And finally, a quick fire round…

Your go-to music to calm down? 

Kerry: Django Reinhardt

Lisa: Ludovico Einaudi

Favourite form of exercise? 

Kerry: Walking or Pilates

Lisa: Yoga

What’s on your nightstand? 

Kerry: Too many books that I haven’t yet managed to read! Beauty Sleep Face Mist, a nail file, cuticle cream and a rose-quartz crystal for positive energy. 

Lisa: Beauty Sleep Face Mist, a silk eye mask, Quicksilver Melatonin and a Lonely Planet Guide to Mexico!

The one book you’d recommend?

Kerry: Autobiography of a Yogi 

Lisa: A Hunter Gatherer’s Guide to the 21st Century

Lisa and Kerry are the founders of AMLY Botanical Skincare. In 2015 they came together to celebrate the beautiful botanicals grown on the AMLY farm, infusing their skincare brand with a sense of purpose and wellbeing.

We turned the focus to Kerry and Lisa, bringing you an insight into their daily lives – from their morning routines and lifestyle loves, to just how they find their sense of calm while running one of the UK’s leading skincare brands.

Q: How do you bring mindfulness to your morning routines and how does it set up your day?

Kerry: I wake early as I like to make the most of the quiet mornings, taking some ‘me time’ for meditation with a mug of hot water, lemon and ginger. I then take my dog, Bear, for a countryside walk. My family and I are surrounded by beautiful woodland and river walks, so for me this is the best way to ground myself and prepare for the day ahead. When I get home I shower and do my morning skincare ritual. I refresh my skin with a cotton pad soaked in our Radiance Boost Face Mist, then add a few drops of Meadow Dew combined with Day Light Face Oil. 

Lisa: Living on a farm and with two children in their school years always makes for an early morning start. I’m naturally an early riser, but before making breakfast and pack-lunches, I always take some time for myself – even if it’s just 10 minutes. I like to just enjoy the peace and quiet before my family and I get going for the day.

Q: Lisa, you live on the farm which is the essence of AMLY. How do you find a work / life balance?

Lisa: We recently moved the AMLY office to a new barn on the other side of the farm, which means I walk a mile each morning, with the dogs, to my place of work. This provides invaluable time for me to connect with my thoughts as well as my natural surroundings and it really helps prepare me to focus on the day ahead.

At lunch, I return to the farmhouse where I prepare some nutritious goodness for me and my husband, Toby. This is the time where we sit down and catch up on farm business, and of course like all parents, speak about the children! On Friday’s I make time to see friends and we have beautiful walks in the Ashdown Forest, but my biggest secret to finding a work/life balance is making sure my mobile phone is switched off from Friday night to Monday morning .. something that a lot of people can’t believe, but I highly recommend!

Q: Kerry, you’re a trained craniosacral therapist. How has this contributed to your inner sense of wellbeing and how were you able to infuse your knowledge into the AMLY brand?

Kerry: I initially trained as a massage therapist and facialist, then as a homeopath and finally as a craniosacral therapist, so I’m fully versed in all things well-being and understanding that mind / body connection. 

Calming the nervous system is a huge part of cranial work so it was really important to me to incorporate these principles into the heart of our AMLY ethos – working with our senses is such a simple way to bring ourselves back into balance. Our scents are a huge part of the AMLY story and we use the aromatherapeutic scents to evoke different moods. For example, sometimes when we feel tired and depleted we need an energising boost, or before bed we want to calm and soothe to prepare for sleep. The power of touch is another aspect of my holistic practice – whether through massage or placing a reassuring hand on someone’s shoulder, it comforts the body and mind, reducing tension and boosting our emotional happiness.

Q: It’s often said that a person’s style reflects their personality. How would you each describe your styles and do you feel they reflect your personality?

Lisa: Well, living on a farm means I also live in wellies from November to March, so while I’m a practical soul, I do love a bit of glamour too, which I think is the artist in me. I tend to mix a bit of Isabel Marant with my country attire. I’ve also recently taken up sea swimming so I am very attached to my Khaki Dry Robe!

Kerry: I guess that’s right, I am a pretty easy going person! I like to be in the countryside or in a relaxed, informal environment and my style is similar. During winter I tend to wear jeans, knitwear and boots but in the summer I love cotton dresses, skirts and t-shirts. I’m a romantic at heart, and so love floral patterns and floaty dresses paired with chunky boots. I don’t wear much makeup unless I’m going somewhere … a true country girl.

Q: How important is art to AMLY?

Kerry: So important! We want to keep the arts very much alive in AMLY.

Lisa: Exactly. My degree is in fine art painting and just after I graduated, my work was shown in national and regional exhibitions alongside inspirational artists such as Tracey Emin, so art really is one of the core pillars of AMLY. After exhibiting for a few years, I decided to broaden my skills and train as an arts PR and marketing consultant. This gave me the opportunity to work with arts and literary festivals, all a true highlight. In keeping art flowing through AMLY, we’ve also created artist residencies at the farm, where we’ve worked with wonderful creatives including Celia Lewis and Jacques Nimki, known for their botanical work and abstract interpretations. We’re always open to the different perceptions and creative expression that art can bring. 

