Friday is here!! Do you guys have anything fun on the agenda for this evening? I’m not going to lie, my idea of a happenin’ Friday night is ordering pizza and slipping into my pajamas as early as possible. (And, if a new Dateline is on my night will be made.) I think we may be able to make this happen! Last night before bed Ryan and I both said we’re feeling a little rundown after a rather hectic week, so I’m hoping this weekend will be a rejuvenating one!
Now let’s move things right along and dive into the usual Friday shenanigans around here: Things I’m Loving Friday! Below you will find a roundup of things that are making me smile this week and, as always, I’d love to hear a little bit about something you’re loving this week in the comments section as well.
I hope you all have the best weekend!
Things I’m Loving Friday
- The Detox Market + Samples To Help You Find Natural Beauty Favs
I owe a huge thank you to Katie for introducing me to The Detox Market. How in the world have I never heard of this site before!? The Detox Market only features natural, cruelty-free beauty products free from parabens, synthetic fragrance, BHA and BHT, phthalates and more. (You may see a complete list of their banned ingredients here.) I’m on an ongoing mission to clean up the beauty products I use and The Detox Market is the BEST thing ever for this mission because you can order sample sizes!
The Detox Market allows you to try ANYTHING on their site in a small sample size which is just amazing, especially since lately I feel like I’ve paid good money for a few products that were a big disappointment. I have a selection of four natural concealers coming my way and cannot wait to test all of them and hopefully find a winner. (You get four samples of any combination of products on their site for $7.99.) Can you tell I’m a little TOO excited about this discovery!? I feel like it will be a huge help to me as I continue to overhaul my bath and beauty products.
- Lilac Girls by Martha Hall Kelly
I mentioned Lilac Girls on the blog earlier this week but now that I’ve finished reading it, I wanted to expand on the book a bit today. I liked this book and I would recommend it but with a warning that this book is heavy and hard to read. It’s a WWII historical fiction novel that follows the lives of three women (two of whom the author based on real women). Caroline is a former Broadway actress know in New York City’s social scene with a heart for helping French children and families through her job at the French consulate. Kasia is an energetic Polish teenager drawn into the underground resistance movement. Herta is a determined and ambitious German doctor hired to work at a Nazi concentration camp. As the novel progresses and the lives of Caroline, Kasia and Herta begin to intertwine, the story becomes more and more gripping and horrifying. Lilac Girls is well-written, moving, vivid, extremely unsettling and memorable.
These candles must be some of the most wonderfully fragrant candles I’ve ever come across in my candle-loving days. I actually received one years ago as a gift from my friend Merri and then Ryan will randomly buy me one for Christmas or my birthday so my love for these candles continues to burn strong! (Pun intended… as always.) Every time I light one up in our kitchen, our entire downstairs smells fantastic and feels so cozy! I love almost every scent I’ve tried but my favorites include Diva (terrible name, I know, but the scent is so wonderfully pleasant, fruity, floral and uplifting), Mulled Cider, Cinnabuns (currently burning this one) and Warm Sugar.
I recently received a delivery from POPSUGAR in the mail that was filled with wintery treats! The delivery was POPSUGAR’s January Must Have Box and included a cozy pom-pom beanie (I love that you can wear this one slouchy or cuffed for a tighter fit), a BPA- and BPS-free plastic KeepCup that looks like glass (perfect for hot beverages on the go), a cheerful wall calendar, chocolate sea salt RXBar (my all-time favorite flavor of one of my fav clean protein bars) and a NUUN hydration tablets packed with vitamins, electrolytes and clean ingredients. If you’d like to receive POPSUGAR’s next box for yourself, you may use the code SHOP5 for $5 off your first Must Have Box! Thanks for the fun surprise, POPSUGAR!
- Friday Flashbacks
With Valentine’s Day on the horizon, I wanted to share some throwback posts I did with simple, inexpensive gift ideas for your loved ones!
Budget Friendly Valentine’s Day Ideas
Budget Friendly Valentine’s Day Ideas: Part II
Our Annual Valentine’s Day Mission
Date Night In: Valentine’s Day Gift Basket
Last-Minute Valentine’s Day Gift Ideas
Question of the Day
What is one thing you are loving right now?
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Oh I’ve never heard of that beauty website and need to check it out! I too have been trying to use beauty products that are better, but so many chemicals to try to stay away from!
Have you tried the Tyler laundry detergents? I use Diva and Kathina (my favorite) on our bedding, towels, and delicates that don’t get washed with every wear. A little goes a long way.
YES!!! We LOVE the Diva detergent as a “special occasion” detergent. It smells incredible!
Thank you for reviewing The Lilac Girls. My grandmother joined the underground army in Poland as a teenager. Now I’m quite interested in reading this book.
She must have been an incredible and incredibly brave woman. The book is so well-written but very difficult to get through in parts but I’m sure it would make you feel all the more in awe of your grandmother and her courage.
The book was really good! I didn’t know much about the women concentration camps in WW II. I learned so much!!! Highly recommend
http://www.themilestraveled.com
I love your blog! I make so many of your recipes and often read the books your recommend. Thanks!
Lately, I’ve been doing your treadmill workouts during naptime. With two under two, leaving home to workout is hard to make happen! I would love a post on how to make the most out of naptime workouts!
Congrats on your pregnancy! So excited for you.
Hi Maureen! I’m so glad you’re enjoying the blog — thanks so much for taking the time to leave this comment and let me know!! As far as nap time workouts, this post is one I actually shared in the past that includes a lot of my favorite nap time workouts I do at home: https://www.pbfingers.com/30-minute-at-home-workouts/ I really prefer to keep my at home workouts on the short side but still want them to challenge me! I love the idea of highlighting more of these kinds of workouts (and creating them) in the coming weeks, so thank you for the feedback and post idea!
I really want to clean up my beauty products but always seems so overwhelming. Can’t wait to hear what you find!!
A review post with before and after pics using the concealer would be great. When I can see real pics of real people using makeup products, then I am more interested in sampling or buying! That site sounds really interesting. I’ve been using more physician’s formula and koh gen do products bc they are free of a lot of things. Not perfect but better than many others.
Tyler candles are some of my favorites!! And I love that conversation heart idea!
I love love Tyler Candle Company and I live in Tyler! Have a great weekend!
I absolutely LOVE Tyler candles! They are the BEST!!
I’m so excited to look at Detox Market! I’ve tried BeautyCounter and love some of their products and adore Primally Pure, but want to try others advice well. Would love to see a post in relation to this once you have settled in some products
I have never heard of detox market, but that sounds amazing. I can’t wait to check it out!
THE OLYMPICS!!!!!! And Tyler candles are awesome!! My favorite though are Volcano candles, I forget who makes them though?
I’m a Dateline fan too but I think there won’t be any episodes for the next two weeks because of the Olympics!!
Oh I bet you’re right!! At least the Olympics are a great alternative!!
We love the Tyler detergent too! Tip: since it’s so pricey, you can do a load of laundry and use mostly just regular detergent, but add just a splash of the Tyler detergent. It still makes the whole load smell fabulous!!
Ohhhh! Thank you for this tip! We have it but we tend to hoard it because of the price. I love the idea of using just a splash to get that MAAAAAGICAL scent! It’s amazing!
Hi Julie! I’m excited to checkout this beauty website. I recently had eye surgery and have had to switch to all natural products that won’t irritate my eye. Have you heard of The All Natural face? It’s a small company that specializes in all natural, vegan cosmetics. I use their face and eye primers and absolutely love them. Tarte is another brand that is pretty “clean” and I love their products as well. Have a great weekend!
I haven’t heard of The All Natural Face but it sounds right up my alley. I’ve had really good experience with Tarte eye shadows and lip products and, now that you mention it, I think I tried one of their bronzers in a sample size before and loved it as well. Clearly I need to revisit Tarte!
On the topic of using non-toxic beauty products, I love the two bottles of ella & mila nail polish I purchased. Their products are 7-FREE (no Toluene, Dibutyl Phthalate (DBP), Formaldehyde, Formaldehyde Resin, Camphor, TPHP and Xylene.) The smell is less intense than regular nail polish and, with two coats, it looks just as good. I’m going to treat myself to one of their collection sets so I can phase out all of my toxic bottles. (I am in no way affiliated with the company, just love the product.)
I will definitely check out Detox Market since I have not been too lucky with my natural product purchases besides the nail polish. Thanks for the recommendation.
Can’t believe I haven’t heard of the Detox Market either! So excited to try it out.
Omg! Dying that you included Tyler Candle Company in this post. Those candles are my absolute favorite and when we moved from Alabama to Florida I emailed the company in a panic about where I’d find them locally. ? Highly recommend the “Twenty Four Seven glam” scent!! They’re the best.
Aren’t they fantastic!? They’re also a go-to gift for me to give to people I know love candles now because I feel like they’re not overly well known but everyone who uses them loves them!
I love Tyler candles -fun fact I’m from Tyler and that’s where they originated! The Tyler scent is amazing!
No way! That’s awesome — and how have I never tried their original Tyler scent!? Looking into that one ASAP!
I’m a Beautycounter consultant and people are always complaining about our prices but looking at the prices of the stuff on that website it looks like we are on par or even cheaper than most safe brands honestly! I tried reading Lilac Girls and couldn’t get thru it ?
Our Friday night will be the same. Pizza and resting. My toddler gave me her flu so at 21 weeks pregnant I am definitely feeling run down and ready for sleep (I know you know just how I feel!! Ugh!)
Oh no! I am 31 weeks pregnant with bronchitis and a sinus infection (and a 3 year old, ha) — I feel ya! (Though, I’m certain the flu is still worse than that combo!!) Hope you feel better soon.
I am so excited about that beauty website! I actually am allergic to formaldehyde, and it’s always a pain to have to sift through ingredients lists for products that are “all-natural”; etc. but typically contain formaldehyde (it prevents mold, so a lot of natural beauty products contain it — not necessarily a bad thing unless you are allergic!). So happy that this site just bans it all together! So wonderful. Thank you for sharing!!
If you love the Diva candle by Tyler Candles, I HIGHLY recommend their laundry detergent! I get it in the Diva scent and use it on all my laundry! A little goes a LONG way! I usually put my normal “pod” in and then put maybe a couple of ounces of the Diva detergent and it makes everything smell amazing! I especially love it on my linens! I get it on Amazon most of the time but I have seen it in local boutiques
I am closing my eyes and ears to that sample market – I am having sample overload over here!!
And I am also reading Lilac Girls!!
A little belated but I hope you guys caught the Winter Olympics opening ceremony last night!!! (Instead of a new dateline :p)
I am totally going to check out Detox Market – we are slowly switching products over in our household, too! Thanks for letting us all know about them!
I’ve been using this line of luxury hair care for a couple months now and will NEVER go back to anything else. I have similar hair as you – never held a curl, fine and oily, and laid so flat against my head. Now, my hair feels so clean and smooth and I actually have VOLUME and can hold curls without hairspray!! They are a line of naturally based, non-toxic, and vegan hair products and do not contain any Phthalates, PEG, DEA/MEA, Sulfates, or Parabens. Let me know if you want more info on these products!