Summer Favourites 2025
With temperatures reaching almost 30 degrees Celsius in Luxembourg today its perhaps premature to pronounce summer to be over, but for an Estonian like me, September is definitely an autumn month. So let’s take a moment to look back to my summer favourites: most of these are not limited to hot weather, in case you are interested in trying them out. Not all are new launches either, as I am trying to appreciate things that have stood the test of time rather than always chasing newness.
On Perfume and Politics
Yesterday, my good friend and perfume expert Victoria Belim called out the fragrance brand Les Indemodables for how they use the concept of ‘legendary Russian leather’ in the marketing of their latest scent Vanille Havane ‘Cuir des Abysses’. She pointed out to the company that romanticising the Russian Empire is perhaps not what we should be engaging in right now. Disappointingly, but predictably, the brand replied that this is just a reference to a specific tanning technique (more on this later) and asked whether we should now all stop reading Dostoyevsky. When Victoria shared her thoughts and the brand’s reaction, I went to their Instagram feed and asked them to reconsider the use of the concept – in what I though was a reasonably respectful manner.
My Evening Skincare Routine Now That I Am 45
This is the follow-up to my morning skincare routine that I posted a few weeks ago. Since then, the world has become even more unhinged than previously – a considerable feat – making me reconsider all the ways I spend my money. You will see a number of US brands here (The Ordinary, Glossier, Tatcha, Victoria Beckham), but I think my policy going forward will be to try to avoid them if possible. I will not be a fundamentalist about it and I may still want to support some smaller, independent US brands. The rest of the context is covered in the first post, so let’s get to the evening steps.
Best of 2024: Science Fiction and Fantasy
It has taken me a while to get the last ‘best of’ post out, but here it is, the overview of the SFF books I enjoyed most in 2024. It is rather long, but with the world events being what they are, I wanted to give you are range of options for escapism. I have already done a very tight selection for my overall best books list, which has already been out for a while; if you only want the crème de la crème, read that.
My Morning Skincare Routine Now That I’m 45
As I mostly write about books these days, I tend to forget that statistically speaking, it’s my skincare posts that have the most readers. I looked at my stats recently, after perhaps a year of not paying any attention, and it’s frankly insane that there are more than 100 000 people who have read me going on and on about The Ordinary. Most of the top 10 posts are about skincare, with a couple of perfume ones thrown in. So I thought it may be time for a skincare update, as it’s been almost a decade since I wrote some of these articles.
Best of 2024: Non-Fiction
I should probably stop repeating that it has again been an exceptional year of non-fiction for me, as I do not see this changing any time soon. There is so much great non-fiction around and I am always drawn to reading it; I very rarely struggle with this genre. If there is one thing I would like to do more, it’s to read more older texts and classics. I have read so many introductions and overviews that I really should be tackling the original sources rather than reading another summary.
Things I Want: The 2025 Edition
New year, new me, new list of things I want! Frankly, these posts are rather embarrassing to make, as they lay bare my materialistic tendencies for everyone to see. Not that they are otherwise particularly hidden, considering I’m a lifestyle blogger, but still. On the other hand, they are a good exercise in examining what one wants, what one needs and what one can afford. To be clear, there are many things on these lists that I cannot or will not buy in the end. It is a a shopping list for a richer and more stylish version of me. As I know that many readers find these lists fun, I’m continuing the tradition.
Best of 2024: Fiction
I have a peculiar relationship with literary fiction. If I don’t read enough of it, I feel weird and start craving something worthy and serious. However, if I read too much of it, I get fed up and start finding everything too pretentions or boring or both. So while I generally feel that I should read a bit more in this genre (which some people don’t consider a genre, as it’s ‘real’ literature, but I’m sure you can guess my views), a balance has to be found that keeps me enthusiastic about reading overall.
Best of 2024: Books
I really can’t complain about the reading last year: 181 books, more than 44 000 pages, the lowest rating 2.5 stars (and that was, what, twice?). I don’t have the exact statistics, but I read around 30 books at least partially on audio, which is one of the main factors in me crossing the 150-book barrier for the second time. The other is that I also read quite a few shorter and lighter books, including poetry and alien romance (which are as different as genres can be, but can both be easily read in a day). Then again, These Truths was 960 pages, so it evens out…
Best of 2024: Beauty
Like my style, my beauty consumption has also settled down. Not really to normal levels, but somewhat closer to it. Perhaps it’s simply an age thing? The most important elements of my skincare routine are Vitamin C in the morning and retinol at night, which do not change much, and then I can play around with the rest. My makeup tends to be relatively minimal (if I bother at all) and softer than in the past, so there isn’t too much to report on that front either. That said, I do have a number of things I enjoyed using this year – some new, some older. Here they are: