If one of your new year’s resolutions was to introduce new healthy and fulfilling habits into your life, the new brand Callen Olive is the daily motivation you need to stick to it. Here, founder, multi-award-winning podiatrist, London-born Maggie Trevillion reveals why Callen Olive is more than just another luxury skincare for legs and feet but a new concept to help take greater care of the most neglected parts of our body.
Caring for our hair, facial skin, or teeth is an all-year thing, but when it comes to our legs and feet, it becomes seasonal. As we travel the depths of winter, it’s important to remember that cold temperatures reduce the moisture levels in the air, leaving the skin dry and itchy. Thirsty skin is prone to crack and premature ageing. Therefore keeping it hydrated is essential. The same rule applies whether the skin is exposed, such as our face or hands, or covered in clothing.
The first thing to consider for keeping your legs and feet in top condition throughout the winter is hydration, hydration, hydration. Good moisturisation makes all the difference in skin texture and tone, as well as preserving its health and youth.
Not only will dry skin on the legs and feet cause chapping, flaking and itchiness, but it can become susceptible to infection and deterioration over time. In addition, because it’s a lot thicker in texture than other parts of the body, leg and foot skin needs extra hydration and the ability to retain moisture.
Developed by the multi-award-winning podiatrist Maggie Trevillion, Callen Olive brings the ultimate range of luxury products to treat legs and feet to the market. Vegan, unisex and with the latest cosmetic science behind it, the brand promises not only to keep your leg and feet in top condition but becoming an essential part of your daily self-care ritual. With the most exquisite texture and fragrances to die for, here Maggie tells us what to expect.
Running a multi-award-winning podiatry clinic must keep you busy. What inspired you to create Callen Olive?
Having run Walk This Way Podiatry for over ten years, it saddens me how many people suffer from foot shame. Day in and day out, we deal with frustrated clients who feel ashamed of baring their legs and feet due to embarrassing conditions such as fungal nails, verrucas, or dry, cracked skin. Some of them wait months before seeking help, so by the time we see them, the condition has deteriorated, making treatments more challenging.
It’s evident that the feet are one of the most underrated parts of the body. Unless there is a medical or cosmetic need, most people do not bother to have them regularly checked as they do with their teeth, for example. That was the main reason.
But also, when it came to taking care of the legs and feet at home, I felt there was a big gap in the market for products that actually work. I couldn’t find a brand that fused luxury cosmetics’ properties — beautiful texture and heavenly scents — with the scientific research and podiatry expertise to target the very specific needs of the legs and feet’s skin. Moreover, I was really unhappy having to use products containing animal ingredients. Every product I tried left the skin feeling sticky and greasy, and it did not actually do what it said on the label.
With Callen Olive, I want to raise awareness of the importance of maintaining our feet in top condition. It’s about changing the world’s perception, one foot at a time.
Tell us how your obsession with feet began
WOW! How long have you got?! I’m a Londoner, and I used to help my grandmother at her stall on Portobello Road. I remember having a lot of fun pairing up shoes and talking to people. The Portobello years were the beginning of my love for fashion and shoes, for sure. The experience led me to study Beauty Therapy at the London College of Fashion, and it was then I discovered my love for feet by doing pedicures. As part of my course, I had to make my own cosmetics, and I remember dreaming of one day having my own skincare brand.
My obsession with feet didn’t end up there, and I went on to study podiatry at the University of Brighton. After that, I spent the early years of my career working in the National Health Service, the Ministry of Defence and a private practice in Marylebone. When I had my first child, I couldn’t find any flexible or part-time podiatry positions to accommodate my family’s needs, so I opened Walk This Way Podiatry in 2012.
What makes Callen Olive different from other podiatry skincare brands?
