As you’re sweating it out in hot yoga, slathering on that clean moisturizer, and sipping a green smoothie concocted from all manner of dug-from-the-garden goodies, did you realize you’re also tapping into the zeitgeisty “high vibrational beauty” movement? Yes, simply by taking primo care of yourself, you’re officially on-trend.
Encompassing products, spa treatments, nutrition, and old-school aromatherapy, high-vibe is growing in importance. And the “first-movers” in the space couldn’t be happier about that. After all, the more people who are tuned-in to a positive, uplifted high frequency (i.e., the opposite of down-in-the-dumps, low-vibe types), the better for all.
“It’s a very exciting time,” says product formulator Julie Elliot, founder of In Fiore, a “baptism of fresh blooms” stocked at renowned spa properties like the Post Ranch Inn in Big Sur, International Orange in San Francisco, and Shibui at the Greenwich Hotel in New York City. “I love seeing the evolution of natural beauty. It started with, ‘Okay, I want to integrate a few more natural ingredients into my daily regimen,’ all the way to now, when people are resonating really well with botanical-based products. It’s very cool. It’s the whole reason for what I do, and why I got into this business.”
Others are taking the content route to getting the word out. “We literally wrote the book on high vibrational beauty,” says Cindy DiPrima, co-founder of CAP Beauty and, yes, co-author of High Vibrational Beauty: Recipes & Rituals for Radical Self Care (Rodale, 2018), a lush, coffee table tome bursting with DIY fixes for modern-world stress and toxicity woes.
“Much like people, plants know when vibes are good . . . Being able to harness and extract those positive vibes to create clean, small-batch skincare that creates an eco-friendly flow is truly a dream.”
Asked for her “cocktail party elevator pitch” on high-vibe beauty, DiPrima has one at the ready. “It’s engaging in the practices that create radiance through radical health,” she explains. “We flood our bodies with live nutrients from plant and mineral sources not only through the foods we consume but through the products we use on our skin. We engage in practices to detoxify and boost circulation and lymphatic flow and practice rituals to nurture our mental and spiritual wellbeing, as well. When we create heightened health, we vibrate at a higher frequency and radiance follows.”
Without question, the topical application and inhalation of essential oils is integral to raising our vibration, says Hope Gillerman, author of Essential Oils Every Day: Rituals and Remedies for Healing, Happiness, and Beauty,the definitive text on the topic(Harper Elixir, 2016).
For years, Gillerman has worked with properties like Mohonk Mountain House, Nalai Spa at the Park Hyatt Hotel, and Jumby Bay Spa in Antigua to incorporate her H. Gillerman Organics range of oils into treatment protocols. “My connection to vibrational healing with essential oils is through my teacher, a Taoist Monk, Chinese acupuncturist, and herbalist,” Gillerman says, noting that “essential oils have been integral to spiritual healing since ancient times, dating all the way back to the fertile crescent.”
Flash forward to 2019, says Gillerman, and essential oils are still getting the job done. “They’re vapor released into the atmosphere, and this vapor moves and flows with our energy. I’ll admit that it’s very hard to explain. Vibrational healing with essential oils requires a clear intention. This is why, when I train spa massage therapists who work with my oils, I ask them to set a clear purpose, and to give their client a verbal affirmation—a sound— that can resonate throughout the treatment.”
To hear her tell it, Amelia Dean, creator of a plant-based, hand-crafted beauty line dubbed Bohemian Rêves, is basically the conduit between the Universe and the growing horde of obsessed customers who discover her wares at day spas sprinkled across the country.
In addition to offerings like the cult-fave Moon Bath, which marries organic coconut milk pulp with smoky mica and is intended to help you “soak up all the moon vibes,” Dean has an entire “Smudges + Vibes” section on the Bohemian Rêves website. Here, seekers will find an array of items like Voodoo Child incense cones, rose quartz healing points, and bundles of palo santo, aka the new sage.
“I often feel that Bohem created itself and I’m more of a vessel helping to manifest these products,” says Dean. “I think vibrations are present in all aspects in life. And to achieve your highest potential, it’s so important to stay in-tune with them and surround yourself with people that are on the same frequency level. Much like people, plants know when vibes are good, as they tune-in to acoustic vibrations. Being able to harness and extract those positive vibes to create clean, small-batch skincare that creates an eco-friendly flow is truly a dream.”
Dana Wood
Dana Wood is the Contributing Beauty Editor at InsidersGuidetoSpas.com. She has been writing about beauty and wellness for decades, and no matter how many times she taps the words “hyaluronic acid” or “healing modalities” into her keyboard, it never gets old. Dana spent a total of 20 years at Condé Nast, serving as Beauty Director for W, Cookie, and Brides. A transplanted New Yorker, Dana now lives in St. Petersburg, Florida. Her peak spa experience? Dana says it’s impossible to decide between the Coco-Mango Body Buff at the Driftwood Spa at Jakes in Treasure Beach, Jamaica, The Land of Beautiful Waters Anti-Aging Facial at Four Seasons Nevis, and the 80-minute 5 Senses massage at the Spa by JW in Marco Island, Florida.