Art and Stationary Haul | What I got for Christmas/My Birthday 2015

Hello, everyone!

I've been so excited to write this post because I've been given so many gorgeous bits to fund my obsession with stationary and art. 

There will also be two other hauls within the next month, a fashion/beauty haul and a fitness haul. Although these posts mainly consist of gifts, I thought it would make more sense if I did them in separate haul posts because if they were all in one post then you would be reading the post for an awfully long time because I tend to ramble (ugh trying not to sound all like a spoilt little prat here). 

By the way, I'm not really expecting you to read every little detail and thought of mine throughout the post. If you get bored of listening to my ramblings, just look at the photos!

If you are offended by hauls and stuff now is your opportunity to skip this post and read something else. Please don't leave any mean comments. Thanks!

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So I'm going to start with the arty, scrapbooking bits! I was so overwhelmed with how much I received so I could get ahead with one of my favourite hobbies (other than blogging of course!).

Glue Four Pack

I'm sure you're probably feeling quite concerned that I'm obsessing over glue, but it's something I'm constantly on the hunt for because it seems to disappear so easily in my household! You can never have enough of it. Also it's in four different forms for various uses so they're even more valuable! 

Stamps

Stamps are becoming a new obsession of mine. They're so lovely to use when it comes to making dainty images or scrapbooking, as they just add a bit of detail. They can also make really nice framing to photos through various theming, e.g. when I get my first car, when Tom passed his driving test the car stamp will be quite nice in various colours. 

I apologise for the brightness and extreme contrast of this photo

More stamps!?

Yes, and I've ordered even more with a gift voucher! 

I adore these stamps and the beautiful colours of the ink. As well as for scrapbooking, I've started using these stamps in particular to finish off letters and decorate envelopes a bit, to give them a personal and creative touch. 

Roller Stamp

Ok I know what you're thinking, this is going a bit far now!

I've seen a bit of an increase in these stamps being used for crafting, as they are usually associated with being used in the library. But how cute is it!? This stamp has loads of different short phrases on it, such as 'this and that', 'remember this...' and 'you are awesome' on it. With all the different inks I've got now, this will be perfect for scrapbooking and documenting memories. Thank you Mum and Dad, for such amazing stocking fillers as always!

Decorative badges

I always find it really hard to get decorative badges that I like and can be used in my scrapbooks, but these are perfect and can be used no matter what the theme of my pages are! I love how retro they look and I'm more than sure I will get great use out of these to make lovely pages. 

Watercolour crayons

I literally swear by these whenever I do an illustration or a page out of one of my adult colouring books (for those of you with dirty minds, it's not what you think!). Unfortunately I was really unorganised last year and lost a pencil case full of them and some expensive pens so I was pretty lost and couldn't cure any of my boredom. But praise the lord, Tom's family bought me some more for Christmas and I am so grateful (I'm grateful to everyone else for their lovely gifts too, don't worry!). 

So now I can get back to drawing and colouring once again. Hurray!

36 Mini Crayons

I'm so sorry to those perfectionists out there who are frustrated about the colour sequence I have rearranged these crayons into as well as the fact some of the crayons are missing from the packet. 

These little beauties are wonderful for colouring and drawing fine details in pictures. I've never actually come across them before, but Mamma (Tom's grandma) saw them in Paperchase as she is well aware of my obsession with the store and the quirky bits they sell. Good choice, I love them!

Scrapbook

Scrapbooking become a new hobby of mine during 2015 and was re-developed through witnessing the stationary industry go *boom* through the likes of companies such as Paperchase. So many beautiful materials, pens, and art supplies were released that I just had to get involved and rekindle my creative side. 

This scrapbook was given to me by my lovely Aunty Romany. Honestly I adore it, the pattern on the front and the unique binding is wonderful. I use scrapbooking and art to document times Tom and myself have had together through the years. Year one is almost full but this scrapbook will be great for photos of year two!

Creative Lettering and Beyond

I opened this book on my birthday and was absolutely bewildered by it. If you love art and calligraphy/typography, get this now! 

The book contains detailed and simplified guidelines on how to compose artistic lettering, followed by tons of beautiful ideas regarding how to set them out. It even has a DIY Chalkboard tutorial inside through the simple use of paint and card. Amazing! I'm hoping to buy some good materials so I can really practice and find my own style, then maybe even sell some of my creations on an Etsy shop or something. Fingers crossed I'm actually good at it, definitely something to work on in the new year.

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PHEW! That was a lot to get through. Take a break or carry on reading, whatever you wish! It's time for the stationery now...

