There’s not much that will relax me more than feeling water.

I’m not a huge ocean person, unless the beach seems more rugged than touristy. I like the splashing water against jagged rocks and free formed beaches that almost beckon you to explore them for ship wreck treasure. The beaches we have here are pretty, and the sunsets are a gorgeous salmon color (I was proposed in the sand of one of our beaches so it will always have a place in my heart) but, the landscape leaves me feeling uninspired.

So where do I go to get that aquatic therapy? I’m not near a lake… I don’t use the condo’s public pool.

I have never owned my own home; I am a chronic renter. In Virginia, I rented apartments. Now, condos. I am so looking forward to my first home and proper “soaking tub”. In the meantime, hopefully this will inspire anyone else looking to make the best of what they have, before that big magical massive bathroom experience is achieved.

In a bathtub, no matter the size, try to find what makes you feel calm. Honestly, it shouldn’t matter how big the tub is or the entire bathroom for that matter. If you surround yourself with what you love, you will love where you are.

For me, it’s the scent of vanilla (or leather, oddly) and blue and white (anything). I love the way the hurricanes cast shadows on the walls.

That’s my version of angular rocks on a beach still wild from a lack of overuse and tourism.

The candles are small but they are just enough that I can smell the vanilla all around me. (At my head, I have a vanilla scented LED candle, don’t worry!) I can cocoon myself with the blue and white shower curtain if it’s been a particularly bad day. I think back to one of my most favorite Christmas gifts EVER: a tent that attached to my mattress that I slept in, snuck away to, read in, wrote in, daydreamed in… They have them now for grown-ups and Joe and I already decided we’re getting one for a spare room when we move. (If you too enjoy cocooning, ask me in the comments below for the link to the grown-up version.)

My all natural (smells like coconut) hair products sit on a bamboo chopping block next to the softest bath pillow I have ever had.

A little blue and white dish holds pieces of cheese, the book is a must (I used to watch shows I wanted to catch up on while bathing but honestly and not surprisingly, reading relaxes me more) and there is a small place to hang a glass of wine.

I brought in one of our stools from the bedroom that I love. It’s a calm beige color with pretty brass bamboo shaped legs. On it, I placed a silver tray my mother gave me with one of my towels, a loofah, water and the second glass of wine in a separate individual decanter. I find that by the end of the second glass the water isn’t as hot as is worth staying in the tub.

I have timed it perfectly after all these years.

The loofah isn’t typically used. These bath sessions are more for centering me than for bathing. I don’t believe in “sitting in one’s dirt” so, rinse off afterwards or, have a bath like this after you already have had your shower earlier. The loofah is to create scent therapy if I feel I really need more than what you see here. I can use a soap that smells like clean linen (not Irish Spring which gives me a headache), you know… that soft cotton smell we’d like to bury our faces in while the clothes are still warm.

The book that I recently purchased had some immediate lovely pages that I want to share with you now – let me know if you’d like to know who wrote this autobiography (the author is a well-known actress):

All in all, I’ve used bathtubs to soak hurt muscles (think epson salt), to calm me (like this one) and to just get time away. From everything. There’s not a lot of places one can escape to in a condo. I do my best to escape into my own head or a movie or music, but every now and again, I need the warm water to engulf me, the weightlessness and the feeling of being a kid at bath time.

Bath time with wine.

Candles and loofah are from Publix. LED Candle, hurricanes, blue and white planters and topiaries are from Pier 1. Bath tray is from Bed, Bath and Beyond. Blue and white butter pad is from Williams Sonoma. Wine glass is from Crate and Barrel. Individual wine decanter is part of a tasting set from Coopers Hawk Winery. Water glass is Waterford. Blue and white shower curtain, coral bath towel and beige stool are from Wayfair. Bamboo tray is from Cuisinart.