The end of January is upon us – and with it, a wish-list tailor-made to reinvigorate your good intentions
April might well be the cruellest month, as T.S. Eliot once wisely asserted, but January is surely the most challenging. And how could it not be? It’s preceded on New Year’s Eve by a blaze of misguided optimism, only to begin, one day later, in a cloud of morning-after anguish. Then there are 31 full days of relentless resolutions, and the bitter reproach when they fail (which they always do; what a time to give up alcohol), before, at last, you come clattering into February, a shadow of your former self, cold and despondent.
What better reason, then, to start again in February? As the world prepares for a new, new start (a short month! With warmer weather! And longer days!), we present a collection of products designed to help you make fresh resolutions across beauty, fitness and lifestyle. Here’s hoping that this time around they might be slightly easier to keep.
Beauty
1. In an ideal world, the beginning of a new year marks an ideal moment to revitalise your beauty routine. In practice, of course, regular trips to a dermatologist aren’t always possible – which is where La Prairie’s Cellular Three-Minute Peel comes in. Its concentrated exfoliants are ideal for enlarged pores and dehydrated skin, while the little brush which accompanies it only adds to the general ambience of luxury. What’s more, it really works.
2. The need for dehydration wouldn’t be quite so dire in the first place, of course, if you were able to follow that oft-given advice to simply drink more water – a drastically easier undertaking with S’Well’s white marble print water bottle within arm’s reach at all times (a purchase for which the environment, as well as your complexion, will thank you).
3. If you’re struggling to get a few extra hours sleep in as you’d naively resolved to back in early January, Slip’s silk eye mask might help. Made from luxurious mulberry silk, it blocks every splinter of light to aid a night of uninterrupted sleep, while also adding to the general aura of Holly Golightly.
4. Finally, Elemis’ version is among the very best of the skin brushes, improving circulation and making your skin smoother and softer than you could ever hope for.
Fitness
5. That new sportswear has an exponential impact on the resolve to work out more often is a truth universally acknowledged – and if January’s expensive gym membership didn’t do the trick, we’ll bet that a Fendi sports bra will.
6. Likewise, the Nike Apple Watch is a tried and tested solution for even the laziest among us – essentially an Apple watch which is optimised to get you moving. It has a built-in GPS that makes running with an iPhone so ideal, but minus the weight or the inconvenience; and it also incorporates a heart-rate sensor, accelerometer, gyroscope, and motivating reminders to encourage you to get off the sofa and out into the world.
7. To go with it? Sports and leisurewear brand Aeance pairs brilliantly bright colourways with super sleek silhouettes and bonded seams – all of which are very well and good – but it does so with one eye on sustainability and social responsibility. This slim-fitted, super smooth wind jacket is as minimalist in form as sportswear comes, but incorporates several secret pockets and cable routers so as to make it a pragmatic choice, as well as a chic one.
8. And for the fanciful, a pair of perfectly branded Chanel rackets, to bring luxe leisure activity to your beach holiday too. For Margate as well as Marbella.
Lifestyle
9. Waking up is so very hard to do – and even more so in the depths of winter when a dearth of daylight sends your melatonin levels haywire. Lumie’s bodyclock starter is an ideal alternative to a shrill phone alarm; it wakes users up gently with a slowly rising light level, simulating dawn, thus gently boosting your mood and productivity through a better and more natural sleep pattern.
10. Likewise, Olivia von Halle’s fabulous striped silk pyjamas will do wonders for your downtime, if only by transforming your bedroom into a boudoir.
11. Buying a new diary might be one of the greatest pleasures of starting a new year, and if you’ve yet to acquire the stationery needed to help you get your to do list in order, this Smythson fashion beauty – with listings for New York, London, Milan and Paris – is an ideal choice in sunny yellow.
12. For travel-based resolutions, Globetrotter’s cruise trolley case in royal blue is the ultimate in jetset glamour, and – an added bonus – easy to spot at baggage reclaim.
