How to describe the morning routine of a woman

Hey guys,

So I have been trying to write a story, an having some difficulty with one section. I am describing the female characters morning routine from her perspective but it keeps escaping me. I don't quite understand the thought process that a woman goes through when deciding what to wear and was wondering if anyone could explain how to go about doing this?

Are you kidding? If we could outline the details of our morning "routine" it would be just that, a routine. For now lets call it controlled chaos... Amirite?
Sorry

There is no one routine that we all use.

When I was younger, I was high maintenance. Lots of hair products, makeup, etc. Clothes laid out the night before. I didn't have many clothes.

Now? Super low maintenance. Don't even shower every morning but usually do. Quick shower with scented body wash. Shampoo and conditioner or if in a super hurry, 2 in 1 product. Shave any parts that seem to need it.

Dry off. If I have time before the shower, I will dry brush my body. Usually no time. Also if time, massage oil and a massage tool to rub it in. Or maybe just use the oil and apply it with my hands but... Usually not even that.

I do brush my teeth before the shower to bring hot water into the bathroom. Apply antiperspirant and a dab of Phytoestrogen cream. Apply whatever perfume goes best with the scent of body wash I used.

I have tons of clothing. If not leaving the house, I may put on a caftan, nightgown or dress. No undies. Usually no shoes. Maybe slippers.

If I have to go somewhere or sometimes if I am expecting someone over, I will put on a bra, panties (they won't match), top and pants. What I wear depends on the weather and usually whatever I grab first. If a top, then I look for pants that will go with it. Once in a while I will lay out a matching outfit before bed. Shoes and socks. I rarely wear a coat or jacket but during cold weather will bring one with me.

Grab breakfast. These days usually cottage cheese and toast. I also take some pills and supplements. Feed the cats.

That's about it.

And I should add that that your sig is damned near orgasm inducing. Oh my!

But it is unlikely that my personality is anything like your character's. Also, my morning routine is very different if I am working from home vs meeting with a client vs the weekend. Whatever the case, I don't usually have too much trouble deciding what to wear. My biggest challenge is deciding when I'm going to wash my hair. Now that's a routine!

Thank you for your responces

Thanks for letting me know that your morning routines are not something set in stone. I was worried that most women had some set things that they had to do in a certain order. It helps knowing that, but I do have a follow up question. Do you have one for special occasions, such as say first day of college or a new job?

Look.

They are crackers. They make rigid rules and then break them and it's OK because They do it.

If you transgress on of those obscure rules... WELL!

Thing is, they don't really know what there rules are from day to day. Mood to mood.

So keep your head down, your trap shut and pretend they are the most intelligent being on earth.

You will still get in the dog house because down deep they have convinced themselves that they are almost Never wrong.

The only time I had any kind of a set routine for anything had little to do with me. Had to do with me driving people who lived here to various places. I can't see why we would have any sort of routine for special occasions.

Do most men have a routine? I think not. Perhaps a person with OCD might have a routine but other than that...

FGB said:

Look.

They are crackers. They make rigid rules and then break them and it's OK because They do it.

If you transgress on of those obscure rules... WELL!

Thing is, they don't really know what there rules are from day to day. Mood to mood.

So keep your head down, your trap shut and pretend they are the most intelligent being on earth.

You will still get in the dog house because down deep they have convinced themselves that they are almost Never wrong.

Click to expand...

Maybe the woman in *your* life is rigid with rules. I tend to go the other way. I only like rules if I see the need for them. For instance, I came home today to find a lit candle. I did have 4 of them lit and I snuffed them around 3:00 a.m. I found the pink one lit at 5:00 p.m. That leads me to believe that it hadn't been somehow kept lit all night. This is the kind in a tall glass holder and I have been lighting the same candles for days. Had it remained lit for that long, it would have totally burned out, I should think. Appeared to be newly lit. So... I will have to make a rule for the people that are staying here and tell them not to light a candle in here and leave. That seems rather obvious to me but apparently not to the person who did this. Those sorts of rules can be necessary.

I am also not moody. Sure, I might be somewhat testy if someone keeps pushing my buttons or I am sick. But most people will get that way in those circumstances no matter their gender. I tend to be in a good mood most all of the time. I also work very hard at keeping myself that way. I'd much rather send love and light to the world than to walk around snapping at people.

Over the course of a lifetime, I can remember a few times when I felt out of sorts for no apparent reason. As in... Nothing was going to please me that day. Nothing at all. And I knew it. I have not been like that for many years. But when I did get like that, I would try to avoid people. If I had to go to work or I had to be home and had others living/staying here, I would tell all of the people around me that I was feeling snappish and it would be in their best interest to leave me alone. They usually did. But once, my parents insisted that I go out to eat with them and they wouldn't take "no" for an answer. When I got there, they got angry at me for ordering the smallest/cheapest thing on the menu, which I think was an English muffin. No food sounded good to me at all, and I didn't feel hungry. They insisted on paying so I felt it would be best to do that. I tried one bite and it didn't taste right. Nothing would have tasted right.

That being said, I can pretty well remember each incident of my being moody and I have more fingers on one hand than I have had bad moods. And no, I was not born with extra fingers.

I also know that I will be wrong. I try not to be but we all will be at some point in time. Sometimes I'm even wrong to the point of it being comical. And then I will poke fun at myself.

I will say this to the OP. If you are writing, you invent the character. Doesn't matter how oddball sounding they might be. We're all different.

I used to take drama and here is an exercise we used for inventing a character. We were first to think of an animal. Now we were not told why we were to think of this. I chose a slug. For those of you who are unfamiliar with slugs, they are akin to snails with no shells. They move very slowly and in a sort of hunching/slightly up and down fashion.

The next step was to turn that animal into a Disney-like character. Make them be able to walk and talk.

And then turn them into a human with the personality and characteristics of that animal.

I chose to be a middle aged woman with a disability that caused me to walk slowly and with and up and down fashion, sort of like a limp. I was also afraid of the world, and an alcoholic so this caused me to speak with a slurred speech and not make a lot of sense.

My only contact with people was when I had someone bring deliveries to me of alcohol and my favorite food, a Bartlett pear. I think I chose the pear rather randomly. Perhaps someone was eating one near me as I thought up my character. And the alcoholic part came from a woman who used to be a neighbor. She didn't totally remind me of a slug but when she was drunk, she spoke and moved very slowly. I just went from there.

Keep in mind this is only one way to dream up a character. But often when I write, many of my characters will have quirky personality traits. I think this can help the reader to better relate to the person. I also often look to people I know when thinking up a character. I might use the physical description of someone I know in real life or some of their personality traits.

One woman that I put into one of my novels was a really bad person. She did all sorts of bad things, using and abusing people. I also gave her a smart mouthed and quick as a whip sense of humor. By giving her this trait, she was better able to attract men to her which was her ultimate goal in life. Well that and being a Las Vegas showgirl and she never quite achieved that.

Just think of a few details and go from there. Perhaps something like a purple hair brush, a certain shade of lipstick, a favorite kind of coffee or tea... Something that the woman might use or want every morning, then go from there.

Where is my stuff?

I think you should focus on where the items are. I don’t always remember my routine but I know where my stuff is for it. It’s ready and in place the night before when I have to get up. Otherwise, it’s always in the same place so even if I’m dead asleep I go on autopilot.