Herbal Hiraeth create a range of wildcrafted herbal skincare products that are all natural, eco-friendly and vegan. Placing importance on connecting you with nature, each product is designed to not only nourish your body but your soul too. We chat to Herbalist and Pagan Soul, Candice to find out more about the inspiring brand she has created.
What inspired you to start your business?
I have always felt connected to nature, and I could feel worries and stress slip away when I stood bare foot on the earth, watching the trees blow in the wind and feel the gentle leaves in my fingers.
I was always fascinated with using herbs and plants for healing and remedies, and quite often I felt like I was born in the wrong time. I feel very connected to the old healing ways when our ancestors found their remedies to colds, flus and skin issues, and collected all their food from their backyard, along streams and in the wild. This is where Hiraeth comes from, pronounced as HEAR-eth. A welsh word describing the nostalgia and yearning for lost places or memories of the past.
Herbal Hiraeth represents the souls longing to the herbal connection it once knew, the ancient wisdom of healing from herbs and the earth, hidden within our history and souls.
My journey with herbalism and herbal skincare started many years ago when my beautiful dog Lilo developed severe skin allergies, and I myself developed a range of skin issues. Of course my main focus was Lilo first, so after trialling everything under the sun, spending thousands on vet bills and not finding anything that worked without harmful side effects, I turned towards Herbalism.
I formally began studying and am continually studying to further my knowledge. I developed a wholesome herbal approach to Lilo’s skin, and after commencing this, within two weeks she had significant improvements, and a month later she no longer had skin issues. Continuing this approach she now lives an extremely happy playful and skin issue free life!
I then went on to studying natural skincare formulation formally and developed herbal skincare remedies for my own and my families skin, which had incredible results especially with my own and friends acne! I had friends of friends asking me to make them products for acne, skin pigmentation, flaky dry skin and oily skin, and the products I developed had such wonderful reviews I then decided to begin selling them to the public! I also felt more intune with nature and grounded using natural products made from nature that were also eco-friendly. I launched Herbal Hiraeth in 2018 to bring the herbal connection to everyday lives.
Why do you choose to use only natural ingredients?
I firmly believe that we should live as close to nature as possible, and that connection is looking after our natural world as well as ourselves. Natural and organic ingredients are closer to nature, kinder to our earth and our bodies, as they are generally toxin free (always check your labels to avoid brands greenwashing). They are also incredibly potent as nature offers us so many advantages for ingredients in their natural forms.
Your favourite product?
Well this is a hard one? In all honestly it’s hard for me to choose between the Deep Ritual Cleanser and Mother Nature’s Restoring Facial Serum. I use both daily and cannot imagine a day without them. They are a part of my daily ritual and I look forward to those deep rich earth aromas every time I use them.
What’s your favourite way to look after yourself?
Definitely a long herbal bath. Often I pair this with a wine or a meditation depending on what my body needs and my mood!
Currently creating?
I’ll let you in on a little secret.. I have been working on creating New Moon and Full Moon Ritual boxes for a while now. They are still a little way off as I am still in the experimenting and trialling stage, but I am so excited to see these coming along!
Currently reading?
Well.. I am the sort of person that is never reading just one book! Currently I am reading Taming Amy by Seth Gardner, so far it is a beautiful book about a spirit guide. I am also half way through The Master Book of Herbalism by Paul Beyerl, this is very informative and I love his style of writing. The last one is Harry Potter. I don’t think I will ever stop rereading Harry Potter, it has turned into an annual tradition!
Favourite travel destination?
This would have to be Japan in the Winter. There is just something about the snow, the people, the food and the culture. It’s a magic that I love!
Favourite quote?
Oh I have many it’s hard to pick just one, but two I go back to often is, Newt Scamander – ‘My philosophy is worrying means you suffer twice’. As someone who has battled mental health and advocates for it, this is a powerful reminder.
Another Harry Potter one is ‘Of course it is happening inside your head Harry, but why on earth should that mean it is not real?’. Once I fully understood this quote it changed my perception on life and increased my well- being in ways I hadn’t thought of. The mind is incredibly powerful!
View Herbal Hiraeth’s full range of products online here.