5 Morning Habits to Calm Your Day

早上完成這五件事，會給你平靜的一天

有些事情，我每天起床也會做。不知不覺成了生活日常的日常，這些事不難做也不太花時間，只需要提醒自己就可以了。

“When you keep doing something for 21 days they become a habit.”
And yes, there are something I will do every morning, and doing so it makes everything different - not only my health is getting better, I feel a lot calmer throughout the day too.

1. 每天起床，花5分鐘時間坐在床上或坐墊上，閉上眼晴，靜靜地聆聽自己的呼吸。

2. 整理及收拾床舖——整齊的睡房不單立即讓你感覺舒服自在，晚上回家時也能讓身體心情好好休息。

3. 早上淋浴，可以嘗試使用半冷或全冷水——它會讓你的鼻子都非常暢通，有一種早上在大海暢泳的感覺。（踫到冷水記得要保持呼吸，別閉氣，呼吸會讓你容易適應水的溫度；也可以先撥一些水在肚子讓身體適應）

4. 挑戰自己，起床別趕緊去沖咖啡，反而在睡覺前倒一杯水；起床後，加一點檸檬汁，把它整杯喝完。

5. 預早15分鐘出門，時間鬆動一些，也許會發覺心情也放鬆一點。

1. Don’t look at your phone immediately at the moment you woke up. Try to sit on the bed, or on a cushion, cross your legs, softly close your eyes, pay attention to your breathing for 5 minutes.

2. Make your bed - a tidy and clean space not only brighten up your mood immediately, and when you back from work at night, it provides you a warm welcome with a space for you to rest.

3. Take a cold shower in the morning. Cold shower will help your breathing to be smooth, and nothing is better than a feeling of diving in the sea in the morning. (little reminder: Keep breathing will let you to adapt to the temperature of water, and you may want to start with pulling some water to your belly first.)

4. Challenge yourself: Rather than going to make yourself a coffee, start your morning with a cup of still water with some lemon juice. It helps to detoxify your body.

5. Try to leave our home 15 minutes earlier than usual to get to work or school. With abundance of time, you may feel the whole day is much more relaxing.

你也有屬於自己的早上習慣嗎？

Do you have your own morning rituals too?

Love,

Charlotte

You Smell Like GREEN

【法式簡約。零化學物的綠色香氣】

女生，總喜歡聞上去香香的。

身邊有些朋友卻容易皮膚敏感，就算無論有多喜歡香氣，也沒法使用香水。早陣子受 100BON 的邀請，做過一個 “100BON EXPERIENCE” - 對這個綠色品牌概念非常有好感，所以希望在這邊介紹一下。

Fragrance is an invisible (& the most attractive) accessory.

However, some friends of mine have to avoid perfume because of allergies (chemicals). Last week, I was happy to be invited by 100BON for a "100BON EXPERIENCE" - and I’ve fall in love with the green concept behind the brand immediately.

它來自法國，兩位創辦人以前都是國際香水品牌的香水專家，不過因為想專心製作好(BON)、健康及純淨的香氛，也不願意添加對人和地球有害的化學物，所以才創立 100BON。當中，所有香水來也是來自於100%天然原材料——不含石化原料、人工香精、致敏物質等等，讓擁有敏感肌膚，甚至是懷孕女性都可以安心使用。

此外，你會發現這個品牌有一點不同：它捨去過度包裝，也不做動物試驗，原料也是來自可持續的農業。100Bon，英文唸出是Scent Bon，意思是美好的香氣，回歸『香味』本質。

的確，有理念的綠色品牌是美好的。

100BON is the first French perfume manufacturer 100% dedicated to natural ingredients. With a collection of 100% natural fragrances, which are rechargeable, green and accessible. The perfumes are designed and developed in France based on essential oils, without colour, phtalates and petrochemicals - a safe & clean perfume for those with sensitive skin, even during pregnancy.

Their products are not tested on animal, with 100% vegetables ingredients, and minimises costly bottles and too much packaging, with a holistic “Green” philosophy.

