Working from home has been a wild old ride. There have been lots of lows, but also tonnes of highs. Namely: having no salad-eating colleagues to judge that 17th pre-lunchtime trip to the fridge, and the fact that we’ve been able to wear the same tracksuit for five days straight – if only our Zoom cameras stay off.
We’ve also been able to LIE IN. No commute = more time to laze around in the morning. We’ve rolled out of bed at 9:27, opened our laptops at 9:28, brushed our hair at 9:29 and been ready for that 9:30am meeting on the dot. What morning routine???
But as we come out of the other side of lockdown, a return to the office is looking to be imminent. And that has got us thinking: what will we wear? Will we be capable of socially distancing from our work wife? And how the HELL will we manage to get out of bed in time for our train?!
Pre-lockdown, we relied on our smartphones to get us out of bed in the morning. But after spending four months focusing on wellness, mindfulness and a healthier sleep routine, more of us are choosing to sleep without our phones in sight. They’ve been demoted to the other side of the bedroom, in a bid to reduce pre-kip blue light exposure and increase our chances of falling into a deeper sleep more quickly. So, we’ve been on the hunt for an alternative way to wake up that doesn’t involve Mr. Smartphone. Hence the resurgence of the humble, classic alarm clock.
*Proper* alarm clocks have had a glow-up for 2020. Not only do they allow you to update your bedroom decor in a functional and affordable way, but there are tonnes of smart options with features that make falling to sleep and waking up genuinely much easier than your iPhone ever could.
Recent research has even shown that waking up to a melody (read: not Apple’s jarring alarm bleeps) can leave you in a better mood, as can being woken up gently. Luckily, there are all manner of sunrise alarm clocks out there (like Lumie’s best-selling Bodyclock Spark 100 Wake up to Daylight from John Lewis) which wake you up slowly with gradually-intensifying light. It starts gently, and by the time the alarm goes off, the clock is as bright as a lamp so your body feels more like it is waking up to a natural sunrise. Genius.
In short, demoting your phone to the other side of the room and choosing to be woken up by an *actual* alarm clock is much better for your mood, quality of sleep and sleep routine. So, we’ve whittled it down to the very best. From smart clocks to stylish alarms that act as a welcome – and affordable – decor upgrade, here are the very best alarm clocks to help you seize the day.