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FYI I’m currently on a mini-break, so I’ve scheduled this post in advance. Shhh, the fact its not published live is just between you and I. I was writing this post after one to many late nights, and a few to many early mornings. Therefore it’s safe to say I’m kinda looking forward to a quiet night in. Now, don’t get me wrong; I’m not a totally Boring Becky. Friday/Saturday nights are great and all that, however I never feel like you can have a proper night in on either of them. No matter how much you feel like you need a quiet one, no matter how determined you are to properly unwind it never really happens. Maybe it’s just me, but I always feel like those nights are tinged with guilt or FOMO. If you’re not doing all the things, it feels like you’re not doing them right. Sunday however is different. Technically it’s a school night, so there’s no pressure to be out gallivanting. A quiet night in on a Sunday is not just OK; it’s a bloody brilliant idea – because you need to be feeling your sparkly best self on Monday after all.

  • Get Your Thinking Cap On – As we start edging into the evening, I like to do something that involves getting my brain sorta out of weekend mode. It can be writing up all the things you want to complete in the coming week, doing a game/puzzle that gets you thinking, watching a documentary or whatever. I like to read, and while I love a good ol’ chick flick (and I’m so excited about the film adaption of Me Before You) in the last few years I’ve been opting for books with a bit more bite. It might be a plot that really gets you thinking (you can read my review of Girl On The Train here) or the way in which is written. I’ve found if I don’t get my brain going for a bit earlier on it begins whirling away later on, when dammit mind I need to sleep.
  • Look After Yourself – Pamper yourself. Whatever it is that makes you feel like you, with the possibility you may wake up as a butterfly. For me, personally that means a hot shower slathering on all the moisturizer, getting into the fugliest but snuggliest of clothes and leaving a hair mask to work its magic for a few hours.
  • Have a Herbal Hit – I never in my wildest dreams thought I would be a fan of herbal tea. They made me think of weird grandmothers with violet perfume and twenty ailing cats. In the last couple of years though I’ve really got into Twinings fruity range – though I’m still to brave the classic of a peppermint tea. Lately I bought these Pukka Honey and Lemon teas, and promptly hated them. They made me feel like I should be ill if I’m drinking them. A few cups later though and I am eating, or drinking, my words. The honey and spicy ginger just makes my soul feel all at ease and floaty. It makes me feel relaxed in a comfortable chilled way, without making me need a nap within the next hour.
  • Turn it Off – I always try and usually fail at this one. However I do think it’s important to try and unplug from electronic devices as part of the process of winding down. Countless studies have shown everything from the notifications to the very lights they use make unable to fully relax, and deep down I think we know it without all these studies telling us. Try and choose something offline, that has that all important balance: you need to concentrate on it enough to forget about the outside world, yet not enough to get you all engaged. For me, its colouring. When I mentioned having a colouring book to a guy I’d recently started seeing, he was in shock. And he still takes the piss out of it to this day, but I think they are great. You can get them featuring all sorts of themes, and basically every supermarket stocks dozens. So there’s no excuses.

So there you have it, I hope you all wake up feeling all sparkly and like you’ve got this. Because babes, you have so got this.