自己搭配的專屬香氣

那天，我上了一課「香水體驗課程」，在三十多種不同香氣中找出自己喜歡的香氣，把多款香調堆疊——搭配出屬於自己的味道。每支100BON香水都可根據其香調分類分成前、中、後調，並按照個人喜好組合出完整香水結構；100BON特別之處，就是可以根據個人對香味的取向，選擇自己使用的順序而疊噴出獨特的香水組合，每款香水的呈現方式亦因此變得各有不同。基本上，是沒可能和別人「撞味」！

這個Tailor-made的過程其實很好玩～

Tailor-made & Layering

On that day, I took a “Discovery Workshop” - learning their concepts and natural perfumes as well as learning how to mix and match for creating my personalized perfume. With over 20 kinds of scents, I played with endless possibility with the sequence of layering. There were a lot of “experiments”, but that was really fun.

“So what is Charlotte’s Layering Combination?”

Charlotte’s Layering Combination

後調 Base Note：雪松&鳶尾花 CEDRE ET IRIS SOYEUX
些許的甜味，結合了細緻的木調
A wooden floral hint, a powder & exciting scent with an aura of fascination


中調 Middle Note：含羞草&天芥花 MIMOSA & HELIOTROPE POUDRE
一個同時帶著花香與粉感的香調，溫柔而甜美
A delicate, soft sweetness with floral & powdery notes.

前調 Top Note：橙花&苦橙葉 NEROLI & PETIT GRAIN PRINTANIER
春天的青澀味道
A mix of floral & suave hints, like a spring bud.

“The secret ingredient is always LOVE.” 太喜歡這一句了。

真正的可持續香氣

最後，最令我深刻的是，每一家店也可以重覆補充香水——只要拿回空瓶就可以了（價格也很相宜！）這樣不但減少耗材，也為地球盡一分力。

環保不只是說，而是要做啊！

A Sustainable & Rechargeable Perfume

What impressed me the most is their GREEN 100% REFILLABLE method. All of their perfumes can be recharged and refill this as many time as you wish in 10/10 HOPE store. Not only this minimise the waste, it also make each perfume much more affordable.

A collaboration with 10/10 HOPE & 100 BON

Love,

Charlotte

A Lesson to Self-Care

好好照顧自己

這幾年，我經常聽到幾個經常形容我的形容詞，清爽、獨特、平靜。不少訪問會問我茹素以後，心靈會否變得平靜起來。茹素雖然不是魔法，卻讓我意識到「要好好照顧自自己」的道理，除了應用在飲食上，應該應用在生活各方面——好好吃一頓飯，好好穿衣，好好工作，好好生活。那麼，同樣道理，可否用在心靈層面上？你有沒有好好照顧自己的情感？

There are always a few keywords describing me - fresh, unique and calm. But I have not always been a calm girl since childhood. It took me many years to be who I am now, to learn those lessons I have to learn. Although following a plant-based diet is not a life-changing magic, it inspired me to “how to live well?” in other aspects, such as having good meals, wear comfortable clothes and work well etc. Meanwhile, can we apply the same concept into our inner self?

什麼是身心靈健康？
What is well-being?

簡義來說，一個健康和快樂的狀態。
(n.) A state of feeling healthy and happy.

身、心、靈三方面是相互連繫，相互影響。一個人的健康，身就是身體、生理；心就是心理、情緒；靈代表靈性、靈魂，這三方面之間必須維持一個平衡，我們才會在一個真正健康的狀態。

Body,Mind,Soul - three are related and affecting each other. Healthy body may be the most common definition we hear health. Healthy mind, which we may think of peaceful emotions and mindset. Soul, about our spiritual health, help us to find happiness and meaning of life. One must achieve a balance in these three aspects in order to enjoy a healthy life as a whole.

“Self-care means being switched on, fully present and engaged in your life. It’s the opposite of switching off and retreating from the world. Ignoring your own needs leaves you depleted, but self-care will energise you.”

— 《self-care for the real world》

曾經，當我對外界的煩擾而感到疲累時，我會選擇逃避，讓自己躲在家中，對外不聞不問。那時候的我覺得，我需要這一點安靜又安全的時間去休息。不過，休息的愈久，卻會感到無力感更重。

I used to “switching off” myself when I have negative emotions and anxiety. They just glue me to my bed for hours of uselessness. I thought I needed that space to rest and think. However, the longer I indulge myself in switching off, the more powerless I feel towards everything.

