I recently attended an event held by the green cleaning brand, Ecover. They asked us to talk a little about how both our style and laundry habits had changed since becoming parents; initially I couldn't see the connection, but then I realised that the event had had a rather unexpected consequence…I'm not sure if they were playing music with subliminal messages or if the celebrity stylist (Alex Longmore) was just incredibly persuasive, but I ironed a huge pile of MY OWN clothes last night for the first time in about 10 years. I iron the kids stuff (this is a lie, I iron Ella's, Lee irons Milo's) but it is so rare that I iron anything of mine and if I do it's one shirt - the rest get put away creased with positive thoughts and prayers. I leave my laundry to pile up for weeks, letting it become a huge, overwhelming task before finally dedicating an entire day to washing and drying. Ella's stuff gets done regularly but mine just isn't a priority. To motivate myself I usually buy a new fabric softener or gimmicky laundry product to make the ever so dull task a little more exciting but really, is it ever?WELL, when I was chatting to the lovely lady who developed the new fragrances for Ecover’s laundry detergents, and she was explaining why she chose the notes that she did, I found myself genuinely interested in laundry!! There were teeny tiny onesies laid out, freshly washed with the new formulas and as she talked about nostalgic scents like the honeysuckle around her grandparent’s door (the honeysuckle & jasmine was definitely my favourite blend) I kind of couldn't wait to get home and get started on the ever-growing pile. Much as I do miss (in a masochistic way) the days of non-bio (which by the way is a Mumsnet rated formula for Ecover with 89% saying they'd recommend the brand), and the constant washing of tiny things, I'm happy that the eldest is now old enough to pitch in and the youngest is no longer going through multiple outfits a day.Ecover is suitable for sensitive skin so I'm confident that I can still use it for the whole family but their fragrances are a little more fun than your average kid-friendly stuff. After talking to the in-house fragrance expert, I am looking at the fragrances of all of my household cleaners in a totally different way and between their natural, plant-based ingredients and concentrated formulation, Ecover offer some great options! I never really thought about the fragrance of my clothing but I wear it all day every day and sleep in it at night…I'd like to like what my washing smells like (someone buy this woman a thesaurus!) and I've really enjoyed the subtle summery fragrances I've tried so far.So, after the event, the sudden urge to clean my house from top to bottom made sense, but when I sat down to talk about the correlation with my personal style, I finally recognised that my conversation with the stylist made me want to care about my own laundry for the first time... possibly ever. When I moved out at 19 I already had a baby so I've never really had only myself to worry about. I've also never really felt a sense of my own personal style so the idea of talking to a professional stylist was rather exciting!Alex was lovely and gave me a couple of great tips to share with those of you who are stuck in a rut and (like me) still searching for your style. She told me that if you're looking to try something different then colour is the easiest way to do it. If you're a die hard black jeans and tee fan, swapping to a colourful jumper for the new season is an instant way to update your look without pushing you too far outside of your comfort zone. She did advise against pattern, explaining that it can be tricky to pull off and to opt for it in small doses, but for those who are just testing the waters? ACCESSORIES! An oldie but a goodie and something in your wardrobe that you know will always fit ;)You can be so busy week to week with work and family that jobs like laundry just get done as and when with no thought or care, but opening my wardrobe this morning to an entirely (well, almost entirely.. I'm not the best ironer in the North) crease free closet of clothes made me remember, I actually used to enjoy getting dressed! I have been looking at the washing pile as another chore when I should be looking at it as something I'm doing for myself. In the same way that I might take time out to get a massage or a haircut, having clean, ironed clothes in my wardrobe makes my day better, it makes my mornings easier and I'm excited to wear things I genuinely haven't worn in years because I couldn't be bothered to iron them. I've been lazy for a really long time because I didn't think my stuff mattered..It's a funny thing to learn a little self-improvement from a laundry detergent but here we are.You can find out more about Ecover and their products on their website or Facebook page.  

This is a sponsored post in partnership with Ecover.