FINDING POWER IN A MORNING ROUTINE
I’ve always been a morning person. I don’t need an alarm clock, or coffee and I’m ready to chat as soon as my eyes open (you’re probably cringing at this if you’re not a morning person). As a kid my mornings always represented quality time with my mom. She worked night shifts from 11pm-7am as a nurse—by 7:15am I’d hear her car pulling into the driveway, and I knew her arrival meant she would make me breakfast no matter how tired she was. I can still picture her perfectly slicing my little Eggo waffles into pieces to go with my scrambled eggs—then I’d get ready and she’d take me to school. Acts of service is definitely my mother’s love language. I viewed those mornings as our dedicated one-on-one time because in the evenings she’d often be sleeping or exhausted, if she wasn’t picking up an extra shift at work.
As I’ve gotten older, mornings still remain my favorite part of the day— they’re sacred. I don’t approach it as time to be productive though, it’s actually my time to be leisurely and self-indulgent. I don’t like to be rushed through my morning hours, or stay up so late that I sleep through them. Even though the steps are simple, I savor these rituals that jump start my day.
How do you set yourself up to have a good day?
7:30AM
I typically wake up by 7:30 the latest. I haven’t used an alarm clock in years, unless I have a flight to catch. I always sleep in matching pajama sets. Right now, I’m obsessed with this mini rose set by Leset I also have the matching pillow cases (the modal fabric is incredibly soft and cozy). I wish I could be one of those people who don’t touch their phone all morning, but I’m not. I sleep in bed with my phone like any other tech-addicted person. If I had a dream that night, the first thing I do once I open my eyes is write it down in my notes app before it disappears to wherever dreams go. I’ve been writing down my dreams for years. I also make note of whether it’s a New Moon or Full Moon since I typically have really vivid dreams around those times, and I can often find connections between them. When my dreams are particularly weird or feel symbolic I always look up the meaning. Next, I skim my emails for anything pressing, check the news headlines, open my daily Note From The Universe, and then I take my first (of many) scrolls on Instagram and TikTok.
8:15AM
My daily meditation alarm goes off. Now, I’m not always disciplined with this. I go through phases where I’m consistent and meditate every single day for weeks on end (my longest streak was 106 days). Other times, I meditate a few days a week. My favorite guided meditation app is Headspace. I’ve been using it for years, and I pay the subscriber fee to have unlimited access. I like that they have meditation packs to address things like patience, happiness or stress. I’ve gone through many of them, so now I just do the daily meditation that has a different theme every day. I typically do 10 or 15 minutes, but 20 minutes is ideal. I can feel a difference in my practice when I can commit to that length—and it gives me more of a high than a shorter meditation. I first learned to meditate from a therapist when I started having anxiety as a teen. There are so many misconceptions about meditation. People think it’s suppose to *do* something after their first session, or they think that the mind is supposed to be completely void of thoughts while meditating—both are false. The point is training your mind not to get distracted by anxious, worrisome, negative thoughts—but meditation is a practice, and you have to be consistent to really see the benefits when you’re starting out.
8:30AM
I usually eat within an hour after opening my eyes, I have hypoglycemia (aka low blood sugar but unrelated to diabetes) so I’m hungry as soon as I wake. I always eat a proper breakfast because my day can be thrown off if I don’t—and a blood sugar drop can trigger my anxiety. I leave my phone in my room when I go to the kitchen. I’m obsessed with Circadian Farms Blueberry Vanilla Cereal. I have a bowl with Lactaid milk, dried cherries, and bananas. Occasionally, I’ll make breakfast for my mom too before she goes to work but she’s not really a breakfast person. I also always have a cup of tea, I never drink coffee. My parents are Jamaican, and drinking something hot in the morning is part of the culture. I either go for fresh ginger tea or earl grey with lemon in my And I Get Dressed Venus mug made by my friend Kellie Brown. No milk or sugar in my tea. During the winter I throw in a few drops of echinacea for its immune-boosting properties. After breakfast I finish with my supplements: Zinc (for skin), Elderberry (for immunity), DIM (for skin—read my article about it here), and probiotics (for gut health).
9:00AM
As of May I’ve tried to commit to going for a walk (almost) every morning. Mostly for my mental health, but I’m not big on exercise so I know my body needs the physical activity as well. I try to do about 40-minute walk around my neighborhood. I have a few different routes I like to take depending on what I’m up for that day. On the weekends I’ll tend to do a longer route that takes about an hour. I use Bala weights around my ankles—I’ll switch between the 1 or 2 pound. My go-to sneakers are New Balance 997S. I’m not even sure if they’re meant for exercise but I just love how they look. My favorite activewear brands are Set Active, Tory Sport, Alo Yoga, and anything from Bandier.
