Getting the stockings all hung by the chimney with care in time for St. Nick to soon be there isn’t for those light on rest and long on festive to-do lists. As if trying to fall asleep weren’t hard enough during a world pandemic, throw in some holiday frenzy—even in COVID-modified format—and bedtime bliss is the stuff of dreams (or Mother’s Little Helper).
With that in mind, we’ve got a few tricks up our woollen sleeves to make sure you’re nestled all snug in your bed this Christmas. Here are our best nighttime hacks to help bring on the zzz’s.
The S+T Present Romper
First up, get your coziest jammies on. A good night’s sleep starts and finishes in flannel or cotton—not in stringy, sexy numbers that just look good but don’t feel good.
Image courtesy of Smash + Tess.
Local Vancouver brand Smash + Tess’s Present Romper in new Holiday Tartan is its popular Wednesday Romper offered in a thicker blend of bamboo and rayon cotton. With front pockets and jogger cuffs on the legs, you’re now also covered for Christmas morning.
Romper orders placed before 5 p.m. December 23 will be available for curbside pickup in Richmond or online at Smashtess.ca
Smart Solutions Magmart magnesium
Magnesium is a mineral that regulates more than 300 biochemical reactions in your body, including muscle and nerve function. It can also help better prepare your body and mind for sleep.
From authoring The Immune System Cure to developing a line of women’s nutritional supplements (since sold to the Jamieson Wellness juggernaut), Vancouver wellness expert Lorna Vanderhaeghe’s Smart Solutions magnesium formula works like Santa’s magic. Magsmart helps support muscle function, and bone and teeth development, as well as better nighttime rest. Before bed, mix the lemon-lime or organic raspberry powder in a glass of water and you’ll sleep the sleep of angels.
Image courtesy of Smart Solutions.
Magsmart is available at SmartSolutions.com.
The Snug Topper
It’s a problem as old as time: you’re cold at night, he’s hot. Or you’re cold only when the hot flashes start at 3 a.m. It’s a problem local engineer Jason Elliott aimed to solve when he and his wife couldn’t seem to eke out a good night’s sleep together.
With co-founder and fellow engineer Marty Furse, Elliott set to work inventing the Snug Topper, a new air-conditioned mattress topper that cools you down or warms you up for better-quality sleep. Designed and manufactured in Vancouver, this topper fits under your sheets as a bedtime game-changer.
Image courtesy of Perfectly Snug.
Think of it like a Nest thermostat: download the app, and with the dual-zone climate control, you can now customize the temperature to warm the bed at night and then automatically cool down while you sleep, or vice versa. You want your side warm, he wants his side cool: gentle airflow keeps night sweats at bay, while soft warming keeps you snug as a bug in a rug.
Available at Perfectlysnug.com and for the first six months of the product’s launch, Perfectly Snug includes door delivery and set-up by an engineer.
Pink Marble silk pillowcase
The Princess and the Pea is a tale of the world’s most uncomfortable sleep, but had the princess just used a silk pillowcase, she could have solved the problem entirely. Recommended by dermatologists, hairstylists, and beauty experts, a silk pillowcase is an anti-aging, anti-sleep crease, anti-bedhead solution that’s like an eight-hour beauty treatment every night.
Image courtesy of Nordstrom.
Crafted from pure silk, this pretty pillowcase has your beauty sleep covered. Silk fibres are less absorbent than other fibres, so they work to keep your skin’s moisture in, as well as your face and hair products where they belong—on your face and hair, not your pillow. Made of Slipsilk, a long-fibre mulberry silk, the fabric also helps reduce friction, which helps reduce wear and tear on delicate facial skin.
The pink marble silk pillowcase is available locally in-store at Nordstrom and online at Nordstrom.ca
Bilston Creek Farm lavender botanical mist
While we may not be allowed to travel anytime soon, we can still transport ourselves to slumberland via our olfactory system. Vancouver Island’s Bilston Creek Farm offers a restful respite with its botanical mist made with lavender distilled in copper right on the property, where it is organically grown in lush fields right in front of the barn. The lavender hydrosol is undiluted and free from any additives, so it’s safe and gentle enough to use daily.
