the march review

introversion season + how to get a £350 dress for £60

March has passed super quickly because my head has been DOWN. I’m properly into the new routine now; I spend my weeks cycling between making #content, visiting my dad and squeezing in music stuff around the two. Honestly, in these four weeks I became a bit of a hermit; the kind where you’re so caught up you forget about dinner and the only option is to walk to the organic grocery store and buy overpriced ingredients for pesto pasta. There’s something beautiful about seasons of introversion, spending time with yourself is a luxury and I’ve really enjoyed locking myself away a bit more recently. However I went on one night out towards the end of the month and realised just how long it’s been since I started a Friday night in a new sushi restaurant and ended it in a low-lit bar in Shoreditch. I resent London when I get in this funk; my money goes on convenience instead of intentional, fun things I actually want to do with my friends. So going into Spring, I’m practicing putting more thought into making plans. If I’m going for dinner, let’s make it a place we want to try. Let’s go dancing! Booking exhibitions, planning work days with the girls at one of our kitchen tables. I want to cultivate a more intentional calendar, whether alone or in good company.

wearing —

I am fully on Team Rental going into wedding season, an opinion cemented by how I felt wearing this wonderful Reformation dress to an event at the Natural History Museum. Like most of us, I struggle with dysmorphia and body confidence, and this means historically I lean cautious when shopping, guided by ideas of what balances and disguises the parts of me I don’t like. It’s limiting. I’m not necessarily feeling braver, but perhaps less bothered recently — I think my dad getting sick has given me a dramatic perspective shift on nearly everything in my life, but particularly around time. I’ve stopped seeing the appeal of blending in. Life’s too short.

I was panicking about what I would wear to this gala, so I ran into Reformation and tried a perfect backless, halterneck dress I’d never have been brave enough to bring into the changing room four months ago. Before handing over my card, I checked some rental sites and by some miracle found it available in my size at Rites on Broadway Market. Sure, I felt insecure on the night, but also strangely light. The experimental dress made the whole evening fun! And it was a lot easier to be brave when it cost me £60, not £350. I highly, highly recommend renting a dress, jacket or bag for your next event — I use Hurr, By Rotation and Rites.

reading —

I’ve nearly finished Things I Don’t Want To Know by Deborah Levy — the writing is stunning but I’m still not sure how I feel about it overall. The first part felt a bit heavy on the melodrama but once she made it to the hotel in Mallorca I was pretty much bought in… and then it became a memoir about her childhood in apartheid South Africa, which is very interesting but feels like a separate story and gave me some whiplash. I’d been set up to expect a memoir about heartbreak! Anyway, my opinion is still half-baked right now. I’ll let you know my thoughts once I’ve finished.

following —

I’ve seen a lot of brave women on my feed this month, finding ways to tell their stories that don’t gloss over the parts that are harder to pinpoint. We’re in a place online where I think there’s so much value in keeping the edges rough, especially when women are so often asked to give one of two responses to our personal struggles; a rose-tinted reflection or a melodramatic raw performance.

I was really moved by one of my all-time favourite creators, Natacha, sharing the story of how she failed to run an 100km ultramarathon she’d spent months training for. I appreciated that she didn’t lean on a conventional failure narrative, which so often feels patriarchal in tone to me, and instead existed in the space between, avoiding self-help cliches or overly positive/negative framing. Take a look at the comments too, they’re a testament to the quality of the relationships she’s built with her audience. I’m rooting for her continued recovery!

More vulnerable viewing: my lovely friend Jade shared a video documenting how a trip to Cape Town changed the trajectory of her life. It’s a raw account of losing love in your twenties and how painful it is to not understand your own emotions or gut feelings. And then Moya’s Paris Fashion Week vlog explored the challenges of imposter syndrome in a really human way — I love the edit of this one too.

Finally, I got around to watching How Glowing Up Ruined My Life by Alivia D’Andrea — it was hard to watch someone so young and vulnerable become obsessed with perfecting herself, but I think the value of this video is the discomfort you are forced to sit in as a viewer. Its confronting to look through a macro lens at the way just one girl has been impacted by the beauty standards that are gradually being portrayed as increasingly attainable, even though in reality they’re just as distant as they were in the 90s, noughties and 2010s. Honestly I could write a whole piece about glowing up culture as there’s so much more to say. If you read last month’s review then you know — Pixel Flesh couldn’t be coming out at a better time!!

listening —

One of the plagues of being an online creator is constantly being served bitesize advice on how to “escape 200 view jail” and “cultivate a super engaged audience” on Tiktok, mostly made by creators lacking credentials who appear to make the majority of their income coaching other coaches. There are one or two I’ve come across who break this mould, and one of them is Alyssa Chan-Evangelista. She seems to really understand the nuances of what makes a good creator, and I’ve enjoyed listening to her Inspired Media podcast when I’m making lunch or having a coffee break in my work day an want to recharge. If you want to become a creator or you’re looking for fresh motivation, I’d follow her on Tiktok and give the show a listen.

forward thinking —

Speaking of motivation, we’ve been hit by a fresh wave driving us to make progress on the flat. I’m hoping we’ll give either the kitchen or the bathroom a mini makeover in April and with any luck, that means some fun/chaotic decorating videos will be in the works too. The flat is a daunting task and I’ve definitely been paralysed by overwhelm for a while, but I’m tired of feeling stuck with it. I’ll keep you updated on how we do!

@iamnotlucymoonmaking our living room 10% better ✨ #livingroommakeover

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I always try to recommend products I would use myself and all opinions shared are my own. Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase at no additional cost to you. I will always disclose when I work with a brand on any paid partnership.