Favorite Things 2020!

When sweet Melissa from 320 Sycamore invited me to participate in her Favorite Things 2020 Blog Hop I jumped at the opportunity. Reading what other people’s favorite things are is always so helpful to know what’s worth having. So here we go!

1). One item that can make or break a room is art. But finding large art that looks custom can be expensive. That’s why one of my Favorite Things is Juniper Prints. They have thousands of digital prints that you can download for $20 or less, print them yourself (or take them to a drug store or Costco) then frame them yourself. They highly recommend IKEA frames which are very affordable. Large, custom looking art for a fraction of the price? Yes, please!

2). I’m a sucker for a cute bag. And as mom’s, we are the Bell Hop’s for our families. Give it all to us and somehow we’ll carry it, messed up back and all. So the bigger the bag, the better! I’m a huge fan of designer Raili Clasen. She just partnered with Love Bags and designed four awesome one’s that speak to her style. This Rainbow bag is my fave!

3). One of my favorite things are beautiful bottles of hand soap. Not only are they a fun accessory to any bathroom but yummy smelling soaps feels so luxurious. The problem is that all these one-time use bottles are filling up the landfills and not good for the environment. Public Goods is a company that recognizes that problem so they’ve come out with a line of soaps, cleaners and hair care products that sell refill bags to refill your bottle.

3 con’t). Another company that is doing one better and eliminating all those one-time use bottles and even the refill bags is BlueLand. They send you one bottle and tablets that dissolve in regular tap water to create an awesome foaming soap. Brilliant!

4). I’ve been living in yoga pants for the past 6 months (and I’ve also done zero yoga). If you’ve ever shopped for athletic leggings they can be expensive (especially from that pricey place in the mall, you know the place). A friend introduced me to Colorfulkoala leggings on Amazon and they are great. There’s four main things I look for…1). Look 2). Comfort 3). Stretch (and when I say stretch I mean, can you see right through them when you bend over?). 4). Price. Colorfulkoala checked all the boxes! At $29. I don’t feel like I’m breaking the bank. (Tip: get the ones with pockets. They are everything! I can jam my phone in the pocket without it moving around or feel like I’m carrying a brick).

5). All blenders are NOT created equally. If you’re not familiar with a Vitamix Blender then you’ve been living under a rock. These are those fancy, high priced blenders they demonstrate at Costco that seem too good to be true. Let me tell you, they are worth EVERY PENNY! Trust me. I used it EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. Other blenders aren’t able to crush and blend food like this baby. My three boys are all about the texture of food. The Vitamix creates the smoothest smoothies everytime. They also aren’t great at getting their fruits and veggies in but little do they know they get more then the recommended serving in the daily smoothie I make for dinner every night. I throw all sorts of frozen fruit in addition to lots of spinach, kale and avocado (they have no idea because they can’t taste it). In my opinion this is a must have for every family, especially if you have picky eaters.

6). White teeth are one of my “things”. When I make those daily smoothies I won’t drink unless I’m drinking through a straw so my teeth don’t get berry stained. I’ve tried a whole slew of teeth whiteners and many of them work really well. The problem is they leave my teeth feels SOOOO sensitive which in the end, just isn’t worth it. I recently discovered Lumineux Teeth Whitening Strips and they work really well without the sensitivity issues. Plus they are non-toxic and totally vegan!

7). I fell victim to all those fun soda joints popping up all over the place. After realizing I was treating myself too often I found several of them sell fruit water (which is really just fruit chunks at the bottom of a huge cup of water). Throw a dash of coconut milk in and oh baby! YUM! Healthy but a little kick of sweetness. I decided to save myself $4.00 each time and make my own. My kids tease me for being one of those cool moms who always has their Hydro Flask in tote.

8). Let me introduce you to the Bed Head Deep Waves Iron. I LOVE THIS IRON! It’s like the modernized version of a hair crimper from the 80’s (yes I was a devoted hair crimper back in my day). It is the perfect tool to get deep beachy waves in just minutes! (I can do my whole head in 8 minutes)!

9). These little packets of Malibu Hard Water Treatment are life changing for your hair! My faucets deliver the finest hard water to my hair (cue sarcastic ugh!). You don’t realize it but over time, hard water minerals can actually build up on your hair making it difficult for your product to absorb. Hard water build up also works against your curling iron making it resist the heat and curl. This little packet is one treatment worth and just $3.70. It comes in a powder which you wet in your hands and massage throughout your hair and scalp. The hard water minerals are dissolved and wash away leaving your hair clean and soft. Use this treatment monthly.

10). Pretty sure a box of razor blades have NEVER been on any Favorite Things List but here me out. With all the time on my hands at home 2020 has been the year of cleaning. I’m talking roll-up-your-sleeves and get after it kind of cleaning. If you follow me on Instagram you know I use these A LOT. They are so perfect for getting mineral deposits and soap scum off showers, gum and goobers off of floors and walls, getting grime off of of household items that no chemical can tackle…they are just the best. Once you use a blade to help you deep clean you’ll know how priceless and helpful these babies really are.

11). For my husband’s birthday I got him this Ryobi Rechargeable Battery Operated Leaf Blower (but really it was for me). We actually had an older version that was a plug in. The chord was such a pain! The Ryobi is wonderful for cleaning off the back patio, blowing the pinecones off the trampoline, cleaning off the driveway and blowing the leaves off the roof in the fall. I use it more than him but I let him think he’s the man with his fancy leaf blower!

There you have it… my top 10 (ok 11 actually) Favorite Things for 2020! What’s on your list?

(Check out everyone participating in Melissa’s Favorite Things 2020 here).

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