October Favourites
It’s the last Friday of October, which means it’s time for a monthly favourites post. I love writing these posts. This favourites post has some favourites that have accumulated for a while and some more recent ones. I hope you enjoy reading about what I’ve been loving lately.
Skin, Body and Hair Care
Aveeno Soothing Oat Lotion ($8.68 for 18 oz)
This lotion is excellent for soothing super try skin that gets white and flakey sometimes. It has a very light scent, which is good because you can add a few drops of body oil if you want the lotion to have a stronger scent. The bottle is also massive, meaning it’ll last for a while.
Yuni “Light Seeker” Face Oil ($19.00 for 1.59 oz)
I’ve been into facial oils for a little over a year now. I picked up this one at Target this summer, and it’s become a staple in my skincare routine. I like that I only need a few drops to get the “light seeker” glow. I put it on after my serums and before my moisturizer in the morning. Yes, this product is pricey for its size, but I promise it’ll last forever.
Cheri-Balm ($8.79 for .5 oz)
As some of you may know, I’m kinda accident prone. I use KT tape to help stabilize my ankles, but my skin always reacts to the adhesive. Cheri-balm completely heals the irritation. If I put some on the irritated/blistered skin before bed, it’s gone by morning. No joking. I have some friends with T1D who used this on irritated infusion sites, and they also swear by this. It’s a magical Godsend.
Murad Vit-C Face Wash ($40 for 6.72 oz)
Yes - I know this face wash is expensive, but hear me out. The bottle is HUGE! 6.72 oz is quite a lot, and if you’re only using a small amount twice a day, this face wash will last you for months. I was lucky enough to get this in my FabFitFun Summer Box (I got it in June), and now, almost six months later, I’m less than halfway done. I know that people might not be able to afford this, but I think that $40 every 6-12 months is not only worth it but a very easy amount to save up for.
Makeup
Buxom Full-On Lip Plumping Lip Cream in Rose Julep ($21.00 for .14 oz)
I’ve always liked the look of fuller lips, and I hate that my lips aren’t as full as I wish they were. I’m not one to get lip fillers, nor do I like the look of slightly overdrawn lips, so a plumping lip gloss is my next best bet. My normal favourite is the Too Faced Lip Injection gloss, but every time I look for it, it’s out of stock (and rightfully so). I remember using Buxom lip glosses when I was a lot younger, and I remember loving them, so I picked up one in Rose Julep, which is fantastic. You get a nice natural pump look, and the sensation of the plumper is very cooling. It’s worth the cost, and I love how it comes in so many shades too.
L’Oreal Paris Lash Paradise Mascara ($9.97 for .28 oz)
I love a good inexpensive, but worth-it dupe for a high-end product. My usual favourite mascara is Too Faced Better Than Sex mascara, and the most accurate drugstore dupe is Lash Paradise from L’Oreal. The packaging is almost identical, and the want is the same. It’s a fantastic drugstore mascara, and I’ll probably never use a different one. It’s the mascara I wear in all of my photos/videos. It makes my lashes so full and dark. It’s a perfect and more easily accessible mascara.
Entertainment & Apps
Homeland on Showtime ( Seasons 1-7 are available to watch on Hulu)
This show is about a CIA Case Officer in the Counterterrorism Department (aka a spy), Carrie Mathison and her obsession with a terrorist, Abu Nazir, and trying to find the American POW who was turned. But Carrie also has a big secret, she’s bipolar, and let’s say that adds a lot of drama and chaos to the show.
This show is NUTS. And almost impossible to not binge a lot. I may or may have yet to see two seasons (12 episodes a season, 50 min each) in a week. I am so obsessed with this show. I even had a Twitter thread going with my honest reactions/comments about what I was seeing (w/o giving too much away).
What I love is how raw, and real this show is. Nothing about this show is “pretty” like some TV shows are. The subject matter is heavy and dark and raw and real. It very closely resembles real life, and a lot of the subject matter reflects what was actually happening in the world at the time the show was airing (you’ll have to watch interviews to find out how that came about). It can sometimes be quite triggering, so please keep that in mind.
Claire Danes is phenomenal in this show, and I will forever talk about how amazing it is. I even got my best friend into the show (you know you love me, Siena), and I may or may not be working on challenging my acting skills by learning a few scenes from the show. I also may or may not have a dance in the works as well.
Boomdio “Apple Pencil” for iPad ($29.99)
This pencil is a perfect and inexpensive dupe for an Apple Pencil. It looks the same and seems to have the same or similar functions (from what I’ve seen, as I haven’t tried out the apple pencil yet). The battery lasts up to 20 hours and maybe takes 2 hours to charge.
NoteShelf for IPad ($9.99)
This app was confusing to learn at first, but I love it when it comes to note-taking. I love that I can organize my notebooks and planners into different categories. I also like that the app has a section where you can download different paper templates, a lot of varying notebook cover options, and a “collaborators” part where different people have designed planners/journals, etc.
Sleep Cycle ($30/per year)
So I’ve been a long-time fan of this app. Sleep Cycle is a personalized alarm that will wake you up in the lightest part of your sleep cycle so as to not interrupt the important times of sleep. There are many different options for alarms, such as time gaps between the earliest/latest you want to wake up and just a regular alarm or no alarm. Whichever you choose, it will also analyze your sleep by time spent in the different sleep phases, your activity etc. This gives you your sleep quality percentage for each day. You can also have your steps sent to the app and have your heartbeat added via Apple Watch/Apple Health.
For wake-up phases, there’s a 10, 15, 20, 30 (recommended) and 45 min window. There are also different alarm sounds that are much more pleasing to wake-up to and the volume slowly increases depending on how long it takes for you to turn it off.
Sleep Cycle has a free version which is what I used to use, but it also has a yearly payment of $30. I find this to be 100% worth it because it’s annual and not monthly costs. Those with the yearly plan also benefit from sounds the app can play and sleep stories.
Rise sleep (starts at $6.99/per month)
Via Sleep Cycle or another sleep app, Rise analyzes your sleep to show you your energy peaks and dips, which will help you be most productive, when the best time to nap is (how long to rest), the best time to wake up/go to sleep based on your individual sleep needs/how well you slept the night before. This app also teaches you what sleep debt is and how much sleep debt hurts your energy.
And that concludes my post on my favorites as of late. If you’re not following me on Instagram you definitely should (link below) because I post on there a lot. It’s the best way to get real time updates from me. As always, I hope you enjoyed this post. Don’t forget to like, comment, share and join my mailing list if you want to be updated every time I post something new. Sending all the light and love in this world.
