Founder

A personal journey

I’m Tamsin Jardinier, a teacher, coach, cook and creative who has spent the past twelve years living quietly in southwest France, appreciating the natural beauty and the silence that underlies all things.

Little French Retreat grew out of a journey of loss. The story began in 2005, when my mother bought this old stone house with dreams of an adventurous retirement in rural France. Two years later, she passed away suddenly, and her absence changed the course of my life. At the time, I was living in Brighton and working in luxury retail and interiors in London, but her death called me to re-evaluate everything and to reconnect with what truly mattered to me: yoga, food, creativity, and nature.

In 2013, I moved here full-time and began transforming the house, not just physically, but energetically. What began as a personal restoration evolved into Little French Retreat, a place where others could also rest, reflect, and reconnect through seasonal living. Over time, what was once an outer retreat became an inner one. The silence I offered to guests gradually became the ground of my daily life.

Through yoga, Ayurvedic food and creative practice, I explore how stillness can be a source of renewal and clarity. These are now the foundations of my online work: courses and coaching that help others find ease of mind and body, and the steady practice of returning to yourself, again and again

For my creative practices - www.tamsinjardinier.com

Approach to Yoga

My teaching style takes inspiration from the school of Sivananda Yoga, having trained and practiced in this way for many years.

I offer a simple practice that unfolds at a steady pace; slow, strong, and restorative, with a focus on spinal mobility, nervous system balance, and emotional regulation.

Through gentle intentional movements and full-spectrum breath, the practice supports your body’s natural intelligence and opens the way for inner clarity.

Yoga is more than exercise, it is a moment of reconnection, to return to what it means to be yourself, without the layers of tension pulling in all directions, offering you a way to feel both anchored and uplifted, attuned and alive to the present moment.

qualifications

YOGA
I hold a 500-hour teacher training certificate from Sivananda Yoga Vidya Peetham in Kerala, where I studied under the guidance of Swami Govindananda Saraswati. Rooted in an ancient lineage over 1,000 years old, the school follows the classical teachings of Sivananda Yoga and its five foundational principles, blending breath, movement, rest, diet, and meditation as a holistic path to well-being.

Before the pandemic, I spent winters in India to deepen my practice and share the experience with others, leading groups to Kerala and the Himalayas to immerse in the birthplace of Yoga and its transformative spirit. Though I haven’t yet returned, my practice continues to evolve, now enriched by the meditative science of Dr. Joe Dispenza, the introspective stillness of Yin Yoga, and the embodied awareness of Somatic Movement.

AYURVEDA
I am training under the guidance of David Frawley at the American Institute of Vedic Studies to become an Ayurvedic Life-Style Consultant. A 300hr course of this ancient healing system that originates from India. Ayurveda treats the physical body and its’ ailments and includes psychology and yogic spirituality as a holistic system of healing that considers our entire nature as body, mind and spirit for best health.

FOOD
A self-trained cook with a passion for vegetarian food and natural ingredients, inspired by Ayurvedic principles; that food is energy and medicine for healing. I have cooked in ashrams, on retreats and for supper clubs. For further information on my approach to food and online recipe book please visit HERE

inspiration

SWAMI GOVINDANANDA SARASWATI
They say your teacher appears when the student is ready. I had the fortune of meeting Swami Govindananda on a trip to Kerala in 2013 and have appreciated his guidance since. A true master of energy management and delivering Yogic philosophy in an uncomplicated and practical way to apply to our contemporary western lifestyles. He taught me the benefits of teaching and practicing slowly to feel a deep sense of peace.