Featured Image: Baths encouraged; smoking is not. Actor Steve McQueen and his wife, actor Neile Adams, taking a sulphur bath at home.
From Miranda Kerr to Marie Kondo, celebrities are making baths a key part of their wellness routines. They offer some tips on de-stressing in style.
Last April Dan Rather tweeted about self-care. “For me, few things beat a hot soak, something the ancients in societies around the world figured out,” his message read. “Last night, I was in a bit of a mood, I came out of the tub ready to wrestle an alligator.” An 89-year-old former news anchor taking to social media to discuss his wellness rituals was surely a sign of these pandemic times. Rather was also correct in noting that the transformative powers of a good bath have a long historical precedent.
Cleopatra, perhaps the most iconic of the ancient bathers, had an elaborate ritual for her regular bath that, as legend goes, required donkey milk. There are the Korean jjimjilbang, where soaking is often followed by a rigorous body scrub; Turkish hammams, whose association with religious tradition means they are often located next to mosques; the Japanese onsen hot springs; and the Russian banya, where a shot of vodka is a traditional part of the experience. And, in Ayurveda, says Martha Soffer, co-founder of the Ayurvedic L.A.-based Surya Spa, the bath is considered a sacred healer. “Ancient Ayurvedic texts talk about elaborate bathing rituals to improve sleep, increase wellness and longevity, purify the body and calm the mind,” explains Soffer. “Mental and emotional tension are eased by [the] warmth and comfort.”
These healing powers have recently been backed up by scientific research. A small, peer-reviewed Japanese study of 38 people published in the journal Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine in 2020 comparing them to showers revealed that baths were significantly better for relieving pain, stress, mental health, and fatigue. Considering the stress of the past year and our perpetually homebound state, perhaps it’s no wonder then that the bath has seemingly surged in popularity. “Evenings are not filled with social obligations,” says Shannon Vaughn, founder of the bath brand Pursoma, who ran a “Bath, Not Binge” program for dry January, encouraging people to soak rather than drink before bed, since alcohol use has increased throughout the pandemic. “With long days at home, work and home-schooling, it’s been hard for folks to disconnect,” she says. “We now see people who never bathed turning to baths as their nightly ritual and reward.”
Below see some of the more exotic:
The bathroom, where soccer star Zlatan Ibrahimovi´c was recently photographed for a perfume ad. The stool was designed by Martin-Löf for Frama; the custom-made tub, vanity and floor are of Swedish Ekeberg marble, the same material as the facade of the building.
This group includes celebrities, who have been posting selfies and videos from the tub this past year. There was Madonna proselytizing about the pandemic’s democratizing effects from her flower petal–strewn bath; a naked Chelsea Handler doling out book recommendations, like Diplomacy by Henry Kissinger; and Chrissy Teigen having her hair washed by her daughter Luna. Elizabeth Hurley marked her 55th birthday with a post of herself submerged in bubbles; and Catherine Zeta-Jones extolled the virtues of following pizza with bathtime. January Jones, whose Instagram has itself become a form of relief for many this past year, offered an engrossing rundown of her few-times-a-week pandemic bath ritual, which she jokingly referred to as “a human stew.” The ingredients? Lavender bubble bath, a few drops of an essential oil blend, nearly a box of baking soda, a few glugs of apple cider vinegar and some generous scoops of salt. (“Sea salt, Epsom salt, whatever you have,” she says.) And, like many of us, high-profilers have been using the bath as a kid-free zone, a place for some much-needed alone time.
“After I get the kids to bed, I like to dim the lights, light a candle and play soothing music. [And] I love to put a rose-quartz crystal at the base of the tub,” says model and entrepreneur Miranda Kerr, who also adds in a few pumps of her brand Kora Organics’ Essential Body Wash plus rose essential oil. “Taking a moment to have a little bath ritual is such a great way for me to recharge.” Same goes for minimalist lifestyle pioneer and author Marie Kondo. “For as long as I can remember, soaking in a bath at the end of the day has been part of my routine, but during the pandemic, this brief period of alone time has become more necessary than ever,” says Kondo. “Between working at home, helping my children learn at home and taking care of my family, a bath is something I enjoy that’s just for me.”
