Hello Everyone! Happy New Year! I cannot believe Christmas was already 2 weeks ago?!?

2021 was certainly one of ups and downs, but I'm so grateful that this year I was able to spend the festive period with close friends and family around me.

'What I got for Christmas' haul videos & blog posts remain a guilty pleasure of mine, so although I fully believe that it is the people surrounding the tree at Christmas that matter the most, not the presents under it, I always love looking back on these posts for future gifting inspiration so thought that I'd continue my annual tradition...

At 25, I am at the age where I am quite content with what I have and struggle to find ideas to add to a 'christmas list'. That said, there were a couple of items that I had my eye on this year, the main one being an activewear set from Tala. I'd received a pair of the Tala Skinluxe leggings last Christmas and loved them, so after lusting over the range, had asked for a Sports Bra and Leggings in the Tornada Grey shade.

I'm a lover of gin, so I was made up when I received a couple of bottles of pink gin and new gin glass. My chocoholic tendencies were also evident in the copious amount of chocolate I received, namely in the form of Kinder Bueno & Lindor, and a gingerbread making kit!

Socks and Christmas are a classic festive pairing, and perhaps I’m showing my age when I say that getting socks for Christmas now excites me! Fortunately for me, I was lucky enough receive a pair of socks carefully disguised in a donut shape (thank you Secret Santa!), and a set of Dachshund themed socks to add to my stash. 

I'm a lover of experience gifts, so the very thoughtful birthday gift from my boyfriend of a scratch off bucket list has given us a multitude of ideas for day trips & staycations in 2022. We spent some time between Christmas and New Year scratching off the places we'd visited together, and making a list. He also treated me to the 'Escape from the Grand Hotel' game. Much like a murder mystery and escape room combined, this 90 minute game made for a perfect NYE set up.

Christmas always proves to be the prime opportunity to replenish my skincare , makeup and body care stash, and this year was no exception. I was kindly treated to the mega Soap & Glory set, Soap & Glory cleanser, Liz Earle Moisturiser, as well as bodycare bits from Ted Baker and cute star tin filled with L’Occitane minis. I’m pleased to now be able to add a Wild deodorant into my daily routine.

Next up, I was very luckily given a number of room scents in the form of wax melt burners and room diffusers. I had been desperate to try an electric room diffuser, and this Christmas and birthday I received two! I’ve started out with a ‘12 Days of Christmas’ festive oil that smells much like mulled wine, and look forward to adding to my scent library over the coming months.

Adding to my makeup collection, I was treated to a Barry M makeup and nail polish kit (thank you Secret Santa), spoilt with the Iconic makeup kit (complete with my holy-grail illuminators), as well as a new set of Eono eyeshadow brushes that will be the perfect tools to help me to experiment with more eyeshadow looks for the new year.

I look forward to smelling extra lovely with the three new perfumes I was treated to. YSL Black Opium & Jean Paul Gautier Scandal were old favourites of mine, whilst YSL Libre was one I’d been dying to try. Luckily for me, the YSL perfume set came with the added extra of a mascara and lipstick mini to try too. 

So that's all for my 24th Birthday and Christmas Haul. I am incredibly grateful and humbled by the generosity of my friends and family.

Check out my past Christmas Hauls;