真正照顧自己，意思是讓自己完全投入，百分百的參與在你的生活中。這與隔離自己、避開外邊世界的方式完全相反。 忽視自己的需求會讓你感到疲憊不堪，但好好照顧自己卻可以激勵你，讓你重新感到自己的力量。嘗試把專注力重新回到自身，打開耳朵好好聽一聽身體的需要、觀察自己對事物的反應，慢慢地訓練自己的敏感度和相信自己的直覺。

Caring for yourself means to let yourself be fully engaged and presented in your life. This is the exactly opposite of isolating yourself from the outside world. Ignoring your own needs can make you feel exhausted, but taking care of yourself can motivate you and make you feel your inner strength again. Try to put concentration back to yourself — listen to your body's needs, observe your reactions to the surrounding, and slowly train your sensitivity and start beliving your instincts.

照顧自己的日常練習

Practice these few steps

聽上去好像很難明白？不如由生活上幾個簡單細節開始吧！

在晨光初起的早上，練習瑜珈、冥想，放鬆呼吸，把筋骨放鬆；好動的你也可以選擇做一點肌肉訓練，把專注力都重新回到自身。
在忙碌的下午，為自己泡一壷茶或沖煮一杯咖啡，讓自己慢慢從急促生活中放慢節奏，享受一下平靜和放鬆的時刻。
在寧靜的晚上點起心愛的香氛蠟燭，放點輕鬆的慢音樂，偶爾使用讓人放鬆的精油搽在手腕，或是睡前噴幾下天然香氣的pillow mist，好好舒眠及舒緩情緒。

Hard to understand? Don’t worry… It's always better to start with a daily routine.

In the early morning, start the day by practicing yoga and meditation, try to relax your breathing and your body. If you are an active person, you may try doing some muscle training, and put the concentration back to yourself.
During a busy afternoon, make yourself a cup of tea or brew a cup of coffee, let yourself to slow down from the rush of life, try to enjoy a moment of calm and relaxation.
In the quiet evening, you can light your favourite scented candle, play some slow music; and maybe use relaxing essential oils to massage your hands, or to spray a few drop of soothing sleeping mist before going to bed.

對我來說，奢華不等於是物質上的種種，而是對生活的細節有要求，講求生活上的質感；美好的生活，從照顧好自己的需要開始。

To me, luxury is never a materialistic concept, but it requires your attention to every details in life, looking for the quality of life. Well-being begins with you treat yourself with good care.

最後，想感謝 10/10 HOPE 的邀請，在剛剛的倫敦之旅給了我到 bamford 的體驗。品牌的理念不但跟我很相近，「用在身體上的跟吃進去的同樣重要」，還有他們holistic（全面的）的想法和理念，也帶給我對身心靈不一樣的看法。

Last but not least, I would like to thank 10/10 HOPE for their invitation and bamford for their warm welcoming. Not only I appreciate their brand concept and belief - “What goes on the body is as important as what we put inside.”, also they inspired me to have deeper understanding about well-being.

我和他們也合作拍了一個短的影片——很快就會跟大家見面，請期待喔！

I have also partnered with them to create a video, please stay tuned!

PS: 那天在Brompton Cross的 Daylesford 吃午餐，全素的選擇很多呢；就像我手上拿著的Pizza，滿滿的antichoke洋蓟，新鮮烤出來的就是特別的滋味！除了Cafè外，他們也有賣新鮮、有機食材、家品等等，果真是一個全面的體驗。

PS: After visiting bamford store, the staff recommended that I should visit Daylesford for lunch. Plenty of vegetarian/vegan options and healthy meals, perfect for gathering with friends and family. Also, remember to check out their grocery store (with organic natural food) and homewares shop, I am sure you will spend quite a lot of time there!

Daylesford
76-82 Sloane Avenue Brompton Cross
London SW3 3DZ

Love,

Charlotte