom have all died, and the cherry blossoms are looking all very sorry for the snowy blizzard conditions. Not that I’m complaining too much, the house is warm, and we are enjoying the snowday in watching films on Netflix.

The weather and central heating have made my skin blotchy with dryness. Whenever this occurs, I use a facial oil to boost the level of moisture in my skin. If you’d like to make your own facial oil, there’s an easy recipe here

Last year, for my birthday, I received

a lovely multipurpose oil from the French beauty brand Nuxe.

It boasted many uses, from adding shine and moisture to your hair, reducing stretch marks, alleviating dry flaking skin, reducing the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles, it truly is an amazing multi-purpose oil.

With so many uses, it means that it has reduced the number of products in my bathroom cabinet.

I use it as a light body moisturiser, a quick spritz after a shower means it locks in skin softness and prevents dry, cracked skin. It is so quick; I don’t have to wait for the oil to sink in before getting dressed because it’s a dry oil.

On my hair, I spritz it into my hairbrush after blowdrying so that it protects and adds shine to my hair and seems to make my hair between washes last longer.

On my face, I can use it by mixing it into my moisturiser and add extra oomph to combat the recent cold weather.

The ingredients in the oil all have skin benefits. There are no less than seven botanical oils, sweet almond, camellia, hazelnut, borage, macadamia and argan oils and is free of preservatives, silicone or mineral oils.

The scent of the oil is a warming fragrance like a comfort blanket, or a warm hug and reminds me of vanilla and sandalwood. It is described by the brand as orange blossom, magnolia and sweet vanilla.

Hmm, even though I love making a facial oil because this has so many uses, I think this is going to be a permanent addition to my skin care routine.

Enjoy!

L’Occitane and the scent of Lemon Verbena

Posted in Health & Wellness, Perfume, Skincare by

L'Occitane Verbena perfume

L’Occitane’s Vervine Verbena is a sparkling scent that always lifts my spirits.

It’s especially refreshing in the summer, I love its lemon zesty aroma first thing in the morning as it wakes me up the moment a spritz of the perfume hits my skin. It’s like a kick of caffeine without the side effects.

Of course layering the scent with the delicious range available means that the scent lasts all day.

The little tube of hand gel is handy for travel and feels instantly refreshing when rubbed into your hands. I was a little worried that the gel formulation might not be as good to keep my hands moisturised, but it keeps both the scent and moisture. Better still, just a little of the gel goes a very long way and the gorgeous scent has a way of surrounding my desk just after I put some on to make me smile and lift my mood.

It really does feel as if I’m bringing a walk in a lemon grove into the office every time I wear this scent.

In fact, the scent of lemons can have a positive effect on productivity at work. Research findings found that the citrus scent of lemons improved moods and raised levels of a brain chemical linked to executive decision-making and motivation. And whilst it is a little luxury, it is a great reason for me to use this scent every day.

If you enjoyed this post, read about my journey through high Myopia and Menopause Cataracts and how the scent of lemon verbena helped me

Spring clean your skin with Grapefruit 

Posted in beauty, lifestyle, Skin Care, Skincare, Uncategorized, Wellbeing by

Sunshine and spring weather has finally emerged and is making me feel it’s time to give my skin a spring clean.

I love the scent of Grapefruit and on a recent trip to the high-street, I purchased this lovely tube of refreshing Grapefruit skin sorbet from The Body Shop. The scent is uplifting and energising. Since my budget did not stretch to getting any further skin treats, I decided to make my own refreshing bath soak and skin scrub in one.

This is the simplest way to get the scent of grapefruit to fill your bathroom and give skin a refreshing spring clean.

All you need is half a grapefruit. Just squeeze the juice into a bowl and mix in a large helping of rolled oats (I had porridge oats in my store cupboard), next add in a teaspoon of Green Tea leaves, since I’d received a gorgeous tin of White Peony Tea, I used this to ensure the antioxidant benefits found in Tea would make its way onto my skin.

To add moisture, I added half a teaspoon of Jojoba oil to the mix.

To boost the scent of the grapefruit, I added Bergamot essential oil. You can add any citrus-scented essential oil that you have to hand if you don’t have grapefruit.

Add the zest of the grapefruit skin by grating it with a fine grater.

By now this mix looks clumpy and can the smell of Grapefruit and the citrusy scent has already filled my kitchen with its wonderful aroma.

You can now use it as a skin scrub or use it as a bath soak.

So that the small bits of the porridge do not float around the bath, I filled some empty tea bags. You can order these empty tea bags online or use a tea infuser.

These tea bags with fresh ingredients will keep in the fridge for a couple of days.

Just hang the tea bag under a hot running tap in the bath and the aroma of Grapefruit and all the lovely ingredients that have been used in this mix will infuse the bath water with its scent and goodness.

There’s just nothing like a good soak, except perhaps smoothing over the Grapefruit souffle body lotion to complete the experience.

If you like citrus scents read my latest post about how it helped me through myopia and menopause related Cataracts : Lemon Verbena

January detox

Posted in beauty, Health & Wellness, Skin Care, Skincare, spa treatment by

January detox

After what I can only describe as two weeks of indulging in lots of food and drink, my body feels bloated and my skin feels itchy from the dry heat of central heating.

White Peony Tea

I received a tin of this lovely Wheat Peony tea for my birthday last year and it has become a favourite of mine, since it it not just refreshing, but has many health benefits as it’s packed full of antioxidants.

