"There isn't a perfect person somewhere, only a more perfect person we might become, and there isn't a paradise someone can lead us to unless it's the world we make ourselves..." - Shain, Merle. (1988). Courage My Love, Bantam.

When I thought about starting the "Life Adored Project, 1,000 Simple Ways to Live Beautifully", I knew a big part of what I wanted to focus on was self care and self love. 

As a small business owner I am very use to wearing multiple hats at once and often jumping from one to-do list to another and running 100 miles per hour then burning through the fumes. It wasn't until I decided things needed to change because I felt so sluggish and no matter what, I always just felt so "BLEH" and "MEH" about everything. 

Now, let me clarify something! These are 6 things I practice daily, I'm no life guru or anything, but since really making sure I do these every day, I've just noticed a new pep in my step! Anyhow...

6 Daily Self Care Practices To (Try To) Do Daily

NUMBER ONE: Hydrate thyself in the morning! I drink a small glass of room temperature water right when I wake up. To make the habit a little lovelier, I bought these pretty pressed glass small drinking glasses from an antique shop. It may seem frivolous, but it cheers me up a little to drink plain ole water (yep, I drink it straight from the tap) out of such a pretty vessel. I also make a point to drink 1 glass of water for every cup of coffee I drink.

NUMBER TWO: Make like a kitty and stretch. Being a former ballerina, I'm used to stretching in the mornings. However, I'm in my mid thirties now and these creaky bones ain't what they used to be! Usually I'll just play a single song on Spotify (something pretty, I suggest Icelandic artist Ólafur Arnalds, so atmospheric!) and stretch for the entire song. Sometimes I'll do ballet plies while I brush my teeth.

Watch/Listen: Ólafur Arnalds - Only The Winds - YouTube

NUMBER THREE: Eat breakfast! I am always baffled when people tell me they skip breakfast! I LOVE breakfast. I look forward to morning coffee and breakfast when I go to sleep the night before. Make this daily ritual lovelier by having your breakfast using vintage dishes from France (Havilland is my favorite!) or handmade pottery. Drink your coffee out of a pretty vintage cup or an earthenware mug. Don't multi task during breakfast. Just sit down, put your phone in the other room (I know, it's hard, it's basically your life line, but you CAN DO IT!), and enjoy these moments of you nourishing yourself. Even if it is a buttery croissant with raspberry jam and coffee with lots of cream. 

NUMBER FOUR: Care for your space. Now, this doesn't seem like it should be under Self Care, but I'm assuming you're a lot like me and you're very affected by your environment. I have a 15/15 rule I do every day and it keeps our home tidy and clean. I clean for 15 minutes and then I make a point to put away 15 things or throw away 15 things. 

BONUS: Listen to Disney's Enchanted "Happy Working Song" with Amy Adams 5 times while you clean. Haha. It's about 3 minutes long. This song always makes me super cheerful about cleaning, I know so cheesy.

NUMBER FIVE: Clear your mind like Dumbledore. At the end of the day, especially if I feel super frazzled and overwhelmed by the wear and tear of the world, I like to pretend I have a pensieve (yeah, like in Harry Potter) and imagine drawing thoughts and worries out of my head and casting them into a basin. 

NUMBER SIX: Laugh. Be silly. Watch dumb videos on Youtube or Instagram. Read all the Memes. Laughter is so wonderful to have as part of your daily life! I don't think people really look at laughter as a Self Care thing. But, seriously, just being able to laugh or choosing to go find your own cheer is so good for your heart and soul! Everyday I try to laugh or do something that just tickles me. I feel like laughter leads to cheerfulness and cheerfulness leads to happiness and happiness just beams straight out of your face. You don't even need to get Charlotte Tilbury's AMAZE highlighter for people to go "Wow, girl, you're so glowy!" (Actually, you should go get it, it's really wonderful!)