What even is time off?

Welcome to ‘5 things’, a bi-weekly round-up newsletter created with the purpose of hopefully introducing you to some cool new things. Whether newly discovered or tried and true—I share 5 things with you that really caught my attention.

I hope the last month of the year has been treating you well. December is always reflective, introspective, and just down right moody for me. On the bright side it means lots of planning and learning which is never a bad thing! I told myself that I would try to block out some time closer to Christmas and actually give myself some “time off”. Does time off exist for people who are self-employed? Genuinely curious.

I’m still currently saying yes to projects BUT I will take at least a few days off this month. If brands and companies will be offline anyways, why can’t I?

If you’re also a freelancer/contractor/business owner—this is your reminder to schedule some time off this month.

5 Things

Another level added to my night-time moisturization routine. I went from someone who hated the feeling of lotion on my legs under the sheets to someone who can’t live without a THICK body butter all over my body before bed. The newest addition to my high maintenance bedtime routine (that I’m really proud of honestly) is this body oil. It is so luxe, does not feel greasy on the skin, AND smells like white florals. I feel like this was made for me.

The perfect winter cushion foundation. I was loving the Jung Saem Mool cushion all throughout summer but decided to try a different one for winter. I’ve been really enjoying this one by Clio because it’s lightweight, feels moisturizing, and non-comedogenic. It doesn’t have as much coverage as the JSM but it’s pretty buildable.

An iPad app that’s boosted my creativity. I’ve been using Notability for YEARS now. This year I really started to explore it more and now use it for doodling, mood boarding, taking notes, for my language class notes…it’s actually increased my iPad usage overall. Lately I’ve been loving just doing little iPad doodles, especially for video planning or thumbnail brainstorming. It’s also free to use which is crazy.

My drink of the season. I don’t know how I got so hooked on teas and matcha but here I am, feeling incomplete without a warm drink in the afternoon. I still am not over how smooth, flavourful, and fool-proof the Dew Matcha Bar matcha is. The fact that I can have cafe-quality matcha lattes at home has been a game changer for me. Also their packaging is SO cute and perfect for gifting.

The coat I’ve been wearing non-stop. Every year I hunt for the “perfect” black wool coat. I never find it. So I’ve given up on finding one that suits ALL my needs and admitted that I’ll probably need to own a couple different ones for different styling purposes. This one by Massimo Dutti has bee my 2024 black coat. Honestly it’s nearly perfect and it’s what I’ve been reaching for the most this season.