Why I Really Do Love the Most Wonderful Time of The Year | 12th Day of Christmas
Top- COS
Skirt- Topshop (sold out but it’s often re-stocked, here’s the nude version which I also love)
Necklace- ASOS
It’s Christmas Eve, which means it’s the last day of my 12 Days of Christmas blog posts (more on how I’ve felt about it at the end of the post). I thought I’d end this blog series with a super simple, kind of predictable post about why I love Christmas. One of last week’s posts was about how Christmas isn’t the most wonderful time of the year for everyone, and how it isn’t really perfect for anyone. But I always look forward to Christmas and it brings a reason to be a happy during a time of the year that I often find depressing.
In fact, Christmas is pretty much the only thing I like about winter. I would skip the whole season of winter if it wasn’t for Christmas (I’d even skip my birthday which is in January). I’m a summer person through and through but, despite this, Christmas is my favourite time of the year. Singing lots of crappy but catchy songs, having an excuse to eat anything and everything and also having an excuse to see friends and family who I might not have seen for the rest of the year is something I really love. It’s a cliche but even if nothing goes to plan at Christmas, being around family and friends regularly is enough to make it my favourite time of the year in itself.
I also love how Christmas forces me to take a break. A break from UNI work, and just generally from being the overly-organised, stressed out person that I am. I tend to take it easier than normal throughout the whole month of December (although a Christmas job and this blog series hasn’t allowed that quite as much this year) and because I love Christmas so much, I feel completely justified in doing so, which is something I don’t really feel at other points in the year even when my body is crying out for rest.
I’m going to stop this post here, mostly because it’s 7:22 on the 23rd December (remember when I thought I was going to write all of these posts in advance? Ha- I’m hilarious!) but also because I think everyone knows why Christmas-lovers are the way we are even if they don’t love Christmas as much themselves, so there’s no point me babbling on about it for 1000 words.
This post is also a short one because there’s a few more photos than usual. I love these photos, taken by the wonderful Jenny Gavan. I’m wearing my favourite Topshop red skirt in them, which epitomises Christmas for me, dancing around with tinsel and fairy lights, next to a freshly-decorated Christmas tree. What’s not to love?
I really hope you’ve enjoyed my 12 Days of Christmas posts. They’ve been hard work but I’ve also really enjoyed pumping a whole lot of content into my fresh new blog design and sharing my love of the festive season with you all. Hopefully they can provide festive inspiration for years to come- especially because I don’t think my schedule during my final year of UNI will allow me to do something like this next year. But I might try and come up with some sort of summer series in which I post every day for a certain period. Do let me know if this is something you’d be interested in!
Thank you for reading and I hope you have a wonderful Christmas filled with rest, food and loooove (for yourself as much as those around you) <3
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Festive Traditions | 11th Day of Christmas
Happy Christmas eve eve! Today’s post, like last Sunday’s, is a fairly short one. I’m going to be taking you through some of my Christmas traditions! I’m really nosey and am a big Christmas lover (not sure if you’ve picked up on that from my last 10 blog posts) so I always love hearing/reading about what people get up to over the holiday season, so hopefully some of you feel the same way.
So, without further ado, here are my favourite Christmas traditions:
A Cinema Trip on Christmas Eve: this is something that my family and I have started doing over the last few years but it’s definitely become a tradition. Last year we went to see Paddington 2 (which was exceptional) and the year before we went to see the modern version of Annie. This year we’re stepping it up a bit and are heading to Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, one of the most beautiful venues in Liverpool, to watch It’s A Wonderful Life, which I’ve actually never seen before!
Manchester Christmas Markets: I’ve really unfortunately broken this tradition this year, which is inexcusable considering I go to university in Manchester now! But a trip to the Manchester Christmas Markets has always been a tradition for me and something that really gets me in the festive mood. In all fairness I’ve walked through them a fair amount of times but I am really disappointed that I didn't get a chance to have a proper visit this year. In the photos included with this post, I’m at the Liverpool Christmas Markets which, to be honest, aren’t very good, but they made a nice backdrop for these photos.
