Nica's Christmas Gift Ideas

As the countdown to Christmas is officially on, it’s definitely time to start thinking about what you’ll be buying your friends and family for Christmas. From healthy cookbooks to sentimental crafts, take a look at our gift ideas.

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Bake up a Storm
It’s that time of the year when everybody loves to cosy up at home and pull out the baking mitts but Christmassy baking shouldn't mean that your healthy eating plans go straight out of the window. There are plenty of just as delicious alternatives which are actually good for you. One of our favourite go-tos for inspiration has been the Deliciously Ella blog, and now she’s also releasing a great cookbook that promotes her amazingly healthy recipes. It’d make a great stocking filler! 

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Invest in a little piece of art
You know just how much we love quirky influences here are Nica from our prints to our hardware so, of course we love fun pieces of artwork. They’re the perfect way to infuse your décor with a playful twist and make a great gift for a loved one. Invest in a collector’s piece or hunt out a bargain at your local charity shop. 

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Christmas Bags We believe that a girl can never have too many handbags, and our new season drop will have you covered. No matter your style preference, we’ve got the bag for you. From outfit staples to transcend the seasons to purses that make great little stocking fillers. Plus our social feeds are often filled with great outfit inspiration courtesy of some of our favourite bloggers too. Just like RosieGlow who’s been styling our Anica tote for fall

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Get Crafty
Sometimes nothings better received than a gift that’s been handcrafted by yourself as it shows that you’ve really put some thought into the present rather than just last minute panic bought. If you’re stuck for ideas regarding what to create, then a quick crafty search on Pinterest can yield a plethora of ideas. From Christmas decorations to thoughtful photo frames that’ll transcend the seasons, we’re hooked! 

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Now that we’ve inspired your Christmas shopping ideas, why not let us know which Nica bag is on your wish list this year? Simply drop us a comment below or tweet us @Nica_Handbags. 

Discover Nica's Favourite Places: Alfresco Dining in Shoreditch

by Nica Kim

I love to share some of my favourite places that I discover with you, and last weekend when I went along to Boundary, an alfresco rooftop retreat in the heart of Shoreditch, London, I instantly knew that I had to tell you about it.

It's restaurant can seat around 50 people and you can choose from grills and lighter snacks from the deli downstairs. We felt extremely Christmassy as we we’re seated upon a comfy sofa right next to a log fire, and we were even offered blankets to help us to keep warm as the night got colder.

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We ordered a bottle of red wine, which we shared whilst overlooking the stunning views of East London. It offers such an impressive panoramic view that you’ll definitely love if you like to take photographs like I do. 

Why not share some of you favourite places with me? I'm always looking for nice new places to try out. Tweet us @Nica_Handbags, or simply, drop me a comment below. 

Love Nica Kim

x x x 

#NicaChristmas: Discover Some of our Favourite Festive Baking Ideas

We’re starting to feel very Christmassy here at Nica HQ, and one of our favourite things about the festive season is dabbling in a spot of Christmas time baking!

So, we've been looking through Pinterest for some recipe ideas. Why not take a look at our #NicaChristmas board to see what we've found?

We've stumbled upon quite a few that we fancy testing out. Here are some of our favourites. Which ones have inspired you to start baking?

Gingerbread Tree

Forget the traditional flat gingerbread trees and create mini life like ones instead. Plus, it’s really easy too! All’s you need to do is bake some simple star shaped ginger bread cookies, stack them on top of each other, and simply glue into place with a splash of yummy icing. 

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Snowflake Carrot Cupcakes

A simple cupcake made from carrot cake mixture and prettily decorated with vanilla butter cream and chocolate snowflake decoration. Finished with a splash of sparkly edible glitter to up that festive feeling.

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Santa Brownies

Nothing screams Christmas more than a Santa’s hat, and look what such a simple addition does to an ordinary brownie. Simply created with a splash of buttercream and a delicious strawberry. 

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All of the recipes for the cakes featured can be found under image source. And remember, we love to discover a new recipe, so, please share your festive baking with us by using #NicaChristmas upon our social channels, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest. 

It's Christmas! Win your Nica Wishlist!

Ho ho ho, we're full of Christmas cheer here at Nica HQ!

With Christmas just around the corner we thought it was time to treat one of our lovely Nica fans with some festive goodies!

This Christmas we are making one lucky Nica customer’s wishes come true by giving you the chance to win your wishlist!

Simply enter up to £150 of your favourite Nica products into your wishlist, and tell us why you think you are worth the prize and we will choose one lucky customer to win their goodies!

Your reasons for wanting to win can be absolutely anything. From a funny story to a sad story, we will read them all and choose the one that we feel is the most deserving!

So, go on, treat yourself this Christmas! Start shopping!

Love and Christmas wishes,

Nica x

*The winner will be chosen at random on the 23^rd Decemeber 2011, and your products will be sent out on the 28^th December 2011 (subject to availability).