Valentines Day Gift Guide for Him & Her

Stuck on what to buy your other half? Girlfriend or Boyfriend? Look no further as I have some amazing gift ideas for you! But first lets have some background knowledge on this day!

So its that time of the year again where you see all the couples of the world come together and celebrate 'their' day. I always think this is another commercialised season but at the same time when the day comes and I get to spend time with my other half it does feel special and giving/receiving a gift is just the 'norm'. I could probably speak for half the population and say that we like this day, but the only thing I could say is that you should appreciate and give extra attention to your loved one on every day of the week. Not just one day out of 365. Buy anyway lets get to why you clicked on this post! the ideas!

Gift Guide for Him // Links to all products mentioned will be highlighted in red (click on them and they will direct you to the product.) SCROLL DOWN for the gift guide for Her.

I know how hard it is to buy for men on any occasion let alone Valentines Day so you may ask frequently what do I get my other half or in my case what do I get for my other half who seems to have everything HAHA (Hi Jamie :)) so heres a few ideas I've come up with

1. A Red Letter Day 
If you have a partner who is very energetic, sporty, outdoors kind of man or one who prefers an experience/ adventure Red Letter Days www.redletterdays.co.uk is probably the best gift option for you. If you click on the highlight red letter days it will redirect you to the website which has so many fun adventures and experiences on. From driving a sports car or getting dirty in a truck on a track to hot air ballooning or animal experiences it has endless options and such good prices and its an unexpected and exciting gift! and the bonus?? you can experience it together!!

2. A Personalised Gift
Whether this is a personalised glass to a personalised wallet the possibility is endless. I recently went to one of my boyfriends friends house and they presented to us a personalised wine bottle holder and I thought what a unique and special gift that could be! I've found one example of a personalized gift
and one of them is a bottle box holder, it gives a bottle extra protection and also is a great keep sake for the owner with a personalized message on the box for them to put on display. If not a box wine/champagne holder why not a glass! Everybody needs a glass and why not personalize it. Here's a website with some personalizing products www.gettingpersonal.co.uk

3. Clothes/ Shoes
Men are simple with clothes but its always something they will need and buy so why not treat your partner to a nice new shirt or some new shoes! You cant really go wrong with it. Just make sure you buy the correct size or gift him a voucher to his favourite clothes store.


Gift Guide for Her //  Links to all products mentioned will be highlighted red (click on them and they will direct you to the product //

So apart from the 'original' gifts like flowers, a box of chocolates or maybe a bottle of beverage i.e.
Champagne! Ive recently been searching for some really unique and special gifts that you could treat
your misses to! So here's a few; Ive also included a few 'BUDGET' ideas and some 'HIGHEND' ideas.

1. Jewellery.

PANDORA - HIGHEND
Now I know that not everybody has a PANDORA bracelet but for those that have a partner who does I found two of the Valentine day charms and thought it was too cute to not share it with you guys!

The first one is called the Forever in my Heart Charm RRP: £55

I think this is a simple and elegant charm which has the most unique meaning and looks beautiful on the bracelet too.

The second charm I noticed whilst browsing through the website was the Gorgeous Girlfriend Charm 

RRP; £35 which has the words engraved onto a heart shaped clasp which doesn't move around once clipped onto the bracelet. As simple as it is I think its beautiful.

ARGOS - BUDGET
I know there will be some younger viewers on my page so I wanted to include some budget ideas that I think are just as good if not better than the highend options.

I found this bracelet which is affordable and beautiful with an infinity sign symbolizing 'forever'.  Sterling Silver Infinity 'Forever' Bracelet RRP; £19.99 WAS £39.99

2. PAMPER DAY! 
Now I cant say on behalf of all girls but I especially love abit of a pamper day whether you can afford to take your other half male or female on a spa day for velentines day or not why not buy them a voucher for a pampering treatment! For some ideas why not a voucher for a hair salon!? WASH, CUT
 AND BLOWDRY!? it would be a dream for a lady who loves her hair! Now I cant link anything as I know most of you don't live in the same area as me but if you know a good hair salon why not purchase a voucher for her. Now I have to admit I'm more of a nail girl myself and love a manicure/acrylic nails put on and painted. I find it so relaxing so if you think your lady is more of a nails type of girl book her a nail appointment instead.

3. A Spontaneous/Planned Road trip/ Journey

I know some people may not want to buy someone a present but instead give them an experience i.e a day out or even just a walk round the village/surrounding areas. These type of days are very one to one and some girls would appreciate this more than any gift. You could make it more romantic by taking a little 'picnic' hamper along too. Include some strawberries and beverages and you are set!

*DISCLAIMER*
No Copyright (photos) intended links to all products mentioned are linked to website

So anyway guys I hope this hasn't been too long to read and I hope this has given you a few ideas !

Much Love
Hannah
xx

Mental Health | Lets talk about Depression

Mental Health - Lets talk about Depression 


Image from Google 

Mental health? 
What does it mean? It's a combination of the physiological and emotional well being of a person. The statistics ? At least 1 out of 4 people will suffer from a mental health related issue and in the UK most of them to this day are mainly female. 

But for this blog post I want to talk about one mental health illness in particular and that is depression. There are three types of depression; seasonal affective disorder- which can be brought on by the change of seasons and the change in days. Postnatal depression-commonly mothers who are suffering 'baby blues' straight after the birth of their baby and can be much more serious as this type of depression can last for years. The last type of depression is Bipolar or 'manic depression' which can cause serious mood swings or they can suffer from a state of mania (high execitment). 

Depression is not like a wound that can be seen physically in some cases but it's an invisible illness, the human eye can not see it so its something that without the person telling you they suffer from it you might not be able to tell. 

Depression isn't talked about which I mean who would want to talk about something that in turn makes you feel like crap. 

I want to make talk about this to try and curve the stigma around depression and share my own personal opinions. 

From a young age I went through some traumatic issues which led me down the road of counselling also known as 'talking therapies '. From my own experience this was a temporary way of coping with my issues and my emotions. As I was still a child this was given to me over a course of a few months and was available to me via the NHS. 

The stigma around depression is that people who have it are 'crazy' or 'weird' and 'weak'; people who don't fit in but that is far from the truth. Everyone has different experiences and have grown up in different environments which can contribute to suffering from a mental health illness. 

Most times I've researched this subject and have found that most people are scared to admit they have depression and tend to leave it until they are quite older to tackle it. Some people though can not cope with the changes holistically and a lot tend to commit suicide. This is very sad but it's the truth and there is not a lot of help out there and with the recent NHS cuts there will be fewer places to go to if you are in need of help.

So what's my point? 
My point is that you shouldn't assume someone isn't suffering from an illness just because you can not see it. When people are diagnosed with illnesses such as Cancer everyone comes together and wants to be there for the sufferer, so why should it be any different for people with depression or any other mental health issue. Back in the days before I was born and for many years prior people with mental health issues were locked away and institutionalised; labelled as 'mad'. So in some ways the people of the past in charge of these institutes are the ones to blame for the stigma. I hope that the 21st century can knock this stereotype down. 

So I challenge you as a reader to be better and talk freely about this topic without feeling 'weird' about the topic. Its amazing what you can learn if you jut open your eyes abit more. 

Want to know more? heres some useful sites; 
Mind.org
National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE)

many thanks for reading 
Hannah