Heading to the Pub on Christmas Eve: another new tradition- this one is new because I haven’t really been old enough to do this until 2ish years ago. But going to the pub on Christmas Eve with my friends is something I really look forward to! It’s a really nice opportunity to get together and feel festive together before spending the next few days with our families. I’m interested to see how this year’s pub visit will go completely sober…
Christmas Eve Pyjamas: my pub visit gets in the way of this one a little bit but Christmas Eve pyjamas are a mandatory part of Christmas for me (and my sister). Last year I opened them before leaving to go out and put them on when I got back at about 11:30 with my sister whilst watching Elf in bed. I will probably do the same this year, although I might leave the pub a little bit earlier as everyone else starts to get more drunk and I become increasingly aware of how sober I am!
A Christmas Quiz: a Christmas Quiz (or 10) is pretty important for my family at Christmas. We always do a big one either on Christmas day or on one of the days in between Boxing Day and New Years Eve when seeing lots of family, but various quizzes take place on a smaller scale on other occasions over the festive period. I am so secretly (or possibly not so secretly) competitive during these but so are most of the other members of my family so it’s fine.
They’re all the traditions that spring to mind when thinking about it. I’m sure they’re are loads more but I’ll probably be documenting them all on my Instagram over the next week! Make sure you’re following me over there @alicemayporter if you’re interested.
I’d love to hear about your Christmas traditions because like I said, I find it super interesting. Let me know in the comments or on social media!
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A Very Sober Christmas | 10th Day of Christmas
Dress- Urban Outfitters
In October of this year, I was advised by a doctor to stop drinking alcohol for 6 months, or maybe even forever. I’m not going to go into the details of why here because it’s just not that interesting but, very basically, I become very ill (think food poisoning symptoms) after a minimal amount of alcohol (I have been known to throw up for 2 days after 2 ciders, it’s extremely inconvenient). So 6 months off is either going to let my body re-build it’s tolerance up so I am OK to drink forever, or I am just going to have no tolerance to alcohol ever and never be able to drink alcohol again. Basically- I’ve become the biggest lightweight known to man.
When I’ve told people that I can’t drink at the moment, many of the responses are ‘But what about Christmas? Are you actually not going to drink all Christmas?’ People are generally baffled by the fact that I’m going to spend the festive period sober. This is probably because for about 4 years of my life I used to get very drunk every weekend without question, which is potentially the reason why I can’t drink now but like I said, it’s a long story.
But I also think it’s also because Christmas is a time of the year that is very much associated with alcohol. Last night was supposedly the biggest night out of the year, prosecco on Christmas day is near enough mandatory and also part of the festive season is New Year’s Eve, another night which is very much alcohol-focused.
However, I’m not nearly as intimidated as other people are at the prospect of not drinking alcohol this Christmas. I mean, I’d rather not spend the holiday period with my head over the toilet so there’s a lot of incentive not to drink. Plus, Christmas is also the time of year where nights in watching Christmas films and having an early night are encouraged maybe just as much as going out, so there’s that.
I’ve also managed to (kind of) get through 2 months of being a student and living in one of the most highly-populated student areas in the UK without drinking alcohol and perhaps the only thing that is associated with alcohol more than Christmas is student life. So if I’ve done that, I think I can stay sober through anything!
I don’t really know how I feel about not being able to drink alcohol at the moment. I haven’t hated it but I haven’t loved it. In all honesty, I haven’t noticed much of a difference to my life. I’ve had a lot of nights in but nights out haven’t really been an option over the last 2 months anyway because I’ve been so busy during the days that the only way I want to spend my evenings is passed out on the couch. The worst thing about not drinking alcohol isn’t actually the not being drunk part anyway, it’s all the unwanted attention I get from people who are interested in why I’m not drinking which never fails to make me uncomfortable.
I’m not even particularly looking forward to March when I can ‘officially’ try to start drinking again. I think this is partly because I’m skeptical as to whether anything will have changed in the way that my body reacts to alcohol but also because I no longer enjoy nights out like I used to (here I go again…19 going on 90).
I think I enjoy quieter nights, going out for food, to the cinema or just nights with friends that end with me in bed by 1am much more nowadays. It’d still be nice to be able to have a few drinks every now and then without being horribly ill but I don’t have a huge desire to get really drunk.
This has nothing to do with why I’ve stopped drinking but being drunk, and especially having a hangover, really does trigger my anxiety. Many of my worst panic attacks have happened when I’ve been drunk or the morning after, so I think this is another reason as to why I’m not overly nostalgic about drinking alcohol.
