We’re huge fans of Nicola Elliott here at QVC – both for her positive, upbeat attitude and her incredible aromatherapy-based beauty range, Neom. If you’re curious to know how Nicola began her journey to create this iconic name, along with some of her favourite products, just keep reading!
What inspired you to create the Neom brand?
After spending seven years working 60 hour weeks as a journalist, I felt the stressful pace and noticed my rising stress levels, lack of sleep, energy and low mood too. I loved my job… BUT, boy did I feel it! So, I kick-started my wellbeing, trained as an aromatherapist and created effective, pure aromatherapy blends.
First was Tranquillity (now called Perfect Night’s Sleep) for my sister who was having trouble sleeping. Then came Real Luxury to help my own anxiety and stress (it’s still in my wellbeing toolkit today). Then came Feel Refreshed for my husband (who played lots of sport) and needed an energy boost. Every product we create not only works on your wellbeing, it also smells amazing too.
What’s your favourite Neom scent and why?
I get asked this all the time, but the truth is I don’t have a favourite. The thing about aromatherapy is that the scent you are drawn to will most likely change each day/week/month – because as you inhale the essential oils the scent hits the hypothalamus and the receptors in your brain signal the oil you need most. I developed Real Luxury fragrance in the Scent to De-Stress range to help my own anxiety and stress. It’s a 100% natural fragrance with a complex blend of 24 of the purest possible essential oils including lavender, Brazilian rosewood and jasmine, which not only smell wonderful, but can help bring a feeling of calm. It’s like a cashmere hug.
Your hero Neom product – if you can choose one!
I can’t choose just one! That’s like picking a favourite child. I’m incredibly proud of the Wellbeing Pod electronic diffuser and the essential oil blends that go hand in hand. This was a real game-changer. It scents your home in minutes. I also can’t be without the Pillow Mist, sometimes I like the lavender-based Perfect Night’s Sleep and sometimes I’m drawn to the fruit and chamomile-scented Bedtime Hero fragrance – both work equally as hard, just depends on who I want to sleep with that night!
How do you incorporate Neom products into your daily routine?
Routine is the key word here, and incorporating scent round the clock to aid my wellbeing. This is especially crucial during this pandemic, as a lot of us are (luckily) able to work from home. However, that can have other effects.
So, keeping a routine in some guise is key. It’s actually a lovely feeling in the morning to be able to light an energising candle like Feel Refreshed to set me up for the day (I couldn’t do that in the office). So, morning’s for me are kicking off with an energising scent (Focus the Mind Essential Oil in my pod is brilliant for when your home office needs a bit of oompf). I like to decompress in the evening with de-stressing Real Luxury, and then have my sleep routine for bed which is:
- Step one: light a sleep-scented candle (either Perfect Night’s Sleep, the lavender one or the new Bedtime Hero, chamomile-based one) and let the brilliant essential oils float into the room. Breathing them in starts to relax you.
- Step two: draw the bath. Sounds awfully posh – but there is some evidence that shows that immersing yourself in warm water really can play a part in sending you off to slumber. So, I’m in. Bedtime Hero Bath Foam is a fruity newcomer with chamomile, ylang ylang and cedarwood that is my current tub-time friend – it’s SLS-free and still creates those all-important bubbles in the tub.
- Step three: I’m making a bit of a fuss of my skincare routine right now, being at home feels like it lends itself so well to spending a bit more time on your skincare routine and a bit of self-care. Removing any dirt from the day (usually dust from walking the dog in nearby fields), I use Perfect Night’s Sleep Cleansing Balm followed by a few drops of the Perfect Night’s Sleep Face Oil. It boasts a whopping blend of 11 superstar oils like sweet almond oil, coconut oil, olive oil (which is rich in vitamins A and E as well as antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids). Plus, wheat germ oil, apricot kernel oil, peach kernel oil and rosehip fruit oil… the skin-loving list goes on.
- Step four: I smother myself in Bedtime Hero Magnesium Body Butter. Gone are the days of the synthetic lavender-laced creams that sat on your mum’s dresser in the 80s or 90s. These days, the consumer wants so much more. So, this kick-ass, multi-tasking Body Butter firstly gives your skin a real treat with ingredients like coconut oil, known to have antibacterial and antioxidant properties, plus shea butter, aloe vera and grapeseed oil too. There’s also a complex blend of essential oils which work on your wellbeing. Finally, it helps to boost your magnesium levels. Magnesium is a mineral that’s vital for your health and wellbeing and helps sleep, mood and stress – that’s just for starters, and yet up to 80% of us are deficient in it!
- Step five: I finish my night-time routine with a spritz of a pillow with my Bedtime Hero Pillow Mist and a good old fiction book!
Thank you Nicola for sharing your fabulous advice with us. Make sure to browse the full range of Neom products at QVC here.
Check out our Feeling Good Together campaign too, where we’re regularly updating the page with fitness inspiration, wellbeing top tips and expert interviews to help support and inspire you throughout 2021.
