Yesterday I was lucky enough to be invited to one of the
Weleda Insight Days up at their UK head office in Ilkeston. Having worked just up the road for the last 9 years I felt terrible that I didn't know they were there.
Weleda is a brand that most of us will have come into contact with at some point in our lives, my memory is always of their Calendolon Ointment (now Calendula Skin Salve) that my mum called magic cream, it was her go-to antiseptic cream for bumps and scrapes.
On arrival at Weleda, we were taken into a lovely open space with tea, coffee and drinks whilst we chatted and waited for the day to start. An introduction to Weleda and how the business started was the first of many 'i never knew thats' from me. Rudolph Stiener, who I knew of from the Stiener schools, was the person that helped start Weleda.
Off to the gardens, again I never knew this is where they were, having driven past them several times. We were greeted by Michael Bates who was a gardener at Weleda for 30 years before retiring, his wealth of knowledge on the plants, how they work and the whole Weleda philosophy knew no bounds.
I think we all stood in awe at the information being presented to us, I know I have much more of an appreciation for plants now than I had before. Have you ever taken the time to look at the leaves on a plant? How they change as you move from the roots to the flower, if you hold up a St Johns Wort leaf to the light it has tiny holes in it. Amazing stuff!
There were so many wonderful flowers in the garden, including the beautiful Chamomile flower, the properties of this useful flower know no bounds. I promptly had a cup of chamomile tea when we got back after hearing of its medicinal properties. On the flip side, we also saw poison ivy and a few other not so pleasant plants.
And finally onto the flower I know best, in relation to Weleda anyway, the beautiful calendula flower (part of the marigold family). The plot with them on was vibrant orange and beautifully swaying in the breeze.
Afterwards we got to see a demo with one of the other gardeners, she showed us how they take the plants and turn them into a tincture. I got to be one of the helpers and was pretty proud of my chopping.
After lunch, which was not only beautiful but from my the deli local to my work, it was divine and a lovely break in the day.
In the afternoon, we got to test lots of Weleda products, trying them out and learning about the lead plants (the one which is is the main ingredient). My favourite has to be the Sea Buckthorn. I am really excited to have found this, in fact I am hoping the Sea Buckthorn Juice might help with my Fibromyalgia and the tiredness.
All of the different smells were amazing, I am really looking forward to using the citrus hand and nail cream which we were lucky enough to get a sample of, a review will be up later of this great product and some others too.
Overall what I learned about this company and what they do has made me all the more determined to get me and my family using more if not all natural products.
NB. I was invited to the Weleda Insight Day and received a bag of goodies, however no payment has been received for this post and all thoughts and opinions are my own.