Overall, I feel fine about having a sober Christmas. I have a new found love for Coca Cola (hence me holding a can of it in all these photos as if I’m sponsored by the brand) which, believe it or not, I didn’t really used to like! Plus, not drinking leaves more room for food, so hopefully I can beat my own record of how much chocolate and crisps I can inhale over the period between Christmas Eve and New Years Day.
Let me know if you’d like more content on how I’m finding not drinking, particularly on how I find it as a university student. I’d also be super interested to hear about your relationship with alcohol, especially over the festive period. Let me know in the comments or on social media! I’ll see you back here tomorrow for a post on my favourite Christmas traditions.
The Highs and Lows of Seasonal Dressing and Instagram 'Themes' | 9th Day of Christmas
Jumper- & Other Stories
Skirt- Miss Selfridge (Old-similar here)
Boots- & Other Stories (I bought these in store for 70% off but they’re full price on the website, so definitely check your local store before making an online purchase)
Seasonal dressing is something I’ve got into this year, specifically this autumn. And, no, by seasonal dressing I don’t mean wearing a coat in winter and dresses in summer (i.e. dressing according to the weather), I mean wearing colours, prints, textures and shapes that are specific to whatever season it is.
I think I got into it this autumn because the high street came up with such a wide array of those beautiful autumnal colours, you know, the rusts, the camels, the chocolate browns. Speaking of chocolate brown, I think it was THAT Topshop satin skirt that really made me step into the ballpark of seasonal dressing. I became obsessed with the colour of it and most of my purchases were shaped by looking for colours that would look best with it, and most of them happened to be part of autumn fashion’s colour palette.
In some ways, sticking to specific colours worked really well for me. It ensured that my shopping was focussed and that I thought a lot more about things would fit into my wardrobe, meaning I made less impulse purchases. It also made it easier to get dressed in the morning as most of the clothes at the front of my wardrobe were part of the same colour palette, so looked good paired together. I’d actually kind of started building my own capsule wardrobe based on each season.
However, after about a month or two of almost exclusively wearing shades of brown and red, the novelty wore off a little bit and I began to feel a little bit trapped by my own wardrobe, the one thing that is usually super freeing for me. So I was glad when December hit and the season’s colours changed to red, green and anything a little bit sparkly. I mean… I was glad for the first week. Then I realised that I don’t own that many red, green or sparkly things (which is why I’m wearing this & Other Stories jumper in these photos for the 100th time in the past fortnight). So, again, I'm feeling a little bit trapped.
I can hear you shouting at your screen, ‘Why, just wear some different colours then! Nobody’s holding a knife to your throat!’ But unfortunately, logical reader, my Instagram grid sometimes makes it feels like they are. The idea of a themed Instagram grid is something that I’ve never really been very good at, mostly because I don’t always use the same camera, I live in a different place during the week than I do on the weekend, I generally wear lots of different colours and I’m not very good at editing.
So I kind of just accepted that an Instagram theme wasn’t for me. But when I started to dress seasonally during Autumn, an Instagram theme started to develop through my outfit shots. Seemingly because of this, my following grew and I was really happy with the appearance of my Instagram for the first time ever! But whilst I was happy with how my social media looked, I still wanted to change the way I was dressing. So I had/have a few choices, 1. abandon the theme, dress how I want and share it to Instagram, 2. stick with the theme and only wear ‘seasonal’ clothes, 3. stick with the theme and only post photos when your clothes work for it.
I know this may seem trivial to many but how I dress and Instagram are two of the main ways in which I use my creativity so they’re important to me! But at the end of the day, I think my personal style is a better and more important creative outlet for me than my Instagram so, despite the fact that all of these choices require some sort of compromise, the first one seems like the best option for me.
After getting into these habits of seasonal dressing and having an Instagram ‘theme’, I’m finding them kind of difficult to step out of. But I think once we get into the months of January-March when the only way I could dress seasonally is by wearing black and grey all the time to match the weather, it will be a lot easier and I can make the most of all the textures and colours in my wardrobe.
Although dressing in this way has been testing at times, it’s got me thinking more and more about a capsule wardrobe. I love the way The Anna Edit does her capsule wardrobes seasonally and it seems to be an environmentally and purse-friendly way of making getting dressed easier. But, in all honesty, I think I just love buying new clothes and coming up with new outfits all the time too much to have any sense of uniform so maybe this isn’t the best option for me after all!
