Recently I’ve had a lot of free time fall into my lap. As such, I’ve obviously decided to invest more time into my hobbies and *ahem* many (MANY) side projects I’ve started. As we near the end of the month, it is an appropriate time I think to reflect on everything I’ve loved so far. As a child I used to love watching people online take me through their monthly favourites whether that be music, skincare, makeup, movies etc. I think it’s great way to not only get to know the person better but also to potentially discover some things that you might look into yourself.

So, dear reader, here is a comprehensive list of ALL things I loved this month. Some of these I discovered recently, others I’ve known/ used for a while but gained a newfound appreciation for. Who knows you might end up liking a thing or two yourself! 💋

SKINCARE/ HAIRCARE

1. TOCCA Simone Perfume

I detest fruity/ sweet/ candy/ vanilla scents (except for my Ariana Grande Dream perfume ily) so I tend to look for more floral, fresh notes in my perfumes. Some examples of my faves are Daisy by Marc Jacobs (of course), and Gucci Flora Jasmine. I was in the market recently for a new perfume and came across the brand Tocca on my Tiktok fyp. Needless to say I went to Mecca at the earliest convenience to test some of their perfumes. After extensive research (spending an hour smelling all the perfumes they had to offer and deliberating) I finalised Simone as the perfume I would be taking home with me. It is a beautiful BEAUTIFUL scent with notes of watermelon, lemon, and frangipani (amongst others) making it the perfect blend of fresh fruit and flowers (think Barbie Island Princess iykyk). The only drawback to this perfume I would say is that it doesn’t seem to last very long on the skin. I end up spraying it into my hair and on my clothes to make it last most of the day. I will be trying every hack under the sun to make it last because I want to smell like this forever.

2. Briogeo Yuzu + Plum Oil Soft Power Air Dry Cream

This is a product that has somewhat completely changed the game for me when it comes to styling my naturally wavy/ curly hair. I’d like to thank Mecca Beauty Loop for including a mini version of this in a Beauty Loop box because the day I tried this for the first time, I was genuinely shocked at how well it brought out/ held my wavy hair without frizz. Of course I have not been able to replicate the way my hair looked that day as hard as I try but I’m getting there. The point is that it has encouraged me to try and make my natural hair work. For most my uni life I have dyed and fried my poor hair with little to no regard for its health. As my frontal lobe begins to develop however, I have realised that I should maybe let my curls breathe. It is a journey for sure (8-step curl routines are no joke) but we’ll get there.

3. &honey EX Deep Moist Hair oil

On the topic of hair, this hair oil is actually insane. I have only been using this for a few days but oh my goodness. It smells delicious and the scent lasts in your hair for quite some time. I bought this because it the packaging looked pretty (no joke) but I am sooo impressed. It is somewhat of a dupe I think of the Gisou hair oil (which is incredibly expensive). My hair literally drinks this up and it leaves my hair feeling so soft and incredible smelling. I haven’t really heard of this brand but I think it’s Japanese and it has other products that I’m excited to try. (P.S. I use the EX Deep Moist version)

MOVIES/ TV SHOWS

1. A Man on the Inside

This really wasn’t a show I thought I would like since I wasn’t super sure about the premise. A 70-something man being hired as a spy to infiltrate a retirement home? IDK. I admittedly put it on because it popped up in the “New” section for Netflix while I was browsing but it had me hooked almost immediately. The entire series has such a beautiful filter on it which makes everything look super cozy and lovely. Apart from this the premise is actually super interesting and I LOVED watching Ted Danson be a wholesome old man. Very unexpectedly I adored all of the old characters and the ending left me with a warm fuzzy feeling in my heart which is always excellent. The series has 8 episodes and I binge-watched all of it in one night. It has excellent actors and some very heart-warming cameos. You can definitely watch this with your family and I would super duper recommend it. I will be rewatching it very soon.

(4.5/5 stars from me)

MUSIC

1. Fishtail - Lana Del Ray (Song)

2. I hope to be around - Men I Trust (Song)

3. So good at being in trouble - Unknown Mortal Orchestra (Song)

4. Kansas Anymore - ROLE MODEL (Album)

5. Bless the telephone - Labi Siffre (Song)

CONTENT CREATORS

1. Krystynofficial (Tiktok)

If you like jazz covers you will LOVE Krystyn. She has such a gentle voice and tone and her guitar playing is super soothing. I look forward to new uploads from her and I’m sure you will not regret checking her out!

