The Beauty of Bathing and New Beginnings with Janine and Romina, Co-Founders of New Dawn Bath
In times where our phones and laptops never leave our side and even became a foundational part of our meditation and yoga routine (we need that meditation timer, right?) the bathtub seems to be one of the rare places where we truly disconnect. Besides quite literally cleansing our bodies, bathing rituals have the immense power to clear our energy and offer a space for us to reconnect with ourselves. Janine and Romina, Co-Founders of New Dawn Bath set out to reintroduce us to that sacred ritual. Let’s dive into our conversation about the beauty of bathing, new beginnings, motherhood and what it means to lead a company from a place of integrity and equilibrium.
Tell us a little bit about the Ritual of Bathing and its origins. How do we create a beautiful ritual bath for ourselves?
Bathing is a ritual that (quite literally) cleanses. But bathing can be so much more. In ancient mythologies - the Greek mythology for example - there are a lot more benefits attributed to bathing than just hygiene. The greeks already used mineral baths for healing, clay and epsom salt baths to draw out toxins from the body and certain scents like lavender to calm the nerves.
When you are bathing you are making space to take a moment and just be with yourself. For some designated time you let go of the role you are playing in life (gender, work, family), without being connected to your phone or mail, without your to-do list. An invitation to just be… That in itself is already a ritual, allowing yourself to come out of the do-ing into the be-ing.
You can make your ritual more powerful by setting an intention for your bath. Closing your eyes and taking some deep belly breaths. You can light candles, put on some soft music and create a sacred space for yourself. Maybe meditate. You can get some flowers or pine-tree branches on your forest walk and add these to the water.
Ultimately you can thank Mother Earth for the water. And if you feel called after the bath, save a bit of water and offer that to your garden or some place in nature.
What are your current favourite wellness rituals and beauty routines?
Romina: As there is no real routine in my life yet, it can look so different from day to day. Some days are calling for yoga and stretching, dry-brushing or gua sha. But with a toddler around, all that becomes more playful. Definitely one hour per day just for myself is essential and this one hour does look very different each day as I just simply try to feed my need at that moment.
Janine: Since becoming a mother my beauty routines are undergoing a transformation. Simply by not having the time to do a daily morning routine. For me it is now more about creating moments to feel into my needs. And that looks different every time. I have to say taking a footbath is becoming a new favourite routine of mine. After a day of work it helps me to deeply relax and sink into my body. The salts in the water help to ground, the epsom salt is detoxifying and it is just so calming for a busy mind.
You are both a mother as well as founder of an emerging business. How do you navigate motherhood and the ups and downs of entrepreneurship?
Janine: We had the idea for our business just before we both got pregnant, (unplanned :)). And yes, it has been an immense journey since. Romina and I met when we were both living in Florence, Italy. We kept on bumping into each other after we met at a yoga class. When we bumped into each other for the awkward 7th time in one week, we said that maybe this is a sign that we should have a coffee together. We ended up sitting in the café talking for 5 hours.
Now only 4 years later: both mothers, business owners, both moved countries, and both healing old patterns. It has been simultaneously beautiful and very hard. Navigating so many changes in our personal life while next to that setting up a business. Some days it is so rewarding, creative and synchronistic. Other days it is very confronting and demanding.
But what makes it unlike any other job, is the fact that this too is our baby. And there is unconditional love for the company and a deep belief that our bath salts can give someone a moment full of self-love. And just like in motherhood, how hard it may get, it is the love that makes you get up every time and never give up.
Why did you decide on the name New Dawn Bath? And which is your current favourite bath?
Romina: “New Dawn” stands for a new beginning. Feeling grounded, rested and refreshed is just the result after having a bath, so our state of mind after a bath became our company's name, New Dawn Bath.
All three bath soaks are my favourite and I choose the soak depending how I feel on that day and what is needed. But at the moment it tends to be Deep Forest very often.
Janine: New Dawn Essences are the remedies in our bath salts. And the name New Dawn Bath originated from there. New Dawn means a new beginning. My favourite at this moment is Energetic Cleanse. It offers the remedy of an Austrian Waterfall and rinses all things off that don't belong to your authentic self. It reminds me that “we can always begin again.”
Tell us more about the spiritual aspect of your bathing salts and the New Dawn Essences.
The essences are made by Inge who is an initiated female Paco (shaman that does not use hallucinogenic substances). The essences she makes are a wonderful way to connect with yourself and with nature.
The New Dawn Essences come straight from nature. They are derived from the life energy of flowers, plants, trees, mushrooms, minerals and sacred energetic places all over the world.
They work on a very subtle energetic level, helping to restore your energetic body to a state of balance.
Deep Forest contains a remedy that is very grounding and makes you feel one with nature.
Energetic Cleanse includes a remedy that is very cleansing and helps you to let go of energies, beliefs and projections that are not yours to carry.
Moon River contains a passion flower remedy that allows you to rest and surrender. A very yin or feminine energy that correlates beautifully with a moon ritual.
Your baths are made with Celtic sea salt. Why did you decide to use this kind of salt for your baths?
We chose Celtic sea salt because it contains many minerals. The skin is our biggest organ and can take in a lot of nutrients. Janine studied Ayurveda, where she learnt that the skin has its own agni, meaning digestive system and can really take in these nutrients. Our bodies need vitamins but also a complexity of minerals to thrive. (Also our bodies use up a lot of minerals when we are stressed). Celtic sea salt contains many minerals and in combination with Epsom Salt, which is very high in magnesium, provides a way to nourish our body. We chose Celtic sea salt over Himalayan salt because of sustainability reasons, since our company is based in Europe.
When do you feel most beautiful?
Romina: When I feel nourished on all levels, physically, mentally and spiritually.
Janine: When I am alone in nature and I think of myself as beautiful. Not having someone else defining my beauty.
You recently posted on Instagram „We are not an ordinary company, nor do we strive to be“. What are your thoughts on leadership and the dawn of a new way to work and do business?
The hustle culture of always being busy, doing more, pushing your product, buying followers, consumerism and an attitude of always “more, more, more”, is something we do not resonate with.
We want to move from our WHY.
We ask ourselves: “What do we want to give to the world?” And from this point on build and grow our business organically.
That also means creating an equilibrium in our personal lives and from that place grow our business. Allowing time and space for rest, pleasure and ease. Together with structure, simplicity and goals. The Yin and the Yang, the Feminine and the Masculine, are both equally important.
And also being honest and open about the fact that this balance may look different in different seasons of our lives. We are also still finding this balance…
What are you currently reading?
Romina: Actually two very different books. “Hippie“ by Paulo Coelho and
“The Body keeps the Score: Brain, Mind and Body in the healing of Trauma” by Bessel van der Kolk.
Dive into the world of New Dawn Bath and immerse yourself in these amazing high vibrational bath soaks. They all carry a special mantra, which is written on the back of each package. The mantras are beautifully written by Romina and Janine and reciting them while bathing makes the experience even more powerful. Try and you never want to be without.
Use code ANDSPIRIT10 zu get 10% off at checkout.*
Romina and Janine were interviewed by Isabelle Brockbals, Founder of &Spirit.
Photo Credit: New Dawn Bath.
*Affiliate Partnership.