{Heart-Centered}

Dear Bride-to-Be: 

“To be ‘on edge,’ you are literally not centered—not being in your spiritual center,” poet Carrie Latet once said. Planning a wedding can be one of the most “on edge” times. With all the commercial hype, canned traditions, and tantalizing nonsense out there, it’s an extra daunting time for the bride and/or the mother of one doing the planning.

What are you doing to stay centered in your heart, grounded in your love during this busy time—a time that’s also very pivotal in deepening your relationship? I’ve often said that when a woman becomes a bride her intuition is heightened, her insights sharpened—IF she stays heart-centered! And there’s the rub. We must be willing to have a still mind—or at least moments devoted to inner and outer quietness and stillness—otherwise we can’t “hear” our intuitive signals, those angelic whisperings and soulful nudges that keep us centered right where we lovingly want to be!

Love. Listen. Let go.

…with love from Cornelia

ps: This is an excerpt from my book, The End of the Fairy-Tale Bride: For Better or Worse, How Princess Diana Rescued the Great White Wedding. Available on Amazon.

[Photo courtesy of Vogue Daily]

{Breathe, Smile and Go Slowly}

Dear Bride-to-Be: 

“To be ‘on edge,’ you are literally not centered—not being in your spiritual center,” poet Carrie Latet once said. Planning a wedding can be one of the most “on edge” times. With all the commercial hype, canned traditions, and tantalizing nonsense out there, it’s an extra daunting time for the bride and/or the mother of one doing the planning.

The wise Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh prompts us: “Breathe, smile and go slowly.” This is a perfect mantra for busy brides…especially when you want to stay heart-centered and lovingly connected with your beloved.

Whether we’re planning a wedding, a trip, a charity ball, or what’s for dinner, we can all use support in slowing down, relaxing, and bringing ease to our bodies, mind and spirit. It just makes us happier! So take a deep, slow, smiling breath…and see how it feels. Mmmmm.

Love. Listen. Let go.

….with love from Cornelia

ps: This is an excerpt from my new book, The End of the Fairy-Tale Bride {VolumeOne} For Better or Worse, How Princess Diana Rescued the Great White Wedding. Do you have your copy?

[Photograph courtesy of Vogue]

{Aromatherapy-Wise Bride}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
Your time of being a bride should be a dreamy time filled with love! However, if you're doing most of the wedding planning and organizing yourself, it can get a bit stressful, yes? So how can you have the best of all worlds: Stay “full of love, ease and creativity” while planning a wedding from your heart....?

Here are bits of aromatherapy wisdom to get your creative juices flowing:

•     “Lightly spritz wedding invitations and love letters with tea rose or jasmine scents…it helps send love around the world.”

•     “Put a few drops of essential oil on an unscented dryer sheet with your bed linens…lavender pillowcases call sweet dreams close….love follows the scent of rose. Choose either fragrance for a dreamy rest.”

•     “Add a couple of drops of relaxing lavender essential oil onto a practical (washable) white linen handkerchief to carry on your wedding day. Then as you dab at tears (his or yours), the scent brings sweet calm.”

Be an “aromatherapy-wise” bride and enjoy your fragrantly-creative-planning-time and a love-scented wedding day!

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

[Photograph: Ian Grant]

{Open Your Heart}

Dear Bride-to-Be:

With all the commercial hype, canned traditions, and tantalizing nonsense out there, it’s an extra daunting time for whomever is planning a wedding—whether it’s the bride, her mother or both! So several years ago, I created “Open Your Heart” CDs for these busy, task-oriented women. Not only as a way to support their ease and well-being, but the short, guided relaxations were also designed to help their choices come from the heart. (I’ve been to so many weddings where the character, soul and intimacy have been squeezed out of the wedding day because of the stress to “get it right” instead of relaxing and simply “sharing your love.”) 

 

So I introduced my CDs —a version for brides and another for all women—at one of those big, splashy bridal extravaganzas. During the afternoon event in the hotel’s grand ballroom, my team and I greeted the rush of visitors—hundreds of brides with their wedding entourage in tow. And for those brides, mothers and members of the wedding party who paused at our booth, I shared the benefits of slowing down during their wedding planning time for a few moments of relaxation and ease. (You’ll “feel better” and “look more beautiful”—and with some of the brides I threw in “have better sex” to really get their attention!) Some of the brides-to-be looked rather bewildered when I mentioned “relaxation,” reacting with words like: “I’m just too busy/tense/crazed to slow down and relax!” Hmmmmm.