Image courtesy of Bilston Creek Farm.
Just spray your pillow and let the lavender essential oil deepen your sleep and do its job. This soothing, toning, antiseptic, and anti-inflammatory mist is gentle enough to use daily on sensitive skin so you can wake up (feeling more energized) and then use it as a makeup setting spray, room spray neutralizer, or even leave-in hair conditioner.
Available from the farm shop or online at Bilston.ca
Philips Sleep and Wake-up light
Small wonder that since the start of COVID, anxiety levels have spiked. And since stress affects sleep quality, our mood, productivity, focus, and overall health and wellness have all taken a hit (wonder why you haven’t been able to focus this past year?).
To boot, a lack of sleep can also increase your chances of getting the flu and even lead to a higher risk of stroke, cancer, or cardiovascular diseases. (And here you thought COVID was the only thing to worry about!)
Image courtesy of Philips.
To make matters worse, it’s cold and dark outside, which makes getting out of bed a drag. With its simulated sunset and sunrise, and guided breathing settings, the SmartSleep Sleep and Wake-Up light by Philips helps you first fall asleep and then wake up more naturally and refreshed. Over the course of half an hour in the morning, the light casts a soft red glow and gradually increases to orange until your room is filled with bright yellow light. Meditative sounds help rock you to sleep and then rouse you gently.
The Sleep and Wake-Up Light is available at Realcanadiansuperstore.ca
Brüush electric toothbrush
’Tis the season for a tipple or two, but red wine especially can leave stains on those chompers. And considering a good oral routine is critical for bedtime bliss, enter the new Vancouver-made luxury electric toothbrush, Brüush, with a four-week battery life, six cleaning modes, and sonic technology that delivers 31,000 brush strokes per minute (compared to the 300 you’d get doing it manually).
Image courtesy of Brüush.
With each purchase of this design-forward number, Brüush sends you a three-pack of replacement heads every six months. And for every refill it ships, the company will donate a toothbrush, toothpaste, and fluoride treatment to a person in need through its charitable partnership with A Reason to Smile (ARTS), a not-for-profit that aims to eradicate dental disease in Africa.
The limited-edition Fire Red Brüush arrives just in time with holiday spirit, which gives us a reason to smile—with pearly whites, of course.
Brüush available online at Bruush.com
Guerlain Orchidée Impériale sleeping serum
One of the world’s oldest beauty companies, Guerlain, is also one of its most sustainable (to keep its carbon footprint low, it only ships its beauty products globally by boat, not plane). The French heritage brand also sponsors the study of bees on the island of Ouessant, a UNESCO World biosphere reserve, and created the Guerlain Orchidarium, a comprehensive environmental, ecological, and scientific initiative to study orchids.
Image courtesy of Guerlain.
Key in helping cellular respiration, orchids form the backbone of Guerlain’s Orchidée Impériale line, including its sleeping serum. Made in France and formulated with Night Cell Respiration Technology, the potion is designed to be applied before bed so it can get to work while you rest by targeting wrinkles and face puffiness caused by lying down. Once awake, you can face the world again—or at least your bubble—with less pronounced lines or a decongested face.
Guerlain’s Orchidée Impériale’s Sleeping Serum is available locally in-store at Holt Renfrew and online at Holtrenfrew.com
Dior Bedtime Stories podcast
You’re never too old for a good bedtime story, so climb into bed and prepare for visions of sugar plums in your head. This week, the House of Dior unveils a new series of podcasts called Dior Tales, written and narrated by Cordelia de Castellane, Baby Dior’s creative director.
Image courtesy of Dior.
Listen to “The Kingdom of Christian Dior,” as well as “Christian Dior and the Discovery of Magic,” two volumes inspired by the life of the iconic founding couturier, while “The Extraordinary Journey of Monsieur Dior” is a dreamlike odyssey around the world. A children’s staple, “Thumbelina,” based on the original story by Hans Christian Andersen, whisks young and old alike on adventures outdoors. Far from the catwalk, these are singular tales that transport your imagination to the land of dreams.
For Dior Tales, subscribe here.
Read more seasonal Wishlists here.
