“Beautiful things make people happy.” -Eva Zeisel
Creed - How did I not know about this legendary fragrance brand until this year, when they’ve been around since 1760? Well better 263 years late than never to this iconic brand, which began as a haberdashery and transitioned to fragrance half a century ago.
What I love about Creed is that they source and use the finest flowers and other natural materials from around the world, and then, even better, they transform them into bottles of heaven using traditional techniques that have been long abandoned by other perfumers for being too costly. The result is distinctive and long-lasting fragrances that are of a superior quality to other brands.
Aventus is Creed’s most famous and popular scent, worn by men and women. Carmina is a popular new release for women. I received a sample of it and I get so many compliments when I wear it. While it’s true Creed fragrances are not inexpensive, they do give one a chance to wear arguably the best fragrance in the world. And a little goes a long way.
Caswell-Massey Soap - For most people, the soap they use in the shower is pretty much an afterthought, just something necessary to get the job done. Not for me. I have a passionate devotion to a single soap brand that I’ve used to the exclusion of all others for the past two decades. It is, in my opinion, the very best soap available anywhere and it’s called Caswell-Massey soap. I am particularly devoted to the white Almond bar, which is their best-seller.
Yes, it’s pricey but a single cake will last for months so the price-per-use is pretty nil. And what it delivers is priceless - the perfect low-key scent, just the right amount of suds, never dries the skin and comes in a big, luxurious oval that elevates the basic shower into a ritual of indulgence.
Caswell-Massey started as an apothecary in Newport, RI in 1752, making it the oldest continually operating apothecary in the United States. Many of their soaps have stayed true to the simple recipes from their archives, free of modern chemicals. Beloved by US presidents George Washington, Ike Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy, if you’ve never explored the Caswell-Massey line you’re in for a treat. They’ve had three centuries to perfect soap-making and they’ve made the most of them.
French Press Coffee - People who like coffee tend to really like coffee. As in, they cannot start their day without it. And they certainly have lots of options when it comes to how to make it. Everything from little pods to the standard coffee machines to Old School percolators.
My favorite way to make coffee is in a stainless steel French press. It may seem intimidating but it’s quite simple. You just put in the ground beans, fill it with water and let it steep before pushing down the plunger and pouring yourself a cup of rich, delicious goodness. There are no plastic tubes, no industrially bleached filters and no plastic waste. And by sourcing your beans directly you can locate an organic brand and discover which is your very favorite.
For freshness, you may find, like me, that you prefer to grind the beans just before making your coffee. If so, an electric grinder is briefly noisy but ideal for the task. I can’t really imagine ever making my coffee any other way, and I don’t consider myself a big coffee snob, but perhaps I sort of am.
Advent Beauty Boxes - It’s so easy to become overwhelmed when shopping for beauty products, be they for makeup, hair or skin. So when beauty brands and retailers began offering seasonal advent boxes it was a surefire hit. These boxes are custom-curated sample size products that you can open each day, or all at once if you really cannot wait.
Who better to carefully select the most popular and best loved products than those who create and sell them? And if you receive a luxury beauty advent box (or gift one to yourself), you’ll soon discover the ROI is fabulous. Because it turns out it’s a lot of fun to spice up your daily routine with a little gift and a lot of mystery.
I’ve discovered several new favorites by trying out the various samples. And if beauty isn’t your thing, guess what? They make holiday advent boxes for wine enthusiasts, tea drinkers, new moms and pretty much anyone else you can think of. I was surprised at how much fun it was to decide which little box to open each day, like a throwback to childhood. And who among us wouldn’t enjoy that?
Agatha Christie - You know that cozy feeling when it gets dark at 6 p.m. and all you want to do is get into your pajamas and scroll on your phone, watch a movie or read a book? Being more mindful of the harms of endless scrolling, lately I’ve taken up reading Agatha Christie novels, which are widely available in paperback and hardcover versions. She wrote a LOT of them over many decades. They’ve become little time capsules, describing life in England early in the prior century.
I like to try to guess the murderer although Agatha is so clever at throwing out red herrings I often don’t succeed. But I marvel at her output and her creativity in creating hundreds of distinct characters and figuring out so many puzzles for her hero detectives to solve. And I love the British colloquialisms she uses, like “beastly,” “frightfully” and “Quite so, Old Man.” If you’re going to escape the modern world, transporting to a quaint British village full of nosy neighbors is an excellent choice.
On a personal note, I hope your holiday season is full of glad tidings, laughter, comfort, peace and joy. And may your 2024 reveal many wonderful new obsessions to delight and inspire you.
Barbara Wayman is the author of Living An Extraordinary Life: 9 Transformational Strategies for Living Your Best Life Now.