As many thousands of brides as I had worked with over the years in my former shop by the time I did this event, I figured I’d be met with some resistance to the notion “that being calm and not reactive” equaled  happier relationships. (So the nature of the reactions I received certainly didn’t bode well for peaceful marriages and family life ahead.) Nevertheless, it wasn’t surprising that just as many of the mothers of future brides and grooms spoke up with: “I’m the one who needs this CD!”

I think we can all use support in slowing down, relaxing, and bringing ease to our bodies, mind and spirit no matter the tasks we’ve taken on. As the wise Buddhist monk Thich Nhat Hanh prompts us: “Breathe, smile and go slowly.” (And I say, a more beautiful bride is a more relaxed, in-her-heart bride!)

Find a way to ease your noisy mind...remember, deeeeeeep easy breaths. Create your own ritual of stillness—a meditative womanly ritual for deep relaxation—one that would be a gift of heart-opening ease (a gift to you, to him, to all!) Even if it’s only five minutes of quiet solitude a day: in the early morning before your busy day begins or as an afternoon break; after a bath to continue your relaxation or before bed to support deep rest. Find your quiet hub; find your inner stillness. Open your heart.

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

[Photographs: J Nichols Photography]

{A Handkerchief for Your Wedding} Part Three: "Soft Sighs & Deep Breaths"

Dear Bride-to-Be:
Handkerchiefs and weddings—along with the likes of languid moments, love and courtship, soft sighs, and “taking one’s breath away”—have a long poetic history together. And if you were lucky enough to have a close relation skilled with a needle (and many people did up until the middle of last century), then you’d have your own special handmade wedding handkerchief to sigh over. Perhaps made from near translucent Belgium linen or fine cotton from Portugal with a lush border of rose point bobbin lace for her and for him, a spacious, white lawn handkerchief with hand-rolled edges and embroidered with his initials.
 
Beautifully fetching handkerchiefs may evoke a more leisurely era as well as their costumed weddings; however, there’s a romantic melodrama that spins around weddings of any era. Weddings of the past and present are like a microcosmic slice of real life magnified and when planning a wedding (no matter how small or quickly assembled—even if it’s “Let’s hurry over to the courthouse!”), emotions swirl and time seems to speed up and slow down all at the same time. In our hurry-up world, whatever the occasion, maybe we need to stop and sigh every now and then. Oh, not for any melancholia—but just to enjoy the beautiful, take-your-breath-away blessing that life is.

When I had my bridal shop years ago, to help my customers ease the pace, relax into their bodies, and enjoy their rite-of-passage ahead, I would tell stories taken from wedding folklore, adding my own twists with a bit of goddess legend and mystical mythology woven in. I didn’t wave a hanky for dramatic effect, but I did take slow, unhurried breaths—with exhales not unlike a sigh—and soon my listeners were breathing deeper as well; they became more relaxed, even more sympathetic to mother or daughter or partner or whomever appeared as the source of their anxiety. Sometimes we miss life’s magic if we don’t slow down (letting go of the drama) and take a deep, long, easy breath.

So keep a pretty handkerchief handy—even if just as a reminder to take a few soft, languid moments to look within and refresh, relax and regroup.

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

[Handkerchief images: Karen Augusta]

{A Handkerchief for Your Wedding} Part Two: "Lavender Tinged"

Dear Bride-to-Be:
A pretty vintage handkerchief (white-on-white or perhaps with a smidgen of pastel color) is my favorite bridal present to give—something personal, feminine and intimate, yet immensely practical. Sometimes I’ll slip back to the bride’s dressing area the day of the wedding and give her a hanky gift, ensuring she doesn’t go down the aisle without it. (I’ve also been known to whip out my own vintage hanky from my handbag and give it to the bride or groom when no other is available!)

Of course handkerchiefs for brides or grooms are more than just useful for tears and sniffles. They can be a handy way to bring a bit of ease into your bustling wedding day with an old-fashioned yet clever use of aromatherapy. For instance, lavender is very calming. (And did you know that when you’re calm and more relaxed, you’re more present to love?)

You can lavender-scent your wedding day handkerchief by placing it (or them) in a box or wrapped in tissue with some sprigs of dried lavender a few days before the wedding. Or as you’re leaving for your ceremony, dab a tiny drop of lavender essential oil on a corner of your handkerchief so you’ll get a soothing whiff each time you pat your nose. (Even keep a small vial of lavender oil in your bridal purse or pocket for a little calming “hanky refresher” during your wedding festivities.)