Q: We always hear of the successes in life, but part of success (especially in business) is overcoming ‘failures’. How do you both find your feet when something isn’t quite going your way?

Kerry: I tend to stay calm and always look on the bright side. We have faced so many challenging issues that have initially felt like they were insurmountable, but we have come to terms with the fact that in business there will always be hurdles. The important thing is that we come together and work to find solutions. I also think that flexibility and being able to find alternative routes is the key to any successful company.

Lisa: Yes, working together is so important and I think that’s why AMLY is successful and why we’ve been able to create the wonderful community we have with our customers. It’s about staying level-headed, assessing the situation and finding the best solution to help you move forward. Both mine and Kerry’s way of life is grounded in nature, so we both have a positive and more relaxed attitude. This really helps us find our feet quickly if there is something we need to overcome. 

Q: The last two years have been a time of reflection and self-care not just for individuals but for businesses. How did you both remain calm and mindful while navigating covid? 

Kerry: Spending more time in nature was so important to me and my family. We spent time exploring woods and routes we didn’t know existed. Bear, our dog, was another source of joy and he loved having us around. I’ve always been grounded and connected with nature, but the pandemic reinforced my belief that we really do need to value our wellbeing and invest time in the things that make us happy.

Lisa: I decided very early on that I wasn’t going to succumb to fear. Instead I focused my energies on taking control of my family’s health and making the most of the time we spent together during lock-down. We are incredibly lucky that we live on a farm with the space to breathe and roam.

Q: What are your favourite AMLY products?

Kerry: I always find this difficult to answer because I truly use all our Amly products. The AMLY face mists bring me so much happiness, as I remember when Lisa first told me about the spring at the farm and I immediately thought ‘fantastic! Let’s create a holistic face mist line.’ I love Digital Detox which sits by my computer. I use it throughout the day to refocus and refresh.

And, if I could choose one more, it would be our Floral Water Creme. It took us three years to perfect the formula with so many changes along the way to fully address all eye care needs. It’s easy to forget or sometimes, not even see the work that goes into creating our AMLY products and this eye creme reminds me of beautiful results that came from our hard work.

Lisa: I LOVE LOVE LOVE AMLY’s Day Light Face Oil. It’s hard to describe but it’s not like your ordinary face oil. We specially formulated it to be a dry oil which nourishes without making your skin look oily or feel heavy. It’s beautifully sophisticated and leaves my 48-year old skin moisturised and dewy! Although not super high, it does have a natural SPF of 8 which gives a little protection. I use it morning and night and sometimes mix it with Meadow Dew for an extra boost. My secret with it is to gently press into my skin after applying make-up. It just gives me that extra glow. 

Cocoon Me is also a favourite as it reminds me of many happy memories. Each year, my daughter and I pick the spring hedgerow blossom which is then macerated into the oil. Just the gentle scent of this hair and body oil gives me a deep connection with our organic land as well as all the beautiful times I have with my daughter. 

Q: What is your favourite AMLY ritual and which product is this with?

Lisa: I’m currently into my hot / cold water body therapies. We built a plunge pool and cedarwood hot tub during lock-down and my new daily ritual is to dip into the hot tub (41 degrees) then into the cold pool (10 degrees) back and forth for 15 minutes. During this, I use Wim Hof’s breathing technique to connect my breath to body, and boost immunity. Once I’ve dried off, I massage Cocoon Me mixed with a few drops of Purify Essential OiI into my arms, legs and tummy and WOW! I feel completely energised and my skin is definitely becoming more toned. (If you’re keen to try this, you can substitute the pool / hot tub with a shower/ bath routine.)

Kerry: I always use Deep Reveal at night with a double cleanse. The first use removes my makeup and then I re-apply taking some time to really massage its goodness into my skin. I often take a bath at night, leaving it on while I soak. I remove with warm water and the muslin cloth that Deep Reveal comes with, and then sweep Beauty Sleep Face Mist over my skin to remove any final traces. I finish by using a few drops of Nocturnal Nectar, followed by Sleep Tight and voila! My skin and senses are ready for a good night’s sleep.

Q: For someone looking to find space and clarity, where would you suggest to start?

Kerry: I would suggest trying meditation as that brings both space and clarity, it really is life changing. I think there’s a stigma that meditation has to be a strict and rigorous process, but it can be whatever you need it to be. 

Lisa: Time management can really help. When faced with a hundred and one things to do, I always look at each task and prioritise. I think ‘can this wait until tomorrow?’. It just takes the pressure off. I also find that getting up early and putting aside some time for you, is such a good way to ground yourself and prepare for the day ahead.

And finally, a quick fire round...

Your go-to music to calm down? 

Kerry: Django Reinhardt 

Lisa: Ludovico Einaudi 

Favourite form of exercise?

Kerry: Walking or Pilates

Lisa: Yoga 

What’s on your nightstand?

Kerry: Too many books that I haven’t yet managed to read! Beauty Sleep Face Mist, a nail file, cuticle cream and a rose-quartz crystal for positive energy.

Lisa: Beauty Sleep Face Mist, a silk eye mask, Quicksilver Melatonin and a Lonely Planet Guide to Mexico! 

The one book you’d recommend?

Kerry: Autobiography of a Yogi

Lisa: A Hunter Gatherer’s Guide to the 21st Century