beauty Archives - Oh, Hello Living

2024 Favorites – Pottery, Wine, and the Best Tanning Drops for Pale Girlies

2024 has been a good year. It feels like a return to myself. Like seeing a friend after years apart. So many good memories I’m eager to put in our yearly photo album. Here are 10 things that made this year top notch.

1. A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvie Cathrali

This fantasy novel is written completely in letters and correspondence exchanged between the characters in an underwater world. It’s up there for the best book I’ve read in the past decade. It’s the type of book I’ll be thinking about for years to come and I’m eagerly awaiting the sequel to come out early 2025. I’ve shared a full review if you want more details.

2. Magic the Gathering

Now Magic the Gathering is definitely not new in this household, but it made a resurgence this year. Not going to lie, my favorite part is the card art, but I do enjoy playing Commander in the evenings. We’re nearly done organizing the decades-old collection too!

3. Pottery

2024 will forever be known as the year of pottery. It’s such a lovely way to detach from daily troubles to just create something for the sake of creating it. I definitely recommend finding a local studio and taking a workshop or class next year.

4. Tanning Drops

Thanks to my girl friends who recommended these tanning drops to me, I no longer look like Casper the Friendly Ghost. I’m not one for tanning (or going outside really…) so these drops are the perfect way to not look a step away from the grave. Mix a few drops into your evening lotion or moisturizer, and boom, glowy skin.

5. Record Stand

Our home record collection grew this year and with it a need for a new home. This record stand checked all the boxes. I’m particularly a fan of the LED light feature. It holds our entire collection with room for more. The perfect furniture piece for what we like to call “analog time” where we do non screen related activities.

6. The Bear

We aren’t big TV watchers in this house, but we’ve fallen in love with The Bear on Hulu. We’re slowly savoring this series like a fine meal. It also made cooking Thanksgiving dinner with my in-laws all the more enjoyable as I pretended to be working in a five-star restaurant.

7. Wine Clubs

If your local wine bar or store offers a wine club, I highly recommend signing up. It’s a great way to try new wines and our club does monthly tasting events to introduce us to even more varieties.

8. LUSH’s Handy Gurugu Hand Cream

A super rich blend of nut butters that my dry pottery hands just love. Over the past year I’ve been hunting down a hand cream that I’m not allergic to. This one doesn’t cause any unsavory allergic reactions.

9. Digital Commonplace Book

My digital commonplace book is the perfect blend of my history of layout design with my archiving interests. It’s been a nice switch from a handwritten commonplace book that I never quite felt connected to. I look forward to growing the binder of pages throughout the next year.

10. Pasta Pencil Case

Combining my love of planner supplies and my love of pasta, this pencil case holds all of my mildliners, pens, and sticky notes with plenty of room to spare.

BoxyCharm Giveaway

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I’m giving away the July BoxyCharm subscription box! They randomly sent me two, so might as well make it your gain!

5 Reasons to Start Secondhand Shopping Right Now

There hasn’t been a better time than right now to start secondhand shopping. Here’s why.

1. People are decluttering and donating tons of items.

Since people are spending more time in their homes lately, the donations are flooding into the secondhand shops right now. Everyone is getting rid of unnecessary items that could be your next favorite outfit.

2. The holidays are coming up

Secondhand stores are really great places to find gifts for friends and family. A lot of time there are brand new, tags-still-on options you can pick up for a steal.

3. It helps the environment.

Buying new clothes costs resources and energy while buying used or secondhand costs nothing. There are perfectly amazing clothing items, kitchen appliances, and more that already exist. Feel good about yourself while getting some amazing items in the process.

4. Keeps costs low and gives you more for your budget.

Budgets are tight right now and clothing is definitely not on the top of the list. If you need a new work outfit or want a refresh without spending a lot, secondhand is the way to go.

5. You can try styles and trends that are out of your comfort zone.

When The Second Hand Stylist took me shopping I tried so many outfits and styles I never would have picked out for myself. I was able to try new things without putting a financial investment behind them. Plus it’s easier to keep up with popular trends this way without feeling guilty when it ends up in the back of your closet by next year.

Nearly a year ago now I hired The Second Hand Stylist to go shopping with me at secondhand stores to teach me what to look for when browsing the racks. Rachel showed me all of the tricks and ways to spot high-quality brands and items. She’s one of my very good friends and if you’re in the Grand Rapids area you should definitely check her out. She even does secondhand clothing boxes mailed to you! This post isn’t sponsored and she definitely didn’t know I was writing it, but she deserves mountains of praise for being such a bad ass boss babe!

