While I love concept of minimalism for my closet and home, I have to admit, it hasn’t yet hit my nightstand. Ha!

In the top drawer lies a lineup of beauty and health products that I run through every night to make sure I get into a state of maximum relaxation, and since this week is all about Rituals, I wanted to share!

I usually take a shower or bath at night, wash my face and brush my teeth, then start in on this. Let’s dig in!

A Simple Nighttime Ritual for Maximum Relaxation

Blue Light Glasses:

These go on right away—always the first step in the process! I’m a big believer in research that shows blue light can interfere with our body’s ability to fully relax at bedtime, so I make sure to put these on every night whether I’m watching TV or reading my iPad.

I also have my electronic devices switched onto “Night Shift” all day, regardless of the time. It does look a tinge yellow, but if you don’t have blue light blockers handy, this is a simple way to get rid of that blue light. Here’s how to do it on Apple devices!

Aromatherapy Balm:

As soon as I was gifted this amazing Perfect Nacht Sleeping Balm by Bynacht, I immediately put it into my nighttime ritual. Aromatherapy has long been a staple of people’s nighttime routines, as our senses of smell can be powerful emotional portals. I personally am partial to lavender at nighttime; I find a deep breath of this scent immediately calms my mind. I put my sleeping balm on the insides of my wrists, the crooks of my elbows, my temples, and even—at Jessica’s suggestion—on the bottoms of my feet.

Neck and Chest Cream:

I just started using this neck-specific lotion on both my neck and chest after trying a sample. The texture is between a lotion and cream; it’s in a pump so I use two pumps for my neck and chest, and whatever is left over, I use on the backs of my hands.

Lip Mask:

I alternate between using the Summer Fridays Lip Butter Balm and the pink Laneige Lip Sleeping Mask. I love to apply a thick layer and let it sit while I watch TV and relax, though I always wipe it off before I put my head on the pillow and leave just a thin application so it doesn’t smear all over my pillowcase.

TV Time:

This isn’t a health or beauty ritual, but it’s one I look forward to nightly nonetheless! Andrew and I just finished Mad Men—I know, super late to the game on that one, but WOW—and now we are grudgingly making our way through Servant, which, while entertaining, is also a little… I don’t know… too much M. Night Shymalan twisty-and-turny for me, know what I mean? Anyhow! All of this to say, we are open to new suggestions!

I know some experts say that it’s not good to watch television in bed, that our rooms should be havens free from electronics, but this is part of my ritual that I am keeping no matter what. 😉 (And for the record, I always keep my phone in the other room, so at least that is far away!)

Reading:

This is my absolute favorite way to wind down the day. I am an avowed book nerd, and I fall asleep every night to an amazing read. I can do a separate post on my favorite books if you’d all like to see that, but right now I’m working my way through The Last Flight, and it’s so good. Again, open to your recommendations here too! Any good reads you’ve gotten through lately?