What Santa Left Under My Tree

This year we celebrated Christmas early with my family - two weeks ago in fact - because they were off to the States to spend Christmas there. I blogged about it and you can read all about our early Christmas celebrations here.

I'm In The Dolly Gang

As you all know, I'm a total girlie girl. Anything pretty, pink and/or girlie and it has a magpie like affect on me!

I love things that make me feel really girlie, and if you read my recent post about why I loved growing up in the 90's, then you will know that I've always been this way. When I was little, I always loved Barbie dolls - the epitome of childhood girliness, and anything especially feminine. And just because I've aged, it doesn't mean that's changed - in fact, I embrace my girlie roots more than ever now! I just spend my money on clothes and make-up instead of dolls..

So I'm very happy that I found Dolly Rockin'it on Instagram...

Dolly Rockin'it are the most amazing girlie clothing brand that I've ever found - yep, ever. If you're looking for something that tells the world you love all things girlie then these guys are a brand you want to be checking out!

Their stylish logo adorns all of their items, but the item they are the most well known for is their sweaters. These bad boys are so popular that you have to get in quickly when they're in stock, as they regularly sell out completely and you need to pre-order. That's just how popular they are! I think it's because their signature logo is so girly and appeals to those ladies (like me) who live for this kind of brand.

Their sweaters feature a silhouette Dolly on the front, and on the back, and both have a really cute detachable bow for extra girliness, as well as the logo on the bottom of the back. There is a huge choice of colours to pick from, but obviously mine had to be pink - no brainer. But if you're looking for something else they have grey, blue, black, fuchia and more to choose from, so you can get whatever colour suits you the most. The silhouette style is the same on all colours so you can even invest in one of each!

The sweaters themselves have a really comfortable fit, the lightly elasticated bottom means that the sweater sits nicely on your hips and looks great with jeans. It's also super soft inside, and I can tell you first hand that I hate taking mine off after a day of snuggling away wearing it. The quality is really good as well, and they wash and dry without any problems. Mine is worn quite ofetn - I've even recorded a YouTube video for a charity in mine, and I can be quite tough on my clothes - just the normal day to day activities, but my sweater is lasting really well so it's worth every penny!

The ultimate symbol of girliness, these sweaters are one of my favourite things and I always get compliments when wearing mine. In fact, I've already asked Santa for another one in a different colour, just because I don't think I can have too many..

As well as the sweaters, you can also buy the silhouette bearing Dolly's on bags, hats and dresses. AND if you have a little lady in your life, they sell matching children's sweaters too - so you can match! Such a sweet idea.

So if you're a fan of loungewear, being comfy and looking girlie then make sure you ask Santa to make a stop at Dolly Rockin'it before visiting your house on December 25th!

Follow Dolly Rockin'it:
Website: Dolly Rockin'it
Instagram: dolly_rockin_it
Facebook: Dolly Rockin It

Through My Christmas Keyhole

The day finally arrived...

The day that the tree went up in the house of Lady Writes! *shakes my jingle bells*

I love Christmas. I really love Christmas. It's my favourite time of the year. And I always like to have my tree up and my house decorations ready on/by December 1st. But seeing as that is a Tuesday this year, it meant that we needed to do it today so we were ready for the 1st. I don't know who was more excited - me or my five year old!

Every year when putting the tree up, I must have Christmas music on. It's a rule. I also must have one of my Christmas candles burning, so those are the first things that I unpack when I get everything out of the cupboard. Without these two ingredients, festive mood of the highest level will not be achievable - and where's the fun in that?!

I must admit, this year after having a whole week of being poorly, my patience isn't what it usually is and the tree lights just wouldn't quite go how I wanted them to.. The result was that the whole lot nearly got dropkicked out of the patio door. Note for next year - when putting the tree up, ensure there is wine in the house.

However after a gazillion attempts, I got the lights just right and we cracked on with the baubles. Now. I am one of those women who coordinates her Christmas tree colours to her living room. Yes, I am she. I have no shame in this. However, it took me years to find just the right shades of cream, green and mink/silver baubles to perfectly match my wallpaper. Since I found the perfect colours, I swear I treat those balls with so much care that anyone would think they were small children to be nurtured and protected. I can't have them breaking after it took me years to find just the right ones now can I?!

As much as I love coordinating my tree, I'm not quite ready to banish the festive red and green from my house forever. So we have lots of little bits and pieces in traditional Christmas styles and colours which I group together underneath my feature wall. These are a mixture of things I've made myself and things I've bought over the years - and I love them all, even if they don't match the decor...

Two of my favourites are the large snowman and Santa figures I have which I stand on the table in the lounge. They really don't match anything (which drives me nuts) and they are so big they really aren't practical (especially because their legs extend and they then become the same height as my son) but I bought them at a Christmas fair in London and I love them, so without fail, these guys are always strutting their stuff at Christmas. My little man loves them and they are super sweet...but the table is behind the sofa, so in the evenings I don't have to look at how badly they clash...yes, I'm Christmas OCD okay?! Oh and then there's my Gingerbread shop house light, which looks so cute when lit in the evenings - I love this and at least it matches the snowman!