2. Salty stuff (Tiktok)

My new favourite Tiktok account. Honestly I should be gatekeeping this but given that no one is going to read this anyway I don’t really mind sharing. This account is my Pinterest. The level of curation with extraordinarily cool ideas is insane and I’m never disappointed by a post. It is mostly diy/ decor ideas for people with quirky taste. 10/10.

OTHER

1. Bose QuietComfort Headphones

I’ve had the limited edition pink Bose QCs since the start of uni (over 5 years yikes) and so I was due for an upgrade. Naturally I got the same headphones although the pink ones are no longer available (rip) so I got the sandstone colour instead which is a cute beige which will go with most outfits. I forgot how good the noise cancelling on these headphones was and I cannot wait to cover them with stickers!

2. Owala FreeSip Water Bottle

The water bottle market right now is pretty basic and kinda insane. I like to do my research when buying things I’m going to be using for a long time and a water bottle is no exception. I wanted a water bottle that would a) hold a lot of water, b) look cute, and c) be functional in terms of drinking. I will be the first to admit that I HATE that all the top water bottles now are straw based with the little pull up sipper thing. I think it’s EXTREMELY unhygienic for the sipper to be out in the open and god knows how clean the inside of the straw is. So I was looking for something without a straw and I landed upon the Owala bottles (which do have a straw but we’ll get to that in a second) Owala bottles are all the rage now with their dual system of sipping and gulping. The mouth of the bottle is covered by a lid (thank god) and has an in built straw so you can choose to sip or gulp your drink. I have to say I didn’t think I’d be using the sip straw much but it is very convenient. As for the hygiene issue, they have made separate components of the straw and lid removable and very easy to clean so I’m not super bothered by it. I have ordered some stickers to decorate but I am overall very happy with my purchase!

3. Carrom

Carrom is an Indian table-top game that is somewhat similar to pool in some aspects. I won’t go into the detail of how to play carrom but as with pool each player must use a striker (pool cue) to push a coin (ball) into one of the corner pockets on the board. We’ve had a carrom board in the house for a while but never really found a convenient spot for it and so never really played. This year however, after finding a niche for it, my family and I play carrom almost every day. It is incredibly easy to set up and extremely fun to play. Although you can have a maximum of 4 players, the games finish quickly enough to alternate players.

So there you have it folks… everything I loved this month. November felt really slow but I can’t believe it’s almost the end of the year. I already have some things I’ve bought/ started doing but I don’t have enough experience with them for me to love or hate them so we shall see if they make a debut next month.

Until then munchies xx

Um Div what is this…?

If you know me, like really KNOW me, you know that I have a lot of opinions. Like, a LOT. And it doesn’t take a genius to realise that not all of those opinions are necessarily something people actively want to listen to (I do sincerely apologise if you’ve been a victim of my yapping in the past… thoughts and prayers). So think of this as a win-win. I get to yap about my random specific niche interest of the hour/day/month, and you can choose whether or not to tune in.

Now look, I am aware of certain obstacles. Especially the fact that,

1. Nobody cares

2. Nobody cares

3. Given my background in procrastination I probably won’t do this a lot.

But you know what… I don’t care. This could be another instalment in my graveyard of ideas, OR it could be the most successful format for me to vent my thoughts.

I guess we’ll find out!

Okay, so what do I expect from this…

Nothing. Expect nothing. From time to time I might write about something that has taken over my mind completely (eg Cooper Koch and Nicholas Chavez <3) and express my oh-so-valuable, incredibly necessary opinions. To expect something grand is to set yourself up for disappointment.

Here are, however, some topics I may talk about:

1. Pop culture

2. Books

3. Movies/ TV Shows (including K-Dramas)

4. Music

5. Self-development (lessons I’ve learnt)

But of course the sky is the limit and the world is my oyster. It could be anything.

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You can subscribe to get updates when I post new stuff but I will be a pain in the ass and post it on my story anyway so up to you if you’re interested. Leave comments if you have any opinions that agree/ disagree with mine. I’d love to start chronically online beef with someone : ))

Bye-bye.

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