Who knows? Maybe after reading Anna’s new book that comes out in January, I’ll feel even more confident about the idea of a capsule wardrobe. But right now, as you can probably tell, my thoughts on seasonal dressing, capsule wardrobes and Instagram ‘themes’ are seriously conflicting. I’d love to know how you feel about these things in the comments or on social media so please do let me know! Until then, you probably will see me wearing mostly red and glitter until New Years Day, that is when I’m not exclusively wearing pyjamas.
The Christmas Blues | 8th Day of Christmas
When I was planning my 12 Days of Christmas blog posts, I was obviously trying to think of festive themes to include. But I also really wanted to include a post talking about how Christmas isn’t a happy, festive time for everyone, despite what the media (and especially social media) presents. I’m definitely contributing to this festive facade of every day of December being one full of cheer with this series of blog posts and with my other content on social media this month and that’s why I was adamant about including a post such as this one, to remind anyone who might be reading my blog and who feels like they’re not feeing as Christmassy as they should be that they really don’t have to be!
Christmas can be difficult for people for a number of reasons; grief, loss, mental health issues, work, family problems… the list goes on. The holiday season isn’t this perfect month of happiness for anyone really, everyone has something going on in their life and it doesn’t disappear just because Michael Buble is back on the radio 24/7 (although a bit of Buble can definitely help, I have to admit!)
For me, Christmas generally is a happy time of the year and one that I always look forward to. But it still never lives up to my expectations of it being totally stress-free. I’m still thinking about Uni work and my anxiety hasn’t magically disappeared, if anything it’s escalated a little because this is such a busy time of year!
If you’re really not into Christmas this year, just try and treat it as an opportunity to rest. Hopefully you have some time off work and can treat the holiday season instead of the season of festive fun, as the season of self-care. Read a book you love or have wanted to read forever (a distinctly non-festive one would work well), watch your favourite films that have nothing to do with Christmas, take advantage of the huge selection of chocolate in your local supermarket at the moment and bury yourself in your duvet with it. Or do whatever else makes you happy, whether it’s festive or not!
I understand that it’s definitely not as simple as this though. Dealing with loss, grief or mental health issues isn’t just as simple as doing self-care and I can imagine it’s harder than I’m implying to remove yourself from the festivities of Christmas. That’s why this isn’t really an advice post. I don’t think I’m qualified to give advice on this subject and I don’t want to just hand out basic self-care advice like ‘try a face mask’ as I think that’s a little bit reductive and insulting.
Instead, this post is an acknowledgment and a reminder that Christmas doesn’t have to be the most wonderful time of the year for you and there’s no need to feel guilty if it isn’t. I also wanted to link to some other blog posts written on this same subject which I think could be really comforting if you are struggling with Christmas this year:
Some Thoughts on Christmas by Lizzy Hadfield (Shot From the Street)
A Different Perspective on Christmas by Isabelle Hardy (Fashion et Moi)
I hope you’ve benefitted from this post in some way and if anything I hope you’ve taken away from it that if you are feeling a little bit crap this Christmas, that’s ok! It’ll be over in 2 weeks time anyway and there’s really no obligation to get involved if you don’t want to- take it from Chloe in her blog post! I’d be really interested to know how you’re feeling about Christmas this year, whether it’s good or bad. And as always, my direct messages on social media are always open so you’re welcome to talk to me about it privately if you’d like to!
How to Be Vegan at Christmas | 7th Day of Christmas
Photography by Jenny Gavan.
Being vegan is trying at the best of times, and that’s generally not even because non-vegan food is tempting but because you’re constantly questioned on your choices and the food you choose to eat. So being vegan at Christmas, when the main event of the season for many is a turkey/chicken/pig, is even worse. From (often passive aggressive) jokes that you’ve heard a million times before at the dinner table, to the question that never ends of ‘but don’t you miss bacon?’ it takes a lot of will power not to get annoyed with people, and I think that’s where the label of ‘angry vegans’ has developed from (but I’ll save that for another blog post).