Before I start, thank you so much to everyone who bought me these wonderful gifts, you know who you are! Thanks to everyone else who also bought me other beautiful gifts for both Christmas and my birthday. Let's go...

Stationery Goodie Box

I've seen these in Paperchase from time to time and they've really caught my attention as they look so useful. Amazing Aunty Rom and her family also bought me this set (as well as many other things featured in this post) and it has an adorable camouflage theme to it. This set contains some post-it notes, magnets, staples, a stapler, clipboard clips and paper clips. Honestly I will get so much use out of all of this through college and university!

Big Ideas notebook

This notebook was a table present from my Grandma and Gramps. I absolutely adore notebooks and hoard them away. I actually get told by so many people to stop buying them because I will run out of uses for them. But this Big Ideas notebook is perfect for jotting down, well, ideas. Especially for future blog posts and crafting ideas. 

642 Things to Write About Me

Tom bought me this wonderful book and library kit (see further down in post) and I am in love with it. It's perfect for reminiscing as it gives loads of inspiration to write about things you completely forget about your life until your asked to recall it, if you get what I mean? I completely forgot about the imaginary friends I had until this book told me to have a deep think and write about them. The thing I love about this book is you can either write factually so it's something to look back on, or you can use your imagination and write really creatively. It's also a good incentive to write personal blog posts and share interesting things with readers. I may be sharing some of this book with you throughout 2016, so keep your eyes peeled. 

Lego Erasers

I don't know about you but I think these are adorable. I love the colours too, especially the pastel pink and blue! These are the kind of rubbers you really don't want to spoil and use because they're so cute, but there's four so I'm sure they will last.

Pens, galore!

I have a thing for pretty pens and these pens fit that category! The pens to the left side of the photo are an assorted set of coloured gel pens and will be perfect for taking notes in lectures and making them look attractive so I actually go back and read them and use them. The pen to the write is oh so fancy, so will be used for writing nice letters and cards to my nearest and dearest (one of my most used phrases already this year!)

Sticky Notes

These notes are perfect as semi-permanent book marks for anything, from catalogues, to books, to class notes! What I find incredibly useful and brilliant is the fact that as well as the stuff it already says on the notes that sort of gives away what you're using them for in the first place e.g. read, to do it also gives you space to write things you need to remember. 

Personal Library Kit

Now this was an individual gift from Tom! I have a thing about reading books, adoring them and lending them out to people who don't give them back which is annoying because when I love a book I want to read it over and over. This kit basically involves me writing down all the books I've loaned out, when and when I want them back. So if I loan you a book, things have now got serious!

A5 Exercise Books

I might as well become an ad for Paperchase (I'd quite like to be actually!). These books are absolutely gorgeous and I'm too scared to write a load of garble in them and ruin them. I mean look, they have golden edges! I think I'm definitely going to wait until I have a really good purpose for them because they're just too pretty.

2016 Owl Diary

I have so much  love for owls, despite my fear of birds. I just think the illustrations of them are so cute. So this diary is perfect for me. I'm not a big user of diaries, but it's so compact and perfect for me. 

Sticky Notes

I reckon I'm going to have enough of these to last me a while now which is awesome. I hate running out of things I need. These are so chic and classy, something else I'm scared of ruining. I once had a set of sticky notes from Paperchase last year at some point and they weren't really that sticky but I've used some of these already and they're great. 

Idea: If you have loads of these and don't know what to do with some of them, like me sometimes, write positive quotes on them and stick them around your room to give you motivation and confidence for the new year!

Stapler

I am forever in need of a stapler and I think my mum bought me this because she's sick of hers going missing when I need to staple assignments and things together. Now I have two of my one and a load of staples, so don't worry Mum! I'll stop stealing yours. 

Exercise Book

I adore this adorable exercise book. It's so me! I've always fancied writing my own children's story or a journal, so I think this will be perfect for it. 

Idea: If you're at school or university and studying various subjects, and are bored of using the standard exercise books head to your local stationary store and purchase one of these because there's always plenty of choice! (If you're at school make sure you ask your teachers first because some of them are picky and prefer you to use the ones provided by the school/college)

Scissors

How cute? Very! These are so unique and cool, plus they've come as a set of three so they can be used for various things. I doubt with these bright colours that I will ever lose them either!

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So, that's the end of a very rambled, long post expressing my love for stationary and these gorgeous gifts. Thank you to everyone for supplying me with them, I adore them all! And I adore you all! 

Stay tuned and keep your eyes peeled for my fitness haul and beauty and fashion haul for more gifts and gratefulness.

Happy New Year! x