Convenient Christmas Shopping with Moonpig | #heartfeltwithmoonpig *Ad

Christmas shopping...It's one of those things that can start of as a joy but slowly become a stress, especially when you have people to buy for that you won't be seeing and/or they're quite hard to buy for. Am I right? Well this year I've teamed up with Moonpig to show you a perfect Christmas shopping night in. So leave the queues, the hustle and bustle and cosy on up as I talk you through how I shop from the comfort of my own home.

I've been doing my Christmas shopping solely online for the past three years. As a person who hates shopping in the crowds, I find it far more relaxing and enjoyable to search online for the perfect presents. Moonpig very kindly sent me a "Christams Shopping Night in care package" filled with everything I'd need to get my shopping done stress free. Inside I found a gorgeous personalized Christmas sack, a Christmas themed T-shirt, a scented Christmas candle, Champagne, a Christmas DVD and more! I was all set to get gifting and enjoy the process too!

First things first I popped on my Christmas tee (which I freaking love!) poured a glass of bubbly and lit my Christmas Spiced candle- one I would highly recommend from the Moonpig website; be it as a gift or for yourself. The smell of spiced warm ginger and orange zest was perfect for getting me in the festive mood!

I've bought many a card from Moonpig over the year but truth be told I didn't realize how many gifts they provide! There's not just flowers and cards oh no- there's so much more! They stock jewellery, hampers, gadgets, experience days and more which is perfect for finding a unique and thoughtful gift.

Of course I picked up a personalized card which arrived in a flash. If you order your personalized cards by 7:30pm Monday- Friday, you'll catch the next days post- perfect for anyone who's looking to do some last minute card sending!

So aside from personalizing cards, you can also personalize gifts! I always find a personalized gift is thoughtful and that extra bit more special. It shows you're thinking of the one you're gifting for and adds an extra special touch.

In my experience, a gift that always goes down well is treating someone to their favourite tipple. From gin, to craft ales, wine to fizz, there is something for everyone to toast to the festive season on Moonpig.

I opted to get my Dad and his partner a lovely bottle of Prosecco to toast with on Christmas day. Had I not been seeing them before, I'd have opted for letterbox wine which is pretty perfect for anyone you may not see before the festive period!

To match a personalized bottle, why not accompany it with a glass too?  I couldn't resist this rose gold flute glass for my Nan so she can sip in style! I love a special glass when it comes to drinking a treat like champagne and it's something that your loved ones can use time and time again.

I'm also obsessed with the Moonpig personalised sacks. With trying to be more eco friendly and kinder to the planet, these natural cotton bags really are the gift that keeps on giving as they can easily be used year after year plus they're perfect for eradicating badly wrapped gifts! Being 75cm long by 50cm wide they certainly can hold lots of lovely gifts and give an extra dose of wintertime magic. I adore mine and Chris is chuffed that he now doesn't have to wrestle with the wrapping paper.

Shopping online truly takes the stress out of Christmas shopping and you can definitely make a lovely indulgent night in of it like I did! Take your time! There's nobody jostling you in queues, panic buying, grabbing the last thing off the shelf and you're not crawling out of car parks. Why make shopping more stressful than it needs to be? Gifting should be a joyous experience and I've found that feet-up Christmas shopping is definitely the way forward.

So after I was shopped out, it was only right to pop on The Grinch and celebrate with  another glass of champagne in the knowing that my shopping was done and would be dispatched in no time. (When you order your gift by 7pm Mon-Fri you get same-day dispatch!)

I'd have loved to have shown you the rest of the gifts I bought through Moonpig as I picked up some absolute corkers! Unfortunately those they are gifted for read my blog. You know who you are!

Will you be shopping at Moonpig this year? I'd really recommend it and would love to know what you go for gift wise! Thank you to Moonpig for inviting me to be involved in their #Heartfeltwithmoonpig campaign and gifting me the items in this post.

Happy Anniversary with Hotel Chocolat*

Today celebrates Chris and I's 4th wedding anniversary and in all honesty I don't know where the time has gone!

As Chris is away in sunny Las Vegas (the swine), we decided to celebrate a little bit earlier with a Hamper for Two from Hotel Chocolat.

The box arrived looking beautifully wrapped in ribbon in a gorgeous keepsake box and we were both pretty eager to see what was inside.

It has to be said this hamper was pretty perfect for the both of us; containing:

-20cl bottle of Sparkling Pink Rosé
-Small-batch Cocoa Beer
-Dark Chocolate Beer Truffles Selector
-Oysters & Champagne Chocolate Truffles
-The Chocolate Nano Slab Gallery

There was even a book on the meaning of chocolate which contains excellent quotes and justification as to why we all deserve some chocolate, (not that we needed much persuading!)

This hamper suits both of Chris and I's tastes, having award winning English brewed beer and sparkling rose for yours truly- both being a match made in heaven for the luxury Hotel Chocolat.

