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What I Actually Use
The honest answer to the question I get asked most.
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People ask me what oil I use, what notebook, what I put on my face, which of the meditation books is worth it. So I put it all in one place instead of typing it out again.
READ THIS FIRST
You don't need any of this. I mean that. Nearly everything I teach works with a pen, a bit of floor and whatever is already in your bathroom cupboard. If you own lavender that has been in there since 2019 and it still smells like lavender, it is lavender. Use it.
These are things I use, not things I sell. Nobody pays me to put them here.
Some of the links below are affiliate links, which means if you buy through one I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. It does not change the price and it does not change what I recommend. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
This page changes. Things go out of stock, brands change, I find something better. If a link is broken, tell me.
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ESSENTIAL OILS
Fewer than the internet tells you
I formulated skincare and worked with oils for thirty years, so I have opinions. The main one is that you need far fewer than you are being sold. If you buy one oil, buy lavender. It is in nearly everything I make and it does more than it gets credit for.
Lavender — the workhorse. Sleep, tension, a few drops on a tissue tucked into the pillowcase.
Vetiver — the heavy lifting in my sleep blend. It smells like damp earth and people either love it or find it appalling. There is no middle ground on vetiver.
Cedarwood — quiet and woody. Rounds out a sleep blend without taking it over.
Sweet orange — cheap, cheerful, useful in both directions. Softens a sleep blend and lifts a morning one.
Bergamot — my first choice when I want a citrus that is not shouting. Citrus oils can make skin sensitive to sunlight, so mind that one.
Frankincense — one half of Gigi's Elixir. A resin that has been in the room for every important human event for a few thousand years.
Myrrh — the other half. You need very little.
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READY-MADE BLENDS
If you would rather not mix your own
Nothing wrong with buying it already done. These are the two I reach for, both from NOW, which is a sensible brand at a sensible price.
NOW Peaceful Sleep — if you want the effect of my sleep blend without buying four separate oils to go to bed.
NOW Cheer Up — the lifting one. For the days when everything has gone functional.
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CARRIERS AND BOTTLES
What you mix it into
Jojoba oil — the nice one. Closest to what skin already makes, which is why I keep going back to it.
Avocado oil — richer and heavier than jojoba, and lovely on skin that has gone dry.
Castor oil — thick, and in Gigi's Elixir for a reason. Use less than you think.
Vitamin E oil — a small amount keeps a blend from turning. Capsules work as well as a bottle.
Dark glass bottles — any amber or cobalt 50 ml bottle will do, and they cost almost nothing. Buy a few, you will use them.
Gigi's Elixir, if you came here for the recipe
20 ml jojoba oil, 20 ml castor oil, 1 to 2 ml vitamin E or the contents of two capsules, 15 drops frankincense, 5 drops myrrh.
Combine in a 50 ml dark glass bottle, roll rather than shake, and label it with the date you made it. Patch test on your inner forearm and wait twenty-four hours before it goes anywhere near your face.
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MOVING
For the days the body needs oiling, not punishing
Neither of the first two is exercise equipment in the way that phrase usually means. They are here because they make movement happen on a day I would otherwise not bother, and that is the only thing that has ever worked for me long term.
A rebounder — the most fun I have doing something that is good for me. Gentle on the joints, brilliant for the lymphatic system, and almost impossible to do in a bad mood. Get one with a stability bar if your balance is not what it was.
A walking pad — for the days the weather says no. It goes under a desk or in front of the television and it means the steps happen anyway. Not a treadmill, not a project, just a way to keep moving in January.
A thick yoga mat — thick matters more than expensive, particularly for knees.
A bolster — for Child's pose and anything you want to stay in longer than two minutes.
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BOOKS
Two that stayed
Sit Your A.S.S. Down: Beginner Meditations — mine. Written for the woman who has tried meditation and decided she is bad at it, which is a bit like being bad at going for a walk.
The Artist's Way, Julia Cameron — I did this book in my twenties. The morning pages are the thing I kept, and I still do them.
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WRITING AND PLAYING
The cheap end of the shelf
A journal — that is the whole specification. And do not save it for good.
Children's markers, the fat ones — they smell like the 1970s and that is part of it.
A sketch book — cheap on purpose. You are going to make something badly and you do not want to feel you are wasting good paper.
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That is everything. If something here is useful, good. If you close the tab and go and find the lavender in your own cupboard instead, better.
In love, light and laughter, Karen
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