Sweet Shit Round Up
November 2020
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Ya’ll. It has been a minute since I did one of these round ups! Amazingly enough, we are at the end of November, we have less than a month until Christmas, exactly two weeks until Hanukkah, and only one month left in 2020. This year is steadily chugging right along. Think of this month’s round up, and any of the previous round ups, as a gift guide if you want and take a look at the small businesses you can support if you’re taking part in gift-giving this season to be found at the end of this post! Happy shopping!
Books
My Sister, the Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
- This is the kind of book that makes you wonder how much you really love your family. My Sister, the Serial Killer follows Korede, the practical and perhaps slightly bitter older sister of Ayoola, their mother’s darling and the beautiful one. But while Ayoola grabs the attention of every man she interacts with, her penchant for killing them is a bit of drag. That’s not really a spoiler since you find out about it on the first page and spend the rest of the book wondering if/when she’ll do it again. When Ayoola catches the attention of the man Korede is secretly in love with, Korede must decide if blood truly is thicker than water. This book is a really quick and easy read that can be funny and infuriating. If you need something short to round out your book goal list for the year, this is the one to get!
The Walking Dead Compendiums by Robert Kirkman and Tony Moore
- Last month I decided to start working my way through the Walking Dead comic books and it’s spilled over into November. I haven’t read through the comics in years and I forgot how much I loved them. The characters and the story is so different than what they showed in the TV series. Characters I loved in the comic were terrible in the series and whole storylines were changed around or taken away. These compendiums are a great way to have the whole comic series without taking up too much space and if you are a fan of the show but haven’t read the comics yet? This seems like a great time to start!
TV
- As someone who attended middle school in the early 2000s, I fucking love PEN15. It speaks to me on every level and honestly, season 2 might have been even more relatable than season 1. Starring Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle as 7th grade versions of themselves, this season saw Maya and Anna deal with sleepover shenanigans, dabble in witchcraft, and join the school play….all of which 13 year old me was incredibly familiar with. This show is brilliant, I love watching two adult women pretend to be 13 again amongst actual 13 year olds…all wearing the fashions that were hot shit in 2001. It’s funny, it reminds me so much of me and my friends, and it’s required viewing for any Millennial female aged 30-35.
- I love weird competitions. I especially love documentaries about weird competitions. Luckily, Netflix came through this month with the series We Are the Champions that chronicles six different competitions from around the world. There’s yo-yo champs, cheese rolling champs, and spicy challenge champs. It’s short but it’s fun and it’s narrated by Rainn Wilson. If you need something easy to keep on in the background this weekend, go check it out!
- Do you like anime, Vampire Weekend, or Toblerones? Have I got the show for you! Neo Yokio is a short anime series created by Ezra Koenig, lead singer of Vampire Weekend, and when I say short I mean short. In total there’s all of six 30 minute episodes and one hour long Christmas special and I could have easily started it over from the beginning once we finished. Jonathan LOVES Neo Yokio and insists I sell this show as hard as I can so here goes. Jaden Smith voices Kaz Kaan, a demon hunting “Magistocrat” living in Neo Yokio (a modern-day alternative New York City) a couple hundred years after magicians saved the city from being destroyed by demons. Since then, Kaz’s family has been granted entrance into the high society where all the wealthiest bachelors are ranked 1-10 on a board in the middle of Times Square. Kaz sits firmly at number two while his arch-nemesis, Arcangelo Corelli, keeps the number one spot. This show is a lot of fun. It’s funny, it’s silly, the characters are great, and it’s one giant comment on the whole capitalistic system. If you only watch one thing I recommend this month, let it be this….so Jonathan can be happy somebody did.
Products
- Sometimes you just want to laminate something…right? No? Just me? I don’t care. I used to love laminating stuff when I worked in/with the public schools and have been coveting my own laminator for the last couple of years. FINALLY I have one I can call my own and any and all paper is in danger of lamination. Laminators are surprisingly cheap, small, and considerably less noisy than those big ass ones you might remember seeing when you were in school and if you’ve got kids at home doing socially distant learning, it could come in super handy if you’re making your own crafts or re-usable worksheets.
- Electric toothbrushes always seemed like an unnecessary expense to me. My hands can do just as well with my 89 cent toothbrush…thank you very much. But then last year, Jonathan got us a pair of electric toothbrushes he found on sale and life hasn’t been the same. My teeth felt cleaner and the timer counted out the two minutes you’re supposed to spend brushing which makes it easier to hit that dentist recommended time. But our set was some generic brand that was kinda bulky and hard to find replacement heads for so this month, we leveled up and switched to Quip. Quip is an electric toothbrush company where you buy your brush set then can be automatically enrolled in battery and head replacements that come every 3 months! The refills start at only $5.00 for the brush head and battery but Quip also sells floss and toothpaste that you can include in your refill. Quip toothbrushes are super slim, come in their own holder you can stick to a mirror, and have a variety of colors and materials. So far, they’ve been a great switch and I look forward to not even having to think about changing out the head or the battery until they show up at my door. Use code 8t3p4lng when you order and we’ll both get $5.00 off our next refill!
