#BloggersSecretSanta14 | Nottingham

On Saturday, the day myself and Hannah had been madly preparing for arrived. #BloggersSecretSanta14. Waking up at 5.30 that morning (after getting back from Paris in the night) I was exhausted and also filled with nerves. Afterall, it was our first time hosting an event and we wanted everything to run so smoothly!

Heading into town, I picked up a few last minute bits before arriving at the Ned Ludd and meeting Hannah. Upstairs it was manic - trying to organise all the tables, sort peoples name tags out and sift everything into the goodbags was horrific and a glass of wine was well needed! Here I have to say a huge thank you to the fantastic staff at the Ned Ludd, and also Ian Abbott for helping us sort everything in time!

Finally it was time and all the girls arrived, greeted by the drinks reception we'd organised and we could finally calm down. Let me tell you now, a heck of a lot of hard work goes into organising a meet!

First up to talk was Ian, the 'friendly UK guy'. He spoke to us all about two different products; the 'Ultimate Fix' nail spray, and 'Hello' breath spray. The nail spray instantly appealed to me as it's designed to dry each layer of polish so it doesn't chip as easily - something I desperately needed. I hate it when my nail polish chips! The breath spray looked so cute on the other hand that it instantly appealed to me - It's small enough to fit in any bag, which is perfect for me as I'm forever forgetting gum so this will come in handy!

Next up was Lekha from Merumaya, who gave us all a lovely insight into the brand and how it all came about. After talking us all through their top products, Lekha kindly did a raffle, with Megan from Seek My Scribbles being the lucky winner. She won 5 full size products from the brand - lucky girl!

After Lekha, Suzie from Xenca was up next. Since hearing her talk at the #NottsMeetSep14, I've adored Xenca products. Suzie is so passionate in the way that she talks about the brand, how their products that have helped her and I think it's hard not to be a little moved by it and really want to give some of them a try. In this talk she focused more on collagen and the five a day+, which I thought was very eye opening! She was even lovely and generous enough to gift us all a pot of the five a day+ each which was so kind.

Lush were the last brand to do a talk, and whilst myself, Hannah and Suzie were rushing about sorting out what present was for who in the Secret Santa, the staff (Holly, Ivy and Charlie) gave a talk on the history of the company, their ethics and some of the Christmas items. Afterwards, they even announced they had brought a workshop kit for us all to have a go at making our own bath bomb, which was absolutely fantastic!

Most of the meets I've been to, the planners have had months to prepare. So considering we had only done this all in 6 weeks, I'm super happy with the results and hope everyone had an amazing time like we did. A huge thank you goes out to the following brands:

- Ian Abott - for talking about the 'Ultimate Fix' and 'Hello' breath spray, and giving each of us samples

- Lekha from Merumaya - for talking about the brand, doing a raffle and generously giving each blogger a deluxe sample set

- Suzie from Xenca - for her passionate talk about the brand and it's benefits, and generously gifting each blogger with a pot of the five a day+, and for helping me and Hannah out when we felt like we were about to lose the plot!

- Holly, Ivy and Charlie from Lush - for their talk on the brand and what it stands for, for being so passionate about Lush ethics and bringing along a workshop kit so everyone could make their own bathbomb. Also a special thank you to Immy from Lush for her help in organising Lush coming along.

- The Blogger Programme and Leanne Lim-Walker - for contributing the gift bags for the event and being fantastic at helping us each step of the way.

- We Are Delish - For supplying some lovely cake pops that we gifted to the brands to say thank you :)

- The Treat Kitchen - For supplying a sample of delicious treats for us to include in the gift bags

- Vita Liberata for supplying some NKD Skin fake tan 

- Your Tea for supplying a 14 day teatox for each bag

- Makeup Revolution for supplying a Matte Brights Palette and Eye Primer each

- Faith In Nature for supplying a shower gel each

- Dream dots for supplying a pack each

- Superdrug for supplying a variety of different face masks

- Perfectil for supplying a sample pack each

- Hairburst for supplying a bottle each

- W7 Cosmetics for supplying a variety of different make-up products

- Leighton Denny for supplying a nail polish each

- Flashmob for supplying a variety of different items

- Nanshy for supplying a bent eyeliner brush each

- Beauty UK for supplying a variety of different shades of nail polish

- Crabtree & Evelyn for supplying a festive cracker each containing a hand cream

- Face to the Future for supplying a deluxe sample bag each

- Personal Planner for supplying a voucher each.

Wow that's an exhaustive list! But a MASSIVE thank you to each of the brands involved in the event - you helped make it the perfect possible day we could have imagined, so thank you.

And of course, a HUGE thank you to all you lovely girls that attended - it wouldn't have been the same without you!

And of course, my fantastic co-host and partner in crime, Hannah (Hanner King). We had a couple of bags spare at the end, so Hannah has a giveaway going on over on her blog right now (go check it out!), and keep your eyes peeled for mine coming soon!

From both me and Hannah, we just want to say thank you for coming along and making our first event amazing. We wouldn't have been able to do it without your support and we hope you all enjoy your Secret Santa's and have a wonderful Christmas!

❤