2018 was a strange year. There were some high highs and some low lows, but PLOT TWIST: I ended the year in a pretty happy place!
2018 also introduced me to a new crop of favorite things, so here are some of my most-loved buys and tries:
1. Lavendaire’s Artist of Life Workbook: Aileen Xu, the creative force behind Lavendaire, has these gorgeously filmed, self-helpy YouTube videos that I watched a lot in 2017. So I bought her workbook… and then didn’t start it until late January because I was in such a negative headspace to start the year. The monthly exercises? Yeah, didn’t start doing those until March! But once I got going, I really enjoyed having that space to reflect on my wins each month. Even when I felt like I wasn’t accomplishing anything or growing, I was—just maybe not in a huge, dramatic way. I now have Aileen’s 2019 workbook, and I started its exercises on New Year’s Day! #progress 🎉
2. Agate bracelet: In yoga teacher training, each of us gave small gifts to the other trainees when we taught our first class. One of the other gals made us these beautiful bracelets, and I’ve literally worn mine every day since! Besides being pretty, it’s such a nice reminder of the girls and that wonderful experience. 💕
3. Roller Chain Fidget Toy (Amazon): I tend to be very fidgety with my hands, especially at work, so I ordered a few fidget toys from Amazon this year. This one was by far the winner—I just fiddle with it endlessly while sitting at my desk at work!
4. Pop-Up Pill Organizer: Remember when I found this pill organizer at Marshall’s? Yeah, I’m totally in love with it (and I’m also 100 years old!). It’s so nice to be able to set up a week’s worth of pills but then just take one day with you at a time, thereby avoiding having said week’s worth of pills spill in your bag (something that used to happen to me all.the.time).
5. Aurora Bar Ring in rose gold (GLDN): My Rebirthday ring! It’s so pretty and dainty and personal GAH, I just love it! And I think it arrived pretty quickly too, especially for being a custom piece!
6. Five Below iPhone 7 Case: I love this case so much! I tend to switch up my cases, but I’ve been going strong with this one since April! (Unfortunately for you guys, that means it might not be in stores anymore.) I love the geometric pattern, the soft colors, the gold details, the whole faux-marble vibe, and the super-slim profile. For $5, it’s perfection.
7. Timer Tab: I easily lose track of time when I’m working on something, so this site has been a godsend at work. Otherwise, one hour balloons into three, and I’m like, “I’ve been going through my inbox for HOW long?!” I think it plays a video of a chiming grandfather clock when time’s up, which may be annoying (or hilarious, depending on your view!), but my work computer doesn’t have speakers, so the flashing visual in the toolbar is perfect.
What are your favorite buys and tries from last year?