Soft daily rituals and intentional practices help you romanticise your life. These are the things our editors did to make life more meaningful.
As women living through deadlines, raging hormones, heartbreaks, family expectations — and a world stacked with hurdles, especially for women — there’s something exhilarating about the moment you realise you’re tired of just getting through the day. That’s the minute you understand how vital it is to romanticise your life.
When you pause and think, “Is this it? Just surviving?” You may be tired of holding it all together and calling exhaustion “normal.” Because surviving isn’t the same as living. At some point, many of us start craving more — not more pressure or productivity — but more softness. More intention. More joy tucked into the ordinary parts of our days. The kind of joy that fills you up and is just yours.
To romanticise your life isn’t about pretending everything is beautiful. It’s about deciding to look for beauty in every situation. It’s about marking moments instead of rushing past them. It’s about becoming the main character in your own story.
For some women, that shift happens after burnout. For others, it’s prompted by gratitude. And for some, there is no singular moment at all — just a natural inclination toward wonder. At Marie Claire Nigeria, our editors are no exception, and they share their journey to romanticising their lives — and how it’s changing them.
Chinazam Ikechi-Uko: “Life is hard, get a helmet — but make it your favourite colour.”
Chinazam Ikechi-Uko, Fashion Editor of Marie Claire Nigeria, describes this season of her life as “an exploration period… a place to discover new approaches to things and more about myself.” Interestingly, there was no dramatic turning point for her. “I didn’t have a specific moment. I’ve always been a big dreamer and dramatic,” she says. Romanticising her life feels instinctive — almost necessary. “I’m not going to get out of bed if I’m not remotely looking forward to the day, so I romanticise my schedule.”
That intention shows up in both small rituals and bigger gestures. Gratitude journaling. Yoga or meditation. Taking breathing space during the workday. “I romanticise the Lagos roads — especially in the late hours of the night,” she adds, turning traffic into something cinematic. She writes letters to loved ones, reads a book a month, dresses however she wants, and spends time with friends. “You’re in a coming-of-age story, not a fairytale — and there’s nothing wrong with that.”
For Chinazam, consistency comes from ease, not pressure. “Constantly thinking ‘I want to romanticise my life’ will put you in a state of stress because you’ll keep focusing on the things you are not doing right.” Instead, she leans into gentleness. “Life is hard, get a helmet. But this time, get a helmet that’s your favourite colour.” Romanticising her life hasn’t made everything perfect — she admits she still doesn’t wake up early — but it has shifted her energy. “Now I wake up with a renewed sense of adventure for the day.” And sometimes, that renewed sense of possibility is the real transformation.
Patricia Ellah: “I didn’t want to miss the beauty of my own life.”
For Patricia Ellah, Features Editor and artist, romanticising her life was a conscious shift. She describes this season as “abundant, fulfilling, blessed and filled with surprises.” After experiencing both highs and lows, she realised she needed to pause and truly absorb the good. “When the really amazing things have happened, I realised I needed to mark each moment — like, I’m here. This is real.”
In practice, it’s both ritual and indulgence. A shower playlist. Stretching and meditation. Drinking her favourite tea while reading. Also, taking herself to dinner or an exhibition. Creating — photographs, sculptures, and lately, a daily sketch. “I allow myself to indulge in doing things that make my life feel more beautiful,” she says. “It’s important to find what you enjoy.”
Consistency, for her, includes rest. “If you are tired, it’s hard to do all the beautiful things,” she admits. Some weeks are slower, softer. But the impact is undeniable. “Sleepovers with friends, going out dancing and laughing, putting on music on Sundays — Etta James, Tems, Asake — it makes it feel abundant.” She believes that a sense of beauty fuels everything else: “I don’t think I would be able to dream big or create the way I do if I didn’t believe that life is beautiful.”
Esther Akinbola: “I didn’t want my life to feel like a checklist.”
Esther Akinbola, Content Editor of Marie Claire Nigeria, reveals that burnout was the catalyst for her. “My days are full — work, school runs, finishing my Master’s. On paper, it’s productive. But it can feel like longer days and shorter nights.” She realised she didn’t want her life to feel like a constant checklist, so she began treating small pockets of time as sacred.
For Esther, romanticising her life lives in the details. An unhurried bath. A proper bubble soak. Skincare nights twice a week with fruit and music. Caring for her hair herself — relaxing it, curling wigs, mixing her own leave-in blends. “There’s something powerful about tending to yourself with your own hands,” she says. At its core, it’s about “choosing to show up for myself — intentionally, gently.”
She admits she isn’t always consistent. Some weeks slip into survival mode. But once she noticed how much lighter she felt afterwards, the rituals stopped feeling optional. “Romanticising my life has made me happier,” she says. “It’s helped me slow down internally, even when my schedule is full. I’m more present.”
How to romanticise your life
None of these women describes perfection, and they do not promise aesthetic bliss every day. What they describe instead is intention — practised in different ways, and in different seasons.
Chinazam romanticises her schedule so she can wake up with anticipation. Patricia slows down so she doesn’t miss the miracle of being alive in her own story. And Esther turns small, everyday rituals into sacred pauses in a life that could easily feel overwhelming.
To romanticise your life, you need to choose colour when life feels grey. Marking moments before they pass and showing up for yourself — gently, deliberately — and believing life is worth living well.
Read more: Here’s how you can feel like “that girl” every day – and not just for social media
