I don’t know about you, but I’m finding lockdown 3.0 a lot harder than its predecessors. I am unsure why it’s more difficult, perhaps because it feels a little bleaker this time.

I’ve written a blog similar to this before, but as my mood has evolved over three lockdowns, so have my ways of coping with the fact that I am not working as normal and running out of things to do. While I’m not alone in the house, my husband works in our study from 9am until 7pm at the earliest every weekday, so I don’t see anyone during this time and it can be lonely.

It got me thinking about those of you who live alone and whether you’re struggling to fill your time if, like me, you’re not working as normal. So, once again, here is what I do to stay busy – maybe you could take some inspiration from it to keep up your self-care and stay sane during this latest lockdown:

1. Make the bed. I know it sounds simple, but on the days when you feel like you can’t face doing anything, just getting up and making the bed always makes me feel better. Albeit small, I feel by making the bed I’ve achieved something (my bed has two throws and a ton of scatter cushions, so feeling proud when I’ve made it isn’t such a crazy notion) and I can enjoy coming back to a beautiful bedroom later.

Seeing a beautifully made bed really perks up my spirits

2. Move your body. It doesn’t matter how you do it, or when you do it, but getting exercise will help you shake off feeling low. It is proven to release happy endorphins (or ‘dolphins’ as my mate calls them, which in turn makes me imagine happy, playful dolphins jumping out of the water in excitement whenever I get that feel-good rush from a workout) and help you feel more energised. I see a startling difference in my mood on days when I exercise from the days I don’t. On the days I don’t, I always try to at least do a stretch or meditation. Even a fifteen-minute walk or a gentle yoga video from YouTube will help you feel good.

Even when the weather isn’t as nice as it is in this photo, I still love getting out for a walk in fresh air

3. Write a blog or do a video. As you know, my business is closed, but I need to keep my name out there and my business going on, even though I can’t see clients. I try to do this by keeping my social media up to date and by writing these blogs or making videos. Of course, I’m not earning any money from this, but it means my business has adapted during lockdown and hopefully people will remember me when they can start booking treatments again. I also really enjoy it and even if nobody reads my work, it helps to keep my head in the game and feeling like I’m doing something. If you enjoy writing it can help to express your feelings and thoughts, so you could write a blog, or a diary/journal just for you.

4. Vision boards. If you don’t know what these are, they’re a creative way of setting clear goals for what you want. The way I do it is not on a board, I have a scrapbook that I fill with pictures of things that represent my life goals – words and pictures. The idea is that this vision book helps me manifest my goals. I get my photos from magazines and do a classic cut and stick job, but you could do exactly the same thing on Pinterest if you prefer.

5. Light some candles. I find candles so soothing. I have loads dotted around my living room and I light them when I need a boost. I make a cup of tea, sit on the sofa and let the calming flames lull me into a state of zen.

Is there anything better than candlelight to soothe your mood?

6. Film night. Each night my husband and I watch a film (we alternate who chooses). We did this with my parents during lockdown 1.0 when we were ‘stranded’ in Dubai and it was fun. It’s a good way of seeing films you wouldn’t ordinarily choose and is something to look forward to during the day. If you live alone, why not do it over the phone with a friend or group of friends together on Whatsapp and suggest each person takes a turn to choose a film each night, each person watches it respectively at home and then you can discuss it afterwards.

Oh how I long to be back in a real cinema, but for now my living room will make do

7. Do what you feel like doing. It’s so important to look after our mental health and the number one way I do this is if I really don’t feel like doing something then I won’t force myself. I don’t think wallowing for ages is good, but we all need a duvet day occasionally.

If you want a day in bed watching TV while chain-drinking earl grey then do it. You should never feel guilty for doing what you feel like. Of course, if you have children then duvet days aren’t easy, but there are variations of lazy days that you can take. Give yourself time and care because you cannot look after others unless you look after yourself.

Every day would be a duvet day if this was the view from my bedroom…

8. Look forward. For me, travelling is what I enjoy the most, so even though I’ve had a few trips cancelled, I’ve made sure to have a holiday booked to look forward to. Of course, everything I have paid for is flexible or refundable, so if I need to postpone then I easily can. It doesn’t have to be booking a holiday, it could be getting a date in the diary for April to see your best friend, or planning a socially distanced outside walk with someone next week. I think it perks us up when we have things to look forward to, so try arranging dates for when lockdown should be over and look forward to them actually happening.

Even though it’s a while away, just having a holiday booked in the diary gives me something to look forward to

I’ve wanted to write about my favourite beauty and fragrance products for a while, but I have so many that I needed time to whittle them down into my absolute all-time favourites, otherwise this post would fast become a tome.

I’ve been a lover of beauty products for as long as I can remember. While it may have been a nightmare for others to receive hoards of ‘smellies’ for Christmas, I was never disappointed.