How best to soak? Pursoma offers guidance on each one of its ready-made bath packs. The steps: Disconnect from tech; pour in your potion of choice into a hot bath; soak for 20 to 30 minutes; and follow with a period of “sweat and rest,” to allow the body to relax and cool down, and deep breathing. Soffer likes to dry-brush as a precursor to the bath—“to increase absorption of the healing ingredients,” she says—and, to ensure optimal benefits, she advises the importance of maintaining a warm temperature afterward: Wear cozy socks and dry your hair so no part of you gets cold. “Taking a nice bath is like meditating,” says actor Annaleigh Ashford, who in the winter months and when she’s performing onstage takes a couple a day. “It’s probably good for your adrenal glands. I’m not a doctor, but I’m sure a bath a day will probably help keep the psychiatrist away.”
Super Soakers
Bath time remedies for body and spirit.
PHOTO: SUSANNE KAUFMANN
Susanne Kaufmann Oil Bath for the Senses
A mix of soothing lavender oil and stimulating rosemary. For true fans, it’s available super-sized: one liter for $205.
PHOTO: KNEIPP
Kneipp Pine & Fir Mineral Bath Salt
An at-home take on forest bathing, thanks to a combination of pine and Siberian fir extracts.$4
PHOTO: LORD JONES
Lord Jones High CBD Formula Bath Salts
Pink Himalayan and Epsom salts, arnica and 20mg of CBD per scoop for tension relief. $65
PHOTO: SURYA SPA
Surya Calming Bath Soak
Surya’s Calming variety combines lavender, ashwagandha and deep-mined sea salt. $35
PHOTO: HERBIVORE BOTANICALS
Herbivore Coconut Milk Bath Soak
Coconut milk powder and coconut pulp have a smoothing and softening effect on the skin. $18
PHOTO: SALT LIVE ENERGIZED
Salt Live Energized Lemongrass Geranium Salt Soak
This brand’s treatment center in Manhattan has climate-controlled rooms for breathing salt air; its soaks, such as this blend of lemongrass, geranium and Himalayan and Epsom salts, offer the same benefits at home. $48
PHOTO: BATHING CULTURE
Bathing Culture Big Dipper Mineral Bath
This trio of salts—California Pacific sea salt, Epsom, and Himalayan Pink—mixed with green sea clay are laced with cypress, cedar and vetiver scents. $30
PHOTO: DIMITRI NEWMAN FOR NATUREOFTHINGS
Nature of Things Restorative Floral Bath
Plumeria, jasmine, vetiver and cedarwood, plus seawater, cannabidiol and green tea oil. $150
PHOTO: GOOP
Goop Beauty Nurse! Under the Weather Bath Soak
With Epsom salt, baking soda, mustard powder and Australian eucalyptus and tea tree oils, this Goop bath, as its name suggests, is meant to soothe during illness. $35
PHOTO: PURSOMA
Pursoma Just Breathe Ritual
Pursoma founder Shannon Vaughn says this soak, featuring French gray sea salt, eucalyptus, rosemary, lavender and ginger, has been a pandemic bestseller. $20
PHOTO: BALMYARD BEAUTY
Balmyard Beauty Detox Bush Bath
This bath is a mix of lemongrass, Jack in the bush, ginger, grapefruit and lime combined in a bag ready for dunking in the water. Follow up with the brand’s Romantic Call Body Oil. $44
PHOTO: AMAYORI
Amayori Hinoki Onsen Daily Transformation Soaking Salts
Meant to re-create the experience of soaking in an onsen surrounded by hinoki cypress wood, these salts come in daily and more intensive weekly varieties. $80
