Fforestfach Retail Parc Christmas Gift Challenge

I don't know about you but how crazy is your city's shopping centre already? I attempted to do some Christmas shopping in Cardiff recently and instead of it being a festive day out, it ended up being rather stressful and I came away with very little. I'm a very visual person so online shopping isn't an option for me that's why I was very pleased to be asked to join in with the #xmasGiftChallenge at Fforestfach Retail Parc.

The challenge was to find the perfect gift for 5 people on my christmas shopping list in 5 of the different stores at Fforestfach. I had a budget of £200. 

The Retail Parc features some of my fave retailers such as New Look, Boots, Marks and Spencer, River Island, H and M, Next, Clarks and other stores such as DW Sports, Homesense, Poundland, O2, and Carphone Warehouse. There are also a couple of coffee shops, Costa and Cafe Nero.  Therefore, there was a fab range of beauty, fashion, home and food to choose from. 

Fforestfach Retail Parc was very easy to find. We drove there, went straight into the carpark and found a space immediately. What I think is wonderful is that you can get 4 hours worth of free parking. It was a welcome relief from what I normally have to do in Cardiff which is queueing for a long time to get into a carpark and paying extortionate prices to go shopping. 

I decided to buy a gift for my mum, daughter, best friend, father in law and our dog. I couldn't leave him out. He always gets a gift from Santa so I thought i'd see if the retail parc really did have something for everyone. 

The first shop I headed to was Marks and Spencer to find something for my mum. My mum and immediate family emigrated to Australia 8 years ago but they are actually coming back to the UK for a holiday this Christmas. It'll be our first one together in 8 years. I decided to buy her a going out top. In Australia, it's summer and obviously it's winter here, so the seasons and fashion are different. I tried to find her something that she may be able to wear when she gets home. I found her a lovely festive top which is quite thin so hopefully she will get some use out of it in the future.

I also found her a gorgeous bubble bath. The bottle is so striking. There were a few different colours to choose from. I'm hoping someone will get me one too as I think it'll look lovely in the bathroom.

Next up I went to H&M to find something for my daughter. I quite often buy clothes there for both of my girls so I thought it would be the ideal place to get something for my eldest Eva. She adores anything to do with Disney. I managed to find her an Elsa (from Frozen) gymnastics leotard tutu (for her to wear to her class) and the matching gloves for dressing up. I also found her Lightning McQueen slippers. She is going to love them. H&M is a great place to look for Disney clothes and items as they are a fraction of the price than at other stores.

I also bought her a new jumper. She's lacking in winter clothing since having a huge growth spurt.

I then headed to Next to find something for my father in law. I wanted to get him a new shirt. The Next store is actually an outlet store so everything is really cheap. There was quite a lot I could have bought him from there but in the end I settled on a casual shirt and t-shirt.

Then it was time to pop my feet up and have a much needed rest in Costa. Seeing as I was in the festive spirit I decided to try the honeycomb latte from their christmas range along with a cake. It was definitely the pick me up I needed.

Next it was time to find something for my best friend. We both have similar tastes and adore fashion so I headed to New Look in search of the perfect gift. I came across a gorgeous pair of black shoes. She will love them. They are a great wardrobe staple with a little twist.

Last up it was time to find something for the dog, Alfie. I decided a new bed would be a wonderful Christmas treat for him. After browsing around all of the wonderful things that were in Homesense, the decorations, the stationary, the food etc, I found the pet section. There stood the cutest dog bed i'd ever seen. It was a teepee and I had to have it. 

Overall, I had a really successful shopping trip. I managed to buy gifts for 5 different people in 5 different shops. I spent under the budget of £200 with the total being £166.14 which means I have money to spare to return and buy something for someone else. 

I really enjoyed shopping at Fforestfach Retail Parc. It's convenient, stress-free shopping with plenty of variety on offer. I loved the fact that I didn't have to carry my bags throughout the whole trip as I could pop them in the boot of my car.

If you fancy enjoying a shopping trip to Fforestfach Retail Parc then head over to their facebook page as they are giving one lucky winner £200 to spend there. https://www.facebook.com/fforestfachretailparc