I bought this pretty cardigan on clearance from Summersalt last year and I just didn’t love the sleeves.
I tried wearing it a few times to see if I’d get over it. However, the fact that the body of the sweater was a super lightweight and soft cashmere and the light blue portion of the sleeves were a thick, ribbed cotton finally broke me.
And I decided to chop them off.
Initially I was going to cut off ALL the light blue, but then I realized that there were no elastic cuffs on the cashmere portion, so after wearing it a bit the new cuffs would most likely get all loose and baggy. With that in mind, I decided to leave a little bit of the light blue cuff.
I eyeballed my new hem and pinned it into place.
Then, I just hand-sewed around once. It went super quickly!
I trimmed the excess and that was it! Here is the new inside of the sweater:
And here is the new outside:
It took me less than an hour and I love the sweater SO MUCH MORE now!
Clothes are just clothes. If they aren’t making you happy, it’s so easy to make these little changes until they better meet your needs!
My skin is always on the dry side, but as soon as winter rolls in, it’s like my face and body forget how to retain moisture entirely. Between the cold air outside and the dry heat inside, my skin feels tight and uncomfortable. Over the years, I’ve tried dozens of products to keep my skin hydrated and here are my current holy grail items that are helping my skin stay soft:
I throw in some random stuff every so often if I see something fun at TJ Maxx, but these are my ride-or-die products that work for me. I’ve been using the Farmhouse Fresh cleanser for a couple years and it is very gentle and moisturizing. The COSRX is one of my hero products that I’m obsessed with and I use that and then follow it with the Vitamin C serum. If you’re a bit grossed out with the idea of snail mucin, that’s cool. I’ve also tried the Bean Essence serum from Korean skincare brand Mixsoon, which is very similar.
I switched to this moisturizer last summer and it is really great for face AND neck. As for the Biolements Skin Editor, it’s pricey but a little goes a long way. I think my last jar lasted me well over a year. I’d include a nighttime cream, but I keep switching between a few options and they’re all great but nothing super special.
I received this shea butter as a birthday promo from Farmhouse Fresh in the fall and my initial thoughts were that the lotion was too thin to be moisturizing enough for me. And OHMYGOD I was so wrong. This lotion feels lightweight when you smooth it on, but it locks in moisture and keeps my skin silky soft all day and night long. It also smells amazing. My only complaint is that I HATE the glass bottles. Once you get past the halfway mark, it’s so hard to get the lotion out. I wish it was in a squeeze tube.
Ugh, my poor heels have never been so dry in my LIFE. I don’t know if it’s perimenopause (which apparently everything is at my age), or just random luck, but they have been driving me crazy for the past 6-8 months. I have tried EVERYTHING and the only combo that works for me is to put on the Farmhouse Fresh Shea Butter after my shower, top it with the Ancient Greek Remedy Oil and then throw on the gel heel socks for a bit. I try to sleep in the heel socks, but I end up throwing them across the room in the middle of the night.
The Ancient Greek Remedy Oil is also AMAZING for hands. My poor husband’s knuckles get so dry and alligator-like, so I’ll rub this into the backs of his hands when he needs it, right before he goes to sleep. The first time I did it, he texted me the next day asking me what magic was in the oil. My hands are less terrible, but when I feel my knuckles getting dry I rub in a few drops. I also picked up the snail hand cream at TJ Maxx on a whim and it’s so, so, so good. It moisturizes and soaks in really quickly and I will definitely be rebuying it again.
If you want to get super fancy, try the heel peeling mask. You leave it on for about 30 minutes and then wash it off and go about your business. The heel area of your feet will fully peel over the next week or so and a much softer version of your feet will come out. Yes, the peeling part is gross but gross in a kind of cool way… I used my first pack a couple months ago and was shocked at how well it worked. So I immediately ordered a couple more packs to keep on hand!
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Before I fully dive into 2025, I like to take a moment to look back at the previous year. For this post, specifically, my favorite outfits.
Over the years, my style has certainly evolved (if you’re curious, check out the My Style Evolution posts — so far I have early years, 20’s and 30’s). And now that I’m in my 40’s, I’m still figuring out what best fits the “me” of the moment.
With that being said, 2024 was a year of transition for me. After almost 6 years as Marketing Director at a law firm, I started a new job at the end of October. The industry is different. The office is different. And my in-office time is different. Starting 2025, I’ll be mostly remote.
So, what does that mean for my style? I’m not really sure yet. I’m not going to suddenly toss out all my fabulous tulle skirts and sequined cardigans. Instead, I anticipate really digging down into my style and what makes me happy. While before I had *more* because I was out and about more often, now I feel like I’d be happier with *less* and just keep the items that I truly love. I see more closet purges in 2025. And I see more of a mix of lounge-wear that looks great on Team’s calls.
So before we get into all that change, let’s look through my 2024 outfits that felt 100% me this year.
As always, the majority of the items in each outfit are all secondhand. I counted 24 items I purchased secondhand, 10 items I purchased new and 2 items that were gifted.
