Forget new year’s resolutions, we’re going with new year moments of joy. This is what THE GLOSS team is looking forward to the most in 2022.

Main image: Instagram @kdksisters.

Image: Instagram @gracevanpatten.

It would be easy to give ourselves a hall pass this year and dismiss any idea of new year’s resolutions. Life has been hard enough lately without piling on the unnecessary stress and self-restraint required to stick to goals in the dark days of January. However, I think re-framing the traditional notion that resolution equals restriction is a good place to start, so I’m making resolutions that actually mean being nicer to myself. 

I’m starting with a branch of self-care I often overlook. After having pretty good skin for most of my life, over the past year or two I’ve started experiencing redness and sensitivity. Probably not unusual given the state of flux our lives have been in, but instead of ignoring the root cause and trying to mask it with all manner of cooling serums and anti-redness moisturisers, my first resolution is to try and get to the bottom of it – and take better care of my skin. I recently went to South William Street Clinic & Spa for a facial from the fabulous Hayley, and it’s something I plan to keep up throughout the year. It’s one of the greatest gifts you can give to yourself, so finding the problem and the solution to my skin issues is a priority this year, plus it doubles as a stress-releasing activity so it’s a win-win.

Along with my skin journey and self-care treatments I’m going to spend more time on my friendships, one-on-one. 2020 was a blur of irregular group get-togethers whenever restrictions allowed, but I miss the deeper conversations and connection you get when you spend time alone with a friend you love. For those living abroad I’ll make more of an effort to keep in touch, avoiding the loop of back and forth missed calls from different time zones.

Finally, I am also signing up for a twelve week course of F45 in the lead up to my best friend’s wedding – and I’m almost regretting typing that out here because it means I definitely have to stick to it now!

Instagram @arthurparkinson_.

Inspired by Instagram florist and small-scale garden guru Arthur Parkinson, I have been stockpiling magazines and plant catalogues to peruse over the Christmas holidays. When planning a garden, Parkinson recommends cutting up catalogues to help decide on a colour scheme and a wish-list of flowers. He then plots the garden with circles representing all his various pots. Rather than planting haphazardly, I hope this creative exercise might give some coherence to my miniature patio garden in 2022, though I won’t be installing hens like Arthur!

Other things I am looking forward to include the Baz Luhrmann biopic Elvis, due for release on June 24. It stars Austin Butler in the titular role with Tom Hanks as Colonel Tom Parker and Olivia DeJonge as Priscilla Presley. If it’s anything like Luhrmann’s Romeo & Juliet, then this is destined to be a huge hit. I’m not ashamed to say I’m also looking forward to Top Gun: Maverick –  the sequel to the 1986 film, the script of which I have more or less committed to memory. I look forward to seeing how the dynamic between Tom Cruise and Val Kilmer (aka Maverick and Iceman) develops. Ed Harris, Jennifer Connelly and John Hamm are also starring in the film. 

After a lacklustre autumn of reading – more my wavering attention span than the quality of books I’ve picked up – I’m looking forward to getting into some new titles by favourite authors. Anne Tyler’s new novel French Braid is a family saga which begins with a holiday to a lakeside cabin. Reputation by Sarah Vaughan is the follow up to her excellent Anatomy Of A Scandal. Nina Stibbe’s new book One Day I Shall Astonish The World promises to be uplifting, while I’m interested to see how realistic Daisy Buchanan’s Careering really is. It’s described as a dark comedy, set in the magazine world. One book I’m pre-ordering is Tina Brown’s The Palace Papers: Inside the House of Windsor. Even though I am at saturation point with so-called insider information on the royals, if this book matches Brown’s The Diana Chronicles, then it will be the definitive biography of the British monarchy. 

As for travel, I look forward to returning to some familiar haunts – most notably the pretty villages of Gassin and Ramatuelle, on the outskirts of St Tropez. Ordering a grand crème and a pain aux raisins while enjoying the view is my idea of bliss right now. 

Instagram @hn_vip_dublin.

I feel that the only way to approach 2022 is to plan good things and hope for the best. An occasional facial can be restoring and uplifting, and supports beauty therapists (book now for expert Sarah Chapman facials early next year at Harvey Nichols, Dundrum, with Sinead O’Connor – in store facials aren’t always the best, but I highly recommend these, which are redeemable against product). Currently, I’m most looking forward to small normal pleasures returning, such as spending weekends with friends and family from outside Ireland. In the meantime, I’m stocking up on vitamin D (Irish company Somega’s spray supplements are the easiest to take) in lieu of any sunshine, and trying to move as much as possible, whether icy swims or online classes. And taking comfort that, while Succession may be over, Peaky Blinders is returning early next year …. 

Instagram @kdksisters.

In the spirit of ‘new year, new me’, I’m looking forward to focusing on my sleep for 2022. I’m going to concentrate less on the usual annual exercise goals (other than the daily dog walk) and turn up the volume on getting my eight hours. I’m going to attempt to ditch reading emails, checking daily Covid-19 figures and generally scrolling screens as soon as I wake. Instead, I’ll try nightly CBD oil drops (get them at Hempcompany.ie, sleepcasts, calming apps (I like the sound of Headspace), silk pillowcases (I love KDK), new linen sheets from Stable of Ireland and, generally, all those things smart people have been doing for years.