In Conversation with Nadine Artemis
Beauty, botanicals, and a life inspired by nature
OFS: You often speak about beauty as something that begins long before we look in the mirror. Looking back over the years, how has your own definition of beauty evolved, and what does it mean to you today?
Looking back, my understanding has stripped away the industrialized layers of beauty: the airbrushed Photoshop impressions, synthetic aggressions, and the relentless drive to fix supposed flaws. Over time, I came to realize that true beauty is not an external standard to chase or an artificial ideal to measure ourselves against. It is a state of communion with ourselves, with nature, and with the living cosmos around us. When we allow the life force of nature to nourish us, the artificial falls away. Beauty becomes a feeling from within, a communion with life rather than something that is applied or quantified.
"Over time, I came to realize that true beauty is not an external standard to chase or an artificial ideal to measure ourselves against."
OFS: Your life seems so deeply intertwined with nature. Outside of formulating and running Living Libations, where do you feel most connected to yourself?
I feel most connected when I am simply basking in nature and bathing in the elements: sunbathing by the lake with plenty of fresh dips, walking barefoot on the forest floor, or laying directly on the earth. Being surrounded by trees where the air is rich with forest terpenes and the earth carries its grounding electromagnetic pulse brings me right home. These elemental moments are my gateway connection to the eternal stream of well-being.
OFS: Many of us begin our mornings by reaching straight for our phones. What does the first hour of your day actually look like, and are there any rituals you've protected over the years that help you feel centered before work begins?
The first hour of my day belongs to the sunrise. In our modern world, aligning with circadian rhythms is one of the most vital health practices we can protect, because light is how our biology, how every single cell, tells time. Receiving early morning sunlight sends nourishing photic signals through specialized opsin light-receptors in our eyes and skin, connecting directly to our mitochondria and the suprachiasmatic nucleus (the brain's master clock). That dawning light spectrum activates a whole symphony of biological responses: it initiates the conversion of essential amino acids like tryptophan into morning serotonin (setting the precursor for nighttime melatonin), influences circadian cholesterol metabolism and hormone synthesis, and signals antimicrobial peptides to step into harmony for the day ahead.
OFS: You've spent decades encouraging people to slow down and reconnect with themselves through ritual. When life feels particularly busy or demanding, what rituals help you come back to yourself?
When the busyness of life amplifies, I simplify. I step outside and reconnect directly with the elements: placing my bare feet on the damp earth, taking a warm soak infused with essential oils and magnesium salts, or spending a quiet moment with a simple oil-cleansing massage. When life speeds up, the ultimate biohack is slowing down, letting the olfactory wisdom of essential oils and mindful body care welcome us back into the present moment.
OFS: After spending so much of your life studying botanicals, essential oils, and skin, has there been anything you've changed your mind about when it comes to beauty?
It is not so much that I have changed my mind, but rather that I am continually in awe of how advanced scientific analysis keeps validating what antiquity intuited. As technology advances, time-tested essences like Frankincense, Rose, and Sandalwood continue to prove themselves as extraordinarily sophisticated botanical formulations. Science now confirms that these ancient plants are powerful bacteriostats and skin-salvation substances that work synergistically with the skin's microbiome, helping to resolve modern skin ailments from melasma to eczema while supporting tissue integrity at a cellular level.
"I feel most connected when I am simply basking in nature and bathing in the elements: sunbathing by the lake with plenty of fresh dips, walking barefoot on the forest floor, or laying directly on the earth."
OFS: If you were traveling for a month and could only pack three Living Libations products, which would make the cut—and why are those the ones you couldn't live without?
Choosing just three is nearly impossible, but if I were packing my bag today, my core trio would be:
Rose Best Skin Ever: The all-over face and body multi-tasker to cleanse, exfoliate, nourish, and moisturize from head to toe.
Neroli Poetic Pits: My classic choice for alchemizing perspiration into aromatic inspiration.
Happy Gum Drops: The dental serum to keep my oral oasis resilient.
If I could add a couple extras into my bag, I would add our Calendula Comfort Shampoo and Conditioner Duo so all body ablutions are covered for the month. And if air travel is involved, Mountain Myrtle Nasal Serum and Nose Glow are essential companions for high-altitude hydration and defense!
OFS: You've built a business that's lasted decades while staying true to your original philosophy. Looking back, what's been the biggest lesson you've learned—not just as a founder, but as a person?
Having been in business since opening my first store in 1994, navigating three decades of evolution, including rebuilding after a devastating fire, the greatest lesson has been learning to trust the organic rhythm of resilience. Life and creation move in cycles, much like nature. I am endlessly thankful for the foundational integrity of those early years, which provided the solid groundwork to weather the storms and to find the grace in life.
OFS: You've often said that nature is one of your greatest teachers. What's a lesson the natural world continues to remind you of, even after all these years?
Nature reminds me that the universe is endlessly nuanced, brilliant, and interconnected. It is a grand symphony of elements, light spectra, and electromagnetic frequencies working together in effortless synergy. In nature, everything is accomplished without hurry. It teaches us that aligning with natural laws as much as possible in our modern lives serves our beauty, wellness, and clarity above all else.
OFS: You've spent decades helping people rethink beauty. What do you hope someone feels—not just sees in the mirror—after they've welcomed Living Libations into their daily rituals for a year?
Above all, I hope that people can feel good in their own skin. I hope they step away from the mirror feeling a sense of peace, biological harmony, and sovereign-assurance, knowing that their daily ablutions are not a chore to fix a flaw, but a celebration and appreciation for their own living vitality.
