Katherine's love for the biological sciences lead her to pursue her studies within Nutrition.
It was during Her time at University, studying for her degree that Katherine began to philosophise wellness and consider how she could truly make a difference in both her own life, the lives of others and to the energy that runs through the planet.
She chose to become conscious of her lifestyle choices and became more aware than ever before just how powerful an impact nutritional choices can have upon our health, mind, outer life and wellbeing.
After graduation, Katherine, dubbed by her friends and family as "the suitcase kid", packed her bags and headed for life changing work in Kentucky, USA working within a nutrigenomics laboratory for a global biotech company.
Upon returning to the UK, Katherine had discovered new, profound scientific insight and knowledge on personalised nutrition, which could help women all around the globe in their quest for improved health and wellbeing.
The ideas and possibilities were excitedly parked in her head, whilst she continued her higher education and enrolled in Business School.
Katherine started her professional career, developing nutritional food products for a number of multinational food corporations as a consultant as she simultaneously worked on her passion project, by creating her own supplement and skincare formulations, to nourish the body inside and out.
In 2020, she proudly launched Beautifully Nourished, encouraging women all over the world to step into their feminine power and be the best version of themselves that they can be-with the confidence to live in away that is authentic to who they are and what they want.
Revolving around self love and care, Beautifully Nourished's formulations are created with natural and organic nutritional blends to assist with achieving personal health and beauty desires. The products are never tested on animals or filled with chemicals, parabens, fillers or additives. Nutricosmetic ingredients are precisely dosed for maximum results, to feed the mind, body and soul.
IN CONVERSATION WITH KATHERINE-ELYSE BLAKE, FOUNDER OF BEAUTIFULLY NOURISHED
Q1. What is your weekly self-care ritual after a long day?
For me, my go to self-care regime after a long day, starts with switching off, self-massage, and skincare.
Any founder, employee, contractor and to be honest anyone alive today, will know just how “normal” it is to have our tech devices by our side, all of the time. But I have recently been asking myself – how healthy is this?
The answer I have come to is that, it depends on the intent and the purpose of the scroll.
Tech devices can be a great way to connect, research and find our tribe, but when it comes to the mindless scrolling, that has to go.
Here at BN, we love what we do and it is important for us to have an online presence and stay connected to both our readers, consumers and each-other. We do however, practice what we preach and make sure to take time for ourselves and make sure that we can switch off as and when needed.
As well as disconnecting, I make sure to feed myself good thoughts, good food and good supplements. To me this is the ultimate act of self-care.
Q2. Name three things that the pandemic made you appreciate about life and self?
The pandemic came with devastating changes to many and their lives and I want to acknowledge that.
Many of us were forced to look within when we couldn’t get out. With an hours window to get outdoors, many people took the most of it. I think that gave people a great opportunity to reconnect with themselves, the basics and the simple beauty of life. The uptake of self-care and meditation is on the rise and I believe if this is sustained over the future years, this will make a tremendous positive improvement to the world as a whole and societies within.
The biggest change I would summarise as a direct result of the pandemic is a recognition that for years many of us have been in a mindset of doing, going, being productive, achieving, and measuring who we are by our output and what we can achieve in a day. For years, this energy of exertion, of going and doing have ruled. Our value and sense of self are often defined incorrectly from our output and productivity and not just simply from who we are.
The pandemic gave us the opportunity to just be. This kind of felt awkward at first, often with self-inflicted guilt for sitting and watching a film during the normal hours of what was previously a commute from work!
Then over time, many of us, began to feel better and relax into the energy of just being and soaking it all in.
Personally speaking, my body is the healthiest it has been in a really long time and I am a person that would typically be described a "healthy". The only difference to my routine has been slowing down and what a wonderful difference it has made.
The pandemic has allowed many of us to relinquish the high-speed and return to the energy of simply being. We do not have to achieve what we already are.
Spending time outdoors and in nature is so important to me and I recommend it to anyone looking to improve their overall wellbeing. Even just five minutes in the garden with a cup of tea can make all the difference.
To me, being outside is like a call home. As well as running and cycling, I love the water, so each day after work, you will find me either out in the fresh air or jumping feet first into the nearest pool of water.
Q3. Talking of slowing down, do you think people underestimate the true benefits of a good night’s sleep?
Any athlete will know that the rest and recovery phase is just as important as training. It is where the body rejuvenates, heals, repairs and grows stronger. And the same for all of us. Our bodies need time to rest, where they are not digesting, not consciously thinking, not being productive – sacred repair time. Sleep is as important as the water that hydrates us, the food that nourishes us and the environment that protects us.
