Volunteer group Tender Loving Beauties founded by Nicola Le Lievre, owner of In Therapy in Red Hill, help sick or disadvantaged adults and children feel happier by offering them some much needed TLC.
We caught up with Nicola to hear more about how she’s giving back to the community.
Who are Tender Loving Beauties, and what do they do?
I have had a calling to give back for quite some now and I love making woman feel amazing and happier in any little way I can. As beauty therapists we have a unique gift of nurturing and touch, that needs to be spread to our community in need. I remember giving Tender Loving Beauty to anorexia patients when I was studying beauty back in 1997 and the gratitude I felt stuck with me over the years. This year I decided to take action. TLB is a not for profit volunteer group which started in April 2019. We are a group of beauty therapists offering Tender Loving Beauty to our community. This group is not exclusively for woman or In Therapy Therapists. Everybody needs somebody to brighten their day and we want to be the ones who with just a smile, tender loving touch and a bit of beauty can change someone’s life even in a small way. This is the beginning of a dream, vision and lifelong mission for me. I feel so grateful I am giving back through the industry I love and have dedicated my life to. I of course need support to grow and expand this group in Brisbane and the goal is to grow throughout Australia and to many more charities.
What kind of beauty treatments do you do with Tender Loving Beauties?
We have started with basic beauty treatments and as we grow and more therapists come onboard we can offer more days as well as longer treatments. We are doing basic manicures and pedicures, scalp and shoulder massages, eye treatments as well as brow tinting and waxing.
How has your partnership with Hummingbird House been so far?
We officially ‘launched’ TLB at the HH Mother’s Day high tea at Victoria Park Golf Course on Sat 11 May where I gave an introduction to the attendees. It was a beautiful morning raising funds via a silent auction and raffle. Together $25,000 was raised whilst enjoying beautiful food and company. TLB had a touch up station set up and were selling a few items with proceeds going to HH. We started our first day volunteering on Mon 13 May and are going every Monday at this point for two hours. As we grow and get more volunteers we will be able to offer more days and hours.
What is your favourite story from volunteering?
The feeling of giving back that makes my soul overflow with gratitude. When you see a mum who is exhausted close her eyes and nod off whilst giving a hand massage knowing you are making a difference in her life albeit small is an incredible feeling.
Where are you hoping to take Tender Loving Beauties in the future?
Our goal is to recruit many more therapists to donate their time to Hummingbird House. This will enable us to volunteer more days of the week as well as support more families. Also, I am in the process of expanding to more charities around Queensland. TLB is partnering with Sustainable Salons Australia and supporting the charity 3rd Space who help the homeless and people doing it tough in Brisbane. Our partnership with Hummingbird House is just the beginning and it is very exciting that as we grow, we can reach more organisations such as: Cancer clinics, old age homes and anywhere we there are woman who need TLC and TLB.
How can people support Tender Loving Beauties?
Three ways the beauty community can support TLB:
1) Therapists volunteering time.
2) Suppliers offering product and consumables to use.
3) Monitory donations which we can process through HH so a tax receipt is available.
To volunteer email Nicole at nicola@intherapy.com.au.