Pedicures, Paintings & Peaking Too Early: May Favourites

I’ve long been a believer that being too organised, planning too far in advance, getting things done early, is entirely the incorrect approach in life. (Which is probably why my book deadline for How Not to be a Supermodel was moved twice, despite me actually being capable of writing the whole thing in approximately three months once I sequestered myself away in a room without internet.)

Don’t get me wrong: I hate being late and I’m definitely not one of these people who is all for “spontaneity” and “sailing close to the wind”. When I travel, I book in advance and print off my tickets in case my phone battery dies and I like to know exactly what I’m doing and where I’m going and precisely how many stops to count on the metro before I need to get off. And when I’m working, I need to have an approximate idea of deadlines and the overall shape of my week so that I can make sure I fit everything in, and I have both a paper diary and my phone calendar to remind me of all of the life things that need to be done.

But planning too much? Getting ahead of myself and doing my work early? No. It vexes me. Mainly because a) nothing ever goes to plan and then I feel as though I’ve failed and b) if you do things early, other tasks just flood into the space you’ve left, like dry sand running into a sandcastle moat. If instead I leave things loose and vague, if my list is flexible and informal, then anything I do manage to cross off it feels like an epic achievement, and I would rather just tackle things at a steady and undramatic pace than be fighting with myself to free up time that will only be taken up with the next lot of work.

How jolly of me!

Anyway, I’ve confirmed my own belief this month, that getting things done early is a terrible approach to life, because I was too organised and I did make some content earlier than usual and I’ve completely shot myself in the foot! I have now been posting my Monthly Favourites online for around fifteen years and usually I spend the entire month making my shortlist of favourites and then I ruminate over them for a bit, let them stew, and then, at the very last minute, just as Cinderella is about to turn into a pumpkin - I film, edit and upload.

I like this sense of tension and the feeling that I am running out of time - it motivates me. I’d say that at least half of my favourites videos have been filmed under extreme pressure, the main pressure being that I feel like a total berk if I put out the video in the wrong month. January Favourites, say, when it’s February 1st. There’s being fashionably late to the party and then there’s turning up the next morning: nobody wants a guest the day after!

So this month I filmed two whole weeks too early and it shows. Not only had I not accumulated my usual quantity of favourite things on the shortlist to pick from, meaning that my opening favourite thing is “my new pedicure” and a close-up video shot of my feet, complete with sock marks, I also missed out on some amazingly good finds that all happened in the past week. Too late for the video!

Luckily for you, I am my same old skin-of-the-teeth self when it comes to writing the blog post, so not only do you have the official favourites (including the feet) you have a bonus item. I’d give you more but I don’t want to leave myself short for next month.

There wasn’t even supposed to be an intro to this post. I really need to learn the art of getting to the point faster. But then the journey is as important as the destination and all of that. Favourites:

Ad info: no paid or sponsored content. The Dorset Nook is a holiday cottage I own as a business. Links may be affiliate links, unless stated otherwise, beauty products are sent as press samples with no obligation to post.

My Pedicure

For God’s sake. It’s an embarrassment, this is. The fact I’ve included it as a favourite, not the pedicure itself. The pedicure itself is very good, despite costing almost twice as much as I’d normally pay (Cowshed mark-up, I treated myself when I was at Soho Farmhouse. Something had to lift my mood after the first night.)

What I will say is that I can’t stop looking at my feet, because they are at least twenty times prettier than they were a couple of weeks ago, and I do think that it was money well spent, especially as my pedicures tend to last me at least three or four months before the polish gets too far up my nails! Bargain.

The Other Bennett Sister

One of my favourite things on the telly in a long while, The Other Bennett Sister imagines the story of Mary Bennett (middle sister in Pride & Prejudice) and how she simply doesn’t meet the usual societal expectations of the time. Mary is highly intelligent and observant and has better social skills than any of her sisters but she is not conventionally pretty, she’s not interested in hair ribbons or marrying soldiers and so in her small town setting she’s something of an oddity. Taken out of the small town, however, transplanted into the city, and she is set free - valued, revered, loved.

It’s a brilliant, clever, inventive take and I devoured every minute of it, from the darkest and cruellest depths (emotionally abusive Mrs Bennett, played impeccably by Ruth Jones) to the most gorgeous highs. (There are moments, especially when Mary is being championed by her suitors and her aunt and uncle that you find yourself cheering out loud.) Just watch it. It’s on BBC iPlayer here.

No98 Hydra Bond Shampoo and Conditioner

This surprised me: I don’t often veer away from my Philip Kingsley Itchy Flaky Scalp range, because it’s great on my fine hair and sensitive-ish scalp, but I was swayed towards the No98 range after a few people recommended it and am seriously impressed. The fragrance is strong with this, and it’s sort of a “sexy church” smell, incense-y and heady (though my hair stylist Cassie says it smells botanical, which is probably a less sacrilegious description) so you have to like wearing your scent in your hair, but boy does it make fine hair ultra-soft. I don’t think I’ve used anything so instantly softening on my bleached, fine hair in a long time.