So instead of being distracted by nerves or “drippy” moments on your wedding day, be “hanky prepared” and you’ll be able to keep your attention on love...on what’s in your heart...on each other!

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

[Photograph: David Willems]

{Springtime Inspiration}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
From ancient goddess folklore comes the story of Brigit -- also known as Bride in the Gaelic form -- who was considered the maiden goddess of springtime. Doesn't it makes perfect sense that an origin of our bridal traditions comes from the essence of spring: an abundant, life-giving time of renewal and beauty? And it's a glorious season to have a wedding!

If you are a bride during this new growth, shades-of-green season, then your inspirations come touched with goddess magic and love.

And as I continue my blog sabbatical to focus on finishing my new book, The End of the Fairy-Tale Bride, I call on this womanly, goddess-like support and beautiful, renewing energy of springtime as well...and I use deep, easy breaths to help my work, well, bloom!

Give it try: Take a deep, slow breath...then another 'n another...and feel the ease and comfort it brings. Whenever you are having your wedding, the pleasure of it all increases if you slow down, find some quiet time, and take luscious, easy, deep breaths and enjoy the beauty of the season...and you'll be more present for your wedding.

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

ps: While I continue to work on my new book, I'd love for you to take a look at my other book, The Bride's Ritual Guide: Look Inside to Find Yourself. Brides of all ages and "seasons" have enjoyed its stories and message ever since Amazon released it to best seller reviews! Women say they learn things they never knew about weddings, being a bride, and how to enjoy the experience even more. And when you order the book using these links, you'll receive free gifts: two relaxation CDs and a vintage six-pence to bring abundance! Ahhhh...the gifts of springtime!

pps: I'll keep you posted on the progress of The End of the Fairy-Tale Bride...its release planned for later this year!

[Photograph: Ian Grant]

{Easy Does It}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
On your wedding day, set aside a bit of “just for you” meditative time to relax, center yourself and get grounded . . . a moment to simply melt into your heart. For help in relaxing, you can listen to soft music, gently stretch your body, read a favorite love poem, or do a soothing deep-breathing exercise. (Or a combination of all of them!)

As you relax during your little “wedding day reverie,” let go of any noisy thoughts and allow the world to get quieter so you can hear your inner voice. What messages are you hearing? Whatever comes up, just breathe love into it.

Easy does it. As you continue to enjoy your reverie moments, take more deep, slow, soft breaths and relax more deeply and allow your body to remember that sweet moment of “falling in love.” Breathe in the feeling so you can recreate it fresh and new—and take that feeling with you throughout the day. Share it with friends, family, strangers.

Like love, weddings are about inclusion. Be the goddess of love today!

Love, listen, let go.
...with love from Cornelia

[Photograph: Jason Hudson]

{Relax & Go Have a Glorious Day}

Dear Bride-To-Be:
There is a wise Chinese proverb that says: “Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.”

Wherever you are in your wedding planning process—just thinking about it, in the middle of making lists, only a few days away from your wedding—it’s probably a busy time for you! Yet it doesn’t have to be tense; you don’t have to be tense. So take a deep...slow...easy breath and just relax. Although it may seem at odds with how you feel since being tense has become the new “normal” in our hectic world, but be a bold trailblazer! Shine some light in all the frenzy and change your default setting to “relax.” 

I know, I know. In our busy noisy world, we have made relaxation “hard”—but you can make it easy and lusciously refreshing for yourself. One way is to simply sit alone quietly for a few minutes in a peaceful spot ... slowly, softly, deeply breathing in and breathing out. Paying attention to your breathing is a chance to quiet your busy mind and allow your body to be at rest. This little practice would be a gift of ease and heart-opening softness for yourself ... even if it’s only five minutes of quiet solitude a day. (It will make a difference in how you feel, how you look and how you see the world.) Do this for yourself and by doing something relaxing for yourself, you’re doing it for everyone around you.

“Tension is who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.” So be your authentically beautiful self and slow down, breathe deeply and relax. Then go have a glorious day.

Love. Listen. Let go.

....with love from  Cornelia

[Photographs: Josie Miner]

{Time Is Breath}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
Planning a wedding is a busy time – whether you’re doing it all by yourself or in partnership with your mother, sister, friends or fiancé. Everything gets amplified during wedding planning; your to-do list keeps growing and there just never seems to be enough time! 

