A bad habit I have is licking my lips – especially in winter. This makes them often painfully dry. Lipstick or lipgloss doesn’t always do the trick of moisturing them enough and most balms designed to help make lips softer often don’t (I can’t tell you how many times I’ve tried to like Burts Bees and Rose Bud Salve!).

Fresh Sugar Advanced Therapy Lip Treatment is my lips new BFF. I’d tried their clear and color SPF versions (love the plum, was eh on the rose) and found they worked well for colour. But this treatment is exactly that – treatment.

The moisture is unbeatable and it gives my lips a nice sheen so I don’t have to wear gloss on top. Yes, it’s more than the average drugstore balm but I’ll save my pennies for this treatment every winter day.

BUY AT: Amazon or Sephora

I’m not a nail polish type girl. Clear polish, when I remember to use it, has been my go-to. I didn’t have a pedicure until this year. Part of it is because I’m too lazy to keep up nail colour the other part is because I’m someone who like a natural look and trendy metallic and bedazzled nails weren’t that.

But spending a lot of time at summer events where pretty toes seemed just as important as a designer gown, I had to do something. I had heard that Lady Like by Essie was a really great neutral and with a coat on my toes and a coat on my nails, I’m literally head over heels for it.

For me it lasts about a week on my fingers, more on my toes. It’s soft but done. It doesn’t ever seem to clash with any outfit and it’s just the perfect, well, lady like colour.

Perhaps one day I’ll get brave and try something darker or more daring. But for now (and the past three months), this is the one for me.

BUY AT: ESSIE

If you have bare floors, you have to mop. And having always had hardwood floors and pets, this has always been a miserable weekly chore for me. Why? In a word: mops.

Mops that were hard to use, that spread water everywhere, that were hard to ring out or hard to clean. On a particularily muddy floor day (thanks to persisting rainstorms and a dog that loves dirt), I began searching the internet in earnest for some kind of miracle mop. And I found (a close) one on QVC.

What I love about the Fuller Brush Mop is the set up. It comes with a bucket that you dump the mop in, then put the mop into the white cup, press the black pedal a couple of times and water is rung out of the mop. You get the right amount of moisture in the mop with ease. The heads come off for easy cleaning (and you can put additional ones on) which makes cleaning floors relatively painless.

I’ve had mine for over a year and it still works great and I no longer fear walks with my dog in the park during rain as much as I used to.

BUY AT: QVC

There are few things that I’m snobby about (linens, bubble bath, Four Seasons Hotels) but tea is definitly one of them. I’m one of those people that will buy expensive tea during her travels because that perfect cup just makes everything better.

Luckily for my bank account and 4PM daily slump, I discovered Smith Tea’s Earl Grey.

The first thing I noticed about this tea was it’s packaging; it comes in a beautiful box, with a chord  tie and beautifully and individually wrapped tea bags. If you’re a font & colour lover, you will love fonts that Smith Tea has chosen for their packaging (grey + orange? Love!). But this tea goes beyond looks. This Earl Grey is bar far the best I’ve ever had (and I’ve had a lot). From the flavour to the way it smells brewing and in your cup, it’s 100% pure perfection. I know it sounds dramatic but this is more than tea, it’s an experience.

And the last thing I’ll mention before you start to think I’m crazy for adoring a tea so, is that this company is based out of Portland and makes the tea in an artisanal fashion. And there’s something charming to me in just that.

BUY AT: SMITH TEA

I’ve tried a lot of eye shadow primers for two reasons: the first being that I tend to have dark’ish lids (thank you genetics) and secondly my crease tends to eat eye shadow. But a lot of primers either didn’t last or didn’t actually cover the darkness on my lids. The latter being the biggest problem because I tend to wear very light eyeshadows, which don’t come out as light on my lids.

A celebrity makeup artist friend turned me onto Trish McEvoy’s eye base (in bare for me) a couple of years ago and I’ve been a loyalist ever since. In fact, I love this so much that I often just use it alone when I want the ‘no makeup makeup’ look.

It comes in a small tube, goes on smoothly, stays on and looks natural (especially because there are several shades available to match your skin tone). Using this allows your eye shadow colour to go on true, whether it’s a neutral or a virbrant colour. All shades just look better.

BUY AT: Amazon

I can’t eat gluten, I try to avoid dairy and I don’t have tolerance for soy so that leaves very few ‘cream’ drinks I can use for my tea and coffee. I’ve longed used almond milk but have found that the taste, while great for baking, doesn’t work so well for more delicate teas as it overtakes the flavour.

Recently, I began to see coconut milks and creamers pop up in my local Whole Foods. Since I have longed believe in the benefits of coconut oil and water (great for baking & hydration) I picked up So Delicious Coconut Plain Creamer to try.

The first thing I noticed was, unlike coconut water, the creamer looked like regular almond/rice milk which was great because for coffee/tea you want something a little thicker and creamier. On its own, the creamer had a sweeter taste than say regular, almond or rice milk but definitely did not taste much like coconut to me. I tried it in a couple of tea’s and it was perfection. In fact, when I put it with a vanilla Roobios it was so good, I didn’t have add any sweetener.

