We chat to fashion & beauty blogger Ashley Wilson, a.k.a A Mother’s Edit, about her favourite Space NK finds and which gem she can’t be without since having her babies…
The Wind Down
I usually start to wind down after I have given the girls their dinner, so around 5.30pm. It’s normally a pretty relaxed evening from then on. After I have bathed them both and put them to bed I’ll take a few minutes to myself to get changed into my PJs or a bathrobe.
My goal with my Sunday routine is to really try and start the week feeling good about myself, so getting rid of any anxiety I might have about events coming up or the stress of deadlines lurking. Sade is always my go-to for relaxing music, or a Sunday playlist on Spotify. I’ll choose a favourite candle – at the moment it’s the Ambre scent by Diptyque, and start with the lights bright but later I like to dim them to really try and create a relaxing atmosphere. My Sunday night routine always has a lot more steps than my day-to-day evening routine. This is the one time I can really indulge as I know my husband is home to cook the dinner and I can concentrate on a bit of pamper time.
The Routine
I’ll start with cleansing, taking all my makeup off with a cleanser like the Caudalie Micellar Cleansing Water and then cleanse again with a salicylic acid cleanser. I can suffer with really painful hormonal breakouts so it’s really important to me I clear my pores of any makeup and daily dirt. I’ll do all this in the bathroom at the sink. Then I like to use glycolic acid wipes like these Malin + Goetz Resurfacing Glycolic Pads to exfoliate. And lastly I’ll pop on a Glamglow Thirstymud Hydrating Treatment Mask. This is when I’ll usually finish up my Sunday chores like the final wash-load of the weekend and making a lunchbox for my daughter.
When everything is done and I’ve been fed and watered myself I can really relax. And for me a hot bath is the ultimate relaxation with the lights dimmed low. In the week it’s always a very rushed morning shower so this is the only time I get to use all my pamper-products properly. I love the Ren Anti-Fatigue range and use the bath oil and then the body wash in the week.
I’ll damp my hair and pop on a mask, the Oribe ones are incredible. This then doesn’t get washed off until the morning shower, as I really like to get the most from it. I then use a body scrub like the Ren Moroccan Rose Otto Sugar Body Polish all over. And the Legology Exfo-Lite Daily Scrub for Legs sachets out of the bath on my legs. I wrap myself in a big fluffy towel and cleanse my face again removing the mask. If I look particularly tired I’ll also use an eye mask like the Rodial Dragon’s Blood Eye Masks. Then my go-to products I couldn’t be without: Sunday Riley Good Genes and the Luna face oil. Some hydrating eye cream dabbed lightly around my socket with a good dose of Hyaluronic Acid. The Elemental Herbology Hyaluronic Booster Plus is fantastic. When that’s all done I’ll use oil on my body – at the moment I love the Legology Cellu-Lite Salon Secret for Legs, the Mio Get Waisted Sculpting Body Shaper on my stomach post baby and the Nuxe Dry Oil Huile Prodigieuse. I also love using a body brush all over – the Legology Lymph-Lite Boom Brush is fantastic and you can put the oil directly onto it to save time.
Bedtime
I get into bed at 10pm and always use the This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray – it’s fantastic. When I remember I slather on some hand cream, I love the smell of Laura Mercier Ambre Vanille. I always have a large glass of water on the bedside table that I drink as soon as I wake up and then it’s straight to sleep. My phone is always on silent. I am the sort of person who really needs their sleep. Eight hours a night is my goal but with my baby still being so young it’s often broken up quite a bit or with an early rising around 5am. Hence the importance of all the beauty products to hide the lack of sleep. When I need a tan I swap products around a bit and add in my ultimate fake tan product: the Vita Liberata pHenomenal 2-3 Week Tan Mousse. Haven’t found any other tan better. And I’ve just started using their Self-Tanning Anti-Age Serum too. I am definitely someone who likes to experiment but when I find something that works I stock up.
Monday Morning
Monday morning starts when my youngest daughter decides to cry for her milk. It can be 5am or 7am. I jump out of bed, drink the water and then head downstairs to make her a bottle of milk and myself my daily bottle of the Super Elixir by Welleco. And the week has begun.