So do you want to know the secret to having more time? Slow down and breathe!

The more stressed you are, the tighter your body gets, the more shallow your breathing becomes – and it appears that there is not enough space or time. And the tension cycle continues! So the pleasure of planning your wedding suffers – and perhaps some of your relationships suffer as well – and your overall health and happiness pay a heavy price.

There are lots of great tips out there from relaxation experts and meditation gurus to help you learn how to slow down, be more attentive and take deeper, fuller, longer more relaxing – even healing – breaths. (See a suggestion below.) But right this moment, as you’re reading, do this:
Inhale through your nose slowly, deeply, softly, gently – and hold; what do you notice? Release your breath, exhaling through your nose slowly, deeply, softly, gently – and hold; what do you notice?

As you go about your day, keep noticing your breath and if you feel you’re holding it when you’re tense or taking shallow breaths, do the little exercise. Just by putting attention on your breath, you’ll take deeper ones – which also takes better care of you.

Then just notice if your relationship to time has changed – and even if it seems you have more of it! (Breath and time!)

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

ps: “Time is breath” is a quote from Russian teacher G.I. Gurdjieff as cited by Dennis Lewis in his wonderful book Free Your Breath, Free Your Life. Thanks to Dennis for inspiring this post!

[Photograph: Julie Mikos]

{Listen to Your Heart}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
When the busy-bustle of wedding planning spins you away from yourself and you’re feeling a bit frazzled, what do you do to ease back into your heart center? It’s important to take a quiet moment to listen to your heart each day. Close your eyes and take a few deep, soft breaths...long, slow inhales and exhales...and listen in. What’s the message you hear?

Slow down, be patient. Listen deep into the stillness so the message can get through. (Fine-tune your heart channel!) Listen for what soothes and supports your best self. Allow yourself to let love in from all directions and from all of life’s voices. When you find the quiet inside, you realize you’re not alone . . . your inner spirit is always there to guide and nurture you.

However, it’s not always easy to find that quiet moment of relaxation and contemplation in your day or evening. Yet your spirit and well-being calls for it! Take a walk in the park, in the woods, down the street, along a lane, beside a lake. Go sit by a tree or in a corner . . . or at least somewhere by yourself for a few moments of quiet each day. (Even a closet will do!) And listen for love.

Love. Listen. Let go.
....with love from Cornelia

[Photograph by Priscilla Wannamaker]

{Your Fabled Dress}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
There is a great deal of romance and juicy energy around the fabled “wedding dress.” These costumes with a past have become mythical creatures, described as “gowns of ritual” by historian Carol McD. Wallace in her book All Dressed in White. Wedding dresses—whether you wear something old or something new—connect women in an echoing sisterly heritage.

Share with a girlfriend or aunt or your seamstress or any woman in your life how wearing your wedding dress makes/made you feel. Soak in feeling feminine and luscious and gorgeous in your own eyes. Enjoy “playing dress-up” in your princess gown and take that womanliness into “regular life” so you can draw from that delight—especially on one of those “frumpy” feeling days!

Slow down during your wedding planning time and wedding day. Savor it. Breathe deeply and easily into your heart center and just hang out there for a bit. And in this soft and sweet place, remember the “feeling beautiful” feeling and carry it with you no matter what you are wearing.

Love. Listen. Let go.
....with love from Cornelia

[Photograph by Sarah Merians and Company]

{Five-Minutes to Ease}

Dear Bride-to-be:
Yes, you’ve heard me say over and over how important it is to have a little quiet reverie in your day during your busy wedding planning time. And you’ve said, “I want to, but just don’t have the time!”

Okay, try this. And don’t add it to your “to do” list—a list that’s much too long anyway! And don’t think of it as “something else to do,” but more like a luscious gift to give yourself. Just say: “I’m taking care of myself inside and out today!” (And did you know that when you are more relaxed and centered, you are also more creative and loving?)

Start now...it only takes five minutes, or less. YOU deserve it!

Sitting quietly with your eyes closed and breathing through your nose, count each deep, slow inhale (one) and long, soft exhale (two), inhale (three), exhale (four); continue slowly until you get to thirty. And if you lose count, just start over at number one. (Like planning your wedding, it’s not a race to the finish line; it’s a journey to enjoy as you explore your true heart’s desire....which tends to show up inside that inner quiet.)

