What I Got For My 20th Birthday

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Last December I said goodbye to my teenage years and said hello to (supposedly) adulthood. Basically I turned twenty!! On the actual day of my birthday I was performing in a ballet show, so I didn't really do much apart from that. However I got to celebrate a few days later with my friends so it was pretty great overall.

I wanted to write a post about what I got for my birthday, simply because I love seeing other people's posts and videos like this one. I also think it's a great way of giving people ideas on what gifts you could buy for your friends and family. This year I would say that I got very specific presents and I was literally expecting none of them. I love everything so much and I feel so incredibly lucky and grateful to have such amazing people in my life. Anyway, let's get to it!

A few days before my birthday, I went to dinner with a group of girls whom I have known for years. We are quite a big group and we don't manage to meet as often anymore, but we always make an effort to see each other on special occasions, especially on our birthdays. These girls bought me the Humans Of New York Stories book by Brandon Stanton. I was so surprised with this and I honestly can't explain to you how much I love it. If you have never heard of HONY (humans of new york), please go look it up right now - you can find them on practically any social media - and I promise you, you won't be disappointed.

My boyfriend Jake got me a few cute things which showed me how well he really knows me haha. He was on holiday in Scotland sometime before my birthday so he got all these things from there. The main present is a woolen cardigan from Hollister; it's an amazing maroon colour which I love, and it's super soft too! He also got me a book called 'Me, You, Us' by Lisa Currie which is basically a whole book full of random things to fill in on each page. We're slowly filling it in together and it's so much fun; I think it's such an original idea for a present and I just love these things! The last thing he got me was a teeny tiny Peter Pan soft toy from the Disney store. You probably don't know this but I am the #1 Peter Pan fan. It is my favourite movie ever and I just love every single thing about it. So this is obviously a more meaningful present even though it is just something small, because he knew I would love it. And to me that makes things so much more special.

My University group of friends were incredibly amazing and got me a Guess bag! I still can't get over it, it's just so beautiful. I have never owned any sort of designer bag so you can only imagine how pleased I was when I opened this. It's the perfect size for me and I can fit everything I need inside. The colour is perfect cause it's simple and matches with everything, and it even has an adjustable chain! I am so happy with this bag and I treat it like my little baby. And I'm just so thankful to these girls cause they are the absolute best.

My mum got me this really cute jewellery holder/plate which says 'Don't let anyone dull your sparkle'. It looks adorable on my dressing table and I've decided to fill it up with my favourite rings. She also got me a hanging mirror with a quote by Coco Chanel on it. The quote is 'A girl should be two things: classy and fabulous.' I'm obsessed with room decorations that have cute quotes on them. I think they're so pretty and they can give a room a personal touch.

Jake's parents were kind enough to buy me another Pandora bracelet, as my first one is full up. This is obviously a very special present and they are honestly the best in-laws I could ask for. I decided to fill this second bracelet up with every charm that I get from abroad, so it can be like my little travel bracelet. Basically every time I visit a country I buy a different charm for my Pandora bracelet which will remind me of that holiday. I've been doing this since 2014 and up until now I have eight charms already! I love the way it turned out once I put the charms in and I can't wait to add more from my trips this year.

Finally is the gift which is probably my favourite and I literally had to keep my tears back when they gave it to me (cause we were in public). This is from my three best friends and it is basically a cork board filled with loads of Polaroid photos that they got printed out. There are photos from 2010 up to 2015 and a personalised caption on every single one of them. I am a very sentimental person and I love photos so much, so this is probably the best thing someone could have ever given me. I think it's such an amazing gift because it is evident that they put a lot of thought and effort into it, and they clearly know me so well! The best part about it is looking at each photo and remembering all the memories that lay behind it, which I think is absolutely incredible.

I want to emphasize again how happy I am with every single present I received this year. I do not expect anything from anyone and I definitely do not expect people to spend a lot of money on me. What makes me the happiest is knowing that the people I love thought of me and made an effort to get me something that they knew I would love. I always say that there is no need to spend a lot of money on presents, especially when you are still a student and you probably don't have much money (like me) haha, because it really is the thought that counts. I hope this post gave some of you inspiration for future present ideas. Let me know in the comments any other ideas you might have for gifts, or even an original gift that someone gave you!