I don’t have a morning routine but I do have daily rituals

7 daily non-negotiables plus stripy tees, welded bracelets and home bits on my radar.

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I’ve done a couple of interviews and journals for brands recently and a question that comes up a lot is ‘tell us about your morning routine…’ to which, even in our age of TikTok routines complete with matcha and meditation, I feel kind of stumped. Should I do Fridays or Tuesdays or last Wednesday I ponder? Because no matter how hard I try to gain control of my days, every morning seems to land a little different. Sometimes I have hours, others I have 30 minutes and I will never, ever be part of the 5 A.M club by choice (I’m aware a lot of people don’t have any choice with this one!)…

I don’t think this is a self-employed thing particularly but I do think it’s part and parcel of a fingers-in-lots-of-pies kind of job. Sometimes I’m on a call at 9, sometimes I’m en route to a meeting or event and sometimes I’m racing around the house like a crazy person trying to vacuum, tidy and steam things before a crew arrives at my house to take photos (honestly some of my best cleaning is done at the final hour like this). Others, my favourite days, it’s just me and my dog Finn in the park with a coffee before sitting down at my laptop. Sometimes I need to do hair and makeup, others it’s scraped back and barefaced for the gym. Some days I’m in trackies all day and in bed with a tea at 10, others I’m dolled up for a work dinner and crawling into bed closer to 1 A.M.

Would very much like every morning to look like this.

Needless to say, I’m much more about rituals than routine because I can slot them in however my day is looking. Rituals feel much more doable when your business/life feels like an elastic band, stretching and contracting depending on the day, week and month of the year. ‘Rituals’ sound very holistic and meditative and while they can be, I don’t think they have to be to matter. A ritual to me can be listening to a certain podcast while brushing my teeth or having a herbal tea and some chocolate every evening before bed. Anything that makes days feel a bit more my own and provide moments of familiarity and routine despite a distinct lack of routine at times. So these are my personal favourite rituals I (almost) always find a gap for.

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Tea in bed
My husband brings me a cup of tea in bed every morning. It’s something my dad does for my mum and I made a point of saying to him, 'I’d like that please’. And to his credit, he does! It’s the simplest but nicest thing and never gets old in terms of appreciation on my side.

Spoilt

Skincare
One thing I’m pretty fastidious about morning and night is skincare. My routine is quick (no more than 3 minutes) but I never miss it and I make sure I do it before I head outside for a dog walk in the morning. Skipping cleanser in the morning has been one of the best things I’ve done for my skin in the last 6 months and it’s sped up my mornings too. Splash water on face, dry, tone, vitamin C, moisturiser, SPF, done. At night, I take a bit longer and double cleanse (oil/balm cleanser first and then a cream cleanser) and ‘skin cycle’ with a couple of different ingredients but it’s still no more than 5-10 minutes. These two rituals are nice full stops at the start and end of my day.

Breakfast
Another thing, I never ever skip and I pretty much rotate between two things at home. A green protein smoothie with frozen cauliflower, spinach, mango and kefir or greek yoghurt/kefir with nuts, seeds, blueberries and honey (I love this granola too). Nothing makes me feel more out of step with myself than skipping breakfast and heading out with an empty stomach. Food helps me wake up more than coffee to be honest and I do think the act of making both of these is fairly ritualistic in the truest sense. I love how potion-like it feels with my witches cupboard of powders, seeds and tinctures. Even if I’m heading to a work breakfast, these days I’ll often have my smoothie beforehand so I’m not ravenous and reaching for pastries as soon as I’m through the door.

Right now I’m taking Biome Restore and Metabolic Fix by Artah and a Biocare Omega 3.

A Walk Outside
Again, I love it when this is in the morning but if it can’t be, I always try and get in a walk at some point in the day. Whether it’s skipping a few tube stops or a late afternoon walk with Finn, getting outside and walking helps keep me (relatively) sane. Of course, this is infinitely easier when it’s not constantly raining - throw us a bone here London! - and when it’s not getting dark at 4pm but I’ll still always try and find a gap somewhere and juggle my day around being able to where I can. If I’m travelling, going for a walk is my go-to reset after a flight (the bet jet lag remedy is exercise and daylight in my books) or to just get my bearings of my surroundings a bit more.

Coffee
This might be at 10, 11 or 12 and there’s only ever one a day but oh do I love it. Sometimes it’s at home, often it’s picked up from one of many favourite spots and as sad and basic as it sounds, it’s a highlight of my day and you’d have to pry it from my cold dead hands to make me give it up. The high cortisol is just going to have to deal with this one.

Podcast and audiobooks
I listen to at least one podcast every day and/or I’ll have an audiobook on the go. I really like starting my day with a news-based podcast like The Rest is Politics, The Story by The Times and The Guardian’s daily podcast because you know, balance. Listening to one of these while I’m doing laundry or getting ready helps switch my brain on somehow and and stops me falling into doom scrolling on instagram or TikTok - honestly sometimes I just find myself opening the apps with no idea why which is depressing. If I’m in a hotel room, listening to familiar podcasts when I’m getting ready for bed (I realise listening to investigative podcasts might not be the best switch off for everyone) helps me feel more at home.

