I hope that everyone who celebrated last week had a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday! A few days off to savor some good food, great company, and recover from some out-of-state-travel this past weekend was exactly what I needed to feel refreshed, reinvigorated and ready to get back into work and blogging again!
Although I’m going to have a full recap of my long weekend (complete with plenty of photos) and my fond farewell to the month of November as a whole up on ‘Coffee & Chiffon’ within the next few days- I wanted to kick off this week with a look at some of my favorite things/gifts/buys from this past month. Be warned- much of it is very, very festive- since I got into the holiday spirit a little early this year- but all are great finds that have helped transform my apartment and my spirit from a spooky, late-Autumn haunted house into a true Winter Wonderland.
As always, photos come first before I talk about the miscellaneous odds and ends that I also enjoyed over the past few weeks- so let’s get right into it!
When trying to make my apartment look as festive as possible for Troy’s arrival in New England last week, I turned to Target to grab some last minute candles, wall hangings, etc. What I also found were these decorative pillows that were just too cute to pass up. While they had the typical tree-shaped ones and snowflake varieties, my eyes immediately went to the large gingerbread man and peppermint candy ones. At under $10 each, these were a steal- and have been alternating between sitting on my bed and my couch since I bought them.
And yes, they are so soft!
Of course, no Target trip is complete without stopping by the nearby Trader Joe’s in my community. I’m obsessed with that store- and had been picking up some pasta sauce and produce to restock my refrigerator when I stumbled on this hot cocoa-scented body scrub and candy cane-scented body butter in their body care section. I’m a big fan of Trader Joe’s hair and body products since I typically tend to get really good results when using them- so these immediately went into my cart!
Both products smell heavenly and like a cozy, fireside Christmas Eve, for lack of a better description- but they also work great. My skin, which can sometimes get a little crazy when the temperatures drop- has been so soft and smooth after each use of either one of these (or both!) I’m a big fan- and I highly recommend grabbing some before they’re gone!
Speaking of Trader Joe’s. I was ecstatic to find Jingle Jangle at my local store when I was stocking up! If you’ve got a sweet tooth like me- this is the perfect snack for you! It’s a festive tin loaded with mini peanut butter cups, chocolate-covered pretzels and popcorn, candy and sandwich cookie pieces, etc.
I hadn’t had it since the COVID-19 pandemic began because it was always sold out- but I’m so glad to have gotten my hands on it again!
And finally, I had been gifted a jar of this artisan gingerbread tea from Whole Harmony last Christmas by my wonderful cousin, Paige, and enjoyed it so much that I knew I wanted to order another one for this upcoming holiday season. With ginger, cinnamon, orange peel and cloves- among other notes/flavors- this tea is divine and the perfect cold weather companion when I’m either working from home, on-the-go running errands, or visiting some of my favorite local holiday spots.
Grab yourself a jar for the season to serve yourself and your guests!
And while that does it for the “Favorite Things” that aren’t camera shy- a couple of other things made this month’s list, too!
– MOVIES/MUSIC/TELEVISION –
The Hives – ‘The Death of Randy Fitzsimmons’ – Although this album came out this past August and has been heavily played in my car since then, I wanted to give it another shout-out because I started this month with seeing this band live and wanted to close out the month by confirming that I’ve recently revisited this latest release and it’s still one of their best! Super loud, super fast, and really, really fun- this is one that has me anxiously waiting to see them perform in New England again!
‘Priscilla’ – I remember reading ‘Elvis and Me’ by Priscilla Presley when I was in my early teens, which may have still been too young to understand the complexities and inappropriateness of a much older person romantically pursuing someone much younger than they were. By the time I finished the book, I had a lot of sympathy for Priscilla and a lot of vitriol for the adults that failed to protect her. I also wondered if anyone would ever dare make a movie about it.
And of course, Sophia Coppola was up for the task! I saw ‘Priscilla’ earlier this month and left the theater with that same feeling I had when I finished reading its source material. Well-acted and beautifully shot- this was one of my favorite films from this year!
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And there we have it! Another month of fun items and finds I’ve truly enjoyed! It’s hard to believe next month’s installment will be the last of 2023- but I’m excited to see what makes the list!
xo
Coffee & Chiffon 