Monday 23 May 2016

Monday Happy Things #4: Baths



When I was at university I had a job which only ended up lasting one day and it was (and still is) one of the worst days of my life. The job was horrible in ever single sense of the word - physically demanding, belittling and triggering every single one of my anxieties. When they let me leave for the day I walked the mile and half home in tears, and then I got home and ran myself a super deep, super hot bubble bath and sat in it until the water went cold. It was the first time I really remember having a bath for the purposes of relaxation rather than cleanliness, and it had such amazing effects that I've never stopped using it as that.

Now I have kids I love baths even more, mostly because they afford me a space where I can be alone with my book and have nobody disturb me for an hour, but also because they're a place to just breathe. They help you relax, sleep better, improve circulation, and relax your muscles after exercise, what's not to love? There's nothing like a bath to help you feel refreshed. I tend to take a long bath and then use body and face scrub and moisturiser and feel awesome. Also, baths (even bubble ones) are not 'girly'. There's nothing gender specific about nice smells, relaxation, and good hygiene.

Personally I love bubble bath and scents in my baths. Lush is my current favourite - I've been in love with their bath bombs for a long time, but they have bubble bath bars that I've only just discovered which are awesome as well. I also love the idea of making my own bath products, although I have yet to try any, but I do subscribe to the idea that essential oils can make a lot of difference to your mood, and you can check out this article for some ideas on which oils to use for which issue.

Just in case you've never done it, here's my handy how-to of taking a bath:

How to Take a Bath
* Turn on the taps - adjust the water to the temperature you want your bath to be.
* If you want bubbles, run bubble bath or put a bath bomb or bath melt under the running tap, or add bath oil or essential oils.
* Let the water run until it's as deep as you want it, remembering it will rise once you're in it!
* Light candles if you're so inclined, play music, pour yourself a glass of wine or a cup of tea. Bring your book.
* Get in the bath. Relax.

The end.

Some places to try for great bath related stuff:

Lush - for bath bombs, bath melts, bath oils, face and body scrub and moisturiser. All fresh and gorgeous. Highly recommend their Ocean Salt face and body scrub and the Rainbow bubble bar but try anything really, you can't go wrong!

Boots (or other chemists/ supermarkets) - for bubble bath, particularly Radox which is my favourite. Their muscle soak is pretty great.

Etsy - as always. This links to the result of me searching for 'bath stuff'. Knock yourselves out.

DIY Bath Bombs

10 Fun DIY Bath Ideas

DIY Lavendar Lotion Bars

Do you have any great bath tips or products I should try? Do you already love baths, hate them? Let me know!

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1 comment:

  1. My first job after uni was in a call centre for a heating company. I lasted a week. Ugh ugh. Quite amazed I made it that long. Oh, and I was living the other side of London at the time.

    Funny enough, I'm reading this after just having had a lovely (mango-scented) bubble bath, on my last day of my hols, not relishing going back to work tomorrow. I completely agree, baths make everything better.

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