Vicki Edgson is passionate about making sense of healthy living. She co-founded the health brand The Food Doctor, runs her own prestige nutritional therapy clinic in London as well as the award-winning Vital Energy retreat in Ibiza – what a place to retreat, we say!

Vicki is big fan of NEOM so we recently caught up with her to get some easy and quick tips on what’s good to eat this time of year to help boost your mood.

We’re into May. This is one the best times of the year for feeling full of Vital Energy! Cherry Blossom abounds, the street markets are full of seasonal fruits and vegetables, and everything smells so fresh. Why not pick plums and apricots to nibble raw, or try poaching in apple juice. Choosing cinnamon and star anise is brilliant at boosting immunity against hayfever. I recommend asparagus (fat and juicy) or chard and purple sprouting broccoli to add raw to your favourite salad, or simply roasted in olive oil along with a dash of fresh basil and rosemary, to tickle your tastebuds, and raise your energy.

As a nutritionist I often find women are frequently low in magnesium. This is due to stress, anxiety and monthly cycles, so I always encourage them to increase their daily intake of dark green vegetables. The prime candidates for this include broccoli, chard, savoy cabbage and watercress. Rocket and parsley is also good in salads and a great source of iron too! Brown and red rice also provide abundant magnesium, and make a good base for delicious risottos.

Like essential oils I believe food is also good at helping your mood. Cutting down on carbohydrates is most definitely NOT good for a mood, as these are the foods that boost serotonin - the happy feel-good hormone that we all need more of! Choose buckwheat noodles for salad and stir-fried vegetable dishes, polenta for slimmer pizza bases, and rye breads for open sandwiches - the Swedes and Norwegians live on these grains, and they are all healthy, slender, beautiful and HAPPY!

I believe that we need all our senses to be titillated in order to feel alive, well and thriving. I always have the NEOM Refresh (Lemon & Basil) travel candles in the guest rooms on my Vital Energy Retreats in Ibiza, to stimulate mind and body. Their beautiful, fresh organic scent is so pure, it emulates the very principles I share during the retreat - to surround ourselves only with those elements that are taken from nature - fresh, seasonal food, clean air and pure water. Join me there - you won't regret it!

www.vickiedgson.com/retreats

I always feel amazing when I’m spending time with my family and close friends. We have the best time together and always laugh a lot. I have an incredibly busy lifestyle and travel a lot so the time I spend at home with my loved ones is a time I cherish.

Because of my lifestyle, I like to eat well and look after my body and mind. I love eating my daughter’s food, she has a company called Honestly Healthy and she makes delicious alkaline fridge fills so I live off her food pretty much every day and I’m so grateful for it. I exercise regularly, too, which it makes me feel great and energised.

I also like to look after my skin and hair. I’m really into all things organic and use as many organic products on my hair and skin as possible. I try to get a manicure once week and use the NEOM Morrocan Blush Rose hand lotion everyday, it smells heavenly.

When I’m not working in London or abroad, I absolutely love to spend my weekends in the country and just chill out watching romantic comedies and listening to music – it completely recharges my batteries and gets me ready for the week ahead!

When the sun is shining it signals a shift in so many things....

I am suddenly desperate to dig out my most wafty, chiffony blouse and start buying bunches of wild-looking, brightly coloured flowers every week. Isn't there something amazing about opening the windows every morning as soon as you wake up? I love musing over what new and interesting salad to prepare for tea every night too and, keeping our fingers crossed, we can eat in the garden!

It's the huge shift in the day to day things that makes me really happy come spring time...but so many people ask me how to scent their homes at this time of year. Heavier, cosy candle scents suddenly don't feel so right, so I asked the NEOM team to divulge their personal tips for scenting their homes in this weather. Here's what they said...

