Happy Monday everyone! Hope you all had a lovely weekend. For today’s usual Monday post, I wanted to do a (chatty) round-up of some things I’ve really been loving these past few weeks. After a busy September, I’ve loved being back in New York for all of October and it’s given me the chance to re-appreciate some of my favourite things and to also find some new ones. So I figured I’d share them with you! I always love seeing what some of my favourite bloggers are currently loving, so hope you’ll enjoy my little round up too…

1. Shopping

Ok so I’ve been doing A LOT of shopping this month, but it’s honestly my favourite time of year for fashion so I’m totally justifying it. I’ve been investing into some key pieces that I’ll have for lots of Autums to come and I’ve also been testing out some new trends too. Always good to switch things up a little & there is just no better feeling than picking out outfits when you have new clothes. I actually posted a huge haul video on my Youtube Channel yesterday if you would like to see what I have been buying.

2. Pilates

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – pilates is SO underrated!! It’s by far my favourite exercise class out there. I just always feel like I’ve done a really good workout after the class while still feeling quite zen – a hard thing to be here in NYC, haha. You’ll know from last week’s post that I’ve been doing a new fitness plan with Paul Sharry and I’ve also been doing 1 pilates class a week on top. I go to the class at Equinox and I just couldn’t recommend them more. Definitely give pilates a go if you haven’t before.

3. Bperfect Tan

Next up on the list is the tan I’ve been reaching for all month. I’ve mentioned before on my snapchat how hard I’ve found it to find a tan that works for my skin tone – a tan that wasn’t too dark/orange but one that just gave me a nice glow. I tried them all and also had quite a lot of brands reach out to me to try their tans but I just never fell fully in love with any of them. There was always something wrong. I’m FUSSY to say the least but I wanted the perfect one. So when the team over at BPerfect got in touch a few weeks ago to ask if I’d like to try their medium coconut tan, I figured I’d give it a go. They said they just knew it would be perfect for my paler skin & actually the main reason I was interested was because the scent of the tan is coconut (my favourite scent in everything) so they had my attention from the get-go. I’ve been wearing the tan all month and I can honestly say I just love it. It’s so quick & easy to apply (dries in quite fast so you have to be quick – but you get used to this), it smells amazing – genuinely!! – and it’s without a doubt the most suited shade of tan to my skin that I’ve ever used. Oh and another big plus: it wears off SO well. I’m hooked. Seeing as it’s now my g0-to tan, I’m so excited to be collaborating with the brand. I’ll be sharing more about it over the next few weeks and if you do try it too definitely let me know what you think?? Whatever your skin tone is (but especially my fellow paler girls), I just know you’ll love this. Feel free to use my code ‘Retro20’ this week to get 20% off on the website :) HERE is the tan.

4. Daily Harvest

This is a new service I’ve been using after seeing it in a vlog by one of my favourite Youtubers, Ashley Brooke. (yes, I get influenced too haha!) It’s basically a company that sends you out little boxes of the correct portion of frozen fruit & veg to be used for making smoothies and soup. It may sound so basic but it is honestly the handiest thing ever for people like me who hate cooking but still want to be healthy. If you’re in New York, give it a go.

5. Power

So Tommy & I finally finished Breaking Bad a few weeks ago and although I swore I wouldn’t get into another series (I get so addicted), well, that promise didn’t last very long. Power is our new addition and wow, it is SO GOOD. Already finished season 1.

6. Miracle Morning

Miracle Morning has been my book this month. I love reading and honestly wish I read even more, but even a few pages a night really keeps me in a positive, focused mindset. If you want to be one of those ‘wakes up at 6am even before you alarm’ kinda people, this is the book for you. It’s been a really interesting read so far.

7. October in New York

….& finally, something I love every single October: being in New York at this time of year. It’s my 4th Autumn in New York (crazy!?) and honestly, this time of year is one of the main reasons I love living here. From the perfect weather to stunning Central Park – I just love everything about it. Everyone in the Upper East Side gets really into Halloween which means lots of decorations so I love strolling around at the weekends. I actually just bought some decorations of my own for the first time ever this weekend (the upper east siders are clearly rubbing off on me, haha!) & I can’t wait to have my own stoop to decorate one day soon. If you’re planning a trip to New York next year, I would 100% recommend coming here at this time of year.

And that’s everything for now! A big mix of things I’ve been loving this month- hope you enjoyed the read.
Have a great week and I’ll see you again tomorrow for a new video!

Erika x

*Big thank you to BPerfect for sponsoring part of this post.