Hello again and happy new year! I thought it’d be the perfect time to go over our all time favorite purchases of 2023. These are purchases that we have zero regrets with and would recommend to anyone. I’ll also throw in an overall award winning category with no year requirement!
2023 favorites
reusable zip lock bags
We bought these reusable zip lock bags to help transport muffins and sandwiches on road trips. We’ve also used them to store puppy chow and leftover holiday cookies/candy! The variety pack we got is the perfect amount of each size, with the gallon baggie being our most frequently used. They hand wash well and aren’t too big of a pain to dry. I feel like these will last a long time, and it’s nice to have one less thing to remember to buy or keep stocked. Now the only time we use a disposable zip lock bag is when we’re sending something like cookies home with someone else. We don’t do this very often, so I’m not sure it’s worth the hassle at this point to find an alternative. Overall, 10/10 purchase that we’re very happy with!
reusable grocery bags
One of the worst things to have to bag at the grocery store is a large amount of cans! What do we buy the most of? Cans! Instead of divvying out cans across plastic bags to make sure we don’t overpack, we can just stack them all nicely in one of our strong, reusable bags. I also love not having to bother with trying to open a grocery bag that’s clung together when trying to get through self checkout.
The set of three bags is almost enough to hold our big load of groceries, but I don’t think you could go wrong with a set of six, so you don’t have to worry about leaving the house without all of your bags in the car. Plus, we also use these bags to corral some of our travel items, like water bottles, road trip snacks, books, etc.
Of course, we can’t ignore that these bags help out the environment by reducing our single use plastics. The only downside of reduced plastic bags in our household is not having free bags to use for cleaning the cat boxes!
le creuset casserole dish with lid
We love using this dish for our normal cooking and bringing a dish to a game watch or family get together. We’ve also had a few cases where we keep it in the fridge with our leftovers if there’s a little too much to put away into a smaller container. The top lid does wobble just a little, but it doesn’t bother me like I thought it would. I like that the lid itself is heavy, so you’d have to try to lose it.
I can’t ignore that this was an expensive purchase, but we don’t like to buy many repeat items, so we wanted something that would last for a long time. There are many options at better price points, but for us this was a pretty dish that we wanted to have and keep almost like an heirloom. The coating also makes it super easy to hand wash – which we’ll probably continue doing to help make it last a long longer even though it is dishwasher safe.
trivets
I’m not sure how we went so long without trivets! Not much to say here, except that these fold up small and are easy to store. We love them!
le creuset dutch oven
I never thought I would buy such an expensive piece of cookware! But this pot is great. It looks beautiful, and it will surely last a long time. It’s our go to when bringing potato or macaroni salad, and it keeps food at their temperature for longer. We’ve had a few cases where we needed two big pots, and in that case we love using a lightweight, inexpensive stainless steel pot as a secondary option (no way I’d be buying two of these!). Like our other Le Creuset dish, it cleans up very easily.
cloth napkins
We hardly buy paper towels anymore, and it feels so good! We started off our cloth napkin collection with two set of fours from The Lifestyled Co that is now out of stock, but we love this cocktail size napkin from Etsy. They’re the perfect size, especially when you eat a lot of meals at home throughout the day. Currently, Brandon and I are the only users of our napkins (how are the kids so clean?), so as we have more little kids or guests in the house, we’ll snag some more sets to build up a good supply.
