Interview with Raffaella Grisa, WA:IT
* as asked by BLANDA BEAUTY
* You have been an avid traveler between the hemispheres. What are the things you appreciate the most in the lifestyle of eastern Asian cultures? And what are the things we westerners should definitely adopt?
The rituality of gestures, everything could be transformed in a ritual, the tea Ceremony is an example, the tea making becomes a multi steps ritual as in a Sacred Ceremony.
* „Appreciating the moment” is something which we have heard from you before. It is becoming more and more difficult in our fast-paced civilization – how do you make that happen for you?
Slowing down is a state of mind and let us being more conscious of the inner self.
* Your brand does not feel commercial, but rather intimate and personal. How do you want your brand to be perceived by your customers?
I strongly believe in the healing power of scents and touch. WA:IT is a wellbeing and healing path that leads to feeling better and when you feel better you look better.
When I first arrived to Japan many years ago I finally understood the meaning of “holistic approach to beauty”, my rational mind tried to give a meaning, in Japan I discovered it is a simple equation: we are made of two parts, one ethereal (our soul), one tangible (the temple of our soul, our body) and the environment we live affects us. Healing the soul with our healing fragrances, taking care of our soul temple with our sensory skin ritual, whose actives are rooted in the traditional Japanese medicine and balancing the environment surrounding us on our frequences with our natural incenses is the meaning of WA:IT
* Your fragrances are special, they feel complex and tender to me, and very unique – how does it work for you, creating a new scent?
The starting point is a vision, I’m not a master perfumer, I develop my vision through the aromatherapy side and after that I work side by side to the master perfumer who decodes my vision and transformes it in a sensory alchemy.
* Responsibility and sustainability is a key theme for your brand. Knowing the current challenges to the environment, this is so critical. You have and still see a lot from the world, do you feel this message has arrived everywhere?
Unfortunately there is still a long way to go. I was invited to participate as a lecturer to the last Nest Climate for the 2023 Climate Week in NYC, and I discover sustainability and climate issues being a key focus among gen-z students from all over the World. They are the future, therefore I’m optimistic.
* How does your beauty routine look like and what are your bedside table essentials?
My daily beauty ritual is very light and powerful:
My one and only cleanser is OFURO I use it either in the morning and in the evening, I love slighltly massaging the face while cleansing, the power of touching is so strong. Once a week I use OFURO as a face mask leaving it for 5 minutes before rinsing it. Then few drops of OMNI+ for pumping moisturizing and let my skin glowing. And few drops of OMNI on my hair to nurish my curls. And I’m ready to start my day.
* To get a better idea of what makes you tick, what books would we need to read?
I don’t have books to suggest, my suggestion is to listen to our inner self and follow our intuitions
* Lastly, if push comes to shelf, Spaghetti or Soba?
My personal taste goes towards soba, my roots towards spaghetti. So both of them, as my brand is, I’m a perfect symbiosis between Japan and Italy.