So I thought I’d write this blog post in order to provide some tips on how to stay sane as a vegan over Christmas as well as providing an extensive list of the best vegan food you can eat at Christmas (scroll to the bottom of the post if that’s what you’re interested in), because there’s absolutely no need for those with a plant-based diet to miss out on what is decisively the best season for food of the year. This is my third Christmas eating a vegan diet so I think I’ve really got both of these things down!
Here are my tips on how to stay sane:
1.Don’t Engage With The Age Old Vegan Comments, You’re Going To Get A Whole Lot Of Them!
As I started to discuss earlier, people LOVE to comment on the lifestyles’ of vegans, whether they’re making jokes or offering health advice. When I first went vegan around 2 and a half years ago, I would be asked/told on a daily basis questions like ‘Do you get enough protein? You need to be careful with that.’ Or, ‘But if we all went vegan, animals would overpopulate the earth, right?’ First of all, if anyone’s interested, yes I do and no they wouldn’t. But I’m going to stop there. During my first months of veganism, I would always engage with these questions, relaying facts and explaining to people why they were wrong, firstly because I was super passionate about it and also because I thought these were genuine questions and that I could actually help educate the people asking them. But the truth is, I couldn’t and you probably can’t either.
If people have these assumptions about you and your diet, they’re probably not even going to listen to what you have to say, so it’s just going to be frustrating for you to try and explain anything to them. I always give super simple answers (literally just yes or no) and if they push further, I keep my answers short (e.g. ‘It’s all good, I had blood tests last month and I’m fine, not to worry!’) Most people asking these questions really don’t want to know the actual answer and have their beliefs challenged, and this is especially true at the Christmas dinner table! So just answer the question simply and change the subject, unless you think they are genuinely interested.
With the jokes, just learn to laugh. They’re not funny and probably never will be but, again, the people telling them don’t want to hear that. So, again just laugh and move on. Whatever you do, don’t even bother trying to educate the joke-tellers, they’re even less interested than the question-askers, trust me!
2.Don’t Attempt to Convert People At The Christmas Dinner Table
This one is kind of similar to my previous tip, but don’t use Christmas dinner or any of the many formal eating situations of Christmas as a chance to tell people the facts about the meat on their plate. It can be tempting, especially if you’ve only recently learnt about how horrific the meat industry is, to become angry with all the meat consumption you’re seeing over Christmas. But telling people how bad their decisions are, especially when they’ve already bought the food and are in the midst of eating it, really isn’t going to be an effective way of turning people vegan and is going to leave you and the person you’re talking to feeling rubbish!
Just be content with the fact that by not eating animal products at Christmas, you’re making the right choice! I think being happy with your own decision and showing people just how much you’re thriving through eating a vegan diet is actually the most effective way of impacting other people’s decisions. My mum actually went vegan around 6 months after I did when she saw all the positive effects it was having on me, so trust me on this one!
3.Always Come/Go Prepared
There’s nothing I feel more uncomfortable with, in terms of veganism, than people fretting over me and feeling bad about there being a lack of vegan options. Obviously these people have the kindest of intentions and I always really appreciate that, but I don’t do well when being fretted over as I generally just don’t like the attention of lots of people, especially strangers, being focussed on me!
To avoid this, and to make sure you’re not left dipping carrots into hummus as your main meal of the night, take food with you to events if you’re not 100% sure whether they’ll be vegan options! I’m talking family events here, not a New Years Eve club night, BTW. This works especially well if it’s a family event with a buffet, as you can just add whatever meal you’ve made to the table and, if you’ve made enough for others too, your friends and family can taste just how good vegan food is! Easy meals to bulk make include veggie curries and chillies, but dessert always goes down well too (see below for a recipe for the best peanut butter filled dessert).
Waitrose Mince Pies
Linda McCartney sausages, Linda McCartney pork & apple sausage rolls, Tesco bubble and squeak
4. Stock Up On All The Vegan Alternatives/Treats
This one is especially for those of you who are newly turned vegan and are worried about the possibility of caving over the festive period. But it’s also relevant to all vegans, new and old, in because you don’t want to be left out of what is the best foodie time of the year. Stock up on all the fake meats, lots of vegan-friendly chocolate and anything else you’d usually eat over Christmas. I promise, your tastebuds won’t even know the difference if you do this effectively!
