Happy holidays, dear readers! Before we gear up for 2018, I thought it might be nice to take a look back at some of this year's blog highlights. (Bonus tip: If you click on any of the photos they'll take you to the original post.) Ready? Let's go!
Beauty
2017 marked a significant change in my beauty routine as I adopted a greener, more natural regimen for health reasons. Before I took the plunge though, I did a lot of research into the myths and facts behind green beauty and concluded that I was okay with a "natural-ish" approach: I'd try to go natural and/or avoid harmful ingredients in most of my everyday skincare and grooming products but I wouldn't stress out about a little BHT in my lipstick.
In the course of the year, I tried natural deodorants, natural shampoo and conditioner, and natural essence and serum. This winter my skincare routine has been greener than ever thanks to Tata Harper. (Getting the Tata Harper Total Complexion Reset Treatment from Collective Skincare at the beginning of December helped too!)
Of course, not all of the products I tried and loved were green beauty finds—there were also noteworthy drugstore and luxury beauty gems in there as well. As we're still in the midst of winter and just a few days away from NYE, I'll just point out a couple of reviews from the archives you may find handy:
- A red liquid lipstick from the drugstore that really stays put
- An affordable moisturizer with hyaluronic acid that my husband's been loving lately
- A versatile hair-styling tool that makes straight and wavy styles a cinch
- Body scrub and body butter to keep dry skin happy
- An at-home facial/skincare routine that'll keep skin radiant year-round
- The only lip scrub I continue to use
- Pixi skincare comes with an affordable price tag but delivers impressive performance
Life
This year's biggest travel highlight was the trip of a lifetime: We finally went on our honeymoon in Italy in September, stopping in Rome and Venice during our two-week travel itinerary. I'm still going through the photos from our time in Florence and Cinque Terre, but those travel diaries with recommendations and photos are coming up in the new year!
We also went on a quick getaway to Tofino in March, staying at the Wickanannish and borrowing and test-driving a Ford Escape. It was our first time in Tofino, but definitely not the last.
In other not-so-fun life news, I had surgery during the summer and found out I have endometriosis. I'm still learning the ins and outs of my diagnosis and its implications, although I feel a lot better post-op. My fitness goals faltered in the face of travel and post-surgery recovery, but I still made time to go to Bar Method classes whenever I could and I swear having that base fitness level helped with my post-surgery recovery.
On the home front:
- I started cleaning the floors with an all-natural, all-purpose, biodegradable soap.
- I rediscovered my love of this all-natural spray for freshening up woolens and cashmere (a must for the winter months!).
- I spruced up my home office with a few affordable tweaks.
- I was super into decorating with plants. (The plants around my condo have changed somewhat since this post.)
- I turned to natural cold and flu remedies to augment the meds and help me feel better whenever I was sick.
Style
This section is going to be the shortest of the three! 2017 kicked off with a look back at my spending in 2016 and a renewed resolve to minimize unnecessary purchases. Of course, that didn't stop me from shopping entirely: I did buy a few carefully considered items in the spring, and as the year wore on I bought other things as well. But for the most part, I've really enjoyed the changes that have come with trying to embrace a more minimalist lifestyle. If anything, 2018 will have us streamlining our lives even more.
See you in the new year!
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