What day of quarantine are we even on?! It feels like day one thousand. Who even knows anymore. I’ve always been a homebody, but I also love traveling and being on the go, so I’d be lying if I said I haven’t had a handful of mental breakdowns in the last few months. Even though a lot of states and businesses are starting to reopen, it feels like “normal life” is nowhere in sight. I, for one, have no plans to leave the house and attend huge gatherings anytime soon.
I’m a firm believer that this extra at-home time should be used for unwinding and resetting, but as a workaholic, I struggle to find a balance of not working/doing house projects every waking minute of every day. So this list has a little bit of both – products to help you relax and destress + products to help you be productive af. Also, yes, I realize that these are not *actually* essentials, but are more like #firstworldproblem necessities. The way I see it, if we have to be at home, we might as well be surrounded by things that make us happy and boost our mood. Here are some of the products that have been making me extra happy the last few months (or at least making things suck a little less).
BALOO WEIGHTED BLANKET
Today’s post is sponsored by one of my all-time favorite brands, Baloo Living. You might recognize the name from my holiday gift guide last year; Baloo is an ethical, eco-friendly company that makes the most beautiful, high-quality weighted blankets + duvet covers ever. Now more than ever, we could all use an extra hug, so it’s the perfect time to treat yourself to a weighted blanket.
I was a huge fan of my weighted blanket before all this lockdown stuff happened, and now it’s pretty much become part of my daily wardrobe. Not to be dramatic, but my Baloo weighted blanket has changed my life. I have narcolepsy, so I wasn’t sure if a weighted blanket would really “make a difference” in my life. It doesn’t take much for me to fall asleep (I pretty much just have to close my eyes for 30 seconds), and I am tired all the time. I’m happy to report that my weighted blanket has in fact reduced my stress levels and improved my sleep habits. Who knew a blanket could do all that?! I’m not kidding when I say I sleep with it every night, and I also bring it out to the couch when I nap.
Baloo’s cotton cool weighted blankets are made with 100% natural materials. I love that their blankets are made with glass microbeads that allow the blanket to conform to your body, just like a hug! A lot of other weighted blankets are filled with plastic, and something about the glass beads adds a whole new level of quality. I have been using my blanket as-is up until recently. I’d been searching for a cute duvet cover for my blanket, and Baloo recently sent me one of their beautiful french linen covers. Just gonna throw this out there – there are a lot of ugly weighted blankets out there. This is not one of them. The Baloo Living weighted blanket just might be the nicest looking, best quality blanket of its kind on the market. I also love that the blanket (with or without the duvet cover) is extremely breathable. I’m a sweaty sleeper, and I can use this blanket year-round without making my sleep-sweats worse. The linen duvet cover looks like it’s straight out of a West Elm or Pottery Barn catalog, but it’s made specially to fit your weighted blanket. The duvet cover actually has extra ties on the inside (instead of just the usual 4 corners) to help keep the blanket from shifting. They offer duvet covers in a variety of different colors and neutrals – I fell in love with their white one. They even have matching linen pillowcases on Amazon; I’m currently adding them to my cart! The blankets come in a few different sizes; full/queen, twin/personal, and king/california king. I don’t like to share blankets, so I have the full/queen size, and it’s perfect for just me. The blankets range from 12 to 20 pounds, and they have a ton of great information on their website about picking the right weight for you.
Weighted blankets have a lot of benefits, but they are most known for alleviating stress and anxiety, helping form better sleep habits (less tossing and turning), and relaxing the nervous system. They have even been shown to help calm ADHD and other sensory disorders. The benefits come from the deep pressure stimulation the blanket gives the body. I sleep with my Baloo weighted blanket at night, snuggle up on the couch with it when we watch movies, and it’s my personal favorite napping companion. Seriously, the quality of my naps is exponentially higher since I started using my weighted blanket. I find a lot of comfort in my Baloo weighted blanket, especially during this scary pandemic.
CANDLES/OIL DIFFUSER
One of my favorite things ever is opening the windows and lighting my favorite candle. Something about fresh air mixed with my favorite scent keeps me going. I’m actually slightly sad because I’ve burned through 4 full-sized Bath and Body Works candles in the last three months. I have to keep reminding myself that I bought them *to use them*, not to leave them sitting on a shelf collecting dust. The moral of the story is that it’s a great time to burn through some of your candle collection.
If you’re more of a diffuser person, there’s no better time to start using it daily. I’m still kind of new to the diffuser game, but I’m learning. All I know is that when I use my oil diffuser, I feel like I really have my life together and am nailing adulting. Whether you’re a diffuser or candle gal, good smells are good for the soul. Definitely a necessity during this time! Even as things start to slightly “return to normal” with everything reopening, it’s more important than ever to support small businesses so they can stay afloat. There are so many amazing candle makers out there, so challenge yourself to buy from a maker instead of a huge retailer today. My absolute favorite candle shops are Gold + Ivy, Happy Place Candle Co, and Coffee Candles Co.