With that, here is a guide to all my favourite vegan-friendly food you can buy this Christmas:
SAVOURY:
Linda McCartney Vegetarian Beef Roast with Red Wine and Shallot Glaze
Linda McCartney Cocktail Sausages
Linda McCartney Vegetarian Mini Pork & Apple Sausage Rolls
Ready salted Pringles
Paprika Pringles
Violife Cheese Spread (I couldn’t find this one in the supermarkets so I made my own one for these photos, but Violife cheese is unarguably the best)
The White Rabbit Pizza (it’s expensive but it’s a nice treat and a good one to take to parties)
Ritz Crackers
Bubble & Squeak (Tesco’s frozen one is vegan)
SWEET:
Mince Pies (Waitrose & Lidl’s are vegan)
Tesco Frozen Churros
Mint Thins (basically supermarkets own brands’ answer to After Eights and they’re SO good)
Cadburys Drinking Chocolate (to be made with oat milk)
MooFree chocolate is the best, plus they do a selection box. Make sure to try their Bunnycomb bar.
Lazy Day products (including millionaires shortbread- available in Waitrose)
Vegan Magnums
Bendicks Mint Collection Chocolate Box
Co-Op Custard/Jam Donuts
Fabulous Freefrom Factory Dairy Free Chocovered Crunchee Bites (tastes exactly like a Crunchie chocolate bar)
Fabulous Freefrom Factory Dairy Free FudgeeBites
Fabulous Freefrom Factory Dairy Free Sea-Salted Chocolate Covered Bites
Alpro Custard
If you’re wanting to do some baking, this BBC recipe for peanut butter chocolate squares is always a winner. It’s not vegan but if you replace the butter with vegan butter, and use dark chocolate (my favourite is Bournville), as well as vegan digestives (most supermarket’s own brand digestives are vegan but always check) then it is suitable for vegans and it’s SO easy to make!
A Gift Guide for Your Mamma | 3rd Day of Christmas
*some links used in this post are affiliate which means I receive a tiny amount of commission based on clicks*
On the 3rd day of Christmas at Words By Alice, there’s another gift guide! This one is tailored towards mums, although would also work well for nans and friends (who are potentially older) who would benefit from some relaxation and a little bit of luxury. I always tend to buy my mum presents that are tailored towards de-stressing. My mum does so much for me and she is always busy so I always think it’s nice to buy her, slightly more luxurious, presents to help her relax.
Let’s start with books. I personally feel most relaxed when I’m completely engrossed in a book, it’s one of the only times when I can silence all the crazy thoughts in my head. So I think it’s a great present to gift someone to help them relax. My favourite book of the year (although Sally Rooney’s Normal People is a close second) is Stay With Me by Ayọ̀bámi Adébáyọ̀, This is a beautiful novel about a couple, Yejide and Akin, living in Nigeria who are struggling to give birth fours year into their marriage. One day, Yejide’s family arrive at her house with a young woman introduced as Akin’s second wife, who they have ‘recruited’ because of the couples’ fertility problems. From this point on, Yejide is determined to become pregnant, whatever the cost. As a book, it’s educational, thought-provoking and emotional and will have you hanging on to the edge of every word. I think it would be the perfect book to gift to your mum, especially because of its subject matter, but also because it would be a great book to spend a few days losing yourself in in the post-Christmas/pre-New Year period whilst eating leftover Christmas dinner and your body weight in chocolate.
There’s a whole lot of beauty and skincare products in this photo because they’re not only the most cliche ways to relax, but one of the best in my opinion. It’s always nice to buy someone something they wouldn’t buy for themselves, especially if it’s something that’s a little luxurious. On that note, the This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray is such a great present to buy for someone. Using this product has improved how I sleep so much and, as someone whose anxiety usually materialises at nighttime, has generally just made my life better and easier. People don’t believe that it actually helps you sleep but it does so by buying this for your mum you’ll literally be giving them the gift of sleep. The one photographed here is mine but I’ve bought one for my mum in the past and she loved it!
Another relaxing product, that has actually come from my Liberty Advent Calendar, is the Susan Kaufmann Lavendar De-Stress Oil. I’ve been using this in baths and on my body and because it’s such a luxurious thing that I wouldn't really buy for myself, I think it’s such a nice present to buy for someone.