What I love about this product is that it’s naturally gluten, dairy and soy free – it’s also vegan if that’s a concern. I’ve also tried the vanilla flavour which is definitely sweet and works best for plainer teas instead of flavoured ones like an Earl Grey.

Buy At: Whole Foods & So Delicious

It is no secret that I have a slight addiction to candles – I have them burning all the time in my home and have certain scents for certain times of the year. I’ve almost never bought the same candle twice because I love to test out new scents and frankly, find myself disappointed so often by how they burn or their scents that I don’t want to walk down that road twice.

Linnea’s Lights Black Vanilla Candle is the first one I’ve ever bought twice. In fact, it’s the only candle I’ve ever bought three times – I love it that much. I discovered it at Terrain at the beginning of winter and, when I returned to by my second one a couple of months later, the women who worked there and I were literally gushing over the scent & burn. “We’re not supposed to have favourites,” one said to me, “but we all agree this is our favourite”

While vanilla scents generally put me off (too sweet, candy shop, fake) this is the real deal. It is rich, cosy, warm. During the worst snow storms in years, I had this going and it made my large, cold rooms seem cosy, warm and beautiful. The burn is clean and perfect and the scent is amazing. I’ve also bought the Cashmere which is like Black Vanilla, just a little sweeter and Tuberose, which I am waiting for Spring before burning.

I think these candles are truly the best I’ve ever had and when you understand how they’re made, it’s easy to see why. It’s a family-run, environmentally, deeply caring for the arts/luxury company. From their site:  Linnea’s Lights candles combine natural soy wax, lead-free cotton candlewicks, pure essences and fine fragrances to create clean burning, perfectly scented and highly aromatic candles. Each candle is triple scented so the subtle fragrance keeps throughout the entire burn. All of Linnea’s Lights natural soy candles are meticulously hand-poured in small batches and tested for quality assurance. Every step of the process involves the use of human hands, and each candle is packaged and designed locally in Indiana with recycled or recyclable materials.

So while these candles may be a bit more than your average, they are worth every penny because of their scent, burn and the company you support. Trust me on this one – I just bought my fourth today.

BUY AT: Linnea’s Lights

I am a bit of a yogurt snob so I have, for the most part, avoided eating yogurt in America. That’s because most of it has been far too runny, sugary, fruity or light for my tastes. To me, yogurt should be thick, creamy and rich with a slight tang.

I’d come close only a few times with some Greek brands but still felt they lacked the creamy richness I was after. So imagine how happy I was when I discovered the Canadian brand, Liberte and their Mediterrranee line was exactly what I had been looking.

What I love is that even their plain or vanilla brands are so rich in flavour, so very creamy, and perfectly thick & tangy. They’re like mini desserts for after dinner or, mixed with some granola, make a hearty breakfast. The plain is my preferred flavour although they also make some with fruit on the bottom. And it’s real fruit – you can taste the actual strawberries instead of some fruit mock-up. And, they’re hormone free and have ingredients that are basic and you can understand which is important to me.

BUY AT: Whole Foods & Liberte

I should state right up front that I hesitated in watching this movie forever. I was sure I wouldn’t like anything about it – the story line, the acting and especially the music.

I was wrong on all accounts – especially the music.

Maybe it’s because I’m a huge Smiths fan or the fact they included a few more favourite artists like She & Him and Carla Bruni, but I love this soundtrack in its entirity – rare for me with a CD let alone a soundtrack. It’s a great puttering-around-the-house, driving up the coast, chilling on a Sunday, background music for a friendly get together playlist.

And if you don’t feel it during Hall & Oats, then this is totally not the CD for you.

BUY AT: Amazon

You’ve heard it a million times; bring your own bags when you grocery shop to save the planet. And every grocery store is going to sell you different bags to do just that. And I’ve bought a couple from Whole Foods for just that purpose. The problem? A lot of them are ugly, a lot of them don’t fold up well and a lot of them aren’t comfortable to carry once loaded.

I had heard a lot of friends rave about the Flip and Tumble bags but I was really suspicious of a bag that folds into itself. I’ve bought a lot of those (and blankets) that never, ever, fold back into themselves. But the price, the colours and the raves (plus the fact I could order using Paypal – always a plus for me) made me cave, and I’m so glad I did.

This is the first bag that easily – and I mean easily – folds into a ball. In seconds. With no thought! I keep my little ball in my purse (it’s that small) so whether I’m at the grocery store, out running errands from clothing to beauty stores or just in need of a bag to take to the beach without worrying about getting sand it, I now have it.

The handle has a little bit of padding which makes it comfortable on your shoulder. It holds a lot of groceries while still being comfortable to carry. And did I mention in turns into a ball? The only downside for me is that the handle is long and I’m not. So if it has things in it and my arm is extended down fully, the bag touches the ground. If you like to carry things that way, you’ll have to either shorten the handle yourself or find another bag.

But the goods far outweigh that which is why I’m going to order a few more!

BUY AT: Flip and Tumble