(the images scroll to the right)
Honest to goodness, the older I get the stranger it seems to me that anyone anywhere resolves anything in the month of January.
I mean, I get it--new year, fresh start and all that. But here in the northern hemisphere, January is a month of losing prospects. The holidays are done. The days are short. And the cold is just taking off its shoes and settling in. So the notion of resolving to do something that demands I step into my "best self" at the very time of the year when I most want to hide in the company kitchen and survive on Thai food, Twizzlers, and chocolate covered almonds...well, it doesn't make any sense to me.
I long ago ceased to resolve anything about what I look like or how I eat in relation to a new year (or ever, for that matter), but this year--in this dark and difficult month of January--I'm investing in self-love. Of the radical persuasion. Which has much to do with forgiveness. And setting boundaries. Forgiving myself for not being all places at all times. For needing time that belongs just to me. Which means saying no, even when so much of me wants to be accommodating and generous and say yes and yes and yes again.
And it also means investing in small things that make me feel good. Making every day occurrences luxurious.
Years ago I spent a summer in the middle of the country. I was staying with friends and with no car to my name, I felt totally exposed. I had very little power over my own schedule and the notion of privacy went out the window. So I took a lot of showers. Washed my hair more often than I needed to.
Now I'm living in place that feels so good and safe and privacy is this really incredible luxury. But I still take the time to enjoy a good shower.
Especially in this month of January.
Resolutions have so much to do with investing in ourselves, no? In feeding who we are and who we want to be?
So, this month, instead of resolving to eat more salads, I'm buying leafy greens for the top of my dresser and allowing myself all the many bath products I adore.
And because I have spent far too much money and time searching for a face cream that actually moisturizes well and doesn't break the bank, I figured I'd share that here. Along with my other self-love hacks.
1. Sabon Face Cream | I am a Sabon convert. I cannot get enough of their stuff. This face cream in Carrot is actually moisturizing. And at 28 dollars the price point is incredible. I've tried everything--from Clinique (which I do really like) to Perricone MD and nothing is as helpful for my dry skin as this jar of goodness.
2. Sabon Eye Cream | I've just reached that age where it seems a cream specifically for the skin around my eyes might be a good investment. This stuff tingles in all the right ways and helps with swelling.
3. Sabon Butter Cream in AMBER | I've never been terribly good about putting on a body cream just out of the shower, but with this stuff I can't wait to. It feel so luxurious and so hardening and every time I put it on I give thanks for my body and remind myself that I only get one in this lifetime and I gotta protect and preserve and give thanks for it in all the ways I know how. I don't know why I'm so nuts about this scent, but I am. (Musk also, but not Lavender Apple).
4. Sephora Eye Makeup Remover | A young woman in their store turned me on to this and boy-oh-boy was she right. It's inexpensive, actually encourages me to take off my makeup before bed, works, and has actually lengthened my eyelashes (a smidgen). Totally worth the try.
5. Sabon Body Scrub | This was the magic stuff that made a Sabon believer out of me. It is the gift that keeps on giving. I originally received it for my birthday and now I give it for wedding showers, birthdays, and holidays. I can't even begin to tell you how it softens the skin. There are so many good scents, but for whatever reason, at this moment in time, I'm digging the flavor that's meant for men.
6. Clinique Toner | A classic. This toner exfoliates the skin (sloughing off dead skin cells) and primes the skin to actually absorb the moisturizer.
7. A Humidifer | Having just moved January first, my humidifier sat dormant and unused on my bookshelf for several weeks. But this weekend, finally with a moment to organize and settle in, I plopped it next to the head of my bed. And with that small change this place already feels more luxurious, and more like a home, if I'm really honest. New York winters are dry. And the old heaters suck any water right out of the air. So this little baby helps put the water back in--a boon on all health fronts.
I'm sharing this not to try to get you to buy something you don't need. But rather to say, sometimes a nice moisturizer is more satisfying than a pint of Ben and Jerry's ice cream...and trust that I did extensive research to figure that out.