Gisele Bündchen cashes in on mental health ‘trend’ to sell £152 Dior serum

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Drawing from her self-help, autobiographical debut book Lessons: My Path to a Meaningful Life (Avery, 2018) and fame as a fervent environmentalist, Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen shares new words of wisdom in a brand new Dior Capture Totale advertising campaign.

In a series of short clips that make up the manifesto of the Capture Totale range, Gisele opens up about anxiety she suffered from in the past, and how a change in her lifestyle helped her cope, and eventually get rid of it. “When I was in my early 20s, I experienced panic attacks, and I felt like my world just kept getting smaller and smaller,” she says. “I became a prisoner in my own life. From the outside, I guess, I could have everything, but really I was feeling like I couldn’t breathe.”

Gisele’s connection to the ‘natural world’

A sun-kissed Gisele inhales deeply from a bouquet of fresh flowers whilst sharing details of her strong connection with nature and the elements. “When I want to de-stress, there is nothing like being in nature,” she explains. “It could be in the ocean, it could be in the mountains, it could be removing my shoes and putting my feet on the ground and just feeling the earth.”

Performing a series of yoga poses and coy glances towards the camera at a picturesque cliff-face location, the supermodel implores viewers to “experience nature at its most beautiful and peaceful”. She tells them her skincare routine reflects the belief that “the energy of flowers holds a power that is limitless”.

To back this up Dior used aesthetically pleasing close-ups on water lilies and the model’s flawless skin. Both perform their magic on a soundtrack from the 2000’s: All Saint, Pure Shores, which you’ve heard on The Beach movie. Cheesy, but very “natural”.

The main takeaway from this lesson in self-care is: beauty comes from within. “We get pulled in so many directions,” she shares. “It’s so important to take a moment to disconnect from all of that. A moment with yourself to just be with yourself — even if it’s 10 minutes a day.”

The question whether this 10-minute “me” time includes or not a thorough lathering of Dior £152 face serum remains sadly unanswered.

Is Dior Capture Totale a green beauty product?

Cashing in on the current wellness trend blending empty mindfulness mantras, Western meditation enthusiasm topped with vague nature-related comments flirting with environmental considerations, the latest Dior ad is first and foremost a masterful exercise in marketing to the eco-conscious consumer.

Landing in the midst of a plague of terrible ecological catastrophes, from the Australian uncontrollable bushfires to the melting ice caps and decimation of our ocean life, has driven the conversation and dominated the news. No wonder these kinds of practices are now popular amongst multinational giants trying to capture the attention of Millennials and Gen Z’s. Just watch any H&M Conscious campaigns advertising for $9,99 dresses.

No matter how virtuous they are or claim to be, all serums and cosmetic products come in fancy packaging, which is at best recycled and at worst dumped into the sea. The cardboard that envelops perfumes, serums and moisturisers contributes to the loss of 18 million acres of forest each year says Zero Waste Week. This is the same forests where Gisele walks barefoot in ecstasy.

So, is Dior Capture Totale a “green beauty” product at all? Meaning it doesn’t contain harmful ingredients for your health and the health of our environment. You’d hope so. After all Gisele does say “my skincare reflects what I believe in”, mentioning the “sustainable garden” where the flowers harvested for this particular serum are “grown in the open air”. Unfortunately, the list of ingredients we found on this page includes fragrance which is a generic term that could hide up to 200 components, synthetic colorant, and alcohol. None of these are usually found in green beauty products. You can find out more using the **Decode INCI ingredient tracker  **to investigate the rest of theCapture Totale range.

How to use a serum?

In short, you rub it into your face. If you follow this very detailed 12 steps Wikihow guide, it will take you the approx. 10 minutes recommended by Gisele. Unfortunately, it isn't the key to eternal bliss, stable mental health or saving our precious ecosystems from extinction.