Hello and welcome back!
I decided it was high time for a surprise peek-a-boo blog post. I've missed my 3 post a week schedule despite how ridiculous it was to post that much! So here we are, greeting the beginning of the week with a short discussion on getting ready. Now, this type of post is probably more "Youtube-y" in nature, but honestly my friend, you probably know me well enough by now to understand that my interests in fashion and beauty are deeply rooted.
Today I wanted to offer a bit of a "what, why, and how" concerning my morning "getting ready" routine, and a few tips for anyone who struggles to get ready in the morning because they're "just at home."
I don't think you HAAAAVE to get ready in the morning, but I would definitely say that I HAVE to get ready in the morning! If I don't, I feel like I'm in for a sick day, or that my day hasn't really even started. I tend to feel like it's not a good idea to go outdoors, interact with others, and I definitely don't post online as much.
It's so easy to feel like being at home is a sort of "lounge-time." And for many hard working women, being at home IS a lounge time! Home used to be a place or women to stretch their working limbs, pick up a day planner, and master the homemaking, in a nice skirt and everything. But now, as our work has slowly transferred outside the home, we often treat our homes like how we treated our bedrooms as teenagers.
Just like our teen bedrooms, our homes can become a place to crash after a long day, maybe a place to stash a ton of cups and plates, and definitely not a place to sit around in a nice pair of designer jeans and a blouse. This mentality creeps into our adult lives, despite the fact that we're paying an entire mortgage on that oversized "bedroom."
Now, I always say that you should figure things out for yourself, but I wanted to share how I was able to get out of that "bedroom" mentality with my home and life.
Even though I cannot stand laying around in sweats if I'm not sick, I wasn't always this way! When I worked 9-5, it was impossible to keep up with the house chores. Dishes would stack up, closets came to disarray, and my home felt like a place I only slept in, between the long hours at my job. It was... depressing to say the least.
So when I began staying home, it was easy to feel like I was on one long vacation or sick day! I wanted to stay in my pyjamas, role up in a blanket burrito, and stream shows until I was blue in the face. Instead of treating my home like my new work place, I treated it again, like my teen bedroom; a place of refuge and a place to laze around.
And honestly, that wasn't a totally bad thing. That time in my life came after an intensely traumatic season, and my burrito-time at home allowed me to grieve in peace, free from intense responsibilities or stress. I wouldn't change that time in my life and I don't regret it because I know it was necessary in transforming me into the woman I am today.
But there did come a day when I woke up and suddenly felt like it was time: it was time to take charge and it was time to get homemaking!
Now, I was blessed with a beautiful mother who consistently prepared her hair, makeup, and outfit for the day, regardless if she was going to be heading to church, the store, work, or even just our own backyard for a bit of a cross-country ski. She was the major feminine influence on my life, and as she transferred from a 9-5 to being a homemaker, I saw with my own eyes that her habits of preparing her beauty and style for the day did not wane in the slightest!
So, when it was time for me to take charge of my homemaking, I knew that I wouldn't be able to do it without a good handle on my beauty and style every morning. I began slowly, as you know from my "Glow Up" videos, but in the end, I came to a place where my home AND my beauty felt much more organized and under control.
Now my routine is this:
I wake up, read my Bible, and then make the bed, while my husband makes coffee. Then, I wash my face and do my hair and makeup before heading into the kitchen in my lounge clothes to make breakfast for the two of us. We have coffee and talk for awhile before I go back to my room and put on an outfit for the day.
Once the clothing is in place, I head to the kitchen to clean up while listening to an audiobook, a podcast, or a YouTube video, while cleaning all the dishes. Then, I attend to urgent blog-related work, before going over to the laundry room or the vacuum cleaner to take care of all the cleaning I need to do at home. If it's a nice day, I'll slip in an afternoon walk with my dog before settling in for a cozy evening at home. Rinse and repeat.
It's peaceful, joyful, and has been altogether the best time in my life. I think when I'm an empty nester someday, I will do the same routine.
