Cheers to the freaking new year! I will drink (sparkling water with ice) to that, yeah yeah.

I have so much excitement about being in 2025, not just because last year was, quite literally, the worst year of my life, but also because of the number of huge life changes that will come this year. To start us off, I’m going to go through my bests of 2024. No worsts this time, because I want to focus on the good things in spite of the (many) bad things LOL. Worsts will be back for 2026 when I can stomach them, by God’s grace.

As usual, we will be separating into categories. Starting with media:

Best watches of 2024 – I had to go through my letterboxd for this, and will be copying my reviews of each film here (I enjoy writing reviews on letterboxd that no one will see LOL). We’ll go chronologically, because as I’m writing this intro part, there’s no immediate favourite that sticks out. I will say that this was my year of actually frequenting the cinema, and I don’t see it stopping anytime soon.

• March – Dune: Part Two.
• April – The Wonderful Story of Henry Sugar.
• May – Challengers (are we surprised? I’m not).
• July – Submarine. I also watched The Favourite and rated that higher, but Submarine has stuck with me more.
  • with an honourable mention of Salmon, a great short film.
• August – Nope (FINALLY).
• November – Wicked. I’ve watched it three times now.

Upon reflection, 2024 was not my year of television. I barely finished any shows, though I started many of them. Honourable mentions include Alchemy of Souls on Netflix (which I only recommend if you have TIME because it’s basically 20 movies in the first season, and you really need to pay attention), Lovely Runner on Viki (this was the only show I binged; MESS of a plot, but super entertaining), and The Handmaid’s Tale on Prime. Though, I did stop watching The Handmaid’s Tale because my mummy decided to finish a season without me and the betrayal was too much for me.

Best reads of 2024 – I wasn’t on top of my Goodreads in 2024, so this will all be from memory (which, if you ask me, is more accurate a list). 2024 was my year of reading less nonsense; consuming words that actually have purpose, and I achieved it. To more intellectual reading in 2025, too.

• The Satyricon – I think about this book and all its ridiculousness maybe once a week. Petronius has such a way with words, I rooted for nobody but was still invested in their arcs. I LOVE Trimalchio, I think of him so often LOL.
• The Case for Marrying an Older Man – This article on The Cut was one of the funniest reads of last year. I’ve never been so confused by the motive of an article… did she think the reception would be positive? That girls would read her words and clap for her?
• My Oura Ring Says That Fashion Week is Bad for Me – I had to have an article on here by José. He’s one of the only writers keeping me clicking on Vogue articles.
• Aphantasia: The Science of Visual Imagery Extremes – This was published in the journal of Clinical Neurology, and I had to read it because the idea of people simply… not seeing things as they read in their head is so confounding to me and my overtly vivid imagination. What do you mean you just see the words??

My fave listens of 2024 – 40,000 minutes of music didn’t just go in one ear and out the other. Spotify Wrapped said one thing, and now I’m saying another.

• Benjamin Britten – Cello Suite No.3 Op.87. THIS IS A BANGER, I found the viola transcription of it, too, so trust, I will be playing the whole thing.
• Willow Smith – empathogen. The whole album, really. It slaps. I love the way she plays with time signatures. My favourite song would either be symptom of life or b i g f e e l i n g s.
• Rachel Chinouriri – pocket. I have never in my life been in love but oh my gosh this song makes me feel like I AM.
• Zach Webb – Found. 2024 was the year of discovering Jesus music that doesn’t just sound like typical CCM. Worship is a weapon, and it’s the sword I used to fight my way through the year. This song is what you’d get if you combined Novo Amor and sprinkled some Holy Spirit into it.
• Housefires – The Story I’ll Tell (ft. Ahjah Walls). A late discovery of the year (found at the end of November), but such an encouraging reminder of His goodness.

Okay, now for the most important part! Here are my best acquisitions of 2024. If I have pictures of them all, I’ll be astounded. This was NOT my year of empirical evidence of my existence, but alas. If you’ve been reading for a while, you’ll know that I was on a self-prescribed shopping ban until my birthday at the end of July, which I did with perfect success… Meaning I didn’t buy myself things, but it did not mean I didn’t acquire things from other people xx These lists are a mix of new acquisitions and most worn items that I already owned.

My ready to wear faves:

• Alexandre Vauthier fringe skirt. This was a new acquisition, and it might be in the top five items in my wardrobe. I love it because it’s black, but you can wear it in all four seasons. Some skirts are exclusively for a bare leg, this skirt is not one of them. It looks fab with tights or without them. I’ve worn it in Paris, London, and up north. Truly a top tier piece.
• Black voluminous skirt that I made. I’ve realised that fortunately because of my body shape, volume is a silhouette that I can pull off. And that I really like. I made this skirt for my graduation in 2022, and it’s been in constant rotation since. This was my sister’s contribution to the list, but she wasn’t wrong. I kind of want to make another one that’s longer; this year there were times I pulled it to wear but didn’t have the right shoes for the weather conditions. If the skirt was longer, I wouldn’t have to worry about a rogue legging peeking out when I didn’t want it, or have to wear tights when I didn’t want to. Upon reflection, I need to get more bottoms in colours, it’s not everyday black!
• The Zara dark wash jeans that I spoke about last year are still going extremely strong… maybe too strong. They’re possibly my most worn item in the whole wardrobe, but I’m currently on a quest to replace them because they’re running out of steam. I originally got them in a size 12, and it’s starting to show. I mean, I more often than not have to wear a BELT! A BELT (I don’t like wearing belts for function, only for fashion)!! All of these dramatics to say they simply don’t bounce back the same way when washed, it’s all a travesty. Kind of like watching your favourite fish get older and older, knowing that each day draws closer to the inevitable moment of their flushing down the toilet.
• Kika Vargas coat. THIS COAT… major slay. A gift unlike any other. I got it from one of my friends for my birthday a couple of years ago, and 2024 was really the year it shined. It’s cute, it’s warm, even if the sleeves are slightly shorter than I prefer. My silver lining is that the sleeve length perfectly shows off my wrist stacks.

