I was so fortunate this year to be given so many lovely gifts from family and friends ! These are only some of my favourite gifts I received. For me though Christmas isn’t about getting present and I take far more joy from giving ! I would say that Christmas Day is the best day of the year for me. Not only because I enjoy the build-up and festive joy that is continually spread, but for the simple reason that everyone and everything slows down, even if only for a couple of hours.

For an entire day, I hardly looked at my phone, we all sat down for lunch together, a rarity in my house because everyone is always in at different times, and we laughed almost non-stop. I feel so fortunate to have the memories of a lot of wonderful Christmases.

I really love Clinique moisturisers but, being a student I can never really afford to splurge out on their luxury for everyday use. I was so surprised when I opened this gift from my parents because they must have remembered me saying something about Clinique earlier in the year. I was given the Clinique Moisture Surge, Extended Thirst Relief. I haven’t tried this product out before, but i can’t wait to give it a go. It looks so inviting and perfect for January when my skins dried out with the cold weather. Let me know if you’ve used it before and what you think ?

These amazing colourful matches were a gift in my stocking. Especially at this time of year, my mum and I love to fill the room with light from the tree and a few candles. Not only does it make the room feel warmer, but it smells marvellous too. I absolutely love these matches, they are so bright and vibrant and the glass bottle just looks great sat out on my side table.

One of my good friends surprised me with a beautiful song writing journal, which I can’t wait to use ! It’s styled inside so you can not only write out lyrics but the music too. I really love the orange colours on the front against the more classic journal which works really well as a theme.

Anyone who knows me, knows I love hedgehogs ! They’re just so cute and adorable. In fact the best thing I saw on tele over the festive period was a programme called Hedgehog Hotel. It followed the journey of some rescue hedgehogs as they recovered within a garden. It might still be on catch up (ITV) if you want to give it a watch, I highly recommend it. So given my love of hedgehogs, this piping set could not have been better matched. I am so excited to create my masterpiece, although no doubt it will look like the picture. Let me know if you want to see the results.

The little pot of bubbles was one of two I received, strawberry and peach.  I’m not entirely sure what you do with these, but my understanding is that you put some in your drink and they burst with flavour. I think they’re just so fun and different and a great stocking filler, that I’d never seen before.

One of my favourite things to relax or unwind is to bake. For Christmas I was given a couple of cooking books, the first is a recipe book to help plan a Christmas meal, without rushing it all at the last minute. (Do-Ahead Christmas) Not only does it have great tips for Christmas but it also has some lovely recipes that you could use at any time of the year. The second is more of a recipe journal, which I can fill in with my own much loved treats. (A Cake Lovers Recipe Notebook) It’s such a great gift idea, and I plan on filling it up over time with the recipes I use a lot. I bought the Mug Cakes book for a friend for Christmas; however I did love the idea a lot. My mum surprised me with my own copy along with a mug to try out my creations.

The last thing I wanted to share was the main present I got from my parents. I always listen to music or relaxing sounds at night before I go to bed, but as earphones give me a bit of a headache, I usually wear clumpy headphones. These Sleep Phones are going to make such a difference to my night time routine, my head will rest on the pillow peacefully and if I drift off, it won’t matter. I had seen an advert a while back for these, so when I opened them up on Christmas Day I was very excited. They work really well, and are wireless, so I can play something off my phone and control the volume or skip tracks from the headband. It’s also made of fleece so is very comfy !

I hope you all had a lovely Christmas and New Year ! Let me know what you love best about the festive season ?

Love Elisciah X