So, as I promised, if you need some extra guidance as to how to get more motivated to get "ready" for the day, I have compiled a list of tips and suggestions to help you get the motivation to put on something more than leggings and a bun in the morning!
1. Wear clothing you love AND feel good in
Find clothing you adore and that looks good on you. Wearing something that you feel stunning in (even if it's casual ! ) will always feel better than wearing sloppy pajama bottoms and a greasy bun. I always feel so much better when I'm enjoying my outfit, but I never make it too complicated, sticking to tops and A-line skirts, or high wasted pants and a turtleneck. If I go out to run errands, I might throw on a hat or some jewelry, but in general, I like to keep it hassle-free and simple.
2. Create a NON-NEGOTIABLE hair washing routine
This changed my life and I will never stop saying it! Washing my hair every third morning and putting an oil treatment into it the night before has made everything so much easier. Now, the key here is not the fact that I've committed to washing it every third day. Because that commitment alone would probably not be enough for me to stick to it on a lazy day! The key is that I put OIL in it the night before the wash so that I am FORCED to keep my routine!
This saves so much energy and time because I no longer have to struggle through decision-fatigue wondering if I should just add more dry shampoo, or if I have time, or blah blah blah. It is a militant routine that I have mastered, and I will never quit it!
I always wear it nice and down the first day, down again or in a pony tail on the second day, and in a bun or with a hat on the third day! Bada-bing bada-boom. If you have a tough time sticking to a wash-routine, I encourage you to oil up the night before: it will force you to wash it LOL! No dry-shampoo can penetrate a mass of Argan-oiled hair, and that's the TRUTH!
3. Pair up your beauty routine with your normal routine
It can be difficult to indulge in a beauty routine because it often feels "unnecessary." I urge you to change this mindset and pair up your beauty and style routine with other "practical" parts of your routine! Include a nice outfit into things you do automatically like brushing your teeth or drinking coffee. Pair hair and makeup or getting dressed with something like your breakfast routine, and you will notice a massive improvement! This is why I don't drink coffee or make breakfast until my hair and makeup are done, and I don't get to work on blogging until my outfit is in place!
Pair, pair, pair. And if you need an extra boost, make it a rule that you're not going to sit down to work on your side hustle or on your homemaking until you get in an outfit! If you need to, lay it out the night before (I do this!) but in general, you can always have a roster of clothing that you wear Monday through Friday that you know you enjoy.
4. Document how you feel when you get ready
Sometimes we might forget how amazing it feels to have our hair and makeup or our clothing ready for the day, so I urge you to take a little selfie or write a little note in your phone on the days when you get ready describing your mental state, or physically capturing an image of how you look when you get ready. Record these things and reflect on them when you are debating whether or not to put the "effort" in. This will remind you of how nice it feels to get ready!
5. Simplify OR complicate!
Sometimes we can feel like getting ready is too difficult, complicated, or annoying. For some of you, this might be the case. Maybe you need to simplify your morning routine a little bit! I know that some women don't know how to do a "five-minute-face" and associate makeup with an entire foundation to eyeshadow routine. In that case, I would say that maybe your morning routine is just not for you! Maybe it's time to SIMPLIFY your routine.
Simplify your hair to a simple braid, and maybe skip the foundation altogether! Find some simple outfits that you enjoy, and just in general, take things down a notch. There IS a balanced place between wearing sweats and wearing a clubbing or church dress. Find that place!
And for my other friends who might need to take things UP a notch, I encourage you to look to the past for inspiration. Women in the 1900's had NO qualms about getting their hair and outfits ready. They took time to look presentable, and even wore corsets! I encourage you to work on your outfits and hair as an old fashioned lady would, and to remember that it's not selfish or wrong to take some extra time to look fresh and put together in the morning!
But that is all I have for right now my beauties! I hope this was helpful. In general, try to have fun with your morning routine, but also don't let yourself slack off. Run a tight ship in your home AND in your bathroom, and your beauty will soon be flying as high as the shine on your stove!
xoxo,
Cait