	Nicola, Account Manager, on her Real Luxury Reed Diffuser...This light, gentle but sophisticated scent is beautiful in a reed diffuser for spring, the minute I open my front door I feel relaxed and calm. It's my personal favourite and always goes down well as a gift too.
	Becky, Account Manager, on her Real Luxury Body Scrub...I have never used a scrub like this; we've had a few bloggers recently saying it's life changing! I have to agree! You only need to use it once a week and your skin is totally transformed into butter -soft -sundress -ready -loveliness!
	Elaine, Account Manager, on her Body Oil...I've worked at so many of the big name beauty houses but I have never ever come across a body oil like the NEOM one -it's not just an amazing anti-ageing body treat that leaves your skin feeling about 10 years younger! But it's also great cuticle oil and the only thing I'll use as an after sun on me and my kids.
	Zoe, Accounts Co-ordinator, on her Mini Room Mists...Our new mini mists in Inspiration or Sumptuous are going down a storm....I personally adore the Sumptuous one made with Rose and Neroli, I spritz the curtains every day and the scent lingers, its light and pretty.
	Claudia, PR Manager on Travel Candles...Travel candles are gorgeous in summer, great for decorating a table when you've got friends round for (usually an indoor) barbecue! Inspiration is floral and pretty, and I really love Serenity too. The vanilla gives it a warm, beachy scent that makes the room smell yummy.
	Nicola, Founder, on her Inspiration Reed Diffuser...The scent of summer is summed up in my Inspiration reed diffuser...Violet Chamomile and Cedarwood is a perfect accompaniment to sunny, breezy days and the best bit is it smells all day long! I have one in the hall, kitchen lounge and my wardrobe too so my clothes smell fresh!

When I’m home, a perfect night in for me will be catching up on my favourite TV shows. I travel often for work so I make sure I have plenty of Desperate Housewives, Gossip Girl and Downton Abbey to keep me occupied when I come home! I find it so relaxing to just curl up in front of great TV.

It always helps to have candles on too for a really relaxed atmosphere. I don’t have the time to spend taking ages in the morning, so keep my beauty and skin regime pretty basic. I do love a nice body scrub though, like NEOM’s Lavender, Jasmine and Brazilian Rosewood scrub. It smells amazing and I love that it’s organic, too.

But what makes me feel most amazing, more than anything else, is listening to music. And dancing to it! Whether I’m by myself, dancing around the kitchen with the radio on full volume or out in a club with all my mates, having music blasting just makes me feel incredible. Especially reggae. Growing up in west London, my mum would always have reggae on so it had a huge influence on me and really shaped my musical tastes now.

Estelle’s album, All Of Me, is out 12 March

So it’s finally here, possibly the trickiest, most time consuming scent we have ever developed….‘Happiness’ with White Neroli, Mimosa and Lemon.

The brief seemed simple enough back in early 2011…we wanted something fresh and clean, evocative of spring gardens, a beautifully dewy smell of bright green grass and pretty little white flower heads popping up. We yearned for something to take us out of the long dark winter, heralding new beginnings and serious positivity. The reality was so much harder! It’s difficult to blend something fresh but new, something that balances a simplicity with a sophistication you’ve come to know and love with NEOM scents. But, as they say, ‘necessity is the mother of invention’ and it led us to a very clever way of creating a new way of adding scent to this blend.

For the first time we experimented with using a unique way of releasing scent from a part of the peppermint stalk that smells exactly like (and is the same composition as) actual blades of grass. The result is a characteristic fresh, green, grassy note which when combined with essential oils of White Neroli, Mimosa and Lemon creates an amazingly evocative, crisp spring garden scent I had really wanted. The process of extracting 100% natural scents in this way is a really exciting and will push us into new ways that we can create fantastic new natural scents. Into the blend goes a stunning Mimosa oil, which is great for relieving tension, precious Neroli with its healing and balancing properties, and then Lemon gives it that little extra perkiness.

Like all our candle scents, Happiness is 100% natural and the high concentration of essential oils provides an aroma-therapeutic treatment, boosting your mood and putting a spring in your step. I am absolutely thrilled with the outcome of this scent…and can’t wait to hear your thoughts, if you’ve had a sniff, please do tell me your thoughts, I’d love to hear!

