FINDING THE CALM | KATE DALTON + OLLI ELLA

Finding the Calm

An interview with our founder Kate Dalton + friends at Olli Ella, the most precious kids decor range based in Byron Bay.

Creating a good morning, day and night routine for yourself and your little one is not always an easy task. We caught up with the beautiful Kate Dalton, owner of the organic tea brand, Mayde Tea, to share how she brings a holistic approach to her routine.
I’m Kate, a naturopath, nutritionist and I own the organic tea brand, Mayde Tea. I’m a new num and I love it ! In my family I have my partner Ryan, my 4 month – old baby girl Alfie and Labrador Molly.



You started Mayde Tea almost 6 years ago when you were only 23 years old! Tell us more about that journey and the inspiration behind the brand…

I started Mayde Tea when I couldn’t find a product I was searching for. I was looking for herbal tea to help with my own health issues, digestive and nervous system imbalances. I wanted something organic, handmade, formulated by a qualified naturopath/herbalist, so that it was medicinal, and to be in functional and eco-friendly packaging. It was surprisingly hard to find! So, I made it myself while I was studying at Uni. By the time I graduated I was working full time on Mayde Tea, and it’s been the best little unexpected life change ever!



Can you walk us through your morning, day and night routine with your new baby and how Mayde Tea is a part of it?

My morning routine: Every morning I wake up to the most adorable sound of Alfie chatting away in her cot. I get up, feed her, and then Ryan spends some time with Alfie while I meditate for 20 minutes. Next, I have a huge glass of filtered water, an Energise tea and a big brekky to start the day.

Energise is a caffeine-free herbal blend which helps circulation and supports natural energy production, I’m not drinking coffee while breastfeeding as I found it was affecting Alfies sleep, (she must be sensitive to caffeine like me) so this is a perfect replacement.

Afternoons out and about:

My days change a lot. I make sure I move my body somehow and get out in nature, the lighthouse walk in Byron Bay or a surf (if baby daddy isn’t at work!). I work on Mayde Tea while Alfie sleeps, and spend a LOT of time staring at her adorable face.
Being summer here in Australia, I always make a 1L bottle of an iced tea that I drink throughout the day. At the moment I’m drinking our Nursing blend.

Our Nursing blend is created to support healthy lactation – its so refreshing and is incredibly therapeutic for both Alfie and I.



Winding Down:

I’ve always naturally created a calming space and had a set of night-time rituals before bed. I experienced pregnancy insomnia, so when I was pregnant, I was working on how to support my nervous system and hormones to allow myself to be able to sleep well at night. Serenity tea is the perfect pre-slumber beverage for a restful night’s sleep.

The Serenity blend supports the nervous system and is formulated to drink before bed – Alfie then gets some calming herbal properties through my breastmilk.

To allow my body to wind-down at the end of the day, I avoid bright lights and screens after 6pm. Keeping the lights dim after the sun has gone down teaches your body to convert serotonin to melatonin (your sleep hormone) —bright lights confuse this conversion.

After Alfie’s bath, we take her to her room and give her a light massage with a natural oil blend and read her a book. Then we have a cuddle and feed and she’s off to bed. We try not to get too caught up in ‘parenting and sleeping techniques’ and just do with her what we personally like, in terms of night-time rituals.

Kate wears the Katya wrap in cinnamon