The tea is reputed to help kick-start a sluggish metabolism, protect from free radicals and therefore promote healthy glowing skin.

If you want to try this tea, the one I’m drinking is from Whittards.

Just follow the brewing instructions on the tin. The temperature should not be boiling, but around 80 degrees Celsius, so as not to destroy any of the goodness from the tea.

Charcoal Face Mask

Since my skin is in need of some help, I’m also treating it to a deep cleanse with L’Oreal’s Pure Clay Detox Mask. Whilst it would be great to get a beauty treatment facial, my bank balance, post-Christmas is definitely needs reigning back. So whilst this is a budget buy from the high-street, I think it’s very effective and the treat is the time it takes to sit back and relax while the mask takes action.

This charcoal based face mask, has a deep cleansing action on my pores, and because it’s quick drying, you can almost feel it drawing out the impurities as it dries and has a light refreshing floral fragrance.

Orange Ginger & Cinnamon Skin Scrub

This is a lovely home-made recipe which is so easy to make, you can use brown sugar if you don’t have Dead Sea salts, follow the recipe here .

Lush Yuzu and Coca Shower Cream

I love the scent of oranges and this shower cream is filled with the citrusy scent of yuzu and Coca. Waking up and getting myself to work has taken a huge amount of effort last week, so this shower cream has been the perfect way to wake up to a zingy start to the day. You can find out more about the benefits of yuzu fruit here.

With this little cleansing routine, starting from inside and out, it’s the perfect way to feel energised for the new year ahead. Wishing everyone reading this post the very best for 2017!

Home Made Gentle Eye Make-up Remover

Posted in beauty, eye care, lifestyle, Make-up, Rosewater, Scent, Skin Care, Wellbeing by

DIY Eye Make-up Remover

This is a quick and simple recipe for making your own gentle eye make-up remover.

Why Choose a Homemade Eye Makeup Remover?

In a world of complex ingredient lists, returning to basics is often the kindest thing we can do for our skin. Many commercial removers contain harsh alcohols or synthetic fragrances that can strip the delicate eye area. By creating your own gentle solution, you control exactly what touches your skin—ensuring it remains hydrated and calm.

The 2-Ingredient Recipe (Rosewater & Oil)

The beauty of this tonic lies in its simplicity. I have found that a 50/50 split of pure rosewater and a light carrier oil (like almond or jojoba) creates a dual-phase remover that rivals any luxury brand. The rosewater soothes inflammation, while the oil effortlessly dissolves even stubborn pigments without the need for rubbing.”

All you need is some good quality oil, Rosewater and Glycerin.

Make it in small batches as the ingredients are all natural and there is no preservative so it is best to make it fresh every few days, 50ml should last between 3-4 days if you plan on using it every morning and night.

Ingredients:

20ml Rosewater

20ml Jojoba oil

10ml Vegetable Glycerin

How to make:

Pour the Rosewater, Jojoba Oil and the Glyercin in a small bottle. Shake vigorously to combine the ingredients. This recipe is very similar to the home made Micella Water recipe which I wrote about a while ago. You can see the post by clicking this link.

As you can see from the test below, I applied a very dark colour pallet of eye shadow, eye liner and mascara and used the home made version on one eye lid and compared this to the Clinique Eye Make-up remover that I occassionnally use.

Home Made Eye Make-up remover test

I was surprised as the Clinqiue remover was good, I’ve always used this as it’s non-scented and wipes away Make-up with only a couple of swipes. But the home-made version took off much more make-up with just one swipe. Result!

Better still is that it cost considerably less and smells lovely because of the Rosewater.

I’ve been using Rosewater for many years now and I don’t think there is anything better than this gorgeous smelling scented liquid.

simple ingredients for eye make-up remover

Update (May 2026): 

It has been nearly a decade since I first shared this recipe, and its relevance has only grown for me. Following my recent cataract surgery, I had to be incredibly mindful of what I used around my eyes. After the initial recovery period where makeup was off-limits, returning to this gentle, 2-ingredient remover was a sensory joy—it provided the cleanliness I needed without any of the irritation of synthetic brands. While I have continued to experiment with high-end products since then (which I’ll be sharing soon in a dedicated post on eye care for mature skin), this homemade classic remains my trusted baseline for sensitive days.

Nespresso machine for Coffee and Walnut Cake

Posted in At home, baking, Drink, Food, Home, lifestyle, Uncategorized by

image


We bought a Nespresso machine, an offer which really was too good to miss and now we have two coffee machines that sit on opposite sides of the kitchen.

The Dolce Gusto machine makes great coffee, it also makes lots of other great drinks which my kids enjoy, particularly the iced Cappuccino and iced tea, drinks which if we were going to Starbucks would cost a small fortune.


The Nespresso machine however, makes coffee an experience and I wish we had gotten around to getting earlier. If you are thinking about getting one of these machines, this month there is an offer too good to be missed. Not only is the machine on offer but the Aerochino machine is free. Yes that’s right free as long as you purchase their coffee pods from the website.

We’ve been in coffee heaven, and what better way to enjoy a cup of rich intense coffee, but with Coffee and Walnut cake.

This is a simple recipe – just use the Muffin mixture from this recipe and use just walnuts instead of the blueberries and cinnamon, add an espresso shot of coffee to the mix and bake.

That’s it. I used these cute cardboard mini loaf cases which I spotted in M&S, which were a perfect size for individual portions to serve for a tea time treat.