So, after a lifetime of pouring, sniffing, lathering and smoothing, here is my carefully curated list of my all-time favourite beauty and fragrance products (click on the name of each one to find it online):

L’Occitane Rose Crème Mains

If, like me, you suffer with eternally dry and cracked hands, this delicately perfumed hand cream will come to your rescue. I am very sensitive to smells and can always smell whatever hand cream I apply, so I cannot abide something that is not nicely scented. This smells floral, but it’s not overpowering and I think it has fresh notes to it that lighten it up, as a lot of rose scented products can be quite overbearing. Aside from the smell, this cream is really nourishing, but it’s light enough not to feel clammy, as I don’t like feeling anything on my palms when I put cream on.

Cire Trudon Scented Candle in Balmoral

This candle is an absolute dream. I first came across it when an old flatmate of mine had one when we lived together years ago and I have never grown tired of the scent. It took me a while to find it, as the jar we had was unlabeled, but after much nosing around, I did. I love fresh, herbal scents and this candle is no exception. I think it smells like there’s a hint of basil in it, but the scent notes say that it is foliage, mint, cut grass, freesia and tea (basically most of my favourite things…). It has a great scent throw and I can smell it when it’s just sat in the room and not burning. There’s nothing worse than investing in a scented candle only to find you can’t smell it unless you’re so close that you’ve singed off your eyebrows. It has between 50 and 70 hours of burn time, as long as you follow the instructions.

Hawaiian Kukui Cream by The Body Shop

My first ever purchase of this body cream was accidental. I was away in Dubai and had run out of aftersun, so popped to the mall to restock. I went into The Body Shop and, after some over-zealous sales tactics from one of the ladies in there, the next thing I knew I came out with this cream. Never have I been more pleased to be shoehorned into buying something than when I tried this stuff. Firstly, it smells divine, like a much-more-expensive-than-it-is kind of body cream. It’s very rich and thick, but as long as you don’t use too much, it goes on really nicely and is instantly absorbed into the skin (I don’t like when a cream goes white on your skin and takes ages to absorb – who has time for that?). It is perfect both as an aftersun and an everyday after-shower body moisturiser and the 350 ml tub lasted me at least five or six months, which I think is amazing value.

Guerlain Aqua Allegoria Pamplelune eau de toilette

This is an unusual scent for perfume, but one that I adore. It smells lively and energetic and reminds me of cocktails outside in the sun with the girls. It has distinguishing notes of grapefruit and bergamot, but also contains neroli, which is one of most loved scents (I wore Jo Malone’s Basil and Neroli on my wedding day, which is another of my beloved perfumes). I also love the bottle with its charming honeycomb collar and little bee engraved on the lid, which looks chic sitting in my bathroom.

I didn’t realise when I took this photo that you can see me in the lid!

Tan-Luxe The Face Anti-Age self-tan drops

As a rule, I really dislike self-tan, so the fact that this little bottle of wonder made the list speaks volumes. I like to tan my body naturally (but carefully) in the sun, but not my face. I wear hats, huge sunglasses and extremely high SPF when I’m out in the sun, so my face is always a lot paler than the rest of me and it can look a bit odd. These self-tan drops just go into your usual facial moisturiser and give you that gorgeous healthy glow that the pale ones among us love. Most importantly, they don’t smell like self-tan which is one of the main reasons I’m averse to fake tanners. As an added bonus, these drops are anti-aging. The serum contains aloe vera, raspberry seed oil and vitamin E for smoothing and brightening.

Neal’s Yard Orange Flower Facial Oil and Frankincense Hydrating Cream

I have clubbed these two products together because I always use them in tandem. One of the best pieces of skincare advice I was ever given (and have followed religiously ever since) is to massage a couple of drops of oil on your face before your apply your moisturiser. As the oil sinks deeply into your skin, it takes the moisturising cream with it and thus benefits the skin much more. Now, I don’t know whether the latter is really a thing, but my skin has been in much better condition since I adopted this routine (about five years ago).

My skin is on the dry side of combination, so I need moisture, but nothing too heavy because I can still have breakouts. I love the Orange Flower facial oil because it is quite light, but it does free me from that tight feeling after I’ve washed my face. Unsurprisingly, the fact it contains neroli oil is also a huge bonus for me, as well as the fact it contains anti-aging ingredients too. I think facial oils can really help balance your skin’s moisture levels as well and this has certainly done the job for me.

Frankincense hydrating cream is the one I always came back to. I will admit that I tried other face creams and thought the grass was greener, but I was wrong. For my skin, this little blue pot is the business and I will never stray again. Frankincense is said to help with the appearance of age spots, wrinkles and scars and has a lovely relaxing smell to it. This cream absorbs really quickly on my skin and leaves it plump and hydrated all day (and night, as I rarely remember to take my own advice and use a night cream).

So, there you have it. My list of my all time favourite beauty products and fragrances. I’d really love to know what your all time favourite products are, so do get in touch through my Instagram (@sarah_anker_spa) or by email and let me know.

What I do to beat lockdown blues

My Favourite Beauty and Fragrance Products of All Time