What a season!  I’ve survived four – yes, four – Christmases this year: the first at home with friends, the second at my mother’s, the third at my boyfriend’s parents’ house, and the fourth with my dad.

Yes, I am just that crazy.

My sister and me.  She’s majoring in wildlife conservation. Amazing, right?
(Apparently, ecological consciousness runs in the family.)

Awakened Aesthetic is going to be a little quiet while I recuperate, but I hope to bring you more conscious shopping options, designer profiles, and brazen What About Wednesday posts as 2010 begins.  (I also got a few green presents this year, so I’ll be sure to show those off.)

In the mean time, here are some “recycled” blog posts:

• The vegan shoe series. I was lucky enough to receive a pair of faux leather boots for Christmas, but from what I hear, people are still skeptical of them. These three posts will – hopefully – make you a believer: Vegan Dress Shoes for Men, Vegan Boots for Men and Vegan Boots for Women.
• Exposed: Urban Outfitters. This is the number one post on Awakened Aesthetic, and I can’t wait to have the research under my belt to add more.  Elle from Broke & Beautiful has been on URBN’s ass for years, and tells you exactly how messed-up their practices are here.
• Awakened Alternatives: No More Microbeads. Did you know that your face scrub could be a major contributor to pollution and animal death and mutation?  Those scrubbing bubbles could be doing more harm than good.  (This is a huge thing for me, as my dad’s been a SCUBA instructor for almost forty years.)
• Vicarious By Nature. This is by far my favorite brand to date.  This post features their fall lookbook, as well as links to locations (in person and on the ‘net) where you can buy.
• What About Wednesday: Breast Cancer. An issue close to my heart, breast cancer is often misunderstood and mis-donated to.  If you want to make a difference, don’t buy pink – buy smart (and not just in October).
• Conspicuous Consumption. What is it?  How do we combat it?  This post explains.

As 2010 ramps up, is there anything you’d like to see me focus on at Awakened Aesthetic?