Brand new to Temple & Webster, Divine by Therese Kerr encompasses Certified Organic hand care, oral care, and some personal hygiene products. Therese Kerr (pictured below) has a passion that is hard to match. We had a chat about wellness, morning routines and where the range is heading in the future.



Your website contains a plethora of information on the importance of certified organic products. It's clearly the work of someone who is both incredibly passionate and actively informed. When and why did your interest in the organic industry arise?
The turning point in my life was when I lost my spleen due to tumours. I always thought I was healthy but I never truly understood the impact of applying chemical-laden products to my skin or eating non-certified foods or fresh produce. I also never truly understood the impact of stress or suppressed emotions on the human body – I learnt that lesson the hard way.

I have done so much work on myself over the past 13 years. I take and promote a holistic approach to health and wellness and believe we cannot have physical health in the truest sense of the word without nurturing every aspect of ourselves, i.e., the physical, emotional and spiritual aspects.



Your lifestyle is the picture of health and wellness. For people looking to make a positive change in their own lives, what do you think they should focus on first?
Personally, I believe that to achieve overall wellbeing it is necessary to focus on all aspects of health, i.e., the physical, emotional and spiritual and here's my recommendation on how you do that in the order of priority:

Physical: Only use skin, hair and personal care products that are Certified Organic. Most people don't realise there are over 10,500 chemicals used in conventional personal, skin, hair and beauty products and that 65-70% of what you put on your skin will go into your bloodstream and organs. Education is the key and that's what my free Divine By Therese Kerr "Educated, Empowered and Chemical-free Program" is all about. Only eat Certified Organic food and fresh produce where possible and remove highly refined, any processed, high sugar content and high trans-fat content foods from your diet.

Exercise: We are not meant to be sedentary creatures!  We are meant to move and that is why more and more companies are starting to incorporate the use of standing desks and other equipment in the work place to have their employees be more active during working hours. Exercise oxygenates the body and slows down the ageing process.

Emotional: When we are stressed we are naturally in the SNS state, our cells can't relax, our digestive system is shut down, our libido drops, our body doesn't burn fat and the overall impact on our health is dire. It is important to get to the root of the cause of the stress and depending on where you're at, that might take a little while or a little longer than you would like. Knowing that that too is ok, is important.

Spiritual: Meditate, meditate, meditate. Literally take time out for you and don't feel guilty about it. Spend time in nature – reconnect to yourself and our universe and be present to the fact that you are an extension of the universe. Attend one of my Divine Retreats and recapture the magic of you in every aspect: Physical, emotional and spiritual.



With all of these beautiful products at your disposal, can you describe your typical morning routine for us?
In the morning I brush my teeth with the Divine by Therese Kerr Tooth Mousse, and then rinse with the Refreshing Mouth Rinse. I then cleanse my face with the KORA Organics Cream Cleanser, tone with the Balancing Rose Mist and then apply the KORA Organics Soothing Day & Night Cream. Depending on where I am going, if I am going out, I then apply the KORA Organics Tinted Day Cream. I rarely wear makeup, especially foundation (only if I am on a shoot), so the Tinted Day Cream is something I use just about every day to give my face a lovely glow – it is a healthy alternative and replaces the need for any foundation.  What next? I spray on my beautiful Divine By Therese Kerr Certified Organic Deodorant, my healthy alternative to conventional (and I believe highly toxic) deodorants and I'm set for the day.



What inspires you to continue pushing the envelope in regards to natural, safe products, and why do you think this is so important?
Since having tumours in my spleen, I have been a sponge for all things relating to health and wellness. I have learnt so much and it is my passion to share what I have learned with the world, as I feel it is information everyone needs to know. I was at an event not that long ago and a young mum came up to me and told me her young son, at four months of age, had testicular cancer. That shocked me to the core. I have since spoken with doctors who now say it is common to treat babies with cancer – how sad that is to hear.  By using certified organic personal care products and by eating certified organic food, people are limiting the toxic load they are putting on and in their body daily.

My goal is to prevent illness, prevent this from happening, to share a holistic approach to wellness as to me personally it seems pointless filling your body with nutrients if your body is stressed, and incapable of absorbing them. In my opinion, we have no option but to question what we are doing to ourselves and I am committed to ensuring the health message gets communicated to all.



The Divine range covers hand care, oral care, and some personal hygiene products. Will you be expanding on this range in the future?
Yes I definitely will be. I've been working on a certified organic hair care range for a long time, nearly three years in fact! We estimate this will be released by July / August this year and that in itself is very exciting. We are also creating a beautiful certified organic baby range (baby oil, baby wash, baby lotion, bottom balm and other products), which will be released either late into this year or early next year. Our ultimate goal is to provide the world with an option to use certified organic products in every way possible.