Secret Santa and Thrifty Christmas Swaps

I took part in a couple of secret Santa swaps this year: the Blogger Secret Santa Swap as organised by Char (from t*rexes and tiaras) and the Thrifty Christmas Gift Swap as organised by Janet (from Words That Can Only Be Your Own). I took part in the Thrifty swap last year and this year, I persuaded Andrew to take part as well.


The Blogger Secret Santa Swap
I was given Izzy to send to who blogs over at Vintage Beauty xox. Now unbeknown to me, Izzy had been given my name as her Secret Santa friend so we ended up doing a straight present swap; not sure if that was the idea or not but it was still fun and Izzy managed to put together a fab collection of gifts! You can see what I send Izzy over on her blog.

Izzy had done brilliantly for me; I particularly love the pom pom decoration and the cute button coaster (which I'm planning on putting next to my sewing machine, I think that'd fit the part perfectly!). She'd also included a little envelope of crafty bits with some gorgeous ribbon and little cards. Izzy's also one busy lady; as well as training to be an English teacher and running a blog, she also runs a vintage shop on Etsy - Patricia Mary Vintage - which is well worth checking out. Thank you Izzy for my gifts!



My Thrifty Christmas Gift Swap
I was really pleased when Janet sent me my Thrifty Christmas friend as it turned out to be Sharon from over at Sunshine and Celandines - a blog I've been enjoying for quite a while and you can see what I sent her over here. I received a excellent package from Rebecca who blogs over at Sullen Hearts.

The first thing I noticed about my parcel from Rebecca is just how much stuff she'd managed to fit in the box! There were cupcake cases, ribbon, a Christmas mug (which I really love!), crafts, a little handmade zine, a notepad, a candle and several other little things. Just after Christmas as well, I received a note from Rebecca with these fab duck post-its which she'd forgotten to include - I love them! I also love the upcycled envelopes she'd made and included in my package. Now one of the main reasons I love taking part in (and seeing everyone else's) Santa swaps is the sheer amount of creativity and craftiness out there, seeing other people's ideas give you inspiration to try new things yourself and this year, after seeing Rebecca's, I'd love to have a go at making some upcycled envelopes of my own. Thank you Rebecca for a fabulous and inspiring package!



Andrew's Thrifty Christmas Gift Swap
Andrew's Thrifty Christmas friend was an international lady, Leslie, living over in Canada. He had a few ideas about what to buy and I helped him think of a few little extras to go with it. Leslie doesn't have her own blog but hopefully her review of her gift will appear on Janet's blog at some point. Andrew was very good and kept his present til Christmas Eve before opening it. His Thrifty friend was Gill who coincidentally was also married to a mechanical engineer who was a fan of railways and trains!

Gill had picked out a perfect set of gifts, Andrew unwrapped Christmas tree decorations, napkins, a little vintage book about trains, chocolate bars and Quality Street, a little 2015 diary, handmade gift tags, a Christmas picture to hang up, a selection of vintage/nostalgic postcards, a book about the Great War and posters and cards about the Second World War. I think it's fairly safe to say he loved it, he's already started the book and the decorations were hung on the tree straight away. Both of us love the gift tags, many of them were maps of the local area which I think is such a fantastic idea! He spent quite a bit of time reading the train book as well, so much so that he forgot to open the rest of his presents for a while so that was definitely a winner. If you're reading this Gill, he said "thank you very much, all of the presents were excellent and it was really nice to open such a well-chosen gift!"

 

 

Did you take part in any Santa swaps this year?