This year I also wanted to Christmas-up my twiggy tree, which is more of the neutral white/cream shades which matched the tones I have on my feature wall. I keep a matching star on the back of my door at Christmas, which is right next to the twiggy tree, so I bought some seriously cute mini decorations in the form of wooden hearts and mini stitched hearts to match. (They were ridiculously cheap from The Range - in fact, I highly recommend you get to your latest shop and have a look - they have some really lovely, inexpensive Christmas bits at the moment). And I'm so pleased with how cute it looks, I'm tempted to even keep a few of the neutral coloured hearts on it after Christmas. You know, just because...

I have loads of random bits and pieces to keep my house feeling festive, but these are just some of them. And yes, you guessed it, I'm Christmas OCD when it comes to matching. Oh we'll, could be worse right?!

 I hope you're excited to put your tree up too!

Girls Day Out

This weekend I went out for the day with the girls.

Destination: Bluewater. 

Aim: shop till' we dropped and get as much of the Christmas shopping done as possible.

Did we do that? Lets just say we struggled to shut the boot with the purchases of three adult women who all love shopping when we packed the car. (You can watch my YouTube Haul video to see exactly what I got, here!)

Bluewater is my all time favourite shopping centre. Located in Greenhithe, Kent, it's approximately an hour and a half from my house in Cambridgeshire - so it's not too far and when I go, I make a day of it. There's over 300 shops (!), over 50 restaurants, a cinema, Pirate Cove Adventure park (crazy golf) and loads more, so there's no shortage of things to do to keep you amused. Put it this way, you'll plan to go for the day, but want to stay longer.

Is the force with you? If so, don't lego... (hehe)

Ghostbusters Lego in the Lego Store

I like Bluewater for loads of reason - a huge one being the range of shops. Two floors host the best range of brands, and at the risk of sounding like an advertising leaflet, they really do have something for everyone. One of the things on my shopping list for the day was some winter clothes for myself, as I had a mass clear out recently, and needed a few bits. Bluewater have everything that I want, including some of my favourite shops that only have the odd store or two here in the UK.  For example; Victoria's Secret or American Eagle. So it's worth making the trip, even if you live further away. It's also got the great everyday's like H&M, River Island, John Lewis and Warehouse etc. as well. All of which seem to stock a much better selection of items than other branches I've been to.

Lovely gift idea from New Look

With Christmas fast approaching, I needed to really crack on with the pressie buying and my first stop was Menkind. I managed to pick up some great stocking fillers, and even managed to bag a bargain buying two selfie sticks on offer for £5 - can't go wrong with a bit of a special offer! And who doesn't need a selfie stick?! (I've never actually used one!) After this I managed to continue my Christmas haul with buys from the Disney Store (where they had a sale on Marvel Avengers toys - which my son happens to love) and also some decorations from this beautiful gem of a store called Flutterbyes which sold the most beautiful gifts.

Lovely range of plaques at Flutterbyes

Flutterbyes

After a successful start to the day, we decided it was time for food. The range of restaurants is just as fantastic as the range of shops and considering one of the girls in our group is vegetarian, we didn't struggle to find somewhere that catered for both her and us. We settled on a lovely bit of Italian at Carluccio's and were really happy with the meal - a starter, main course and a drink each only came to £40 for three of us, so for the value we were very happy! And with full tummies off we went for the next half of the day..

We hit the good old trusty's like John Lewis and Marks & Spencer, and I of course spent (well, I class it as investing!) some money in MAC. It was then that I noticed what was going on with the annual Bluewater Winter Wonderland. I'm the worlds biggest Christmas lover, it's my favourite time of year and Bluewater put on their epic wonderland with indoor ice-rink, snow slide and Christmas cinema. As well as this, they have festive rides and stalls for the kids too (ah-hem, and me). Make sure you check the website out for full details and to book your tickets - here. Winter Wonderland wouldn't be complete without Santa's Grotto either, and I'm pretty sure I saw the big man in Pandora buying my pressies in preparation...

Winter Wonderland opens on November 26th, but if you can't wait until then, the Christmas Light Night, with festive music and fireworks is happening on November 13th and Heart FM's Toby Anstis will be there too (claim to fame - I've met him!). I will likely be visiting for both of these events, being the Christmas fanatic that I am!

My shopping trip was made so easy because I used my loaded Bluewater Gift Card. Accepted in nearly all of the centre's shops, it was so easy and straightforward. It's great if you want to give a gift, but don't want to be limited to one store and it's like having your own little credit card for Bluewater! It's also good if you're on a budget and don't want to overspend - just pop your money on the card and off you go. I must say that it's my birthday in two weeks, and if anyone wants to buy me anything, please can I have a Bluewater Gift Card...?

Being able to go to all my favourite shops under one roof is brilliant. It's easy to get everything done and you can literally tick every name of your Christmas buying list while you're there because the choice is so vast. The centre loops round on itself, so no walking back and forth, you just follow yourself round...which is also great is you need to 'think' before making that splurge purchase (who needs anything more than toast for a week anyway?!)

I'm just sad that I couldn't try any of Lola's Cupcakes! I mean, just look at these beauties!

Lola's Cupcakes, artform i edible version!

Oh Lola, you do know how to make a good looking cupcake!

If you're wondering how to get all your Christmas shopping done, then Bluewater is your one stop destination. And for those who seem to have everything, the Bluewater Gift Card is something you can't go wrong with (birthday donations gratefully received).

..So, what are you doing this weekend? Could you squeeze in a trip to Bluewater? If so, see you there!

Follow Bluewater on Twitter: "TweetBluewater and find them on Facebook and Instagram.