The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

New year pick-me-ups; hand cream to soothe dry, chapped skin; and the best clothes to buy secondhand • Don’t get the Filter delivered to your inbox? Sign up here Damp weather, grey skies, days that don’t seem to be getting any longer and the return to normality after the new year motivation boost: it’s no wonder some of us feel a bit flat in January.

To lift our spirits, we asked you for your favourite pick-me-ups, and rounded up some from us at the Filter too. From umbrellas that give you a glow-up to microdosing nature, here are your tried-and-tested ways to beat the January blues.

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

From luxury Simba and Otty mattresses to brilliant budget buys, here’s what we recommend – and how to know if you’ve found a good deal • The best mattresses for back pain • The best mattress toppers, tested A good mattress improves your sleep, say mattress makers – and they would, wouldn’t they? But they’re right.

The older I get, the more I know it. When I was 20, I could sleep anywhere: a friend’s floor, a filthy sofa – even a phone box one night.

These days, I won’t get a single one of 40 winks if I’m not lying on a decent mattress. Comfy but firm, cosy but breathable, and with loads of cool spots for my feet.

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

He had youth, energy, a tiny purr and could jump 7ft in the air. I always knew when he was about to do it, because he would stare at me intensely before launching himself towards the ceiling My animals play a big, crazy role in my life.

I grew up with cats when I was a little kid but my love of black cats began when I moved from New York to LA in 1996 and found four feral black cats in my back yard. Almost immediately, two female cats got knocked up and had two litters at the same time.

Suddenly, we had 13 black cats, the most I’d ever cared for at once. I’ve been an artist all my life and during the early 2000s my career really started to take off.

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

A store-cupboard saviour for weeknights and ends of the month that you can adapt at will This is my favourite store-cupboard dinner when faced with the pre-shop complaints that “there’s nothing in the fridge”. The cherry tomatoes provide a welcome fresh note, but otherwise it’s a happy cupboard raid.

An old Nigel Slater recipe first put me on to the idea of using yoghurt to finish a pasta dish, and it works brilliantly here to balance the harissa. Excellent for a work-from-home lunch, too.

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The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

Whether you want waterproof or leather, we put women’s walking boots to the test to find the best for every adventure • The best women’s waterproof jackets, reviewed and rated A great pair of walking boots will get you outdoors in any weather. While you can get away with wearing trainers for a stroll in the park, more exciting, hilly terrain (or just walking through mud or in rain) calls for a proper pair of walking boots.

They’ll keep you warm and dry, support your ankles, and give you a decent grip underfoot. It’s worth investing in a quality pair that fits well, and they’ll last for years if you look after them.

Here are the best hiking boots, tested and rated. Best walking boot overall: Lowa Innovo GTX mid Best budget walking boots: Regatta Holcombe III Continue reading...

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

Modern western diets are full of ultra-processed foods, but experts say we need to reduce our intake. Here they offer achievable alternatives My week avoiding ultra-processed foods Get our weekend culture and lifestyle email “It’s not poor willpower,” says Mark Lawrence.

The ecological nutrition professor from Deakin University is a global expert in ultra-processed foods, a beacon of knowledge in the proliferation of UPFs.. Including, he says, “It’s really difficult to avoid them.” Australia, alongside the US and UK, has one of the world’s highest consumption rates of ultra-processed foods which have been linked to “multiple diet-related chronic diseases”, according to a global report of which Lawrence was a co-author.

Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning Continue reading...

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

Ye Olde Swiss Cottage in London was gaudy, draughty and built on a traffic island. But it was just the escape I needed Early in my career, I was going through a difficult chapter in work and life.

Having moved down to London from Glasgow, I felt socially untethered, unsure of where I belonged. I yearned to feel part of a gang like I’d done back home, but I had no clue about how to find one.

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The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

Immersive lessons and flexible qualifications: the support, innovation and personalisation of online schooling is helping students who had negative experiences at bricks-and-mortar institutions Moving to any new school can be daunting, but joining an online school is a whole new experience. For James, starting at King’s InterHigh was a bit scary at first, but it soon became the best school he had ever been to.

“The first weeks are a bit different, but once you get used to it, I think it’s even better than a physical school,” he says. King’s InterHigh, an online school, uses advanced technology to create a flexible learning experience for students all around the world.

Once James enrolled at King’s InterHigh, which follows a British curriculum for students aged seven to 19, he says he was supported straight away. “It’s very welcoming,” he says.

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

I was in a work-commute-collapse cycle and didn’t know what to do. Then I began sampling activities I’d previously dismissed – book clubs, line dancing, chess – and it became oddly addictive For most of my life, I treated taste as fixed.

There were things I liked and things I didn’t, and that was that. Hobbies, foods and even social situations were quietly written off with the certainty of personal preference.

But sticking to that sentiment had left me in a bit of a rut. When I moved to London, I threw myself into work: long hours, commuting and networking.

The Guardian - Life & Style • Jan. 19, 2026, 4:31 p.m.

In 2021, Harold Price, now 82, broke a vertebra while cycling with a friend, leaving him barely able to use his legs. Then a chance recommendation changed his life • ‘It took time to love my soft, larger shape’: the body-positive writer who recovered from an eating disorder Before the accident, Harold Price, 82, loved being on two wheels.

A retired engineer from Griffithstown in Wales, he cycled about 95 miles a week on his road bike. “Not bad for 78,” he says.

On other days he’d be out on one of his restored motorbikes, as he was in June 2021, with a friend. They were riding at 10 miles an hour on a narrow road when his friend pulled out in front of him.

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