Five Tips for April 2026
I am writing this post while sitting on a train that’s taking me for a short European adventure, my nervous system already in a gentle overdrive due to a hectic few days & trying not to succumb to some sort of cold or virus that I can’t exactly pinpoint. Early day starts when I was hoping for slightly longer lie-ins didn’t help either. Well, complaining is futile & that brings me perfectly to the first tip of the month…
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Don’t let bad drivers spoil your mood or waste your energy. I think we can agree that there are more bad than good drivers & their driving or behaviour on the roads can vary from mildly annoying to infuriatingly dangerous. There is NOTHING we can do about other people’s driving, but we can control how we react to it. I try to focus on being a safe driver & remind myself to not react to driver crazies, mentally shooing them away. Calmer you, more efficient & enjoyable your trip. I also remind myself how much calmer overall driving is in London when compared to Paris, where car drivers ‘compete’ on the roads with bicycles, bikes, buses & criss-crossing people - sometimes it truly feels like utter madness to observe.
Alter your lighting to suit your mood & ambiance in the room. Every time I go to Chelsea Grill (delicious food, best cherry pie with Chantilly in London & simply lovely service), I am reminded of how lighting helps to create the right kind of mood. Sometimes you want bright lights & sometimes low, romantic lights create the best mood to accompany the meal or a game of cards, dominos or Scrabble. After all, who doesn’t like to bask in the magical glow of gorgeousness of the light that is just comforting, relaxing & erasing small imperfections irrespective of age, especially when teens can be as picky about their skin appearance, as their grandparents.
Consider experimenting & switching to more natural perfumes that will become part of your own unique sensorial signature, while not overwhelming or potentially disrupting your body & hormones. There are more & more natural perfume brands that offer originality in formulation & the scent profiles. There is Abel, Bastille Parfumes (I have been a loyal fan since the early days of the brand launching in London), Ffern (a seasonal, thoughtful British brand with the most beautiful intimate store just off Carnaby street), Henry Rose (Michelle Pfeiffer’s EWG verified brand named after her son. I also can’t recommend highly enough the new Paramount series by Taylor Sheridan called The Madison that Ms Pfeiffer stars in alongside Kurt Russell - a love story that will move you deeply, coupled with breathtaking beauty of Montana), DedCool that uses organic extracts in their perfumes & the newly launched duo of scents from UNI that uses water-based rather than alcohol based carriers & PEG-free plant solubilises - I am curious to see how that works on the skin when Rain & Sunset launch in the U.K. later this month.
4. When sun makes an appearance, make sure you find an opportunity to put your face into its path. Dont forget to apply SPF to your skin prior to exposure, to prevent harm & support slower ageing by keeping pigmentation & sun spots at bay. Sunshine makes everything feel better somehow, especially when you’ve had rain for months, so break your features into a smile when you see the sun & support your body’s happy hormone production too!
5. Trust your intuition & lean into it. When something feels wrong or off, don’t convince yourself that you are overreacting. In the same way, when something feels great, it really is, so allow yourself to enjoy it.
I wish you a very happy Easter, if you celebrate it & hope the longer weekend will give you exactly what you want or need. And sometimes what we want, isn’t what we need - do bear that in mind. Thank you for reading my Substack & do share any of your tips that help you to be happy & escape the frenetic madness of the world we all live in. Yours as always, Galina x
Happy Easter, Galina! Amazing tips. April is my favorite month, and I’m really looking forward to all the blessings and grace it brings.
Your reflections on lighting resonated deeply with me. I was recently at a wonderful restaurant in the ancient Italian town of Orvieto, home to one of the most beautiful Duomos I’ve ever seen. The restaurant, Coro, set within a former church, was awarded the Prix Versailles 2025 for its architectural design. The architect, Giuliano Andrea Dell'Uva, together with Davide Groppi’s lighting, created something truly special - soft, illumination that feels almost alive and becomes an integral part of the entire gastronomic experience.
Even more fascinating is how it shapes the way people feel and relate to one another, interact, how they engage with the space. The lighting seems to soften everything, a certain sense of tenderness, intimacy, and quiet refinement appears, movements and gestures become more graceful, and the entire experience - delicate and deeply felt.