Hotel Chocolat searched long & hard to find a bubbly that could accompany their signature chocolate. Sourced from Venice, this fruity, violet fragrance is balanced with delicate and pleasant aromatic notes of almond.

The Cocoa beer is small-batched and brewed with traditional Fuggles hops. The flavour of the cocoa creates a savoury bitterness with notes of tobacco, cocoa and coffee. It's best served chilled and with of course the dark chocolate beer truffles.

We try to be romantic, we really do but it usually ends up with laughing and as you can see below- chocolate shoved into my gob by Chris!

This hamper was such a lovely treat and a nice way to enjoy one another's company with some luxury in the comfort of our own home. If you're stuck for an anniversary gift, birthday or any occasion that warrants some fuss- Hotel Chocolat have a fabulous variety of hampers and gifts all at varying price points; making them affordable for everyone.

To finish off our anniversary date, a photo was in order and as I'm a soppy soul, I wanted to create this particular photo. It's one I've been wanting to do with Chris for some time!

Yup- I'm a soppy bastard but I also think it's pretty cool and a nice memory too. Pretty sure everyone on our Facebook is vomming though...

So that rounds up our fourth wedding anniversary! What do you do to celebrate?

Mother's Day Gift Guide and Giveaway!

Mother's Day is two weeks today! How did that fly around so fast!?

This year I thought I'd share with you some thoughtful gift ideas I think are perfect for the mothership in our life, with various price points- starting with a bunch of flowers.

Daffodils are a perfect flower to symbolise spring and the sunnier days to come. My mum personally loves a bunch of daffs and at £1 from Tesco they are thrifty as well as thoughtful. (Or if you're really cheap like my sister at age 5 you'll pick them from someone's garden and hand them to mum with roots and all!)

Adding a touch of ribbon or raffia ribbon makes them all the more prettier. You can always style up your gift by adding a pretty vase or jug for your mum to sit them in.

If your mum is a bit of a magpie, shiny things are always a winner and I particularly adore independent jeweller Victoria's shop The Old Farmhouse Jewellery .

At just £10 this sterling silver beauty is the perfect little gift for Mother's Day and is guaranteed to bring a smile to your mama's face. This dainty piece comes on an 18 inch chain and the flower detail makes it the perfect piece for spring.

Sticking with a spring theme and the Great British outdoors, I am loving Rex London's bicycle accessories!!

Rex London has the perfect bicycle accessories for spring and make a lovely gift for a cycling mama! The retro tulip print bell and seat cover are pretty and practical in the rain and to let people know you're pedalling past. The Velo range also offers pretty practicality with this darling water bottle and bike lights.

If biking isn't your mum's thing, there are plenty of other gifts available in the Mother's Day section.

Now onto the all important giveaway...

I've teamed up with CLC World to bring you the CLC World Travel Centre Competition, giving you the chance of winning a £25 M&S gift card to treat your lovely Mum to this Mother's Day. They're based over in Milton Keynes and the most amazing destinations to travel to with places such as Orlando, Costa Del Sol and the Agean Coast.

To enter, all you need to do is write in the comments which CLC World resort you would most like to visit and head over to Twitter and follow @shesagentry and @clcworld . Once you've done that, log in to rafflecopter to record your entry. The winner will be announced on Sunday 26th March- good luck!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
I hope some of these gifts are helpful if you're stuck for mother's day gift inspiration.

STANDARD TERMS AND CONDITIONS

• Competition details form part of these terms and conditions.
• Entry is open to residents of the UK except employees (and their families) of CLC World, its printers and agents, the suppliers of the prizes and any other companies associated with the competitions.
• The entrant(s) must be aged 18 or over. Proof of identity and age may be required.
• Use of a false name or address will result in disqualification.
• The competition opens at 9am on Sunday 12th March  and ends at midnight on Saturday 25th March . Entries that are incomplete, illegible, indecipherable, duplicated or which contain profanity will not be valid and deemed void.
• To enter, applicants must [state which CLC World resort they would most like to visit], either by commenting on the competition post here: http://www.shesagentry.com/2017/03/mothers-day-gift-guide-and-giveaway.html , which is listed on the blog, She’s a Gentry, as well as following @shesagentry and @clcworld on Twitter.
• All entries must be made directly by the person entering the competition.
• No responsibility can be accepted for entries lost, due to computer error in transit.
• The prize is as stated and comprises of one M&S £25 gift card to be awarded to one winner. The prize is not transferable to another individual and no cash or other alternatives will be offered.
• Prizes are subject to availability and the prize suppliers' terms and conditions.
• Prizes will be posted to the winner within 7 days of receipt of their postage details.
• The winner will be announced by social media on the Sunday 26th March.
• The promoters reserve the right to amend or alter the terms of competitions at any time and reject entries from entrants not entering into the spirit of the competition.
• In the event of a prize being unavailable, the promoter reserves the right to offer an alternative prize of equal or greater value.
• The winner(s) agree(s) to the use of their name, photograph and disclosure of county of residence and will co-operate with any other reasonable requests by She’s a Gentry and/or CLC World, relating to any post-winning publicity.
• Unless stated otherwise the winner(s) will be drawn at random from all correct entries received by the closing date stated within the promotional material [enter date].
• Reasonable efforts will be made to contact the winner(s). If the winner(s) cannot be reached within 7 days of being notified of their win, or they are unable to comply with these terms and conditions, the Promoter reserves the right to offer the prize to the next eligible entrant drawn at random, or in the event that the promotion is being judged, the Promoter reserves the right to offer the prize to the runner(s)-up selected by the same judges.
• Confirmation of the prize will be made in writing/via online correspondence to the winner(s).
• Failure to respond and/or provide an address for delivery, or failure to meet the eligibility requirements may result in forfeiture of the prize.
• Where applicable, the decision of the judges is final based on the criteria set out in the promotion and no correspondence will be entered over this decision.
• Competitions may be modified or withdrawn at any time.

