Resolutions of the cutting out sugar/bad boys/cheap shoes kind rarely last much beyond the second week of January, but make these changes to your beauty routine and you'll be laughing all the way to 2017.
Get More Sleep
Everyone looks better with more sleep. It’s not rocket science. When you’re tired, your skin goes a kind of dull grey, right? It’s a strong look. Get another hour under the duvet and you not only look brighter, you’ll also feel less like strangling the person next to you at the bus stop. Which could be good. The tricky bit, though, is fitting it in. Going to bed earlier helps, as long as you stay off your phone, but falling asleep just ain’t that easy for some folk. Cutting out caffeine and avoiding booze will both help, but for a little extra oomph try sprinking Botanics Aromatherapy Lavender Pure Essential Oil, £8.99 for 20ml, Boots.com into a bath, sprinkling it on your pillow or applying it to your pressure points to soothe the body and mind. Take deep breaths as you head off to the Land of Nod. Oh, and one more thing. STAY OFF YOUR PHONE!
Have An Old-Fashioned Wash
Turns out, your mum was right. A flannel IS the best way to keep your face clean. Though not in combo with a face-scouring, family-sized bar of soap. Using a flannel to remove your make-up is the holy trinity of cleansing. It’s the easiest and quickest way, but also the best. Melt a good helping of a cleanser like the Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm, £22, Boots.com, into your hands, then smooth it all over your face and don’t be afraid to include your lashes and lips. Fill the basin with really quite hot water, dunk a flannel in and wring it out, then massage off the cleanser. Give it a few good goes to get all the cleanser off, rinsing the flannel in the water each time. You’ll be left with skin that is glowing pinkly and as clean as a whistle. Mums: they know stuff, especially about flannels.
Treat Your Feet
Your poor, poor feet! They stand around while you queue at the bar, disco you all around the dance floor and run around the park when you are on a health kick. And for what? Yes, very little reward. Oh, sure, you might paint your nails in the summer and give your heels a quick once over before you go on holiday, but come September, it’s opaques pulled on, boots zipped up and every foot for himself. Give your feet a little attention now, with a generous daily rubbing of Burt’s Bees delicious-smelling Coconut Foot Cream, £11.99, Boots.com, and they will thank you for it. Not only will they look better when you stare at them from the other end of the bath, you’ll also be one step ahead when we get the first surprise sunny days in April and you won’t have to try and de-Hobbit your feet before you can wear flipflops to work.
Take A Bath
Next time it’s your turn to clean the bathroom, get down and dirty with the scouring pad and bleach, then once the taps are gleaming, run yourself the deepest, hottest bath you can. Showers may trump baths in the convenience stakes, but there is no easier, healthier way to destress than a long soak in the tub. It’s surely the cheapest form of therapy there is. Make a regular date with Sanctuary Luxury Bath Float, £10, Boots.com, on a Sunday evening, and while you fill the bathroom with a steamy, citrusy scent you can also plan out your week, make a decision or two, and give yourself some breathing space from the outside world. Just download a podcast, lock the door, and pretend you can’t hear your flatmates rattling the handle to get in.
Go To Hair Rehab
Stay away, straighteners! Keep back, hair dryer! After a full month of wall-to-wall of Christmas lunches and karaoke nights, your hair is likely feeling like it has run a marathon in heels. Hot, parched and knackered, it needs a rest, some rehydration, and maybe a bacon sandwich. Give yourself a month off from the heated styling gadgets — which will buy you extra minutes in bed, so this is win-win — and use a deep conditioning mask like Tresemme Keratin Smooth Deep Treatment Masque, £5.78, Boots.com, once or twice a week. Once your hair is in better shape, get it chopped. Not loads off, just enough to loose the frazzled bits. Ask your stylist to work with your hair’s natural quirks, not against them, and you might even ditch the hot irons for keeps.
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.