It actually doesn’t feel up to much during the washing process - my hair feels quite dry and tangled after shampooing and the conditioner doesn’t seem to leave that satisfyingly silky residue when you rinse it out, but every time I’ve let my hair air dry after using No98 it has felt incredible. Just beautifully conditioned, but a weightless kind of conditioning, and a clean feel that lasts for days.

I’m not often impressed by haircare because my hair’s needs are so specific - it’s damaged, it’s blonde, it’s fine, it gets greasy on the scalp but then is dry at the ends - but this range is a keeper. You can find it online here.

Sulis Fine Art

I’m always on the look-out for good, original art. I lucked out in this respect because I was born into a family of artists and so I have some excellent stuff that has come my way, but I have collected from art fairs, galleries, art dealers, antiques markets and flea markets and even directly from the artists themselves.

I enjoy it, hugely. The hunt. But I have to say that it is time-consuming and a long-term endeavour and I am currently on something of a deadline with my new holiday cottage (The Dorset Nest, Instagram here) to get it open for bookings later this summer and I do not have the luxury of spending four years searching out the best paintings!

Step forward Sulis Fine Art, my finest recent discovery. They have over 10,000 original paintings at any one time, all categorised and priced so that you can very quickly and very easily find exactly the sort of thing you’re looking for. Agreed: finding art is emotional, not something you can just sift out by category and price, but it absolutely a game-changer to be able to present yourself with a few hundred paintings that are all in your price range, or that are the size you need for a certain space.

What’s amazing is that I had a few things in mind - subjects - for the paintings I wanted and I managed to find exactly what I had imagined. The beauty of having ten thousand pieces of art to choose from, I suppose!

You can find Sulis Fine Art online here.

Soap Poetry

I leave some lovely welcome gifts for guests at my holiday cottage, The Dorset Nook, and I will do the same for guests at my new cottage, The Dorset Nest, too. People are always delighted. I like to think that what I leave is a little representation of things that I personally love and think are the absolute bees knees.

One of the things is a little hessian bag filled with beauty bits; there’s body stuff by Bramley (independent brand and local to me), including body lotion and bubble bath and a cute little pillow spray for the deepest of sleeps, and then there’s a really rather exquisite soap from small-batch, luxury-quality soap-makers Soap Poetry.

I found Soap Poetry when I was compiling my Books n Chocs post for 2025 and instantly loved the idea behind the soap wrappings, which were made to look like the covers of classic novels. This sort of stuff is right up my street! But then I got samples of the soaps and smelled them and used them and blimey. Just out of this world. You could use them instead of candles or reed diffusers they’re so gorgeously scented - just leave them in the corner of the room!

Impossible to do that though, because you smell them and just want to use them. Buy them for yourself or buy them as a gift (with a plain-covered, fancy notebook, would be perfect!), they are online here. I cannot pick a favourite scent, they are all gorgeous, but OK then, The Secret Garden. Oh wait. Room With A View.

No!

Pride & Prejudice. Yes, definitely that one. Find Soap Poetry online here.

Do you want your bonus favourite? Here:

Dusk Striped Cushions

Dusk Frill-edged cushion covers. Six quid!

Honestly, never have I been so amazed with a bargain buy: six quid each for these striped cushion covers and they are 100% cotton, with a lovely frill, and look massively more expensive. I am picky with my cushions, as we may have discussed before, and tend to only get them from three places: Soho Home (although I have been priced out of those, ridiculous price tags, someone is obviously on laughing gas in their head office), OKA (I grab them when the sales are on, which is now) and Graham & Green.

I rarely veer away. But I loved the colours of the stripes on these and at six quid a pop I didn’t think I could go far wrong. Not for 100% cotton! I stuffed them with slightly oversized feather inners from Graham & Green and they look stupendous. Really, really chuffed. They’re not my usual muted colour palette but I do like the odd splash of brightness (don’t think I’ve ever shared my bathroom on here, we need to do a house tour!) and I also think that they (or the extra ones I’ve ordered) will look marvellous in the new Dorset Nest.

You can get the striped cushion covers here - there are also larger square ones for £8 each! Beautiful as outdoor cushions in the summer, if you remember to bring them in and not get them wet. (So, indoor cushions but used outdoors then.)

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Here’s this month’s video with a Dexter the Dog health check-in, video of my toenails and - OH! - I’ve just realised, a trip into my bathroom! That worked out well! And if you enjoyed this post, don’t you think you might massively enjoy my Sunday Times bestselling book, How Not to be a Supermodel? It’ll make you laugh a lot, cry a bit and never, ever want to be a model. You can listen on Spotify or Audible or buy the paperback version here.