Callen Olive combines the latest advancements in cosmetic science, medical podiatry expertise and the luxurious feel of premium beauty products. Over the last four years, I have worked closely with one of the top cosmetic manufacturers in the UK and their in-house chemists to develop a product range that contains the highest grade of naturally derived ingredients, responsibly sourced worldwide. Every formulation targets the particular needs of the legs and feet skin to deliver instant results, as well as a rich, smooth texture and scents to die for. During the process, we tried and tested the products on our patients and asked other podiatry colleagues (nationally and internationally) to do the same to ensure they worked. Because of the fantastic results, many of them are now stocking the products in their clinics too.
As well as being made in England, Callen Olive is a hundred per cent vegan. It was crucial for me to obtain the Vegan and Cruelty-free accreditations. Most podiatry products available contain animal ingredients, something I find unnecessary. I feel the world we live in now has come a long way in developing high-quality vegan products. No longer is there a need to continue to abuse animals or use synthetic ingredients damaging our skin (the biggest organ in the body), the environment, and the planet.
I’m proud that Callen Olive products are certified by the Vegan Society and Leaping Bunny trademarks.
What’s the philosophy behind the brand?
Celebrating our individual perfection and being happy with the version of ourselves we are right now. It’s so easy nowadays to put pressure on ourselves to reach a level of perfection and achievement that’s based on self-demand. Callen Olive is about cherishing the body and mind with love and gratitude for the job they do every day.
Have you got a favourite product?
Not really! I just can’t pick one; it’s like favouring one of your children. However, when push comes to shove, I will choose Foot Sole & Heel Saviour Balm and the Deep Nourishing and Restorative Leg & Foot Serum. Funny enough, they took the longest to formulate, perfect, and create. I love how they leave the legs and feet skin feeling radiant, velvety soft, and looking plumper and younger. They’re both essential in a beauty bag to maintain the skin hydrated, lock in its natural moisture and repair the different layers.
What are your top tips for healthy feet?
For me, it’s all about discipline and paying the feet equal attention to the face or hair. So, I always advise making leg and foot care part of one’s daily self-care ritual. My top tips are:
- Make sure to moisturise your legs and feet daily and do it straight away after showering or bathing.
- Exfoliate the legs and feet at least twice weekly to eliminate the skin’s dead cells and promote new ones.
- Remove the excess dry skin on the heels with a foot file or emery board once a week to prevent it from building up and cracking.
- If you do paint your toenails, always use a basecoat to prevent them from discolouring. But, most importantly, make sure you give them some breathing space between pedicures to repair themselves from the chemicals in nail polishes. Not only will having nails permanently coloured make them dry and brittle, but also they can develop fungal infections. Using cuticle oil will help strengthen and revitalise them.
Why is self-care so important to you?
Because we can become so absorbed in the material side of things — how much money we have in the bank, what car we drive or how lovely our home is — that taking care of our real needs takes a back seat.
The best thing somebody can value is their body, which requires care and respect. I think being healthy from the inside out is our most precious commodity, but sadly it’s often taken for granted.
Most people only care for their feet when there is a pain, problem or cosmetic issue. Believe me, I have seen it far too many times. And it’s easy to neglect our feet because they can be hidden inside our shoes or nail polish. However, people will never let the skin on their faces get as bad as their feet — why treat them any differently? Especially considering the amount of mileage they do daily, weekly, monthly and yearly.
In my opinion, holding an emotional value to our body should be non-negotiable and a vital part of self-care. Bearing in mind that prevention is always better than cure, feet should be checked as regularly as teeth. Doing so is not just an investment in your health but the best way to optimise your well-being and quality of life.
What is your favourite form of self-care?
Doing a body awareness scan through guided meditation, really checking in with myself. This process enables me to know what my body needs there and then to feed my soul. Being a busy mum with two kids, two dogs and the demand from the day-to-day business, I always find it the best way to reset myself. I combine my meditation with small rituals for my skin, hair and nails throughout the week, ensuring every part of my body is tended. I also have monthly treatments with a host of professionals and holistic practitioners to help me maintain the best version of myself — this is what my soul urges, and everyone deserves from me.
Callen Olive leg and foot-loving products are available at selected podiatry clinics across the country and online.
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