An interview with TV star Troian Bellisario, partner and fan of Rituals

Why did you want to collaborate with Rituals? Why do you think the collab is a good fit?

I like the philosophy behind Rituals. I like that they want to encourage mindfulness in those who use their products. By reminding us of our own little daily routines and the power that they hold, Rituals hopes to help people relax a little more in the middle of a hectic day, or take a moment to care for themselves when they didn’t think they had the time before.

What do you like about Rituals? 

Our senses are very powerful. I feel particularly connected to scents. They can bring me back to a memory, or ground me in the present, they can calm me down to get ready for sleep or energize me and get me out the door. The fragrances of Ritual’s products are beautifully crafted to realign your mind, to focus you, or relax you. As someone trying to live life more mindfully, I find their message of slowing down and reinvesting in the moment inspiring.

What are some of your favorite products? 

Yes, I really like their iconic shower foams. I have a habit of rushing through the shower to get to work and using this product makes me slow down just a little more. The gel explodes into a foam when it makes contact with water. And as it is spring on the east coast I have been seeing cherry blossoms everywhere, which is incredible! So, at the moment, my personal favorite is the Ritual of Sakura shower foam. It’s a beautiful fragrance with rice milk to make my skin feel very soft.

What is your favorite daily routine and why? 

I am a newcomer to meditation. I have been telling myself all of the amazing benefits and reasons to begin incorporating meditation in my life for years, I have seen it be a wonderful addition to many friends, but for whatever reason I have only begun my practice a little over a month ago. Still, I love taking a little bit of my day purely for myself, for nothing, for quiet, to start over.  I talk to a lot of people all day and just those 10 minutes of silence are bliss. I have recently downloaded the Rituals App and it has options for guided meditation and small yoga practices that you can easily fit into a break at work. I love this!

Do you feel you’ve found the right balance between work and life? 

I feel as though I will be working towards that balance for the entirety of my life, and why shouldn't it be an ever-changing process? My career will change, as will my life, family, home and everything else. Change is the one constant we can count on, so I feel that there is no right or fixed balance between work and life, it is an ebb and flow that we must constantly be aware of, and ready to shift with.

You just wrote your own movie. What motivates you into creating new ideas? 

Honestly, frustration motivates me a lot. I find that when I write, I write to work my way out of a situation. When I wrote, “Feed,” I wanted to write myself out of the loneliness and pain that I felt in my eating disorder. I wanted to share my experience and connect with other people because I felt so isolated within my own head. Even though the story I wrote is not exactly my life story, the feelings of my experience are threaded throughout, and pulling them out of my head, and writing them down on a piece of paper to then hand to a director and other actors, a costume designer, makeup artist and an editor, that helps me let go of the pain and the frustration I felt. 

I feel the same way when I write now. If I am pained by something in the world, or frustrated by the current state of politics, I can write a new way out, I can create a character who is braver than me, or smarter than me, who can change things… and perhaps she will inspire me to find a way to do it in reality.

Where do you go to calm down?

Anywhere that is green. When I am in LA, I hike in Griffith Park. In New York, I go to Central Park and get lost (as much as I can). If I can go somewhere and see trees and hear water, I find it quiets the noise inside me.

Do you have any specific philosophies on life?

Yolo. I’m kidding. I find that my philosophies on life are constantly being formed and reformed, but their foundation is in kindness. I believe that we should do everything to be aware of others around us, to try to have empathy for someone else’s situation, to believe that we are all doing the best we can and that there is enough for everyone if we were willing to be a little less selfish, with our time, with our energy and with our resources. Sort of a David Foster Wallace… “this is water” point of view.

How do you create an in-home spa feeling?

After a long day on set I think the easiest and best way to create that feeling is to draw a beautiful warm bath and light a candle with your favorite scent to unwind and relax.