Hello! I hope you have loved Favorite Things 2021! Here are some of my favorites from this year.
* Studio McGee Pine Branch Arrangement -- if you can find this in stock it is SO pretty and would be perfect through the winter after Christmas. I have it on my entryway table. |
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| * Thick Cheese Grater my parents gave us a 3 pack of Wonder Shredders for Christmas years ago and our favorite is the thick one. It's hard to find Wonder Shredders anywhere so this is the closest. We use it for apples for pies and thick cheese -- especially the Coastal cheddar from Costco for this salad. |
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| * Under the Tulip Tree -- one of my favorite reads of the year ♥ The audio version is fantastic. |
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| * Hearth and Hand Lamp -- these are so good. They are large, come with the shade and bulb. This one is also beautiful if you can find it in stock! |
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| * Viracid -- don't pay Amazon price but you can read the reviews if you want to know more about it. Check your local pharmacy or store that sells natural supplements or check online health stores. It should be about $30 a bottle. This is for immune support and my doctor swears by this! Start taking it if you feel any sickness coming on or just for daily immune support. My boys were sick this month with strep throat and colds and I felt it coming on one night and I started taking this. I couldn't believe how much better I felt within 24 hours and didn't end up getting it. Yay! |
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| * Cutest holiday paper plates you will ever see. I use them for Christmas dinners for easy cleanup |
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| * Gap Fit Shirts -- I love these for working out because they are lightweight yet not see through (I only have the darker colors) Some of us prefer shirts to tanks and don't want anything tight and clingy. The back covers your bum too! |
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| * Welly bandages -- these are the cutest bandaids you have ever seen and are perfect to keep in your car or for a care package. Because if you're going to get hurt you might as well make it a little happy, right? |
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* Mercer Culinary Chef's Knife -- this is the knife we all go for every time in the kitchen whether we're cutting a watermelon or slicing brisket. We bought it 5 years ago and use it for everything. I love the weight, the way it feels in my hand, and it sharpens nicely. You can't beat the price!
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| * Ok this one is more of an investment rather than a "thing" but we have LOVED our Sleep Number bed. We are officially getting old. :) This was all my husband's idea and he researched all the mattresses and he chose this one out and I really didn't think it would matter to me but I have fallen in love with it. I love that we can have separate softness (he chooses 35, I am at 25), the base can go up or down to help with snoring, or acid reflux or watching a movie, it tracks your sleep on the app and there is a dim light that comes on underneath the bed when you get up in the middle of the night so you don't trip. I love melting into it at night and it's really hard to leave it in the morning. I am in love with a mattress! Is that crazy? As my husband points out -- more than 1/3 of our lives are spent sleeping so why not invest in a mattress like you would something like a car? Just in case you are in the market for one! We got the ILE one with the adjustable bases that isn't available anymore but I think this is closest. Tip: I would just go ahead and order their sheets when you order the mattress and just roll it all into one price. They are really nice and the other sheets we got online (that we tried to save money on) didn't stay on so we ended up ordering them anyway. Their beds also have a 15 year warranty and they deliver and set them up for you. They may have better prices around Black Friday?? We paid 3k for the mattress and 2k for the base during their Labor Day sale last year. I would definitely go into the store to try them out. Good luck ♥ We are obviously big fans and I wish I was getting paid to tell you this but I'm not. :) |
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| * Battery organizer: something about this makes me super happy and maybe prepared? And add 9 volts to my grocery list :) They are out this one but here is a similar one. I love that they have a battery tester so you can see if the batteries are old! |
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| And last but not least you know I love LOFT clothing if you've been reading long here. Today they happen to have FREE shipping on any order + 50% off + 11% off with code LUCKY so it's the best day to order! I love this pocket poncho sweater (so many pretty colors but I have it in this one) but it runs large so size down! With free shipping it's a great time to order stocking stuffers like jewelry or sunglasses ♥ |
Whew! Thanks for sticking with me. Here are the other guests for Favorite Things 2021. Enjoy ♥
Welcome to Day 2 of Favorite Things! If you missed Day 1 you can click here to catch up on all Favorite Things for 2021. We have 4 more amazing ladies to feature today! Here we go -- please welcome:
Hello and Welcome to Day 3 of Favorite Things 2021! You can see all the favorites by clicking here. Please give a very warm welcome to:
Kortney at Author Kortney Keisel
I'm thrilled to have my sister-in-law Mary here today! Mary has been with me from the beginning since I knew her in high school when I met her brother, my now husband! She is super smart and is a wealth advisor in Dallas and has 2 daughters in college -- one at University of Texas and another at BYU. She is always taking care of others and watched our kids when we lived in Texas so we could took a trip to DC. Mary also sends thoughtful cards and gifts to the nieces and nephews and remembers birthdays and special occasions. We all love Aunt Mary! Here she is sharing her favorites from 2021:
WELL + FOOD's 15-20 minute HIIT workout trampoline routines are my fav!
