5 things I loved this month
Come for the recommendations, stay for the footnotes (which are even more unhinged than usual this month...)
Franui
How this crossed my radar
My friend Jaimie introduced me to them last year in Rio. I ate more than any reasonable person should, then promptly forgot all about them until I got back here this year.
I was eating some whilst writing this1 and checked if they were available outside Latin America AND THEY ARE.
What I want you to know about them
These are frozen raspberries coated in chocolate
They are completely delicious bites of joy.
They’re from Argentina but are obviously amidst a massive expansion plan.
You can find out if/where they’re available in your country here
Why I love them
As above, they are completely delicious bites of joy
Raspberries + dark chocolate? This is a veritable FEAST of antioxidants. These things are basically a health food
Despite the fact that a) they are completely delicious b) I am greedy AF, I struggle to eat more than 4-5 of these in a sitting. No unwittingly downing a pint of ice cream with these bad boys
This guy (Dr Evan Rieder)
How this crossed my radar
The Instagram algorithm took a break from showing me ADHD app adverts, that french guy talking about why women don’t date any longer and Thoren Bradley content2 and sent this chap my way
What I want you to know about him
There are thousands of cosmetic surgeons/aesthetic doctors with social media accounts; this guy’s content is way less ego-driven than most of them.
I am quite sick of the ‘Cosmetic Surgeons Rank [insert trends] Out Of 10’ motif. There’s some dickhead endorsing beef tallow as a facial moisturiser. It’s exhausting3.
I am yet to be in violent disagreement with this chap, however4.
Many of the most sensible people that I follow in this space also follow him.
Why I love him
He and I hate/are sceptical of most of the same things. As a result, I have a lot of time for him 😊
He shows his workings, giving a detailed explanation to support his assertions, whilst being succinct and concise. Win.
Arket Sweatshirts
How these crossed my radar
Arket is part of the H&M family - the brand launched in 2017 - and they actually crossed my radar because TMWSORMLBIATOPWITE5 was a huge fan of the store6.
I discovered a love of sweatshirts in 2021, so it was only a matter of time before I discovered these.
What I want you to know about them
I genuinely cannot believe I’ve never written about these before7.
They usually release 4 limited edition new colours a year. The grey melange is the only constant.
I own 16 of them8
They come up large9. I get XS and usually get them taken in at the waist/armpits. The XXS is too short for me10.
H&M do 15% off online for 72 hours about every 6 weeks. Arket clothes are included in this1112.
Sorry US, you’re out of luck - Arket don’t ship to the US. Full list of their shipping destinations is here.
Why I love them
The fabric is soft and thick without being heavy and washes super well.
They’re boxy without being shapeless and hang well.
They’re under £50 for 100% terry cotton, which - in this economy - is extraordinary value for money.
An Arket sweatshirt and a leather mini skirt is basically my London uniform13. These sweatshirts go with everything. I’ve also been known to wear mine without very much else :)
It was a WFH day 😂
K18 leave-in molecular repair hair mask
What I want you to know about it
So I wrote about this at some length last year.
I still love it and use it around twice a week.
But, what I love best is the UK reseller I found to buy the 150ml size from for £70 (instead of £70RRP for the 50 ml size). It’s slightly convoluted, so I’m not going to write it up here, but DM me if you want the details14.
Ninabella hairbrush
How this crossed my radar
My friend Angharad15 has one - and was beside herself with joy when she realised she was introducing me to something in the realm of beauty accessories.
What I want you to know about it
It is SO light. It looks like it can’t possibly do anything as it’s so insubtantial, but it DOES THINGS.
It comes in about 80 colours if that’s your thing
Why I love it
It just fucking WORKS - detangles and glides through hair effortlessly19
I have hair that’s straight at the front and wavy at the back20, so hairbrushing after it’s not freshly washed can make my hair puff up in a giant floofest. Not with this guy.
You can’t use it ‘hairdryer to brush’ in the way you can a paddle brush (the bristles would melt), but I have thick hair and I’ve blow dried my hair with this ever since I got it. The open back means the air flows through easily, which I’m sure speeds up the blow dry time.
If you have thinner/less dense hair, the risk of bristle-melt is substantially higher.
Until the next time x
To further set the scene, Bob Mortimer’s best bits from WILTY are on in the background. And I am, with some inevitability, wearing an Arket sweatshirt (grey melange). We’ll get to these in a second.
I wrote about why this is fucking stupid here
HIGH FUCKING PRAISE
The Man Who Sort Of Ruined My Life But It Actually Turned Out Pretty Well In The End. IYKYK. Actually, if you know then you probably hate him with a ferocity that threatens to burn out your eyeballs. IYKTYPHHWAFTTTBOYE. Anyway, that guy.
Sometimes even a giant turd contains a gold nugget.
I’ve run the search every way I can think of through every post on this site. But… nothing. I do mention their men’s hoodie here and still think it’s a massive winner.
Grey melange x 4, light blue x 3, dark grey x 2, black x 2, cream x 2 (they’re different shades of cream. I know. I don’t care), royal blue, navy blue, orange.
NB, I instinctively knew I had 16, even before I took this mental inventory 😂
Arket sizing gives no fucks. I have stopped even trying to buy trousers or jeans from there.
Big Boob problems. I’m only 5ft 4, but all my tops ride up by a few inches as they struggle to contain my heaving bosom
COS aren’t
Fair warning: The returns process for Arket is faffy if you buy via H&M online. You can’t return in-store, you can only do it by post via Evri.
It’s not a pyramid scheme and I’m not going to ask you for your bank account details ;)
Here she is, completely failing to think of anything she’ll miss about me (boobs? food? Impossible to know…) Happy birthday! I love you! 🥰
I’m not sure why I suddenly got so shouty
I am responsible for my life choices
(Math 🇺🇸)
#notanad
Thanks Mum 🙄