- For the last year, we have been sleeping on the shittiest bed frame I’ve ever experienced. It had those weird strung together but not attached to anything slat ladders to put the mattress on but they were always shifting or falling which meant zero consistent support. But finally! We got (and put together) this metal bed frame. It’s been awesome! First of all, it was easy as shit to put together. It took us longer to take the old one apart. And the best part? THE SLATS EACH HAVE THEIR OWN HOME! They’re not tied together and they each have a section dedicated to their stability. We’ve been sleeping on it for two weeks now and the back pain is so much better. Definitely worth checking into.
- I. Hate. Folding laundry. I don’t know the last time I did the wash and actually pulled it out of the dryer on the same day. But, this month, by sheer coincidence, Jonathan and I each independently thought about buying a t-shirt folder like they use in department stores to fold their clothing. Luckily I never pulled the trigger because he randomly told me he picked one up for us to use and it’s been great! It makes folding almost fun. Our shirts look super neat and take up less space now. I’m pretty sure you can use the folder to fold pants/shorts/skirts too but I haven’t gone that crazy with it yet. I still hate folding laundry but this folder has made this necessary chore just a little more enjoyable.
- If you’re a person who takes part in hair removal on a regular basis, you know how fucking annoying it is. Shaving means hair grows back almost immediately but waxing involves making an appointment and going into a salon….2020 says no thanks to that scenario. Me? I’m typically a razor girl but this month I figured I give waxing a shot cause what else do I have going on? We found a decently priced wax kit that came with a warmer, four bags of hard wax, and a few other waxing odds and ends. Hard wax is the kind that hardens on your skin and then you just pull the wax itself off instead of using strips to pull it up which personally I find a lot easier. Personally, I’ve realized I don’t have the patience it takes to go about waxing so I’ll be sticking to my razor for not. But overall, this kit does the job and is probably worth the time and money if you’re a regular waxer. And it’s currently got a $10 off coupon!
- Believe it, I’ve picked up another skill/hobby during this pandemic. This time, it’s crochet! I tried crochet years ago and couldn’t get into it. My stitches were too tight and it made my hands hurt. But a couple of months ago I figured I’d give it another go and ya’ll it was so much easier to pick up this time! Take this as a lesson…sometimes you need to give things a second chance because you might be better suited for it later. If you’re into crochet or are just starting out, I love metal hooks. I got a set of wooden ones too but yarn slides on the metal ones so much nicer so I highly recommend, especially if you’re just starting. I also bought these stitch markers and I love them. They made counting the stitches in my Christmas stockings so much easier.
Small Businesses to Support this Holiday Season
Beauty
Cocokind - skincare for all ages (20% off site wide)
Glamlite - known for make-up palettes that are shaped as food or interesting objects and the colors are so vibrant! (Black Friday sale 30% off with code BLACKFRIDAY)
Rufescent - all red lipsticks all the time meant to look great on all skin tones but specifically people of color! (40% sale on the whole line-up for Black Friday.)
Lipslut - you can see my review of Lipslut’s awesome lipsticks in my Instagram product highlights!
Art
Sophie and Lili - art prints, diy dolls, and more (I’ve talked about how much I love this shop in a past round up!) Get 20% off with code SLFRIDAY20 until midnight Black Friday
Barruntando Ceramics - ceramics bowls, planters, mugs and more. (I bought a yarn bowl from them a couple of months ago and it’s super cute!)
Handmade Arcade - a virtual marketplace of all kinds of vendors. Typically takes place in Pittsburgh but has moved online this year!
Fashion and Jewelry
Maya Kern - skirts (with pockets!) journals, pins, and more
GLDN - this necklace is on my own Christmas list this year. Their handmade pieces are so pretty.
Miscellaneous Products
Indomitable - self defense keychain bundles (if I had the money I’d buy one as stocking stuffers for everyone I know) get 20% off for Black Friday with code 20off at checkout
Evil Queen - candles (I’ve talked about how nice these candles are in a past round up)
Letterfolk - letter boards, calendars, and other home goods (15% off everything for Black Friday…no code necessary)
How’s your November been? What sweet shit made your round up? Any small businesses you’d like to include for those of us doing gift giving? Let me know all about it in the comments below!