I used to think "Sunday reset" was something only people with too much free time did. You know the ones. Perfect towels, a green smoothie, fifteen products lined up like they're about to be photographed.
That's not this.
This is what I actually do on Sundays to feel like a normal person again. It takes maybe two hours. You don't need to buy anything new to start. And the low-tox part? It genuinely makes me feel better — not in a weird way, just in a my skin is calmer and my bedroom smells like actual air kind of way.
Here's something I didn't know until recently: Sunday is actually the day we use the most products in one go. Long shower, hair stuff, skincare, cleaning the bathroom, washing sheets, lighting a candle — all in one day. Most women use around 13 personal care products every single day. On a Sunday? That number can easily be double.
That's not scary, it's just useful information. Because if there's one day to be a little more careful about what you're putting on your body — it's this one.
Here's my routine. Room by room. Take what works, skip what doesn't.
The Bathroom
First things first — your shower water
I know this sounds a bit out there, but regular tap water isn't as clean as it looks. It often has chlorine and other stuff added to it — and when you're standing in a hot shower, your skin soaks all of that up. A shower filter fixes this. It just screws onto your shower head in about five minutes, no tools needed. This is the one I use and honestly it was one of the best things I ever bought for my skin.
If you're going to have a long, lovely Sunday shower, it's worth making sure what you're standing in is actually clean.
Give your scalp some love
Sunday is the one day I actually have time to leave something in my hair. I put a few drops of oil on my scalp — I use argan or jojoba (my favourite right now )— massage it in for five minutes, then leave it while I do everything else.
One thing to check on any hair oil: make sure it says the actual oil name on the label, like "argan oil" or "jojoba oil." If it just says "fragrance" — skip it. That word can hide a lot of things you don't want on your skin.
Body oil instead of body lotion
After my shower I don't use body lotion on Sundays. I use a body oil instead. It has fewer ingredients, no hidden stuff, and it soaks in really well when your skin is still a little damp.
Honestly, a plain bottle of jojoba or sweet almond oil like this is cheaper than most lotions and the only ingredient is the oil itself. That's it. If you want something that feels a bit more special, this one is what I use when I want it to feel like a treat.
Take your time with skincare
This is the slow Sunday version — not the rushing-to-work Tuesday version.
Start with an oil cleanser to remove SPF and anything left on your face (I also use my jojoba oil as an oil cleanser)
Then a gentle, simple face wash
Put on your serum and do a gua sha massage while it sinks in — it takes five minutes and feels really calming (the one I have)
Finish with a moisturiser while your face is still a little damp
One thing worth checking across all of these: if the label says "fragrance" or "parfum," that's worth looking into. In the US, companies don't have to say what's actually in their fragrance — it can be hundreds of different chemicals hidden behind one word. For a day that's supposed to feel calm and clean, it makes sense to pick products that are actually clean.
The Home
A lot of cleaning sprays have strong chemicals in them that float around in the air when you spray them — and you breathe them in. When you're cleaning a small bathroom with the door shut, you're breathing in a lot more than you think. And this always happens on Sundays.
The good news: you don't need any of that stuff to get things clean.
My all-purpose spray: half white vinegar, half water, about ten drops of tea tree oil in a glass spray bottle (It's so easy to make at home). White vinegar actually kills bacteria — that's not just a home remedy, it's real. Tea tree oil helps too. This works on countertops, the toilet (outside), the sink, most kitchen surfaces. It costs almost nothing to make.
For the floor: a small squeeze of castile soap (I prefer this one) in a bucket of warm water. Done.
For the toilet bowl: pour in some baking soda, add white vinegar, add a few drops of peppermint oil. Wait five minutes, scrub, flush. No smell, no fumes, actually clean.
The candle thing
Most candles are made from paraffin wax — which comes from oil — and when they burn they release chemicals into the air. The fake "fragrance" in most candles adds even more stuff you probably don't want to breathe in every Sunday evening.
The good news is that cleaner candles smell just as good. Look for ones made from beeswax, soy wax, or coconut wax, scented with real essential oils. My favourites that I keep buying again and again are this one and this one.
The Bedroom
You spend about eight hours a night in your bed. That makes it one of the most important places in your home when it comes to what your body is exposed to — not because it's intense, but because it's every single night, for hours.
Switch your laundry detergent
This is the swap I recommend most to people who are just starting out, and nobody ever expects it.
Regular laundry detergent — even the ones that say "gentle" or "sensitive" on the bottle — usually has fake fragrance in it. That scent stays in the fabric after washing. Then you sleep with your face on it for eight hours. Every night.
Switching to a fragrance-free detergent is easy, cheap, and you can get it almost anywhere. I make my own laundry detergent, and you can make it too, I wrote the recipe for it in my previous blog post. But if you want to buy it this is also a great choice — it cleans just as well, it just doesn't smell like anything. Which is actually the point.
Swap dryer sheets for wool dryer balls
Dryer sheets are another sneaky source of fake fragrance. Wool dryer balls do the exact same job — they stop static, soften your clothes, make the dryer work faster — without any chemicals at all. They last for years. I put one drop of lavender essential oil on mine and my sheets smell so good without anything synthetic.
Nothing scented after you get into bed
This one sounds small but it made a real difference for me. Once I'm in bed — no scented lotion, no perfume on the pillow, nothing. I put a simple, clean facial oil on before I get in and that's it. The air in your bedroom is something you can actually control. It's worth keeping it clean.
The Mental Part (This One Gets Skipped the Most)
Here's something I really wish more people talked about: stress is bad for your body in a lot of the same ways that toxic products are. It messes with your hormones, your skin, your sleep. You can swap every product in your bathroom and still feel terrible if you're going to bed anxious every Sunday night.
So this part matters just as much as the rest.
Write things down. Get a piece of paper and spend five minutes writing down everything that's in your head about the week. Not a to-do list — just whatever's rattling around. Getting it out of your head and onto paper genuinely helps.
Stop making decisions after 8pm. Choosing what to watch, what to wear tomorrow, whether to reply to a message — it all takes more out of you than you think. I just stop after 8. Whatever it is can wait until morning.
Thirty minutes without your phone. A walk. A bath. Reading. Stretching slowly on your floor. It doesn't matter what it is — just pick something that isn't scrolling. Sunday evenings feel so much better when you're not on your phone for the last hour before bed.
The Full Sunday Reset at a Glance
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to do all of this every Sunday?
No. Really. Even doing two or three of these things regularly will make a difference. A routine you actually stick to is always better than a perfect one you do once and never again.
Is the shower filter actually worth it?
Yes, and it surprised me too. You're absorbing whatever's in the water through twenty minutes of hot steam — it's not the same as drinking a glass of it. It's a one-time thing to install and it costs less than most serums. If I had to pick one product from this whole post, it'd be that.
Where do I start if I've never done any of this before?
The laundry detergent. It's cheap, you can find it at any supermarket, and the fragrance from your current detergent is on your skin for eight hours every single night. Switch it once and you never have to think about it again.
Do I have to throw away my current candles?
Nope. Use them up. The whole idea here is that when something runs out, you replace it with something better. No throwing things away, no guilt, no big dramatic overhaul. Just one thing at a time.
One Sunday at a Time
You won't notice a difference after one Sunday. You'll notice it after a few months, when your skin is less irritated, your bedroom feels calmer, and Sundays start to feel like something you look forward to instead of something you get through.
You don't have to do this perfectly. You just have to do some version of it, keep going, and let it quietly become your normal.