A few weeks ago Team Benedetta had the great fortune of attending the Fall Women’s Retreat at Pepperwood Preserve: a 3,200-acre educational nature preserve located on a ridgeline of the Mayacamas Mountains and at the southern end of California’s North Coast Range. We explored the landscapes of Pepperwood, visited their LEED Certified hilltop facility, the Dwight Center for Conservation Science, and gathered at The Bechtel House retreat cabin for yoga and retreat activities. We started our journey with a guided hike with Shinrin Yoku expert Karen Sapper and Pepperwood educator and wildlife biologist Margaret Boeger.
Shinrin Yoku is the Japanese practice of forest bathing, which amounts to taking a sensory walk in nature, where you immerse yourself in your surroundings to listen, wander and heal. Our Shinrin Yoku experience was a nearly silent two hours spent walking through the knotted oaks and sun-bleached hills of Pepperwood. It was a calming, meditative experience.
For our part, Benedetta was there to contribute to that renewal and relaxation with a Seaweed Mask session. On Sunday morning the retreat guests first applied a few pumps of our Crème Cleanser for Most Skin to their faces to prepare the skin. They mixed the micronized seaweed powder with our Lavender Hydrosol, a Certified Biodynamic & Organic botanical water, and painted the treatment onto each other’s faces with a Bamboo Applicator Brush, milling around with beautiful green skin for about a half an hour while enjoying their morning coffee. For a few guests, this was their first encounter with Benedetta’s products so when it came time to wipe away their mask they were very excited to test out our 5-Step Day Facial Regimen. Everyone had fresh, glowing complexions at the yoga session on the deck overlooking the preserve.
Benedetta’s anti-aging Seaweed Mask is a fine micronized powder consisting of several sustainably harvested seaweeds, including hand-picked red marine algae and certified organic blue-green spirulina. Our uncompromised blend of oceanic sea vegetation along with certified organic cultivated spirulina, is extremely strengthening as it stimulates collagen and elasticity efficacy. Along with the natural ability to gently detox congested and imbalanced skin, this seemed like the perfect treatment, given the theme and intention of the retreat. Our skin tends to dry out a bit in the fall, and October marks the beginning of flu season. Autumn is the perfect time to add our Seaweed Mask to your self-care regimen.
After the hatha yoga session on the deck and a closing ceremony we were treated to a beautiful farm-to-table brunch down at the Dwight Center where we gave each guest a thank you gift that included our 100% botanical The Best Deodorant and our Crème Cleanser for Most Skin. Benedetta is so grateful to have been a part of such a special weekend, and we look forward to returning for years to come.
For more information about events at Pepperwood Preserve, you can read more about their organization at http://www.pepperwoodpreserve.org.