Merry belated Christmas friend! I don’t know about you but the month of December is always kind of a weird month for me. There’s lots of hustle and bustle with various holidays and things that have to be done before said holidays. And family stuff. Lots of family stuff. It’s great but it’s also a bit of a whirlwind (which is why you haven’t heard from me in the last month). Now I’m settled firmly in that strange limbo between Christmas and New Years when you get to relax but you’re so used to rushing about that it just feels odd.

I don’t do a monthly or quarterly favorites because honestly, the things I’m really into don’t tend to change all that much. I do however really look forward to the end of the year favorites and I hope you do too! So let’s get started with a look into the skincare and hair care products that I loved this last year.

Hair Treatment – Coconut Oil

As you know, I hacked my hair off this last year AND I stopped dying it. That really reduced my need for hair treatments but I still use coconut oil any time my hair starts feeling a little dry.

I’m not loyal to any particular brand, just whatever extra virgin variety I can find at the grocery store.

2015 – Coconut Oil

2014 – Coconut Oil

Body Lotion – Haus of Gloi Pumpkin Butter

If you’ve been following my empties posts this last year then you know that I’ve been trying ALL THE PUMPKIN BUTTERS. While there have been a few scents that I’m not wild about, there have been quite a few that I enjoy as well. None of the scents really speak to my soul, but the formula of the product itself is really nice.

(Haus of Gloi website)

2015 – Fortune Cookie Soaps Whipped Cream

2014 – güd Body Butter

Makeup Remover – Clinique Take the Day Off Cleansing Balm

This stuff is really so freaking good. It’s probably weird to like a makeup remover as much as I like this but this stuff is pure gold (not literally, that would be weird). It feels nice on my skin, it removes mascara, it doesn’t irritate my eyes and a jar lasts for ages. Seriously, try it out, I can’t imagine that you won’t like it.

I generally pick this up at the Clinique counter of our local department store but you can also get it from Sephora or Ulta.

2015 – Clinique Take The Day Off Cleansing Balm

2014 – Sweet Almond Oil

Sunscreen – Banana Boat Baby 50spf.

This is a great sunscreen. It’s cheap, it’s easily accessible, it’s a high spf, it’s just good. It is a greasy formula so you’ll need a good setting powder if you don’t want to look a little sweaty, but it’s still the best sunscreen I’ve found. It’s also a mineral sunscreen so if you have a sensitivity to chemical sunscreen (or if it just freaks you out), this is a great option.

I find this at Walmart, Walgreens or CVS.

2015 – Banana Boat Baby

2014 – Banana Boat Baby

Face Mask – Now Moroccan Red Clay Powder

I have to be honest, I probably only used a traditional face mask two or three times in 2016. It was always this mask though. It works really well if your skin is feeling a little congested or you’re getting some break outs. You can also adjust the viscosity since you mix it from a powder.

I should mention that I’ve done a lot of sheet masks this last year but I didn’t have a favorite. So sheet masks in general could have been my favorite mask?

I buy my red clay powder at our local natural food store but Google tells me you can find it at most herbal/natural remedy shops or various online sources.

2015 – Now Moroccan Red Clay Powder

2014 – Now Moroccan Red Clay Powder

I want to do a couple of new categories this year in the skin care department!

Moisturizer – CeraVe Skin Renewing Line

This is a fantastic line of moisturizers! I started using these towards the end of 2015 and used them religiously all year long. They’re wonderful if you have dry skin. I recently switched my day cream out but that was a choice that was spurred on by the inefficiency of the Cream Serum packaging, not due to the product itself.

I generally buy this at Walmart as it tends to be cheapest there.

Serum – Paula’s Choice Skin Recovery Super Antioxidant Concentrate Serum (with retinol)

I previously used the version of this serum that did not include retinol and it was equally nice, I would highly recommend it if you’re looking for something slightly more gentle. This serum really does make my skin feel more moisturized and it also makes it noticeably more soft. 10/10 would recommend!

Hand Cream – Tokyo Milk Dark

This hand cream is so lovely. I don’t know what it is about it that makes it absolutely perfect but it’s great! It doesn’t leave my hands too greasy and it keeps them feeling moisturized through a couple hand washes. The scents are VERY long lasting and a bit strong. My personal favorite is La Vie La Mort but I also really like Everything and Nothing. I also want to mention that even though I haven’t had an eczema outbreak in the last year or two (since I quit smoking!), this hand cream is the only thing I tried that provided relief when I was regularly experiencing eczema issues. Your mileage might vary since this is heavily fragranced, but it was a life saver for me!

I normally purchase this from Sephora but you can buy directly from the Tokyo Milk website as well.

Categories from previous years that I didn’t include this year:

Body Oil – 2014 and 2015 both saw Monoi Vanille Oil as my favorite. I actually still love this stuff but I didn’t re-purchase it this year (or any other body oil for that matter).

I would love to know if you’ve tried any of these products and if so, what you think of them!

If you’re feeling particularly nostalgic, you can find previous year’s Favorites posts here:

2014 Skin and Hair Favorites

2015 Skin and Hair Favorites

The rest of the 2016 Favorites series:

2016 Face Product Favorites

2016 Lip Product Favorites