Urban Decay the Ultimate Brush Off Set & Go Review

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The makeup fairies dropped off a package on my doorstep a few weeks ago and I’ve been playing around with the Urban Decay the Ultimate Brush Off Set & Go Powder* ever since. This summer I’ve been a bigger sweaty mess than normal, so setting powders have become quite common in my routine. And presto, a new powder just finds its way to my doorstep. The odds seem to be in my favor *buys a lottery ticket*

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Let’s talk packaging first because damn Urban Decay, you know how to design some crazy packaging. It’s plastic, but sturdy and glossy and wonderful. At first I was on the fence about the brush built into the packaging, but it’s an incredibly high quality, dense brush that definitely works. Personally if I’m feeling super high maintenance (and when am I not) I’ll use a fluffier brush with the powder, but the built in one is great if you want to bake your powder or apply with a slightly heavier hand.

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The brush locks in with a twist and the powder is separated by some plastic with holes. A lot of powder does seem to come through the holes rather than a regulated amount, but I just tap it off the brush and call it good. See, I’m not completely high-maintenance…

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It comes in a few different shades, but I find myself gravitating towards the universal shade out of habit. It’s not cakey, lasts all day, and doesn’t leave a weird shine in photos. I tend to use it a lot under my eyes to set my concealer, and it thankfully does not accentuate any of my wrinkles or lines. It’s everything you want in a setting powder.

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Boom. Review done.

My ThirdLove Experience | I Finally Caved to the Advertisements!

It could just be my algorithm on Instagram and Facebook, but I’ve seen ads for ThirdLove bras for months. They’re marketing team is seriously impressive and a few weeks ago I finally caved to the advertisements and decided to give them a go.

A bit of boob backstory. I’m very well endowed. I’ve always had a hard time finding bras that had a small enough number (in the 32-34 range) yet had a large enough cup size (I thought I wore a DD or DDD). They just didn’t seem to exist in the “regular” bra world of Victoria’s Secret. So I settled and wore camisoles over all of my bras to keep my boobs from tumbling out. Shoulder marks were commonplace.

ThirdLove’s return policy really sold it for me. You can wear the bras (and wash them!) for two months and still send them back. I took their sizing test and it suggested a 34 DDD (what they call an F), but they also offer you another size in the same style to try for free and send back the one that doesn’t fit.

So I opted to try their 34E, 34F, and 34G just to really see what size I actually am. They arrived super quickly in a cute box and well packaged. Turns out I’m a 34G and haven’t been wearing the right bra for nearly a decade.

I returned the other two sizes quick and easy and started shopping my actual bra size.

The bras are super soft, the straps are larger to prevent slipping and marks, and I finally feel like I don’t have to wear a camisole every day to make sure nothing’s falling out. Plus I don’t immediately feel like ripping my bra off after I come home from a long day. And the styles. As a big chested girl I’m lucky to find a bra in my size let alone a cute one. There are so many gorgeous options for a crazy range of sizes. This girl finally can wear cute bras!!!

So I’m a convert. I’m always so skeptical when it comes to those overly advertised products on Facebook, but caving to the ads definitely paid off in spades with this one.

If you’re down to give them a try, click here for my referral code to save $15. I’ll get credit towards future purchases and we can be bra buddies!

My Go-To Skincare Products

This girl’s got dry skin. No matter what the weather is like outside my face is as dry as a desert and begging for moisture. I tend to use the same products all year around, but with more focus on overnight masks in the winter. These are my four favorite products that keep my skin clear and hydrated.

I can’t tell you how many tubes of the Derma-E Hydrating Serum* I’ve thrown on my face in the past few years. It’s an incredibly light serum that packs a moisture punch. I love how fast it sinks into my skin so it’s great to use in the morning before I start my makeup routine. It’s FAB.

Although I use the Origins Drink-Up Intensive Overnight Mask like a crazy person in the winter, I still like to use it every two weeks or so to really pump up the hydration. My skin tends to get dull over time if I don’t do a shot of serious moisture every once in a while. I take a small amount on my fingers and massage it into my skin after my evening routine is done. It feels thick, but works its magic throughout the night. Seriously good stuff.

Another mask that I can’t get enough of is Glossier’s moisturizing moon mask. You can find me in the bath with this stuff slathered on my face at least once a week. It’s incredibly light, doesn’t dry out or pull the skin, and leaves it feeling bouncy and refreshed. Plus a little goes a long way which is always a plus.

As for makeup removal I try to keep things gentle and not moisture-stripping (you’re seeing a trend here eh?). The It Cosmetics Bye Bye Makeup Balm is a makeup removing oil that doesn’t leave my skin feeling tight or dry after using it. I apply it to dry skin, rub it around, and then add some water to foam it up. Rinse away and continue to the next step in my routine. Easy peasy.

What are you favorite go-to skincare items?