January Wrap Up (Decorating, Shopping and More!)
Happy weekend and welcome to the Saturday Spotlight! This week, I’m sharing a January wrap up of things that didn’t make the blog during the month. From winter decorating to books, shopping and more, I hope to inspire you with my look back at the month of January!
*For your convenience, please note that this post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase after clicking my links below, I will receive a small commission (at no additional cost to you).
January Wrap Up:
Jumping on the 2016 vs 2026 trend…
Lately on social media, people have been sharing photos comparing 2016 to 2026. And…since we just had a huge snowstorm last week, I thought I’d share some photos to compare it to a big storm of 2016. Back in late January of 2016, “Snowzilla” hit the northeast and dumped 28 inches of snow here in New Jersey! During the storm, we borrowed our neighbor’s snow blower to make a path to the mailbox. As you can see, our darling Rosie was loving it. (I miss that girl so much!) This January, we only got about 13 inches of snow from the storm called Fern!
For fun, I thought I’d also take a look back at some decorating pictures from 2016. At that time, we had just renovated our kitchen and I was in the process of “auditioning” counter stools. Even though I don’t have a photo of the exact angle of the room, you can see that I’ve done a lot more styling in 2026. For more photos of my winter table and kitchen, read – Winter White Table Setting.
Wood burning fire on a cold winter day…
This January, we’ve already made a couple fires in our fireplace. Even though I love the ambiance that a roaring fire adds to the room, I don’t love buying wood or cleaning the soot. One of these days, we might convert our fireplace to gas. Apparently, it’s fairly easy to do and I think we’d use it a lot more then. We’ll see….If you’ve converted from wood to gas, please feel free to leave me a comment below! While I’m deciding, I’d love to hear some pros and cons.
January – New Year/New Ideas:
Recently, I visited Pottery Barn for some decorating inspiration…
With Valentine’s Day around the corner, there were plenty of gorgeous table decorations to choose from. From the silver pieces to the pretty and pink items, their LoveShackFancy collection is so charming.
They’ve also started displaying some spring merchandise, like these gorgeous bedroom items! Now that January is ending, I’m already feeling ready for spring!
January Wrap Up – Recent Reads:
In January, I read two books…
To begin the year, I read a very popular book, My Friends by Fredrik Backman. It’s a heartwarming story that shifts between past and present to reveal how friendship changed the lives of four teenagers. At first, I thought the book moved a little slow but I ended up loving how the sweet and simple story evolved.
Another book you’ve probably heard of is Theo of Golden by Allen Levi. Yes, it lives up to the hype! Theo of Golden is such a special story about kindness and human connection. Not only was the book thoughtful and beautifully written but it will inspire you to be a better person. There needs to be more Theos in the world!
January Wrap Up – Favorite Winter Recipe:
My homemade chicken soup…
This January, I’ve been in my flu-avoidance mode! Doesn’t it seem like everyone is sick these days? Well, as a major hypochondriac, I don’t take any chances. Besides, taking extra vitamins and avoiding large gatherings, I make chicken soup every week! For my recipe, see below…
Simple Chicken Soup:
Ingredients:
- 2 large bone-in chicken breasts
- 2-3 Tbs olive oil
- 4 celery ribs
- 4-6 carrots (or 1 bag of baby carrots)
- 1 large onion (sweet or Vidalia)
- 4 cloves garlic
- 6-8 cups chicken broth
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 bay leaf
- 1 bag spinach
- 1/2 box elbow pasta (or egg noodles)
Directions:
- Dice vegetables and slice garlic.
- Saute veggies in pot with olive oil over medium heat (about 2-3 minutes).
- Add garlic, salt and pepper and cook about 2 minutes (add more olive oil if needed).
- Add chicken breasts, broth and bay leaf.
- Bring to a boil.
- Cover pot and simmer for 1 hour.
- Meanwhile, cook pasta/noodles as directed in another pot.
- Remove chicken (once temperature reaches 165 degrees) and shred (or cut in cubes).
- Remove bay leaf, add spinach to broth and cook about 2-3 minutes.
- Add chicken back in before serving.
- Add pasta/noodles to each bowl before serving. (I keep them separate when cooking because they soak up the liquid).
Substitutions:
- To skip a step, buy a pre-cooked rotisserie chicken.
Shopping Finds to Wrap Up January:
Besides the Pottery Barn items above, here are some more winter finds…
To add some coziness to your fireplace hearth, this stoneware crock is beautiful and functional!
If your bedroom isn’t warm enough on these cold winter nights, add a down comforter! (We just bought this highly rated one for my son and he loves it!)
For those of you planning a Valentine (or Galentine) celebration, these scalloped heart serving pieces will add a special touch!
For more January and winter inspiration, here are some ideas from around the internet:
Decorating, DIY projects…
- If you love winter whites, you’ll love this cozy winter kitchen tour!
- For a Valentine DIY project, here are 2 ways to make beautiful heart wreaths!
- To even more Valentine ideas, here are some lovely door decorations!
More decorating ideas to take you from January to February…
What does your January wrap-up look like?
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