Also, I really don’t mind washing or folding them since they take up so little space in the laundry. I imagine someday we’d have a cute little basket to just store these in and not even worry about folding them up in a drawer.
glass pyrex containers
There’s not much to say about these containers except that they’re hands down, the best we’ve had! They look great, and we almost exclusively use these. We have 1-2 other small storage containers that we sometimes use, but otherwise this set of five has been the perfect size for us! It’s easy to keep track of the lids because they each have their own. I like how putting away leftovers is never an annoying process of trying to find the right size container and a lid that fits. This was totally worth the money!
beauty counter countercontrol regimen
I’m still using this system, and I like it! When my stuff was stolen last fall, I tried using some cheaper alternatives while deciding if I was going to replace my expensive products. After a few weeks it was clear that my skin was not happy, and I went back to my previous products. While the best thing for my skin is being on birth control, these products at least get me to a state where nothing hurts and I can feel comfortable with foundation on. The biggest perk to this system is I don’t get into a cycle of wasting money with trying new products. I just stick to what works and repurchase as needed!
kitchenaid mixer
This mixer was a wedding gift from my mom and sister, and we LOVE it. We use it multiple times a week, and I think I’ve gotten my sister and dad hooked since they’ve since bought or received one, too. The key to getting your money’s worth out of a kitchenaid mixer is to store it on the counter. Don’t store it in a cabinet, don’t put it in the pantry, don’t cover it up with an appliance garage. If I had to go get this heavy thing every time I had an opportunity to use it, it’d collect dust. I’m not a big fan of having stuff on the counter, but this is one item where the counter is where it belongs!
We also love the mixing bowl. It’s a great size, cleans up so easily, and when you’re done with the mixer, just put the attachment and measuring cups/spoons in the bowl and fill with hot soapy water. A little mini sink for quick cleanup!
phase10
My family does not play games, but we’ll play this game! I love that it has instruction cards that you can look at, so it’s very easy to jump in and learn how to play.
essence blush
This blush made it to my favorites list because it is CHEAP and does exactly what it needs to do!
beis bags
I have a very detailed review post for these bags, but I had to include them in my 2023 favorites! The weekender bag is my go to bag for the small trips we take back home, and the dopp bag has a permanent spot on our vanity (for now, until it can fit in a drawer in the new house!). With the dopp bag, my side of the vanity has never stayed cleaner! I put away all of my items as I use them, and that is something to be celebrated.
overall favorites
My ring!!
I LOVE my wedding ring! I love having some sparkle even when the rest of me is looking bland. I realize that jewelry is not the place where I like to have variety, and what matters most is having pieces that don’t get tarnished/discolored and have a nice sparkle. For earrings, I almost exclusively wear the diamond hoops Brandon gave me for my birthday a few years ago, and they’ve held up beautifully. We have a lot of big goals coming up with building the new house, paying it off, finishing the basement, and then all of our bucket list goals like fixing up a house here in town or saving more for retirement. BUT somewhere in there, I’d like to get another nice piece of sparkly jewelry!
ipad/sketchup
I get SO much use out of my iPad. I had an iPad mini when I was in high school, but I didn’t get much use out of it. Two years ago, I treated myself to an iPad after our work bonuses came in, and I have zero regrets. I use it as a little portable screen for my workouts, which is so much faster than queuing up my videos on the TV. Plus, this allows me to mute my iPad and listen to my own music on my phone which makes workouts so much more enjoyable! I also use my iPad to display our recipes while we’re cooking, which is helpful when Brandon and I are working on different steps.
Finally, the main other use of my iPad is SketchUp! I was using SketchUp only on Brandon’s computer, but I stepped out of my comfort zone a couple months ago and got familiar with SketchUp for iPad. Now I can do designs or renders anywhere! This will make it so much easier to show our ideas to the builder or when we work with any of the tradespeople.
Lululemon leggings
I bought two pairs of lululemon align leggings five or six years ago, and a few years after that, bought another pair in a smaller size as I was getting more fit with Chloe Ting workouts. These past few weeks of pregnancy, my belly has grown rapidly and I’m amazed at how well these leggings have kept up after all these years! Besides the slightest pilling in the thighs, they look almost new. I don’t wear leggings often when not pregnant, but I would not hesitate to buy another pair in the future just knowing how long they last!!
I hope you enjoyed seeing all of our tried and true products. We really don’t buy things very often, so we put a lot of research and planning into our purchases!
Thanks for reading!
Davien
fluted wood & marble 
Leave a comment