Q4. Can you recommend the most essential vitamins we need in our diet everyday?
This really comes own to everyone's individual needs, lifestyle and dietary intake. We want to ensure that we are getting all of our essential vitamins and minerals each day, ideally through food, but as we all know, this isn't always achievable. Supplementing through vitamins and nutricosmetics allows a way to ensure a consistent, self loving supply of nutritious goodness.
A multivitamin containing the full spectrum of essential vitamins and minerals can be a great way to start. Taking these daily acts of self care ensure nutritional needs are met consistently, everyday.
For anyone new to Nutricosmetics, I would suggest starting with our 360 Multivitamin and Omega 3, 6, 9 Capsules and building from there dependent on your specific goals.
Q5. What’s your favourite Beautifully Nourished product and why?
I take up to three Beautifully Nourished’s Nutricosmetics per month in 3 month cycles and I encourage others to do the same for optimal results. My staple is gut loving, Fibre Pro for gut and digestive support and then I rotate the others.
I am planning to get pintura highlights added to my curls in July, so I am prepping my hair by making it as healthy, strong, and hydrated as possible before hand by taking one of our bestselling vitamins- Repunzel, alongside our Hair, Nail and Skin Complex.
Last month, my vitamins included: Fibre Pro, Beautifully Nourished’s Hair Nail and Skin Complex and Vitamin D3.
Q6. Can you share your daily skincare routine?
Just before bed, one of my absolute favourite routine includes my skincare routine. I love taking this time just for me. Sometimes I will apply my skincare in the bathroom and sometime on my bed. I apply our Vitamin ACE Facial Serum with a rose quartz Gua Sha and really take the time to breathe into the strokes and allow the serum to sink in and do it’s thing. Self massage is an amazing way de-stress, unwind and smooth away the day. I follow up with our Pro-Age Eye Cream and then inhale the fragrance of our luxurious Rejuvenating Night Cream before I apply. I meditate, and then I fall gently to sleep.
Q7. Your tip for female founders starting out with their business in 2021?
My advice for anyone looking to launch their own company is to trust your intuition. You are you and that is your superpower. Our minds and intelligence are wonderful tools, when used as just that, but lead with your heart and stay authentic to where it guides you – even if your plan looks entirely different to anything that’s ever been done before.Take small, consistent steps and place your consumer at the heart of everything.
Q8. What does success mean to you?
Living authentically, having a peaceful state of mind, a happy, healthy heart, oozing vitality and working in alignment with my playful soul.
...
Katherine Elyse leads the Beautifully Nourished Team and began developing her nutritional expertise in 2008, whilst studying for her BSC in Nutrition. Upon obtainment, Katherine travelled to Kentucky, USA to work within a nutrigenomics centre. Assessing the interaction between nutrition and health by isolating RNA and detailing the effects that nutrients have upon gene expression profiles, Katherine's focus was upon researching and testing preventative nutrients against type 2 diabetes and gastrointestinal cancers. It was here that her love for personalised nutrition was born.
In summer, 2012, Katherine packed her bags and moved to London and began interning for an ingredients company, based in central London. It is here that the Beautifully Nourished vision began to take hold and the seeds for BN had been planted.
Katherine later enrolled into business school, in Dublin Ireland in the year of 2014. Alongside her studies, Katherine launched Beautifully Nourished as an online magazine, providing an outlet for nutritional information and began to build a community of Women that shared in the BN ethos.
Upon returning to London, Katherine trained as a product developer at Sainsbury's head-office, Chancery Lane. With the ambition of self-funding Beautifully Nourished, she took the plunge and set up as a consultant, designing products and product ranges for brands and retailers around the world. After a "truly amazing stint in consulting, making lifelong friends and learning more than I ever could have dreamed, it was time for Beautifully Nourished".
In 2020, Beautifully Nourished's first collections were born, harnessing the power of nature through natural & organic skincare + nutricosmetics, designed to boost and support beauty, health and wellbeing whilst nourishing the mind, body and spirit.
Beautifully Nourished is a British wellbeing brand, launched 2020 with the ambition of serving others, with simple, nutritious and high quality, vitamin-packed blends, that support from the inside out. Offering a range of cruelty free skincare and soul nourishing food supplements, Beautifully Nourished focus upon five core areas of wellness: General Wellbeing. Gut Health. Mind, Mood & Nootropics. Beauty & Skincare and Immunity.
Available at Selfridges and John Bell and Croyden.
