hi readers & welcome back, it felt so good to finally post & thank you for the kind words of encouragement — i had all sorts of notions about how consistently i would post & then that all went out the window briefly so please do bare with me until i find a routine that’s less sporadic

& feel free to send me a message on instagram (@morelovechlo) or email me directly (morelovechlo@gmail.com) if you’re having trouble with the site / if you have any tips or if you haven’t received a response from the contact forms because i’m completely self taught & have a tendency to skim instructions

in todays post i’m going to be taking you through my quarter 1 (january, february & march — better late than never) favourites ranging from memories, products, food & films — i came up with this idea at the start of the year because i’ve been feeling quite lost & so i find myself constantly saying ‘i’ll be happy when this happens’ or ‘once i have this then everything will be okay’ & so this tool is to help me stay in the moment & appreciate what’s currently going on in my life more often

recently i’ve really been struggling at work because i’ve lost my passion, i’m not sure if i want a completely new career path or whether i just need a new environment to shake things up & motivate me again but i feel so incredibly trapped right now & it’s difficult to see past the moment to imagine a time where i don’t dread going to work or it doesn’t feel like i’m wasting my time whilst i’m there — what i do know though is that i sometimes need reminding that it’s not all bad, i can still make the most of my time there & in the evenings instead of sitting in my sad & depleted feelings i can do a midweek dinner with friends or romanticise cooking dinner with lewis & watching breaking bad until we can’t keep our eyes open

& so this is a reminder to myself (& you) to appreciate the small moments in life! whether that’s a particular day / memory or a favourite perfume & the story behind discovering it — i thought it would be nice to share my favourites with you & you might discover something you love too

maybe you’re feeling similar to me & want to try out this method for becoming more positive & appreciating the everyday, or you just have some really great recommendations which must be shared —please feel free to comment them below, dedicate an instagram post, write about them in your journal or send me a message & let’s share the things that bring us joy …

1. people we meet on vacation

i can’t recall any romcoms that have stood out to me since just go with it in 2011, but this film resurrected that genre for me (i could make a whole film list of romcoms recommendations if you would like because i’m very passionate about it), it’s based off of the book which i had read prior but didn’t love as much as happy place & funny story (which are my favourites by emily henry) but the film was great

i would go as far as to say it’s possibly made my top 10 favourites, it made me laugh & cry — we paused it half way to make hot chocolates because i didn’t want it to end (we as in me & lewis so it was also boy approved) & rumour has it that they’re adapting happy place, funny story, book lovers & beach read into films too so if you’re in need of a perfect summer holiday easy read i would recommend them highly in the mean time

2. snow day

in january we got the tiniest sprinkling of snow which is a huge deal for those of us who live in the united kingdom, so when i woke up on my weekend off to my loft window covered in a slight white dusting — i rallied my sisters to go on a walk to a garden centre with flasks of hot tea, the winter sun was glorious & although the amount of snow was quite pathetic the day was perfectly spent together

do you have a favourite season?

i love the blossom in spring & the prospects of a new year — camping, beer gardens & bbq’s in summer, cosying up on rainy days with a hot drink & a good book in autumn & all the magical festivities, good food & occasional snow in winter

(my answer is : no)

having a checklist of activities per season is such a good way of making the most of each of them — comment below your favourites & we can create one together

3. marc jacobs — perfect absolute

this is your sign (& encouragement to myself) to compliment people more often — whether you love their outfit or want to know what foundation they’re using because not only does it probably make their day but you also might get put onto something you absolutely love

(the perfume notes are caramelised fig, jasmine & rich amber — it smells rich, creamy & sexy)

i was serving a customer (i work in retail) before christmas who was wearing the most delicious perfume ever — she said it was the marc jacobs perfume in the burgundy bottle & i ran straight to boots to spray a sample

i bought it for my mum for her birthday & she bought it me for christmas & it’s been our favourite ever since (my bottle is now empty but it’s too beautiful to throw away & i miss the scent daily)

