special costumes: What I Got For Christmas 2014

Hi everyone! I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas. I loved every minute of it although I can't quite believe its all over for another year. There's always such a build up to that one day and then its over in what feels like the blink of an eye. Boo! However, one thing I have been enjoying over the past couple of days is reading everyones 'what I got for Christmas' posts. I know some people don't like them but for me personally, I love being nosy and seeing what other people got as it gives me ideas for things I can hunt out in the January sales.

I've done one of these posts for the past couple of years now and they're always very popular so I thought I'd keep up the tradition and do another one this year. As always, I just want to say I'm by no means bragging by writing this post and I'm very grateful for all the lovely gifts I received. I do have a big family and a boyfriend/his family who also buy for me so please bare that in mind too.

Also, as these were gifts, I'm not going to include links to everything as I usually would in blog posts as I don't feel comfortable going online to find out the price of gifts I received. However, as I did pick some of the below myself and already know the price, I'll pop links to those where I can. So now that little disclaimer is out of the way, here's the lovely gifts I received this year ...

iMac Computer

Yes I know, what an amazing gift! My boyfriend and I said we were 'sticking to a budget' this year and although we usually do always get a bit carried away with ourselves, never in a million years did I expect to receive such a generous gift. I'd been complaining about to my boyfriend about our current laptop for months as it was taking me such a long time to edit blog photos and would constantly get jammed which would result in me having to turn the whole thing off and on repeatedly. Not ideal! I was actually planning to get myself a new laptop or IMac in the new year and pay it off monthly but my lovely boyfriend beat me to it! I actually shed a tear when I saw it as it will make blogging 10x easier for me and I was just blown away by how thoughtful he'd been. Thank you Matt!

Beauty Products

As a beauty blogger, you can image how excited I get when some of my favourite brands release stunning limited edition collections or new products at this time of year. Although I do have a LOT of beauty products already, Christmas is always a great excuse for me to add some new bits and bobs to my wish list. This year I was lucky enough to receive two items from the NARS Christmas collection - the Virtual Domination cheek palette and Digital World lip pencil set and both are absolutely gorgeous! I also received the new Urban Decay Naked On The Run palette and Naked Illuminated Powder as well as MAC Brave lipstick and Soar lip liner (total Kylie Jenner combo). I also got some super cute Ted Baker beauty bits and some new lash curlers! Expect full reviews on these goodies very soon!

Lush Christmas Bathtime Favourites Gift Set

As I've previously mentioned on my blog, I've become a huge fan of Lush products in recent months so I was chuffed to bits to receive this bath time favourites gift set from my sister! It includes a mixture of 10 bath bombs - some of Lush's bestsellers and some festive ones such as Father Christmas too! What a great excuse to relax in the bath!

Breville Blend Active (Link)

As the iMac from my boyfriend was a total surprise, we'd already picked a few presents off each other within the budget we'd set and one of the things I chose was this Breville Blend Active blender. I've always wanted a smoothie maker but it isn't something I'd buy for myself so I thought Christmas was a great time to get one, especially as I'll be wanting to get back to eating healthily in the new year. I originally wanted to get the NutriBullet but its heft price tag always put me off so when I heard about the Breville Blend Active, which is virtually the same with its blend and go design, I knew I had to give it a try. I'll report back on this and let you know how I get on with it!

Bath & Body / Fragrance Bits

Again, as a beauty blogger, my family know they can't go too far wrong with anything that I can pamper myself with! My boyriends mum and dad got me this gorgeous Molton Brown gift set in the scent Rhubard & Rose (so yummy!) and my nanna bought the the Yohji Yamamoto 'Her Love Story' perfume (currently on sale here) which has fast become my new favourite. I actually picked this myself as I fell in love with it after receiving a sample in an online order. When we went to buy it from Selfridges, the girl who served us said its a bit of a hidden gem so be sure to have a sniff next time you're passing by! My auntie bought me one of the Next perfumes which smells amazing and is ideal for popping in my handbag or taking on a night out! All the other bits and pieces photographed here were stocking fillers from my mum - two Nspa gift sets, a gorgeous soap, a nivea lip balm set and a cut Next Cashmere set which came with a mini candle, body lotion and roll on perfume.