Surely not? But if this cold, dark weather is leaving you feeling a bit flat right now, I thought I’d tell you about some of the things that are cheering me up and what I’m raiding from the NEOM stock cupboard this month.

I still think that the two most unsung NEOM hero’s are our Organic Body Oil and Organic Body Scrub. A winters night is just not the same for me if I haven't had a long soak in a Tranquillity bath followed by slathering myself in Real Luxury Body Oil. People always tell me they worry about oil being greasy or sticky – and I have used all those horrible oils in the past! I know what you mean. But they are so greasy because they contain silicones (plastics) which sit on the surface of the skin. The NEOM Body Oil, packed with organic safflower and jojoba is literally my best beauty secret, it sinks into my skin in a minute and makes me feel so soft plus the scent lingers and sends me into a heavenly sleep.

The scrub was something we originally developed for professional use only but after much ooo-ing and ahhing from the countries top therapists we decided to offer it to everyone. I was never a huge fan of scrubs – it seems like a fiddly thing to include into my (very pared down) beauty regime – but my, does this transform the feeling of your entire body. If you have ever tried a scrub, contemplated using one or even written them off because you didn’t find one good enough – I’d really urge you to try this one, it’s amazing!

Oh, and of course I’m lighting candles. All the time. My current favourite is Sumptuous; Neroli and Rose is all about comforting and indulging and if I can get a bit of this feeling into my home on a dark night I’m a very happy girl after all.

What else makes me feel amazing, more than anything else in the world, is waking my four-month-old son, Indio up in the morning. He’ll have the biggest smile on his face and it's possibly one of the most amazing things I have ever experienced. He’s such a brilliant baby; he sleeps through the night, is happy and content. Of course I might not be so lucky when the teenage years kick in!

Being a mother has just changed me completely. The world I was in before was quite selfish really, but now my world is him. I’m still a typical first-time Mum and freak out occasionally, but it’s a learning process. I didn’t even know how to change a nappy at first!

My party-days are well and truly behind me and - I sound just like my Mum here - but I’m happiest just staying in with a crossword and glass of wine. And my NEOM candles, of course. My routine is regimented. After I bathe Indio and put him to bed, it’s ‘me time.’ I lie on my bed and read a book, or soak in the bath with music on, and NEOM candles are always on. I love just having them around the house because they’re pretty and warming, even the glass they hold them in is gorgeous. That’s my ultimate way of relaxing, for sure.

Happy New Year! So…New Year, new leaf, new promises – yes, we all know that one! But this year we’re committing to some real positive change here at NEOM.

Did you know that the average woman is putting some 250 chemicals on her skin every day? From shampoo and conditioner, to shower gel and bubble bath, body oils and lotions. And let’s not forget washing up liquid, liquid soaps, washing powders...the list goes on. Often there is further exposure to unborn babies and children in the house. The cumulative effect of these chemicals, used by women over decades, is slowly coming to light - but much remains unknown. We’re challenging you to do one easy thing…REDUCE your count. We understand that you can’t live a completely chemical-free life, we want to offer everyday alternatives to help reduce your chemical count and that of your family…

Why This Matters:

• 1. In an exclusive NEOM poll of 100 women, 95% did not correctly recognise ONE ingredient on the back of their beauty products. This means many of their buying decisions are based on a fundamental trust of the industry and of the claims they make.

• 2. There is nothing to force EU cosmetics manufacturers to test their products for long-term use, or to effectively predict the effect on humans when used alongside dozens of other chemicals.

• 3. Toxic chemicals find their way into our bodies - up to 60% of them are absorbed into the skin, into our bloodstream, our breast milk…and our children. And diseases linked to the absorption of synthetic chemicals – including breast cancer, testicular cancer, kidney damage and reproductive problems – are on the rise.

• 4. Many chemicals in everyday products, such as propylene glycol and SLS, actually quicken skin-ageing, the very thing most brands claim to reverse!

My 3 Easy Swaps to Make Today:

• 1. Organic Hand Wash and Lotion – an everyday family product. Our range offers the organic and totally luxurious alternative, with more scents coming in March.

