Things I Bought and Returned (TIBAR) | Vol. 11

Board games, red eyeliner, and fun-house mirrors made the list last month.

Welcome to everyone’s favorite monthly installment, Things I Bought and Returned (TIBAR). If you’re a red-blooded American woman, you’re more than likely familiar with the very popular Instagram page, Things I Bought And Liked (TIBAL). This woman—whoever she is because she has somehow remained completely anonymous for years now—has made a living off of buying things, liking them, then sharing what she likes with her audience.

To put a spin on what she does, I send out a monthly TIBAR newsletter highlighting all the things I bought, hated, and sent back. If you’re a new paying member, you now have access to all previous TIBAR letters!

As it happens every December, I bled my own bank account dry buying gifts for the holidays, treating myself to a few things, and saying “fuck it” to blowing my load on festive dinners and events. December is a very high-buy month for me — that is to say, there’s not a whole lot of returning going on. Alas, I do have a short list of letdowns from the last month of 2023, so let’s talk about what those were.