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia


[Photo: Cheryl Wiles of arisit i]

{Divine Connections}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
The color blue, long considered a "bridal" color, has divine connections. Blue is the color associated with Mary, mother of Jesus, and with Brigit, the Celtic goddess of healing and the arts. Brigit, called the maiden goddess of springtime, was also known as Bride -- who gave her name to a woman about to wed. Therefore, as a bride, you are the namesake of a legendary goddess!

Use your time well in this legendary bridal spotlight. Start or continue practices that take care of you...mind, body and spirit. Journaling, eating healthy foods, doing fun exercises, breathing slower and deeper, meditating each day. This helps keep your mind clear, your body vibrant, and your heart open to receive and give love. It's just naturally what a goddess would do!

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from  Cornelia

[Photograph: Priscilla Wannamaker]

{Take a Deep Breath & Choose with Love}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
Be patient with yourself during this busy wedding planning time. Sooooo many decisions to make--don't let frustration take over. Trust your intuition and keep your vision on the bigger picture--your well-being and your relationship--and allow the love and support you find there be a buoy for you. What you need will show up at the perfect time.

Here's a tip: Use the power of your breath and take a thoughtful pause before making a decision. Breathe deeply and slowly (inhaling and exhaling through your nose when you can). Let your breath settle you, and in that quiet space, pause. Inside that pause is the here and now...the present moment...a gift...all you need to know...the perfect you. Now, choose with love. (And see what a pleasure your choices become!)

Love. Listen. Let go.
....with love from Cornelia

[Photograph by: Brandon Bannon]

{Listening for Stillness}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
Yes, you O Beautiful, Busy Bride! Take a few minutes each day to listen for stillness to help ease away stress and keep your inner voice tuned to your joy channel! If it’s your pattern to stay revved up, spinning into a busy swirl—thinking that you don’t have time to relax because there is so much to do—then you actually may accomplish more if you took at least one three-minute quiet break during your day. Work Efficiency Experts that know about these things declare: Slow down and accomplish more!

Here’s a little exercise you can do as often as possible to help slow down and relax:

•    Find a quiet, comfy place where you won’t be interrupted. (And if you can’t do that, just sit in your desk chair.)
•    Sit with your spine as straight as possible and close your eyes.
•    Put attention on your breaths—if possible, breathing through your nose for more relaxation—and slow each breath down so that you feel your belly gently rise with each deeeeep, slow inhale and fall with each sloooow, soft exhale.(Inhale, 1-2-3-4. Pause. Exhale, 1-2-3-4-5.)
•    Keep doing this until you feel yourself relaxing. Drop your shoulders, relax your jaw, stretch your fingers and toes as you continue keeping your attention on each breath.
•    And listen. Listen for the stillness inside each breath. Listen for the stillness inside your heart. Listen for the stillness deep in your body.

And as you listen within, what you just might hear is how deliciously sweet stillness sounds when you’re not focusing on your busy mind chatter. As you breathe slowly and deeply, listening within, you realize the messages of your joy channel are just a breath away!

Love. Listen. Let go.
....with love from Cornelia

[Photograph: Priscilla Wannamaker]

{The Intimate Wedding}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
A lot has been written about how intimacy is missing at weddings these days. In a special feature titled, "The Spectacle of Matrimony," Jacki Lyden of NPR News described it this way: "Weddings are increasingly notable for their amazing lack of intimacy, their evolution into industry....they've evolved into must-haves and appointment-list mega-spectacles."

Okay. I know that planning a wedding is a busy-busy time: growing to-do lists, details to handle and then handle again. You want your wedding to be beautiful -- you want to be beautiful -- so, of course, you put attention on your dress and hair, the flowers and food, the photographs and favors...the special trappings of a wedding that we all love.

But sometimes "relationship" gets left out. That can sound like an oxymoron given that why people are getting married in the first place is about, well, relationship! Brides can get so caught up in the frenetic swirl of "planning" the wedding, that sometimes not only do they get lost, but their connection to their partner gets lost -- or at least a bit strained -- and intimacy is squeezed out.

So no wonder that intimacy is missing at the wedding ceremony if it goes missing in your connection to your partner and family -- the real heart of the matter of weddings, yes?

Slow down, take a deeeeep breath, relax, feel into your heart, listen to its message, and recalibrate your priorities. (Those details can wait for awhile!) Then go give some love pats to family and friends and that sweetie of yours! (They've missed you.)