• 2. Organic Body Wash and Lotion – applied to the largest surface area every day.

• 3. Organic Candles – toluene and benzene (found in paraffin wax) are the carcinogens found in cigarette smoke. NEOM’s new Happiness candle, blended from pure vegetable waxes, is launching in February as the latest addition to our candle library of 11 amazing scents.

Some great reading:

• 1. Not Just A Pretty Face – By Stacey Malkan

• 2. Cosmetics Unmasked: Your Family Guide to Safe Cosmetics and Allergy-free Toiletries – By Dr Stephen Antczak

• 3. Toxic Beauty: The Hidden Chemicals in Cosmetics and How They Can Harm Us – By Dawn Mellowship

• 4. EWG – Environmental Working Group (http://www.ewg.org/skindeep)

• 5. Campaign For Safe Cosmetics (http://safecosmetics.org/) Articles 300 & 682

• 6. The Facts About (http://www.thefactsabout.co.uk)

GOOD LUCK and let us know how you’re getting on!

Christmas is a busy time for me.

I DJ for big fashion brands and have the Mulberry Christmas party coming up which I’m really excited about. Music and fashion are my real passions. I’ve just signed to Models One and have been in Las Vegas hosting a show for an American network about the I Heart Music Festival. It’s a big music festival in Vegas with a line-up including Jennifer Lopez, Lady Gaga and Black Eyed Peas, so it’s fantastic to be involved with that. I am now hosting the Style Studio at the Clothes Show Live. So, yes, it’s pretty full-on!

Travelling is part of the job, and I love it, but living in hotels so much of the time, I definitely miss my home comforts. I never know what the places will be like so there are things I always have to have with me... good cleanser, moisturiser and NEOM travel candles. No matter where I am they make me feel at home.

What else makes me feel amazing? Watching TV (I’m obsessed with the US X Factor at the moment), Vinyasa Yoga and eating! I love Mediterranean foods like falafel in pitta bread. Delicious. I’m a big fan of Pizza East in Shoreditch, too. Going there for dinner with a bunch of friends is my ideal night out. People often assume I’m some party-girl but I’m so not! We joke that my party trick is actually being the first person to leave!”

Nothing makes me feel happier or more rejuvenated than when the kids are sleeping peacefully upstairs and I’m curled up in front of a roaring fire reading a good book, surrounded by flickering candles - like the Neom Organics Christmas Wish.

It’s funny because I’m sure if you’d asked me three years ago what made me feel amazing it would have been completely different (wine, shopping, the gym) But these days wine gives me a hangover that is literally unbearable when combined with an 8 month old baby and a 3 year old, the shopping is always a rushed, stressful affair (unless it’s on the internet, hello Net A Porter and neomorganics.com ) And the gym? Well, I can literally think of a thousand things I’d rather be doing than pounding a treadmill.

Nowadays the things that make me feel amazing are simple. Making my 3 year old boy squeal with laughter, watching him cuddle his baby sister, her gurgles of pleasure when I come into her room when she wakes up in the morning, bouncing with my boy on our trampoline in the garden (an instant endorphin booster better than any gym equipment) and of course, the fundamental feel- good essential: sleep.

You never realise how much it governs your mood and wellbeing until it’s snatched away by a squawking baby for months on end! Luckily, we’re over that hellish bit now, but still, a 7am wake up every. single. morning means lie ins are a thing of the past. So on the nights when I’m too tired to do anything else I have a reverse lie-in. I go to bed as early as possible so I can wind down in a calm, soothing environment. Our bedroom has a big, antique super king size sleigh bed, heaps of big hotel quality pillows and soft rugs underfoot. And candles. Lots and lots of Neom Organics candles. My favourite is the Complete Bliss with its gorgeous rose scent. I simply light the ones that are lined up on the mantelpiece and the bedside tables and lie there, reading my book in my own personal nirvana.

Miracle on Regent Street is available now, published by Simon & Schuster.