Christmas Presents

I can't believe it's already been four days since Christmas. I hate how long it takes to get here, and hate how quickly it passes even more.  This year I was extremely spoiled by my family and got some great gifts, so I wanted to show you a selection of them.  Earlier this year, my Mum and Dad bought me tickets to see Girls Aloud on tour next year, which was a Christmas present, so I wasn't expecting to be getting much at all but they still bought me lots of amazing things!  This is by no means a bragging post, I enjoy reading these as I'm pretty nosey and I know some of you are the same! 

 I love receiving box sets at Christmas as I think they are just a great gift. This year I got the complete set of Laguna Beach, The Hills and The City which I've already begun watching from the beginning.  Running along the Lauren Conrad theme, I also got her latest book 'Beauty', which I've had a quick flick through and it looks interesting and a large curling iron to try and imitate LC's hair.  I got a couple of Cath Kidston tech cases, one for my iPhone and another for my iPad as well as some trusty Snow Fairy.  Another box set to add to my ever growing collection is The Vampire Diaries season three - I've completely shifted to Team Delena.  I also got some Soap and Glory goodies.  My parent's bought me the 'Showers that Glee' set and I loved it so much that I decided to use some of my Christmas money to get more.  I picked up the 'Best of All' set which was originally £60 but in the Boot's sale I managed to get it for £27 - bargain! My brother and his wife got me some Vans as my converse are looking a bit worse for wear - shame the weather has been so disgusting, I haven't been able to wear them out yet! 

What was your favourite Christmas present?

Christmas Gift Guide | £25 and Under

It's that time of the year once again and some of you might be wondering what on earth you're going to buy for your loved ones.  While some may argue that it's easier to buy for girls than boys, all that choice can sometimes be overwhelming.  I've compiled the best gifts for her for £25 and under.  

1. Benefit Sexy Little Stowaway Gift Set - £25; Boots: Benefit is one of my favourite brands but can be a bit pricey when it comes to buying individual products. Incidentally, they always bring out some of the best gift sets and this is no exception. In this set you get 10 of their best selling products, perfect for the make up obsessed girl.

  

2. Ciate Caviar Mini Bar - £20; ASOS: Nail lovers rejoice, Ciate have released a Caviar mini bar which includes some of their caviar beads, as well as polishes that you can wear alone or with the beads.  A great gift for those who like nail art or just enjoy giving themselves a manicure.  

3. iPhone 5 Cases - £24.95; Cath Kidston and Joules: I for one have been waiting for brands to release their iPhone 5 cases since I got mine back in September.  Finally Cath Kidston have released their range just in time for Christmas. If you fancy something different to Cath Kidston, try Joules floral offering. They also have cases with a dog and striped print if she's not so keen on floral prints.  

4. Stila Limited Edition Long Wear Liquid Lip Set - £25; ASOS: Stila always bring out some great sets for Christmas.  This quartet gives you a mixture of nude and bright lip colours to fit any mood.  They also have eyeliner and lip glaze offerings for £25 and under.  

5. Coffee Table Reads: The Lady who was Beautiful Inside (£6) and 50 Shoes that Changed the World (£9); Amazon: I would never say no to a pretty coffee table book. 50 Shoes that Changed the World  is perfect if you can't quite afford Louboutins or Jimmy Choo's.  The Lady who was Beautiful Inside is described as a charming portrait of an amazing woman who turned Winter into Spring. These would also make good stocking fillers.  

6. Lindt Lindor Maxi Ball - £14.99; Ocado: Heaven in a Lindor shaped ball for chocolate lovers, need I say more?  I bought one of these for my Sister-in-law last year and it went down a treat (literally).  

What was your favourite gift you received at Christmas?

Kitschycoo.

I hope you've all enjoyed the sun over the weekend, I've been stuck inside Tesco for the majority but got out in the sun as much as possible.  I'm one of the many millions that adore Cath Kidston and I've been after some of their bedsheets for a while, but when you're a student, you can't always justify 60 quid to sleep in.  One of the perks of my job is that I get 10% off everything instore (apart from petrol etc) so when I saw some gorgeous Cath like bedsheets at £16.00 (£14.40 lesser discount), I jumped and bought myself some.  

How cute are they?

I also blitzed my room when I got home from work, it wasn't as untidy as it could have been but it needed a spring clean.  I now want to invest in some floral padded hangers to hang some of my favourite clothes from around my room.  

I'm now going to go give myself a manicure but i'm unsure whether to paint them Raspberry or Indigo? 

What's in the Chiltern?

I've seen a few of these blogs around and decided to add to it - I think it speaks a lot for your personality what you covet in your handbag.  

Meet Chiltern - I adore her, she's a classy bird.  The charm on the bag is additional, my best friend bought it for me. 

It has three sections which each has a zipped pocket.  I don't really use the zipped pockets, except for a mirror (which i've forgotten to photograph - ooops)

So in my bag you'll find:

- Clutch purse from Accessorize

- Cath Kidston train pass holder

- iPod Classic 80GB (headphones were in my Macbook)

- Revlon handbag sized hairbrush

- Soap and glory 'Hand Food'

- Vaseline tub in Cocoa 

- Moleskine notepad and pen

- Benefit Boi-Ing in no.1

- MAC satin lipstick in Myth (depends on make up i'm wearing)

- Clinique High Impact mascara

- Limited Edition Ray Ban Wayfarers 

Case closed.  

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So other than this I just wanted to share the new Chanel 'Mademoiselle' Handbag campaign with Gossip Girls notorious bad girl Blake Lively.  I  cooed over these pictures for a good five minutes, she looks incredible, as do the bags.  Well done Lagerfeld.  Enjoy my pretties!

*Thanks to We Can Pretend for the pictures.

Braving the sales...

Next time i'll take a handbag full of bricks to conquer the sales.  Granted, of all places to sale shop, I chose Oxford St, so I only deserved what I got.  I think I went too late, most stuff that was left was either the wrong size, was damaged or looked terrible.  

I managed to get some MAC make up and some nice Cath Kidston accessories though, among other things.  

I'm now the proud owner of Ted Polhemus; Street Style and can't wait to read it.  

Also, I must confess, I am obsessed with DVD boxsets as you can probably tell from the picture...