I have a confession to make – I really dislike Black Friday, and Cyber Monday it’s the constant barrage of emails from a range of very large retailers like an assault on the senses trying to wear you down and give in to shopping one of their “deals” for things you don’t need.  Personally, I try to hibernate until it is all past and concentrate on shopping with smaller businesses and shopping locally in the area where we live too after Black Friday has passed.

Our local towns and small businesses are all struggling at the moment and really rely on the Christmas trade to keep their businesses and shops afloat throughout the rest of the year so something to bear in mind in the coming weeks as the Christmas gift buying season really gets into full swing – that is unless you are one of those people who have written their Christmas cards, bought their gifts, wrapped them and stashed them all away by the end of September!  As you can probably tell that isn’t quite me!

I’m at the stage where I’m winning if my son gets an advent calendar at the end of November rather than trying to find one a week into December when they are virtually  non existent and then when I do eventually find one, having to then back track the opening of the doors and getting into the debate about why eating 7 bits of chocolate in one go is not such a good idea!  Sound familiar????

Some families know exactly what is happening for Christmas each year.  Who is hosting, who is bringing what with them, when people are arriving to stay and when they are leaving.   I am  sure that our family is not the only one with multi generational children to contend with (the older ones weigh up their options to see who’s got the best Christmas offer and how complicated the transport options are before committing) ageing parents on both sides at opposite ends of the country and family at the mercy of the railway to see when those annually scheduled engineering works are happening over the Christmas period to see if they can make it AND get back home again after Christmas!  The result for us is that we don’t actually know who is coming, when they are arriving, who is staying and when they are leaving so it’s literally “fly by the seat of your pants” chaos!

One year my step daughter (in her twenties at the time) committed to coming for Christmas at the last minute and her Dad told her on Christmas Eve that she wouldn’t have a little stocking from Santa by the bedroom door and so just her presents under the tree instead this year.  She was a bit upset and convinced her Dad was winding her up … but because it was all short notice, we really hadn’t done her a little Santa stocking!  She wasn’t being precocious – that little Santa stocking by the bedroom door was one of our little family traditions which admittedly originally was more about trying to get the children to stay in their rooms a bit longer so we didn’t have to get up at 5am on Christmas morning!!

I spent the rest of the evening scrabbling around in the “present drawer” to see what there was that was suitable and to find bits of my own make up and toiletries that were brand new and unopened to wrap up for her with some chocolate tree decorations a satsuma and some nuts!   The next morning she was very happy and told her Dad that she knew he was winding her up … sorry for bursting that bubble Maddie if you are reading this! 

I find it usually helps to have a list of who you need to buy for and to have an “extra” just in case gift too! 

Timing is of the essence as our last order date for guaranteed Christmas delivery is 8^th December.

The last date for orders from France is 15^th December  -  your item might arrive in time for Christmas but is not guaranteed so you need to get a wriggle on with your Christmas shopping so that your gift recipients don’t miss out!

Some people are easier to buy for than others so here is a little gift buying guide from Tortue.UK to give you some ideas and take away some of that Christmas gift buying stress.

The hard to buy for teenage.

Most teenagers that I come across are glued to their phones so the obvious choice is one of our mobile phone holder cross body bags.  Choose from the fab Faux Crocodile Phone Holder in Red or the black Phone Holder With Rivets for those who like a more edgy “rock chick” look. Both are big enough to take a phone, a lipstick and a little bit more space too!

The Secret Santa gift. 

These usually have a spend limit attached to them that doesn’t get you an awful lot except a box of chocolates or some Christmas themed “tat”!  This is where a Tortue gift voucher can be handy as you can choose your value.  We also offer a free Personal Styling session as part of our service so give them the details of the Personal Styling Session to go with the voucher and you have given the gift of an experience too!

The gift for your bestie.

If your bestie is anything like yourself, they will probably like the things that you like too! 

Our new artisan crafted belts are made from 100% leather and are presented in cotton dust bags for storage.   They are a sturdy belt that just oozes quality.

Choose from the Sacha Belt in Black or Sand which features metal rivets for the ultimate rock chic look

Or go for the Andrea Belt in Camel or Black featuring a classy double gold coloured metal buckle instead.

The Teacher gift

Lets face it, I am sure that Teachers get either a load of booze or a load of chocolate at Christmas so why not club together with a few other parents and get them one of our gorgeous scarves?

The Printed Wool Scarf in Night Blue features a trendy mix of prints with small fringes to add a bohemian touch to any outfit and help your Teacher to face the cold when they are on playground duty!!

Alternatively opt for the mixed pinks version of the scarf with a black and white tiger  design at the centre?  Both scarves are smart enough but casual enough, light enough but warm enough to wear inside or outside of the classroom.

The Mother In Law gift

If your Mother in Law feels the cold then the Striped Scarf in black grey and khaki shades could be the ideal gift.  These neutral shades will match with most outfits and is soft and snuggly!  If she can’t wear wool then this scarf is crafted from a super soft 100% polyester so won’t irritate her (although we can’t guarantee that she won’t irritate you especially when everyone is in the kitchen trying to cook Christmas dinner!!)

You may want to match the scarf with our must have Black Gloves.  This gift is effectively 3 pairs in 1 featuring a pair of faux suede gloves with a knitted pair of fingerless gloves over them which can be worn separately or together for three different looks – clever hey?

The “I have given you a million hints so now I am giving you an actual list”  gift(s) for yourself!

Simply copy, paste, fill in the blanks of your favourite Tortue pieces.  Send it to your partner and copy in your Tortue Consultant who can play Santa and liaise with them to source you a gift that you will love and actually want!

Alternatively, go to the online shop in Tortue.uk and put everything that you would like into your basket in the sizes that you want.  Click to view your basket then copy and paste the link and send it to your partner to make it easy for them.  All they then have to do is check out the order and wrap when it arrives – Christmas sorted! 

The “OMG I forgot someone or unexpected Christmas visitor” gift

A Tortue Gift Card.  These are sent electronically over email so you can print it out to put into a Christmas Card or forward directly to the gift recipient.  The gift vouchers are valid for 12 months so if you don’t need to use it as a Christmas gift you can keep it to oneside to use as a gift for a Birthday or other future occasion.  Its also handy if you are asked to give a raffle prize for school or a charity etc as you can pass it on!

The gift to self for “doing Christmas for everyone else”

New PJ’s! 

In our house the children always get a new pair of PJ’s for Christmas as a present that they are allowed to unwrap on Christmas Eve so this year, why not treat yourself to a pair of new PJ’s too!

The Pyjama Sets are where comfort meets chic.  The tailored collar and striped detailing  mean the PJ’s are smart enough to wear amongst the family for the opening of the presents on Christmas morning, but the pyjama top is smart enough to wear on its own with a pair of jeans at another time too!

Choose from the Pyjama Set In Bronze if you like an animal print or go for the Pyjama Set in Blue with its geometric design instead.  (Alternatively if you can’t choose between them then order both – after all you have done all the hard work in getting everything ready for Christmas and deserve a lie in or two in style after the main event!)

Remember that timing is of the essence as our last order date for guaranteed Christmas delivery is 8^th December and last order date from France is a week later on 15^th December but is not guaranteed to arrive in time for Christmas.

I’m off to start writing my list and checking it twice depending on who’s been naughty or nice….  and maybe writing my own list for my husband too! 

Happy shopping!

Angela

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