In terms of skincare, in the past I’ve bought my mum the Oksia Renaissance Cleansing Gel. It’s a cult item in the skincare world that works for all skin types but a little bit on the pricey side, so, again, perhaps something people wouldn’t want to buy for themselves. A face mask is always a good option for a gift that aims to relax, this Skin Laundry sheet mask is another one I received in my Liberty Advent Calendar that I might pass on to my mum anyway, as I don’t think it’s right for my skin type. But the packaging is beautiful and I’ve heard really good things about the brand, so it’s definitely worth considering!
I also think any kind of bath/shower product is a failsafe and at the moment I am loving all the & Other Stories body products, such as this Sicilian Sunrise Body Wash pictured here. Perfume, too, is a go-to gift for many, but for good reason! I personally cannot justify buying perfume for myself (usually) so I love to receive it as a present. I actually did buy the perfume in this photo for myself when I was in Paris, as a little souvenir. It’s by the brand Bon Parfumer and the scent is so unique. Plus, it wasn’t too far on the expensive side for a perfume (I think it cost me around €35) but it looks and smells like it should be.
And, of course, you can’t go wrong with a candle, especially a Diptyque candle. My favourite Diptyque scent is Baies but I’ve finished that one so included in this photo is the Figuier candle, which I also really like. Diptyque is expensive but the packaging and the unique scents do justify the price (kind of) for me. If you don’t want to spend that much on a candle though, you definitely don’t have to- I’ll include some more affordable ones in the latter part of this gift guide with further recommendations.
I’m almost done, I promise. Just one last thing- this Space NK airport scanner machine-friendly (I’m sure there’s a better way to describe it than that) travel bag. These bags look so chic and double up as toiletries bags that you can take in your hand luggage through airports- practical and good lookin’. If your mum travels a lot or even if she just needs a new make up bag that can also be used for travel, I think these toiletries bags are great.
Here’s some more recommendations of things that aren’t photographed here:
Books:
Beauty/Skincare/Body:
Homeware/Candles (etc.):
The Best Christmas Jumpers to Buy Now | 2nd Day of Christmas
Jumper- COW Vintage
Jeans- Topshop (Bought on Depop)
Shoes- Vegan Dr Martens
*some links used are affiliate which means I receive a tiny amount of commission based on clicks
Hello and happy Christmas Jumper Day! I know many of you will already have bought your Christmas jumpers, and will hopefully be wearing them today, but for those of you who haven’t, I thought I’d create an edit of what I have found to be the best Christmas jumpers on the market.
Before that though, let’s talk about what Christmas Jumper Day actually is and how it came about. On Friday 14th December (AKA today) the charity Save the Children are encouraging everyone in the UK to wear their Christmas jumper, whether they’re at home, school or work. Along with this, they ask you to donate £2 each to raise money for the charity and the children it helps. As the website states, a £2 donation could pay for the antibiotics to treat five children suffering from pneumonia, which is one of the biggest killers of children.
This post is in no way sponsored or in collaboration with Save The Children, I just think it’s a really great cause because 1. you’re literally saving children’s lives, and 2. you get to spread all the festive cheer in the form of a novelty jumper.
I bought the Christmas jumper I’m wearing here either last year or the year before from COW Vintage in Liverpool, so sorry if you wanted to get your hands on it! It’s my favourite one I’ve found as it wasn’t too pricey, it incorporates a whole lot of novelty elements to it but it’s also pretty flattering because it’s cropped so it looks great with high-waisted jeans, as styled here.
I decided to wear it in these photos even though you can’t buy it because, despite this being a post that is encouraging shopping, I wanted to include some sort of reminder that you don’t always have to buy brand new items or buy anything at all. I personally don’t think I’ll be buying a new Christmas jumper this year (although watch this space, as I’m very tempted by the ones below) because this one is just fine for me, considering I only wear it a handful times during one month of the year.
However, if you don’t own a Christmas jumper yet or yours is in need of an upgrade, here’s an edit of the best Christmas jumpers, from the novelty, to the glittery, to the slightly more subtle, I’ve found available to shop online:
My personal favourite is the Warehouse striped jumper with the Christmas cat. It’s subtle enough that you can style it for everyday wear but it still very much has that novelty element through the cat imagery! Let me know which one of the Christmas jumpers I’ve chosen is your favourite and don’t forget, if you already own one, to wear it today! You can donate to Save The Children as part of their Christmas Jumper Day here. See you tomorrow for another gift guide post!