Bedtime
I have a lot of nighttime rituals, to the point I now have a ‘sleep kit’ I travel with and am less sleeping beauty more Hannibal Lecter as I head to bed. I think everyone who has ever been prone to bouts of insomnia will relate to coming to rely, perhaps an unhealthy amount, on nighttime rituals to sleep well. From magnesium butter on the soles of my feet to pillow spray (Anatome and Bamford are the best) and my Artah sleep tincture, I like that these little rituals are transportable at home and away. I mentioned my new favourite magnesium ritual sleep cocktail here. Whether I’m going to sleep after watching TV at home or after a late work dinner, I make time for these little things and it feels like I’m literally shedding the shackles of the day somehow. I’ll often oil my hair and scalp before loosely tying my hair up with a silk scrunchie and don’t go anywhere without my Snooze band, my teeth shield (of course I’m a teeth grinder), my Drowsy sleep mask and, more recently, micropore mouth tape. Told you - Hannibal Lecter.

Leaving is such sweet sorrow

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Other bits and bobs on my radar this month

Like everyone, I devoured Baby Reindeer in a day and am still bowled over by the true story that inspired it and the talent and performance of Richard Gadd, the show’s creator, protagonist and the person to whom the whole story itself happened to. One of the most visceral and complex depictions of what abuse can do to a person and the grey areas of humanity (I do love a grey area). A hard watch but totally and utterly worth it. I also watched All Of Us Strangers finally and seriously, it should come with a health warning. Spell-binding and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it even if it did kind of break me. Also Blue Lights… It’s Line of Duty for those of us who hated how Line of Duty ended. Such a great and I think relatively under-the-radar show.

I’ve just finished the very sweet, small-town coming of age story The List of Suspicious Things by Jennie Godfrey on Audible (read by Downtown’s Joanne Froggat). Predominantly narrated by pre-teen Miv whose small Yorkshire town is in the grip of fear and gossip as the infamous Yorkshire Ripper is on the loose and the community is struggling after the local mines and mills have closed down. Over the course of the summer holidays, Miv and best friend Sharon set out to solve the mystery of the killer and find out who he is. While searching for answers, there’s a lot to uncover about themselves and their own families and community along the way. Very sweet and touching alongside some harsh realities of domestic 1970s England and I felt like it perfectly captures that weird time when you’re not a child but you’re still a long way from adulthood and understanding everything that comes with it.

I’m really into stripy tees right now. Not the Breton kind, more the suburban 70s teenager kind. Tonal, brown-based shades of horizontal stripes in boxy, classic cut tees. I turned to menswear for this and picked up this one and this one in a size small. I love them with white jeans or overalls or tucked into high-waisted Levis with ballet pumps.

I took 2 best friends to get welded on friendship bracelets at the Missoma store in Covent Garden last week and highly recommend if you’re looking for something cute to do with friends, family or a pre-wedding/birthday thing. There are various chains to choose from and different charms and are welded onto your wrists in 15 minutes. I’ve pushing them to start doing anklets for summertime too so stay tuned for that one too hopefully!

I shot a video as part of a project for Vince recently and chose a bunch of things to try and wear. Honestly, every time I try Vince I’m reminded how great the quality and fit is and in my humble opinion the website really doesn’t do the pieces themselves justice. The piece that really stood out to me were these pedal pushers/capri pants/00s throwback. I’ve been on the fence as to whether these are something I’m going to dabble in and you know what, these have me convinced I am. I like the top half oversized with a big cotton sweater or oversized shirt with a jumper knotted round you waist and flip flops - this feels like the only way I can do it. But that combo alone I really, really liked. Sold out on Vince but you might find in-store and there’s plenty of sizes on Shopbop.

I gave in and bought this Sea NY jacket. I’d been looking at it for months and kept thinking about it which honestly rarely happens these days because I’m guilty of having such a short attention span when it comes to stuff not immediately in front of me. Probably didn’t help I saw Alice Pilate wearing it and it tipped me over the edge. I’ve tried and failed with these kind of jackets before but I think the bomber style and collar makes this feel more like my style.

I’ve also been doing some DIY but on my current go-to bag rather than my house (although that’s been going on too and I’ll share the new downstairs w.c next time!). In the same verin as Miu Miu via Jane Birkin and more recently Leandra, I raided my jewellery box for trinket to attached. I added old earring charms tro bracelets, wrapped cord necklaces around the handles and added a caribiner with beads etc. I’m really enjoying leaning into this more eclectic mood and remembering that this feels much more me than anything too refined and minimal (because refined I am not). I like that you can mix it up depending on your mood and make use of old charms and bits and bobs you love but can’t quite seem to wear round your neck or on your ears. Essentially it’s the baggage equivalent of the frazzled english woman trope and if that isn’t a trope I can play with I don’t know what it. The bag itself is Little Liffner - my favourite favourite for bags. Honestly the quality is Khaite/The Row level and a fraction of the price.

A home item I’ve been thinking about for a while is one of these rechargeable outdoor lights. Thanks to this weather I’ve been kind of ignoring my garden up until now but I’m starting to picture balmy summer evenings outside with a gin and tonic. I don’t like many rechargeable table lamps but this is great.

If anyone’s looking for a really nice house-warming or wedding present that looks really smart but is less than £50, look no further than this. Ham Interiors just launched a new range of handmade furniture and I’m quite taken by this folky chair.

I’m a big fan of Daniel Dzonu Clarke’s work (I featured one of his plates here) and just love his new work on Partnership Editions. If you’re looking to start investing in original art, this is a great place to start.

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Until next time, Lxx