Love. Listen. Let go.....
....with love from Cornelia

[Photograph: Missy McLamb]

{Something Positive & Wonderful}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
“The alarm clock rings, your eyes pop open, and you’re immediately off to the races, filled with anticipatory dread about the day’s myriad tasks,” writes Jon Spayde in his article “Reduce Stress with a Calming Morning Ritual.” This is not only a stressful way to start the day, but according to Dr. Judith Orloff, it is a “missed opportunity” as well.

“The biggest barrier to serenity in the morning is in your own head: It’s how you frame the day,” Dr. Orloff says. And Jon adds: “But if you can do some simple reframing as soon as you wake up, the morning can be a great time to carve out some calm space and time for yourself, and set yourself up for a more peaceful and productive day.”

Dr. Orloff, author of Emotional Freedom: Liberate Yourself From Negative Emotions and Transform Your Life, recommends a simple three minute meditation as a morning ritual:  

“You simply breathe, center, and focus on something positive and wonderful. Do it for only three minutes — because limiting it teaches you to find emotional calm quickly.” 

(This is Dr. Orloff’s “wake up” meditation, but I think it’s great any time of day—like when you feel the tension ratcheting up! And it’s even a great exercise to do right before bed to relax and ease into a restful night’s sleep.)

Jon suggests this addition that I love: “Placing your hand over your heart during the meditation can add an additional element of warmth and self-soothing.”

And here are some tips that I add: Be sure your breaths are slow, deep and full. (Still can’t find your center?) Keep your eyes closed, listen for the quiet in your breath, and smile. Then the something “positive and wonderful” could be how more peaceful and efficient your day goes after this calming start.

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

[Photograph: Missy McLamb]

{Refresh Head & Toes!}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
Every bride wants to be beautiful "from her head to her toes" on her wedding day, yes? And a more relaxed bride is a more beautiful bride! So how about adding ways to be relaxed and refreshed "all over" to your beauty regimen?

One/Head: Create a facial sauna—an easy fragrant beauty treatment to do at home. Aromatherapy consultant Valerie Ann Worwood instructs:

•    All you need is a bowl of very hot water and a towel. Put two drops of an essential oil blend—like lemon and fennel or lavender and neroli—onto the surface of the hot water and cover your head and the bowl with the towel for a couple of minutes at a time and let the scented steam do its magic!
•    Repeat the process as long as the water stays steamy to deeply cleanse and improve the texture of your skin.

Two/Toes: What a difference a refreshing foot-soak can make to ease a tired day. Aromatherapy consultant and massage therapist Joanne Falke offers this suggestion:

•    Dissolve 1/2 cup of Epsom Salt in a pan of cool water (enough to cover your feet completely); add two drops of peppermint essential oil and swish around. Pop those feet in and take at least 15-20 minutes to soak and relax…..and be energized!

Taking care of YOU all over—from your head to your toes—is taking care of your mind, body and spirit. Don't leave anything out...take care of your body during your busy schedule and your spirit will be refreshed as well. Then go be a beautiful bride!

Love. Listen. Let go.

...with love from Cornelia

ps: this post is part of the "aromatherapy, brides & weddings" series...enjoy!

[Photograph: Little Winter Bride]

{Aromatherapy Wisdom}

Dear Bride-to-Be:
Your time of being a bride should be a dreamy time filled with love! However, if you're doing most of the wedding planning and organizing yourself, it can get a bit stressful, yes? So how can you have the best of all worlds: Stay “full of love, ease and creativity” while planning a wedding from your heart....?

Here are bits of aromatherapy wisdom to get your creative juices flowing:

•     “Lightly spritz wedding invitations and love letters with tea rose or jasmine…it helps send love around the world.”

•     “Put a few drops of essential oil on an unscented dryer sheet with your bed linens…lavender pillowcases call sweet dreams close….love follows the scent of rose. Choose either fragrance for a dreamy rest.”

•     “Add a couple of drops of relaxing lavender essential oil onto a practical (washable) white linen handkerchief to carry on your wedding day. Then as you dab at tears (his or yours), the scent brings sweet calm.”

Be an “aromatherapy-wise” bride and enjoy your fragrantly creative planning time and wedding day! (Check here for more aromatic ideas....)

Love. Listen. Let go.
...with love from Cornelia

ps: the “aromatherapy, weddings & brides” series continues through February...enjoy!

[Photograph: Ian Grant]