BLUE LIGHT GLASSES
Last week I stepped on my blue light glasses and broke them, and I was so sad! I instantly ordered a new pair, but wow, the two days I waited for them to arrive made me realize how much these help my migraines and headaches. Pretty much everybody has heard of blue light glasses at this point, and today I’m telling you that you need a pair. Not only do they reduce eye strain, but the filtering out of blue light actually restores healthy sleep patterns and rhythms, and improves sleep quality + amount.
You can buy these pretty much anywhere, but my go-to for everything lately is Amazon. I really love my tortoise frame blue light glasses – I feel like they make me look like I have my life together! Quay also has some really cute options. If you have real glasses to read close-up screens, you can have blue light lenses put into your actual glasses. So cool! We’ve all increased our screentime the last few months, so blue light glasses are necessary. Bonus – they hide your face when you have to suffer through all those Zoom calls every week.
COZY LOUNGEWEAR
There are two types of people in the world; people who have been living in comfy clothes since this started, and liars. I’ve been way into sweatsuits + matching sets the last few months, but honestly, any loungewear will do. In case you were wondering, yes, I did jump on the tie dye sweatsuit trend, and I have no regrets. One of my favorite quarantine projects was bleach-dying a pair of black joggers (from CottonOn) and a black zip-up hoodie. The whole project cost under $20, and the sweatsuit looks like it’s from Urban Outfitters – I highly recommend trying your hand at this diy, even if you’re not very crafty. These supplies are all you need:
Another favorite matching set that I’ve been living in is from Ella and Em. It’s the cutest dark + light pink tie dye crewneck with flare sweatpants. I especially love the flare pants. They’re so different from the joggers in every matching set. Some of my other favorite places to shop for cozy lounge clothes are Target (this hoodie + these joggers), Amazon (this t-shirt + these shorts), and Old Navy (this hoodie + these joggers). I’m linking some of my favorites below!
NON-ELECTRONIC ACTIVITIES
I’m just as addicted to electronics as the next person, but sometimes you need a break to keep your mental health in check. I’m not gonna lie, I sometimes struggle with tearing myself away from screens. Now that I’ve been home more, I’ve found joy in blocking off some time each day to spend on “simple”, electronic-free activities. It’s more important now than ever to focus on mental health and take care of yourself. Even if it’s only for 15 minutes a day, reading a book, paging through a magazine, writing in your planner, or even coloring can help reduce stress and lift your mood.
I’m not a huge fan of reading “for fun”, but it’s always nice to have a few easy “reads” on hand. By “reads”, I pretty much mean adult picture books; I have a few go-to books that get me really inspired to do projects around the house! Lately, I’ve been loving Homebody by Joanna Gaines and The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing and Realizing Your House Goals by the women behind the iconic organization brand The Home Edit.
Adult coloring books have been a thing for awhile now, but I’ve really gotten into them during quarantine. I love dogs, and I got the cutest golden retriever themed coloring book on Amazon! I also grabbed a pack of 100 colored pencils and now I have endless hours of entertainment. This is also a great idea if you are a parent to older kids + teenagers. Coloring can be very therapeutic!
I’m a type-A planner type of person, so it’s been important for me to find ways to stay somewhat productive with all this time at home. Nothing beats the satisfaction of crossing things off your daily to-do list! I’ve still been using my Erin Condren Lifeplanner, even though my weeks are a lot emptier than usual. I also really love their 7 x 9 inch notebooks – they’re my favorite for writing down all my lists and projects! Like I said earlier, you don’t have to be productive every minute of every day. That being said, I’m a huge list-maker, and it’s okay to keep planning your days out during this time.
CB2 ACRYLIC TRAY
They say you should have a separate workspace that’s not your bed or the couch when you work from home, but I disagree. Honestly, I probably work from my desk 20% of the time, the floor 30% of the time (my office rug is sooo comfy to sit on), and my couch or bed 50% of the time. Having this acrylic bed tray from CB2 has changed the game. First of all, it keeps my laptop from overheating, so it doesn’t constantly sound like it’s about to take off into space. It’s also pretty much the cutest thing ever, and I love how it looks sitting on my daybed when I’m not using it. Honestly, it’s a little bit of an investment, but it’s worth every penny. I’ve also noticed that when I have my laptop on this tray instead of my lap, my upper back and shoulders don’t hurt as much by the end of the day.
Right now, the “simple pleasures” of life are keeping me (somewhat) sane. Let’s all be responsible and remember to take precautions as businesses begin to open back up. This is still a very real virus, and we need to protect our families and our communities. Now, I want to know – what are your at-home essentials, and what have you been doing during this mandatory stay-at-home time?!
