Sleep Goddess Shower Mists + Luxury Scrunchies

*This post contains PR samples.

I'll be honest - at 37 weeks pregnant, sleep is a sensitive subject for me right now. I'm uncomfortable with all the extra weight of pregnancy and sleeping in certain positions, I'm still regularly co-sleeping with our toddler (don't ask how it's going to work when baby arrives), and our household has just been struck down with colds (yes, in July.) I need all the help I can get when it comes to sleep because I'm exhausted now, and with an imminent newborn arrival I'm not sure it's going to get better anytime soon!

Enter Sleep Goddess: their products are vegan, cruelty-free and British-made, making them a go-to for ethical beauty sleep purchases. I was immediately intrigued by their faux-silk pillow case covers (SUCH a smart design, not to mention that it's so hard to find hair-friendly pillowcases that are vegan!) from a beauty perspective but they have so much else to offer...

IDentity Lingerie

Paid partnership with IDentity Lingerie

IDentity Lingerie is a small, family run, handmade lingerie UK based brand. Specialising in nightwear as well as lingerie, they also recently branched out into face masks due to the pandemic from their base in Lincolnshire.

IDentity have some core brand values which I applaud, including promotion healthy and diverse body image across their platforms. Their items are high quality and handmade, often to order, meaning they aren't contributing to the environmental impact of mass produced items like other larger brands. Items that aren't sold are refurbished into different products so as to avoid the cycle of waste from having too much excess stock. They aim to make products that will remain relevant and therefore serve people for years to come, rather than being trend led which is a brilliant way to avoid the waste issues caused by fast fashion and fast-changing trends.

Lyonsleaf Giveaway + Discount Code!

*This post contains PR samples/affiliate links

It's Plastic Free July, so what better way to celebrate than hosting a giveaway with one of my favourite low-waste brands, the wonderful Lyonsleaf?

The lovely folk over at Lyonsleaf and I are giving away a Mum & Baby Skincare Survival kit, perfectly timed as my little one is due a month today! The kit contains Beauty Balm, and two types of natural nappy cream (I've reviewed both of these on my blog previously, see links.) It also contains a cleansing cloth which Mama can use with the Beauty Balm (this product contains essential oils to give it its delicious fragrance, so not one to share with baby.) But none of these products are a one-trick pony: the Calendula and Marshmallow Balm has received many accolades when used as a nipple cream which I wish I'd known about last time, whilst the Beauty Balm can double up as cleanser, moisturiser and even primer. Knowing that I can trust these products for their versatility and reliability, this kit has gone straight into my birth bag. If that all sounds good and you'd like to win a set yourself, details on how to enter the giveaway are at the bottom of this post!

A low waste baby wishlist

Contrary to what marketing would have us believe, the truth is, babies don't need that much *stuff*. Now that I'm having my second baby I've realised how much equipment we had last time that didn't really get used. Carrycot? Nope, she hated it so we used a sling. Baby toys? Nah, not really interested. Cute outfits? Thanks, but she mostly lived in sleepsuits due to those double digit nappy changes. In our loft there's a box full of almost untouched rattles and toys that we'll probably get out again and put away almost unused. We already were trying to live low waste when I had Eden, but this time my baby wishlist has changed even more. Having done it all before, I thought I'd share some idea for baby gifts of dreams without the waste!

TTC // Working with a nutritionist

I've honestly been meaning to write this post for MONTHS considering I'm now 33 weeks pregnant, but better late than never! Trying to conceive is a significantly more emotional process than I ever realised. Eden was a surprise pregnancy (the best surprise ever, as it turns out) so the complexities of actually trying to have another baby were unexpected to me. As women, for much of our lives we often focus on trying not to conceive as the matter of contraception tends to fall to us. So one could be forgiven for thinking that as soon as you started trying to have a baby, surely you'd get pregnant straight away. And that does happen! - for a lucky few. For the rest of us it takes a little more time, patience, and for me, getting in tune with my body.