Christmas gifts with Dotcomgiftshop

I'm going to sound really old when I say this but how is it almost Christmas already!? With that in mind, I thought it best to share with you one of my new favourite online retailers known as dotcomgiftshop who kindly gave me a gift voucher to pick up some Christmas goodies.

There is something for everyone in this shop, supplying quirky, stylish as well as practical gifts. I decided to grab some super cute lunch bits that would make a perfect stocking filler or secret Santa gift.

You may have seen this travel mug on my Instagram a little while back. To me it is the perfect gift for the chilly winter months or for anyone who is constantly on the go. This blue tit travel mug is guaranteed to cheer up any commute and is made of bamboo, making it eco-friendly too! It's dishwasher safe and is much more appealing than a regular coffee cup. 

Keeping with the beverage theme, I've been loving this water bottle with it's mid-century poppy print and carry handle. Again this is perfect for anyone on the go from commuters to gym goers and is much nicer to drink from than a conventional sports bottle too. I must admit I did decide to keep this one for myself and its certainly been perking up my desk and reminding me to drink more H²O! 

The next few bits I got as a gift to the hubster who I hope is not reading this and if he is, I suggest he stop right now...

I always find men hard to buy for at Christmas, in particular Chris but I had a light bulb moment when I saw the Le Bicycle range!

In case it's not plainly obvious, my husband is a lycra loving road cyclist and loves nothing more than to riding around with other men in padded shorts so when I saw this theme I knew he would love it. There's so much choice in the Le Bicycle range that I found it hard to choose but ended up settling on lunch and luggage themes as Chris loves to travel and also loves food! The cool bag is perfect for any cycling adventures or day-to-day work life, keeping his food fresh. It's made of recycled plastic bottles, so again I'm loving how eco-friendly it is too. I then had to pick up the matching jumbo bag as this is perfect for Chris to sling his gym gear in, food shop or anything else he needs. 

To finish off the set and to make a lovely trio of Christmas goodies, I picked up the lunch box as lets face it- who wants a squashed lunch? It fits perfectly into the cool bag and will take pride of place in the office fridge!

I've only touched the tip of the iceberg with what's available on dotcomgiftshop so if you're stuck for things to buy this year, you won't be for long once you've had a browse.

Valentines Gift Guide for Guys

With Valentines just over a week away, you may still be pondering over what to get your guy. They can be so difficult to buy for! Chocolates and flowers won't really make them go weak at the knees but the following things I think they would be pleased to receive...

The Blue Beards Revenge have a great range of grooming products that will work for any guy. From the bearded beasts to the clean shaven male, there's a product to suit all and best bit? They stock beer!

Winners of the FHM grooming awards 2014, The Bluebeards Revenge really know their stuff. When Chris was a clean cut fella he really enjoyed their cut throat razors to get that super silky baby face, but now with a beard, he's rather partial to beard oils.

The "Cuban blend" beard oil will banish any unruly hairs and leave a manageable and manly beard that's soft to the touch. The smell is so nice too and makes a beard smell bootiful!

Now if your bloke isn't the bearded type, he must be into his hair right? Another brilliant product is the Matt Clay. Light but affective, it'll keep locks in place all day long whilst smelling splendid and manly.

Onto the best product of all that I guarantee your guy will love you for and that's the beer...

Back in September Bluebeard's Revenge brought out their very own pale ale which has been dubbed "the Ultimate Pale Ale for Real Men" and has an uncompromising and proud flavour. Brewed in Devon, this beer is one to watch. I think this makes the perfect accompaniment to their grooming gifts. I mean what man won't thank you for buying him beer?

All of these products are something I'm sure your man will thank you for, being practical and thoughtful all the same. Check out their gift sets for more ideas and perfect Valentines presents.

I hope this helps any of you stuck in a present rut for men on Valentines or any other occasion. I know what it can be like!

Thinking of doing a gift guide for girls next so send your men this way for some advice.

See you soon,