World Sleep Day was one I could totally get immerced in, not only that, but the whole month of March is allocated as National Bed Month, so as we put the clocks forward, in this post I share with you my sleeping arrangements (Oh-er)
Now I'm not saying this is my routine every night, I'd love to say I chilled out with a yoga sesh and meditated for an hour, but in reality, Christ, there are nights I fall into bed in my make up and worse still, nights I can't even remember going to bed. I'm certainly not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. My mirrored bedside tables have come in useful on many occasions for taking out contact lenses I've forgotten about before I got into bed.
I love my sleep. I could be a sleep ambassador. Sleeping well has been shown to reduce stress levels (God help me if I didn't sleep then), blood pressure and your chance of getting type 2 diabetes. It can also improve your memory, elevate your mood, aid healing, keep your heart healthy and help you maintain a healthy weight (it's not magic of course, you still have to watch your diet - if I could sleep my way to fitness I'd be one fit, happy lady)
Well-timed naps have also been shown to improve productivity. This makes me feel less guilty about those times I've nodded off mid afternoon - Ah the joys of working from home, – this though is particularly interesting given the UK’s shift towards home working generally. Could we one day move toward a more European way of life with an afternoon siesta? Suits me, I usually work late into the night anyway, so what's a power nap between friends?.
So, My bed is from Dwell. It's the Notch bed double white (currently retailing at £599). I bought it because I love Dwell's furniture anyway, but I particularly love the clean lines, curved headboard and white gloss finish. My only regret is not getting a storage version, but I still love it. Notch bed double white - dwell - £599 I have an Emma mattress. The product won the coveted Top Score in the Which? mattresses comparison table 2019. They offer 100 nights risk-free trial period and are currently offering a 30% discount. Offering body support the next generation Airgocell® foam is meant to adapt to any body shape. I usually still manage to wake up laying corner to corner.
My bedding is from Julian Charles (the Lia). I'm loving the whole grey trend at the moment. My duvet set is grey, confectioned with beautiful diamante detail across crushed velvet and matte satin, The pillowcases are also embellished with diamanté. The set is currently on offer, it was £90.00 - now £45.00 https://www.juliancharles.co.uk/elegance-lia-silver-luxury-embellished-duvet-set/ I really want the matching throw but I paid full price for the duvet set and the throw is £80, so I might get that in the future. I hadn't realised there is a Julian Charles at the East Midlands Designer Outlet so I might take a look there too. The throw I have was from Wilkos and on top is a rug/throw from good old Primark.
Although Julian Charles do matching cushions, mine on my bed are from B & M and are a pretty close match. My curtains are also from Julian Charles . They are the Allure range which have a decadent crushed velvet Hollywood glamour finish. They range in price from 14.99 - 59.99 - I wanted them long and glam, so typically they are funny size which also meant they were typically top end of the price bracket. I pretty much always have the window open to let fresh air in, even in the cold. You can usually find me with the window open hugging a hot water bottle. I also have an aloe vera plant in the room as they're meant to clean the air. It's looking a bit sorry for itself, mind you. (have you ever done that thing with a potato? I'll save it for another blog !)
I have a set of mirrored drawers either side of my bed. These were from Furniture Direct. I only got these toward the end of last year but I can't see them in stock anymore. They are three drawer and have crystal effect handles. In the top drawer I keep any medication and vitamins I take, along with a moisturiser. At the moment I take an all round multi vitamin; Pure Encapsulations multi - a 1 a day - a comprehensive multivitamin to support energy production available from The Natural Dispensary I keep a jar of Boots night time moisturiser in the drawer, so if I've forgotten to moisturise or I wake up in the night and want an extra hit, I reach for the jar https://www.boots.com/no7/no7-skincare/no7-shop-all-skincare/protect-and-perfect-intense-advanced-night-cream-10197458 In terms of my beauty routine at night, I do a double cleanse - firstly with a Primark age defying wipe to take the surface make up off, then a deep cleanse with the Emma Hardy hot cloth cleanser. I tone with pixi glow tonic, then put on a serum - at the moment I'm using Body Shop Drops of Youth and then the Boots moisturiser on top. I'm also using their eye cream - you can probably guess I had a gift set for Christmas.
If I'm not too tired I'll also use an all over moisturiser - at the moment I'm using The Body Shop Shea butter.
Then the big lights off and bedside light on. These were from B & M. I know I probably shouldn't (according to pretty much everything that tells you how to get a good nights sleep!) but I'll normally have a scroll though social media and my emails and reply to anything that's easy. I am also actually terrible at taking my mac to bed and working until my eyes close, or I might catch up on something on netflix.
I have a pile of books I've not read yet that I'm trying to work my way through, but I'm often too tired. In the days before social media I read so much more but I find it hard to switch off now. I've got a couple on the go at the moment. The Secret by Rhona Byrne and Heart & Hustle by Patricia Bright.
If I'm wanting to feel cosy, I'll light a candle (Currently using Yankee Fireside Treats but I bought a Lavender one from an Independent Trader at the weekend called Alight. Lavender is meant to be relaxing right? ) while I watch something on the mac or read. I might also put the fairy lights on in my fire place. It's not a working fire. There would have been one there in the past (it's a 40's house) but it had been bricked up when I moved in. I bought a reclaimed fireplace from Ebay and had it fitted. There's just pot pouri in it. The fairy lights are from Primark.
Finally, I usually take a drink up to bed with me - either Green Tea with Macha because I saw on TV recently that it's meant to help reduce the risk of breast cancer, or a Camomile tea. I also drink a glass of water before bed. I keep a big 2.5L water bottle next to my bed from Primark. (see it in last months Primark Haul on my YouTube Channel) I'm trying to up my water intake and 2.5l is the amount we should be drinking each day, so I fill it up and it makes it easier to aim for the recommended amount. It is hard to drink that much unless I'm working out (as other fluids such as tea/coffee don't don't count) then I gulp it down. I also try and drink a glass first thing in the morning.
What are your bedtime routines?
I will be doing a room tour for my YouTube channel soon, so keep a lookout for that.
Love T x
Disclaimer: I bought all items myself but feature contains affiliate link to Amazon