2. Fav Skin Product: Awake 2% Retinol Sleep Oil This oil was my #1 beauty find in 2021. Retinol products have always dried my skin. Awake renews and regenerates my skin with the same power of similar retinol concentrations, but without the drying side-effect of that most retinols. |
4. Fav Thanksgiving Planning Guide: Women of Today by Camila Alves McConaughey I discovered Camilla’s site while reading her series on reducing Sugar intake and cravings that I’d come across, which was the best content I’d ever read on the topic. As I scrolled through the sections on her site I can across her Thanksgiving guide. I loved the way it explained laid out the planning weeks in advance.
5. Fav Rug Meets Fav Dog I fell in love with this handwoven NuLoom rug the moment I unrolled it. It’s no surprise that my English Golden, Penny loved its thick wool pile too, and was constantly laying on it. Getting too comfortable, she eventually relieved her bladder on the rug’s lovely bold hue. Quickly realizing what she’d done, she played dead to absolve herself. It was so funny to watch that I spared her any impending consequences.
6. Fav Home Discovery: Sharon Nolan Pebble Art It’d be tough to skim her website without finding one of her quant 3D creations to love. They use little space in home and can even sit on a desk. Her 50+ scenes pop with visibility, depicting a range of subjects from fishing, family, homes, pets, newlyweds and more.
7. Fav Way to End a Day: Pjs and Tea During my struggling teens I’d occasionally come home to find my mom sitting in her PJs next to the table set with 2 mugs and peanut butter toast quartered for sharing. She never had to ask me to join, her well-recognized gaze of unconditional acceptance secured my seat. For a few minutes we’d shared simple conversation on the flavor of tea we each chose that night and why, but connected on much more. It’s no wonder a centering cup of hot cup of tea made my list! I brews in a Keurig, using k-pod disposable liners.
My 3 fav sips:
2. Ecoteas Organic Unsmoked Pure Leaf Yerba Mate can be found at local natural foods stores. I like to add peppermint (oil or leaves) before snapping on that lid. Provides antioxidant -rich, clean energy.
3. Starbucks Double Chocolate Hot Cocoa cures sweet cravings or accommodates a hot cocoa toppings bar.
8. Fav Super-Soft, Mega-Cozy Blanket: Kirkland's Signature Plush Blanket I’ve lived in freezing states before, but when you marry Texas with week-long, record- freezing temps, the result was frozen gas lines and power windmills causing massive power failures through the state. With water lines frozen I wrapped them in blankets and a soft, cozy blanket soared to the top of my fav things. Hoping to keep even one or two extra degrees of warmth inside, I decked windows and doors with my new fav things, blankets!
9. Fav Electronic: Sonos Roam As we might say in TX, “Darlin’ the proof is in the puddin’!” The small portable Sonos Roam is superior in sound and capabilities compared to its more expensive competitors. Over past 5 years, I’ve been building my Sonos collection, one speaker or room at time because they customization and capabilities are awesome!
Sonos’s app offers creative options to interplay each room and most home devices. Its intuitive and easy to learn with cool features, including a library of vendor platforms to connect and feed sound from.
The creative ways to use Sonos are many. The next time my kids are ignoring my request to come eat dinner, I’ll just switch the speaker in their specific rooms to play “Mamma Mia”, to subtly remind them moms speaking. While their speakers play one song, my audiobook playing in kitchen will continue, without break.
10. Fav Subscription: Harvard Business Review The massive library of past and current article content is written for the non-academic readers and compared to a typical article. You’re sure to locate search results for whatever struggles your workplace is having. These articles provide real solutions that when applied will return great dividends through more success at work, even for non-business environments. The digital subscription also includes great contents with books and audio content.
11. Fav Dumpling Makers: My daughter’s college roommate is from China visited TX earlier this year. On her and my daughters’ Tejas bucket list was to have make authentic Chinese Dumplings using a recipe her mom provided. They purchased ingredients at a specialty market and made incredible hand-rolled pork dumplings! Here is a link for 7 dumpling recipes: A Guide to 7 Types of Chinese Dumplings (thespruceeats.com) I like bamboo quality of the steaming trays in this set from Amazon
12. Fav surprise purchase: NANOLEAF I picked up these neutral wood light tiles on a steep sale, figuring I’d return. Amazingly, within the day, I had them dancing to La Boheme, while I lay on the couch with lights off I experienced music in an entirely new way and will be keeping them for sure!
Most tiles NANOleaf makes are bright colored, some can even change with a handprint using or by 100s of programmable options. Gamers are sure to love, but so would teens or bedrooms where sleeping princesses sleep that would doze off to slowly fading pink and purple light. My daughter’s boyfriend is 21 and commenting on how cool he thought they were too.
Hello! Welcome back to the 12th annual Favorite Things!
We feature bloggers, friends, family, and writers who share their favorites from the year to give ideas for gift giving and may also give you plenty of ideas for your own wishlist. It's so fun to see new ideas and what makes these amazing women tick.
Please welcome:
Kortney at Author Kortney Keisel
Here are some years' past Favorite Things that you can click through!
Thank you for another wonderful year!
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