look back but move forward | march 2025
MARCH-ing on to spring, finding peace in crafting and thrifting, & binge watching tv shows
At the beginning of the month, I expected to wear lighter coats and skirts without tights. Instead, on March 28th, I checked the weather for this week, and saw my city expecting snow. On March 29th, a snowstorm! No worries. As a born and raised Canadian, I’m used to snowy days during spring… sort of used to it.
view a clearer image of the visual here!
March felt slow but optimistically entertaining. I had some fun events to look forward to: my mom’s birthday, one of my best friends being back in town, and attending a hockey game to watch my favourite hockey team! Usually, the beginning of spring means spring cleaning for me, and while I’ve been sorting through my belongings and finding ways to clean my space, I’ve also been window shopping so much, whether online or at the mall. Lately, I’ve been eyeing so many UNIQLO pieces, and I treated myself to a couple of new items, adding them to my timeless, essential wardrobe. I’ve also been super into thrifting recently! There was recently a pop-up thrift store in my city, and I came out with a cream Ralph Lauren crewneck for only $10. I’m hoping I get some more luck when it comes to thrifting. For the longest time, I’ve been researching and looking for the perfect, timeless shoulder bag, but if I find the shape, size, and colour I’m looking for at a thrift store, that would be a dream!
In terms of beauty, I impulsively bought the Isntree Onion Newpair Gel Cream from T&T because it was on clearance. Even though my skin is a combination type, leaning more on the oily side, my skin has gotten used to thicker, more hydrating lotions, so it was a change in pace with this new gel cream as it dries down faster. I’ve only started incorporating it into my skincare routine as a day cream, but I’m excited to see how it works! My friend got me a Judydoll Watery Essence Lip Gloss and I absolutely love it! She gifted me the 04 Berry Ice shade, the perfect berry mauve shade that looks incredible with my skin tone (I think!). What I love most about it is the metal applicator. The gloss has a subtle, sweet, berry scent, and it’s so cooling. I’m obsessed with the feeling of the applicator on my lips—it’s quite refreshing!
This month, I delved more into my crafty side. I tried upcycling some old jeans into a denim skirt. Although it’s taking longer than expected because I’ve been going through a series of trial and error, I will eventually finish them and hopefully wear them out when the weather gets warmer. My sister also gave me a bunch of diamond painting kits, and I’ve been working on a diamond painting while binge-watching shows. One Netflix show I finished in one night was Adolescence. What. A. Show. With four episodes to this limited series, Adolescence discusses the warnings of young boys and their exposure to the manosphere, violence against women, and other themes that make the show worth watching to uncover. This series is based on several true events, which are necessary to know, but eerie and devastating once you’ve finished the last episode.
Another series I’m currently watching—rewatching—is none other than Criminal Minds. If there’s one thing that remains consistent throughout my life, it’s a Criminal Minds rewatch. Despite the show’s very triggering and violent themes, based on how many times I’ve seen each episode, something is comforting and formulaic about the show. I don’t have to actually watch the episodes as I’ve basically remembered each scene, so it’s some entertaining background noise while I focus on my diamond painting activity.
Because I’ve been watching more shows, I read fewer books than usual this month. I finished Just Last Night by Mhari McFarlane at the beginning of March, and it definitely took an unexpected turn. I expected a lighthearted romance going into it, so I was pleasantly surprised to see how gutwrenching it became as we explore grief, loss, and bereavement through Eve, the main character. It was quite authentic even though I had not (thankfully) ever lived through the same experiences as Eve. McFarlane’s writing is unique—she uses a level of wit in her language which makes her work very refreshing despite the nature of the story.
Soon after, I read The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston. I have seen this book absolutely everywhere, and finally, my Libby loan came. I finished it in a few days and can’t stop thinking about the story. Clementine, the main character, inherits her late aunt’s magical apartment, which can travel through time at any given moment. Suddenly, Clementine finds someone in her apartment, and the plot goes from there! Something about the connection between time and love makes my heart swoon. Not only did my heart swoon, but I kept getting hungry with all the food mentioned throughout the book. When you read this, be prepared with a snack by your side.
I took a slight reading break after The Seven Year Slip, but around halfway through the month, I picked up another book on Libby: The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak. A pretty strong shift from the romance novels. My reading experience with this book was odd. The beginning was so boring that it took me about a week to get through the first third of the book, but heading into the second half, I was so captivated and enthralled by the story that I ended up finishing the book in one sitting. It’s a fairly fast-paced thriller, although I’ve read more fast-paced novels than this. That said, there were definitely some twists that I was shocked about, making the thriller a lot more dramatic.
While I’ve been consuming a lot (a lot a lot a lot) of media and doing a lot (a lot a lot a lot) of shopping in March, I must say that there’s joy in having a routine, even if it’s a very quick one. I recently bought myself some matcha powder from Midori Spring, and I’ve been making myself a matcha latte nearly every day. Hot, iced, with raspberry jam or no jam, any milk I have available, in any cup I have at home. Waking up and making myself a cup of matcha has been therapeutic, and the taste of matcha makes me so happy—it makes me excited for the next time I’ll get to make myself another drink.
Moving forward to April:
It’s my birthday month!!! And honestly, this year, I’m a little nervous about turning a year older. I feel like time goes by so insanely fast, and I just want time to freeze to catch up with life. Have any of you ever felt this way? However, I’m trying my best to look forward to my birthday. How do you guys treat yourselves on your birthdays? I would love to know!
It’ll be my third anniversary with my boyfriend around mid-April, and I’m so incredibly excited to celebrate the special day with him.
That’s it for March! Hope you all had a nice one <3
with love,
ml
LOVE this!! 🫶🏻