Shoes – this was such a shoe year it’s honestly a bit mortifying to count the number of new shoes I had delivered to my house in 2024. Let’s just say that the boxes have migrated from the wardrobe to the floor outside the wardrobe… That being said, it was a great year for my shoe collection:

• The Sculptural Miu Mius. What an iconic shoe. A collector’s shoe. A shoe I will never part with. I can’t say anything more than that, but I got them for a STEAL from the loveliest woman that was downsizing. I would say they’re a perfect date heel — great height (makes sure men don’t lie about their height), cool detail, make my legs look super long with the right tight, but still comfortable — but I have no dates to confirm that.
• Black Gucci sandals. I find Gucci heels are amongst the most comfortable without fail, with or without a platform. These are a simple black heel, with a 10cm skinny-ish heel, but still totally walkable in the streets of London. A perfect all rounder sandal, they go with jeans, skirts, dresses, or whatever else humans wear.
• Valentino Sparkly flats. I got these for Christmas in 2023, and it started my evolution into being a flat wearer. I now have five pairs? Six pairs? Seven pairs? God only knows, all I know is that it increased from 0 this time last year to almost ten (I hope not more than ten… erm anyways). And I wear them! I realised this year I’m not really a sneaker girl, which is a shame considering the amount of money I’ve spent on the trainers I have. But we live, laugh, love.

Jewellery – having declared myself a jewellery babe at the end of 2023, I had high expectations to rise to. And rise to them, I did. Accessorising my outfits has become the part I most look forward to now, and I can’t wait to invest in more COOL jewellery in 2025.

• Paloma Wool earrings. Another one of my friends got me these for Christmas 2023, and though they’re very extravagant, I love them. I’ve actually worn them more than I thought I would. My only qualm is that these huge earrings are made of silk, and so a bit of my makeup is on them. How does one wash an earring??? In the machine? At the dry cleaners??
• T necklace. This was yet another Christmas gift. It’s gold, and I genuinely think that receiving this was the biggest catalyst for me in truly embracing mixed metals as an everyday look. I think I want to get a different chain for it this year that will make it slightly longer, so it can be reintroduced into my everyday necklace stack in 2025.
• Chloe quad ring. This was an impulse purchase (spontaneously purchased by my mother for me), but it’s what I mean when I say I want pieces in my wardrobe. This ring takes up all four of my fingers, and it makes a real statement.
• Le Hato (I think that’s the brand name, I never remember) layered necklace. 8/10 times, if I left my house in 2024, I was wearing this necklace. You’d think that with that comes remembering the name of the people who made it, but I live to subvert expectations. This necklace is so convenient, and when I’m in a rush, it’s a sure fire way of making sure I’m adequately bejewelled. I don’t foresee this being rotated out any time soon, having stolen it from my mother’s collection, it’s made its way into mine, permanently x

I’m going to put pictures of all things mentioned here. Surprisingly, I had photos of every single thing, even some double features!

Next is food. I’ve had some pretty good food this year, but in the name of gatekeeping (which you’ll know I’m putting more into practice if you read my last blog post), I will only give you two spots that I loved this year.

• 50 Cheyne. If you’re looking for a good, filling (emphasis on filling) roast, look no further than 50 (Fifty) Cheyne. It’s in Chelsea, and for the portion sizes, it’s pretty reasonably priced. I’m not going to lie to you and say it’s cheap, but reasonable is the word. They also have the cutest teacups. I went as a party of four, and between us, we only got two full roasts. If you’re going with a man, maybe get one solely for him, before he eats all the good parts and leaves you with scraps like a dog.
• Kiln. I’ve been here twice this year, once with a friend who was visiting from high school, and the other with my brother. Kiln is my type of place because it’s casual enough to just pop in as a solo diner (something I love to do), but it’s also the right vibe for a date – romantically or platonically. They don’t take reservations, so it’s all about getting there at the right time.

I will supplement the top two with my favourite recipes I made at home, though. Out of the kindness of my heart.

• Roast veg salad. I love a warm salad. I have started liking colder salads a bit more this year, which is growth, but they’ll never replace the love I have for a warm salad. Every time I made this salad, I added chicken, but you can add your protein of choice (I literally had this same salad yesterday with salmon — delish). I also always put trader joe’s sesame dressing on it.
• Earl Grey cake. This was my cake of mastery in 2024. I might need to make a whole other post about this cake, because multiple people throughout the year have asked for the recipe.

Last roundup’s skills and risks still apply. I’ve baked more this year than I ever have, though I played backgammon less than usual 😦

I will say that OLTIMEYA is coming back this month, though. It’ll be on here, so watch the space.

To bigger and better in 2025. I pray this year is full of joy for every single one of you reading this.

That’s all.