9:45AM
I read every morning, whether I’m catching up on news on my iPhone or a book. I like to stay informed about lots of different topics from fashion, media drama, social justice, and health. Typically I read CNN, NYMag, New York Times, and Business of Fashion. I’m very into Twitter again. If you’re following the right people, it’s a great source for news and laughs—I just love seeing what everyone’s talking about. I feel like everything happens on Twitter before it lands on Instagram, especially memes. But you also need to know when to log off because it can be incredibly toxic. If I want to get some extra reading in, I’ll open one of the books I’m juggling at any given time. Right now, I’m deep into Internal Family Systems Therapy by Robert Schwartz. It explores the belief that our psyche is made up of many different “parts,” and we have to look at all of them in order to heal. I might get interrupted by a FaceTime from my best friend Melanie, we talk pretty much every morning. I also check my astrology apps like Moon Calendar. Checking what astrological sign the moon is in for the day is like checking the weather forecast to me. The moon represents our emotional bodies and can indicate the vibe of the day. If it’s in a water sign, I might feel more emotional or sensitive. If it’s in an earth or fire sign, I typically feel more energized. I’m sure I’m not alone when I say that over the last year my moods have felt all over the place—I always wake up unsure of what kind of day I’m going to have. Some days I feel so unmotivated and just want to binge-watch Grey’s Anatomy in bed. Other days, I feel inspired to shoot content, write, or chat on Zoom meetings all day. Understanding the moon position provides a little extra insight into how I can best navigate my day.
10:30AM
I put music on and start to get myself together. I’ve been obsessed with music for as long as I can remember. It’s transformative for me—it helps me to connect to myself, makes me feel confident, fires me up, which is helpful for the days that I’m feeling lethargic. Also, I just can’t shower without a soundtrack. I love super hot showers, I use a Vita Clean shower head that has lavender aromatherapy inside so it makes my bathroom smell like a spa. I exfoliate every time I shower with exfoliating gloves and use Shea Moisture's African Black soap. I also love Hemp soap which I used to buy whenever I was in Jamaica but my supply ran out. I end my showers with a blast of cold water because it’s good for you, and it stops skin from feeling itchy after all the hot water, then I slather on Augustinus Bader’s body cream (or my drugstore go-to is Nivea cocoa butter body cream) and then F. Miller body oil for good measure and wrap myself up in my Parachute robe. My routine just feels more luxurious with a robe on. My skin is super dry in the winter, so I shower about 4-5 times a week. For my face, I’ve been trying to rehab my skin after a few weeks of bad breakouts—and I just got back on Dr. Barbara Sturm’s Darker Skin Tones regimen after being off it for a year or so—and it’s doing wonders for the hyperpigmentation. I keep my daytime skincare routine fairly simple: cleanse, Hyper Skin vitamin c, and moisturizer/SPF. When I have a blowout my hair requires little effort in the morning, I just have to sleep with my silk turban for protection. I only really put on makeup the days I’m creating content and I tend to keep that simple, I use Fenty concealer to cover up acne scars, Pat McGrath liquid eye-liner and mascara, and I adore Westman Atelier blush.
11:00AM
Much like music, what I wear can also help me feel more focused, confident, and upbeat for the day. In a pre-covid world, I loved getting dressed up for the office every day—and I miss that. I take a lot of pride in how I dress, and it just makes me feel good. Of course, these days, it really depends on my mood or what’s on the agenda that day that determines how dressed up I’ll get. I’m more likely to put on a good outfit if I have a lot of meetings, but usually I just stick to a nice sweater and jeans or trousers. If I’m going for something more relaxed, I put on a matching sweat set from my growing collection. Sometimes I wonder how much I’ll actually want to dress up in a post-Covid world. Lately I’ve been living in Citizen of Humanity’s new fleece sweatpants and matching henley sweatshirt. And I’ll still throw on some gold hoops with my sweats. I always like to feel cute and put together, even if it’s just for myself. To me, how I present myself is a reflection of how I feel about myself.
After working in the corporate world for so long it feels like the ultimate luxury to have such leisurely mornings these days. My absolute favorite thing about being my own boss now is that I get to create my own schedule and be in total control of how I want to structure my days. I spend the majority of my time working across the 3 jobs I have currently, and I don’t have a set time to clock out each day, so I don’t feel guilty about how I choose to spend my morning—or that I don’t schedule meetings before 12pm unless absolutely necessary. Overall though, each morning I try to listen to my body and what it needs that day—some days that means skipping most of my routine to just lay still in bed with my thoughts, or FaceTiming with my best friend all morning.
The granny nightie is making a comeback
Mark my words! They’re elegant, feminine, comfortable—and yes, they can be sexy too. I tend to go for the sheer cotton styles for that element, so they are not the kind of piece you can just run to the corner store in. Eileen West is the pioneer of the granny nightie, but I also love a nightgown from Doen, or vintage (I have eBay alerts set for vintage slips and robes). If you prefer a more traditional pajama set, here are a few more of my favorite brands.
Leset: for sleepwear that also looks good out on the streets.
Eberjey: the Gisele, their classic pajama set, comes in every color, and the softest modal fabric that never shrinks or fades in the wash. I’ve had mine for years.
Desmond & Dempsey: for a bit of bedtime whimsy, this UK-based brand makes your quintessential cotton pajama set in the most charming hand-painted prints like pineapples and jungle scenes.
Tekla: this brand is definitely the new cool kid on the block, if you’re down for the ultra clean Danish aesthetic. They’re all organic and unisex.
Lunya: I’ve lived in their linen sets both indoors and outside (back when that was a thing). Their washable silk also feels amazing.
wearing Doen’s Solaris nightgown