4. THIS MUSIC MAY CONTAIN HOPE

me & lewis went to see raye on her ‘this tour may contain new music’ tour in birmingham & if you are able to still get tickets i would highly recommend doing so, it was more of a show than concert with the incredible musicians around her & the context between each song

the album is great, i love the mixture of instruments & genres, particularly the jazz — it’s incredibly emotional, i know you’re hurting has me in a chokehold & my most listened to song is click clack symphony for it’s satisfying heels sound effect & it’s relatability for all the ladies out there

goodbye henry & happier times ahead are beautiful, south london lover boy is fun & if you haven’t listened yet perhaps you should

5. the spicy librarian (location : leamington spa)

the spicy librarian is europe’s largest dedicated romance bookshop which opened for business on valentines day this year — me & my friend alex visited the store shortly after & it’s such a cute space ; they serve hot drinks & sweet treats (we sat in comfy armchairs by a window sipping coffee with a basket full of books), they have special edition books with beautiful sprayed edges & a speciality cocktail menu where all the drinks are named after book boyfriends like ‘the shadow daddy’ & ‘i can fix him’ which i will be returning to sample asap

6. house of flame & shadow by sarah j maas

it makes sense to follow number 5 up with my favourite read so far this year & it had to be house of flame & shadow

the amount of brain power it must take to create a multiverse on paper must be insane, this book was a 6 out of 5 for me & i cannot wait for the next instalment from sarah this october

me & alex are actually going to the spicy librarians ‘maasquerade’ ball for the book release — it’ll be my first book event ever & i can’t wait!

7. m&s — cotton rich drawstring wide leg joggers (grey)

the moment i get home i’m getting straight into pjs — no matter what time it is or whether i’ll be leaving the house again that day & so when i discovered these joggers it was quite revolutionary actually

something to put on my legs that feel as buttery soft as pjs but i could actually leave the house in them, perfect — & they’re only 26 great british pounds which i think is very decent, while moving house i practically lived in them so they’ve been washed a million times & still look & feel as good as new

also, i’ve just checked & they also do them in black & navy — hands down the best joggers i’ve ever owned & i will be needing all 3 colours

8. moving day

we moved into our first home in february & it’s something i’ll remember forever, getting both of our families together, first cups of tea, first glasses of processo & at the end of the day — just the two of us, tucked up on a mattress on the floor of our bedroom with my heated blanket on to compensate for the boiler not working, our first takeaway

everyday i wake up & am so thankful for the fact we live together, i hope it never sinks in — it’s not yet to our taste but it feels like home (i think marie shrader from breaking bad lived here before us because there’s a lot of purple) & we’re taking everything super slow, just enjoying the process

9. bread machine

i didn’t think a bread machine would change my life, but it has — we received the panasonic breadmaker as a surprise moving in present & we haven’t bought a loaf of bread since, it literally takes 5 minutes to throw the ingredients in & the rest is done for you

the bread takes about 4 hours to make but you can set a timer & wake up to the smell of fresh bread if you like (that’s what i do) or have it ready for when you get home from work

i haven’t yet made anything other than the basic white loaf which i have listed the ingredients for but you can find a full catalog of recipes on the panasonic website

10. boux avenue — bunny mule slippers

i’ve always been a fluffy sock over slippers kind of girl but there’s something about wearing slippers now i’m a homeowner that makes me feel like a real adult & the reason why i bought these particular ones were because they reminded me of the bunny slippers from the sims game — they’re £24 & have lasted brilliantly considering i wear them all the time

these slippers have been to see the devil wears prada 2 in the cinema (miranda would be ashamed) & they’ve withstood our first garden / garage party to celebrate my birthday — & they go perfectly with the m&s joggers

& there we have it — thanks so much for letting me ramble on & i hope there’s some inspiration somewhere in there for you, Q2 favourites will be posted at the end of june so head to your notes app & start reflecting if you feel like joining in too & i will speak to you soon