A Gift Guide for Your Best Gal Pal | 1st Day of Christmas
*some links used in this post are affiliate which means I receive a tiny amount of commission based on clicks*
Welcome to Words By Alice’s 12 days of Christmas! If you haven’t heard over on Instagram/Twitter/Facebook/some other form of social media, I’m going to be posting a new blog post every day for 12 days, from today (13th December) till Christmas Eve! I’m sure you’re going to be well and truly sick of me by the time Christmas Day comes around but for now, I hope you can enjoy the novelty of day one!
(DISCLAIMER: I’m very aware that this isn’t the *official* 12 Days of Christmas but I break up from Uni for Christmas today and starting today means I can finish on Christmas Eve, so I think it works pretty well- I hope you do too!)
Anyway, I thought I’d begin these 12 days with a gift guide, specifically one for your bestie! Because, let’s be honest, they’re the best people to buy for. Often you can just buy them something you love, knowing (hoping) they will love it too. There are so many different categories of gifts that you could buy for a best friend, from books, to beauty, to clothing and accessories, to novelty and personal items- I’m hoping I’ve covered most of these categories here!
Starting with books, something that is going to feature in all the gift guides I have coming up this year (yes, there are more) and my favourite things to give and receive. A book always feels personal, especially if you’re giving one you’ve read and love, and it really is the gift that keeps on giving, as you can talk about it with your friend as they’re reading it and bond over how much you (hopefully) both loved it. The books I’ve included in this photo are ones that I have read this year and think would make great gifts. Charly Cox’s debut poetry collection She Must Be Mad covers so many things that young women (from generation Z to millennial) deal with and it’s as fun of a read as it is emotional and relatable. The Anxiety Solution, as you may have guessed from the title, is a self-help book, one that helped me through some difficult patches this year and that I regularly return back to. If you know someone who has been struggling with anxiety this year, this could be a thoughtful and useful gift for them. Plus, the cover incorporates various shades of ‘millennial’ pastels, so what’s not to love?
Moving on to beauty and skincare, my go-to brand for myself and for gifting purposes is, of course, Glossier. It’s relatively affordable, the packaging is always adorable and the product is genuinely great in my experience. If you’re feeling a little spendy this year, Glossier ‘You’ is the perfume that smells different on everyone who wears it. I’ve never worn it without receiving a compliment and, although perfume can be a tricky one to gift sometimes, I think the adaptable nature of the scent means there’s no one who won’t like it. If you and your bestie have set a budget, go for the Balm Dot Com. My favourite one is the Birthday Balm Dot Com because it’s hydrating and sparkly, which is 100% the look I’m going for. If you’re still stuck on which Glossier product to go for, I have a blog post ranking the Glossier products I own from best to worst.
There are some other beauty/skincare brands that I love and are equally aesthetically pleasing as Glossier, such as Mario Badescu. My favourite product of theirs is the Rosewater Spray, it’s as bougie as it sounds and quite the indulgence, making it the perfect gift. Another brand that ticks all my product quality and aesthetically pleasing packaging boxes is Isle of Paradise, a tanning brand I have discovered this year who have actually made false tanning somewhat cool. The Light Tanning Drops included in this photo are subtle but putting a couple of drops into your moisturiser adds some serious glow.
It’s always a little risky to buy clothing for someone, no matter how well you know them. Accessories, on the other hand are a little easier. A scarf is something that most people will wear, in their hair, tied to their bag or just… you know, round their neck like they’re designed for. A silky scarf always feels really luxurious as well so it would be such a nice thing to receive. I was sent the one pictured here by the brand Style By Portobello, who handpick vintage scarves and deliver them to you! This totally takes away the time-consuming element of vintage shopping but still allows you to get something totally unique, purse-friendly and environmentally and ethically A-OK for a friend.
Finally, a notebook. It’s a classic gift but for good reason. Who doesn’t love them? I could probably create an edit of about 1000 notebooks I love but I picked this one up from & Other Stories recently as a gift from me to me recently. It’s not currently on the website but it’s still in stores.
The items discussed and photographed here are ones I already own. But here’s an edit of many other things that you could buy for your best friend this Christmas…
Books:
Beauty/Skincare:
Clothes & Accessories:
Other Random Bits (Homeware/Stationary):