Candles

I'm a complete candle addict and most of my family know it so I've been well and truly stocked up on new candles to pop around my flat! The three round tin candles were in my stocking from my mum and they all smell absolutely gorgeous. They're all from Matalan and are relatively cheap so I'd recommend checking those out if you're a candle fan. The little Wax Lyrical candle in the scent 'soft cotton' was from my Nanna as she knows how much I love fresh cotton / linen scents and the Bayliss and Harding candle is from my boyfriends mum and dad and again, it smells gorgeous! I can't wait to start burning them all.

Next boots

My main present from my mum this year are these gorgeous thigh high boots from Next. I'm really into over the knee boots at the moment as they're ideal for throwing on with a pair of jeans and a jumper or with a shift dress! I love these ones as they only have a small heel so they're great for every day wear! I imagine I'll be getting a lot of wear out of these over the next few months!

Black Ankle Boots (Link)

These were another present from my boyfriend as all of my black ankle boots are falling apart as I live in them at this time of year. I actually got these from work so with my staff discount they were super cheap! Again, I'll be getting lots of wear out of these over the next few months as they'll go with any outfit!

Accessories

My mum knows how much I love Matalan's accessories so she always gets me some gorgeous bits to go in my stocking as they're really affordable but look pretty identical to the kind of stuff you'd find it Topshop! She got me a gorgeous black clutch which I plan to use on New Year's Eve, a black statement necklace, a dainty gold coins necklace and a black choker. I love them all! The stunning Swarovski bracelet is from my two little brothers and I love it. Its quite a statement piece so not something I'd wear every day but for an evening out, it'll look fab!

Dvds, Katie Piper Book & Diary

I always get dvd's in my stocking and this year I got Begin Again, Date Night, Dodgeball and The Great Gatsby (hello Leo)! I can't wait to have some cosy nights in watching those. I also got Katie Piper's book 'Beautiful Ever After' which I'm very excited to read it. Katie is such an inspirational girl who has been through so much so it'll be a really interesting read. I also got a new 2015 diary - I love the pretty purple and pink floral print!

PJ's, Underwear & Slippers

If you knew me personally, you'd know that one of my favourite things in life is being cosy. Yes, I am a bit of a grandma but I just love snuggling up in a pair of pyjamas, slippers and my dressing gown! With this being said, I was chuffed to bits to receive some new pj's, slipper boots and cosy socks. I also received a new dressing gown from my auntie but it was too big and bulky to photograph! Something less grannyish is the stunning underwear set I received in my stocking - how pretty is that nude and grey colour combo?

Clothes

I was lucky enough to receive a selection of clothes this year - some of which I'd picked myself and other bits I wasn't expecting. I got some black Topshop Jamie jeans, a sparkly dress from AX Paris which is a contender for New Year's Eve, a cute tartan shift dress, a cropped jumper from AX Paris and a big slouchy cable knit jumper from H&M. I also got a checked shirt which I didn't photograph as its always been worn! My boyfriend and mum did good!

Hair Gift Sets

My mum bought me two lovely hair gift sets this year - John Freida 'For the Blonde Bombshell' which contains cute little minis for blondes and the Loreal Elnett 'Handbag Essentials' set which contains two mini hairsprays and a Loreal Telescopic mascara. Lovely!

Champagne, Sweets & Chocolates

Well, Christmas wouldn't be complete without these, would it? I can't wait to pop open the champagne on NYE!

As you can see, I received so many lovely gifts and feel like the luckiest gift in the world. My boyfriends brother also got us a gift card for the Alchemist bar and restaurant in Manchester so my boyfriend and I can enjoy a night out together. That should certainly help with the January blues!

What did you get for Christmas? Do you have any of these products?

Lots of love,