Monthly must haves: March

March always feels like a reset.

The days stretch a little longer, the light becomes brighter, and suddenly you notice things that winter kept hidden. A wardrobe that needs a refresh, a corner of the house that’s quietly gathered clutter, habits that need a review, and the garden beginning to wake up again.

This month’s edit is about those small seasonal shifts that make everything feel lighter.

Fashion: The trench coat.

If there’s one piece that defines early spring dressing, it’s the trench coat.

It’s the perfect bridge between winter and warmer days. Smart enough for meetings, relaxed enough for the school run, and light enough that you don’t feel weighed down by it.

A classic camel or stone trench will last for years, and cost per wear, an investment piece, will pay for itself. Not your style? This season we’re seeing softer silhouettes and slightly oversized shapes that feel more relaxed and modern.

If you’ve never owned one, this is the moment. It’s one of those pieces that quietly becomes the most useful thing in your wardrobe.

What we’re seeing this season,

• Relaxed oversized silhouettes

• Cropped trench styles

• Soft neutral tones like stone, olive and navy

• Lightweight cotton and twill fabrics

Throw it over jeans and trainers, or over something more polished. It works either way.

Garden: Dreaming of summer colour

March is when gardeners quietly start planning summer. The spatterings of spring colour from daffodils, crocuses, helebores and wallflowers have us craving more.

Now is the moment to order summer bulbs and tubers such as dahlias, gladioli, lilies and begonias. They may not go in the ground just yet, but planning ahead means you’ll have colour exactly where you want it when the warmer months arrive.

Dahlias in particular have had a huge resurgence. They’re surprisingly easy to grow and incredibly generous once they get going, often flowering right through to early autumn.

Even a few planted in pots can completely transform a patio or small garden.

Good choices to start with

• Dahlias for long-lasting colour and cut flowers

• Gladioli for height and drama

• Lilies for scent

• Begonias for reliable colour in containers

A little planning now pays off beautifully later.

Home: The March spring clean reset

There’s something about brighter mornings that makes you suddenly notice the house again.

The windows that need cleaning. The cupboard that’s become slightly chaotic. The corner that quietly collected clutter over winter.

Spring cleaning doesn’t need to mean an exhausting overhaul. Often the biggest impact comes from small resets.

Many people are now turning to simple, eco-friendly cleaning methods, something championed by Nancy Birtwhistle, who shares practical ways to clean effectively using everyday ingredients like white vinegar, bicarbonate of soda and citric acid.

Her approach is refreshingly simple. Less plastic, fewer chemicals, and solutions that genuinely work.

Easy places to start

• Wash throws, cushion covers and winter layers

• Clean windows to bring the light in

• Declutter one cupboard or drawer

• Swap to refillable or natural cleaning products

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A few small changes can make the whole house feel different.

Wellbeing: Back to basics

Wellbeing trends come and go, but the things that make the biggest difference rarely change.

Sleep. Movement. Time outside. Real connection. Eating well most of the time.

What often matters most is not a complete lifestyle overhaul, but small habits repeated - consistently.

Habits exist because they remove the need to constantly make decisions. Once something becomes automatic, it stops requiring effort.

That’s why the tiny adjustments can quietly reshape how we feel day to day.

Instead of trying to change everything at once, it can be far more powerful to focus on just one or two small shifts.

A few simple examples

• A 10–15 minute walk outside each morning

• Stretching for five minutes before bed

• Drinking a glass of water when you wake up.

• Putting your phone away an hour before sleep

Individually they may feel insignificant. But repeated daily, these small habits often create the biggest changes over time.

March is a good moment to strip things back and focus on these foundations.