Review: House of Alyssa Smith, Beautiful Silver Bluebell Drop Earrings.

 House of Alyssa Smith is a jewellery brand established in late 2009. The Tweetie bird was her first break out piece of jewellery, worn on celebrities such as Dawn Porter and Kate Moss. Gradually her jewellery empire has expanded and she has not only the licences to create motorsport, Honda and football collections to name but a few but has also diversified into creating lifestyle ranges. She also creates jewellery which gives a percentage back, supporting a wide variety of charities from, for example, the Dogs Trust, The Royal British Legion to The Miscarriage Association.

I have followed The House of Alyssa Smith  on Instagram for years but finally took the plunge and purchased a pair of earrings during the Coronation weekend as there was an offer of a free crown pendant and chain with purchased over a certain amount (I shall be running a giveaway for the pendant later this month). I purchased the Beautiful Silver Bluebell Drop Earrings  (£36). The earrings are also available in gold plated silver (£36) and there are matching necklaces (£45 and £46). 

The earrings came in a cardboard gift box embossed with her logo and wrapped in the sustainable gift wrap (see below). The earrings are sterling silver, 3D and very light. There are two tiny bluebells on each earring and the curve hook has been cleverly incorporated so it looks like a stalk. The earring measures 3cm.  Once they were on I forgot I was wearing them. They move as you do or in the breeze and catch the light so prettily. 

 They are tactile and easy to put in as they are curve hook style there is no need for butterfly backs they just slide into place. I would note, however, that if you have sensory issues you might not like pulling them into place. I have neuropathic pain and it wasn’t a painful feeling putting them in just odd. I would prefer it if the points that went through the ear were a bit pointier as I don’t wear earrings all the time so the hook was hard to initially get through. The bluebells aren’t a twee iteration but actually look like the flower, even the inside has been crafted to resemble the inside of a bluebell.  

 

I purchased  the gift wrapping for £6.95. This is a grey gift wrap satin pouch which is reusable. The ribbon has Alyssa’s logo embossed on it. It’s a nice touch for a special birthday or occasion but not something I would repurchase unless I was only a few ££ off minimum shipping or a free gift offer. 

The customer service wasn’t great. It took 3 weeks to receive my items. I only found out there would be a delay as they were making another batch when I emailed to find out where they were. One email would have taken CS from meh to great. I do appreciate that they are handmade but it would be annoying if they were a last minute gift. I do like the card and sweet which was included. They make you feel like a valued customer. 

I love my earrings and will save up for the matching necklace. The meh CS hasn’t put me off repurchasing as I have ordered one of their mystery boxes, I would, however, be wary of timescales if I was purchasing a gift for someone else and email to check if it was in stock. 

I purchased the item myself and the views expressed on this blog are my own. 

Review: TBHPS Hedgehog Notebook & Pen

One of my main shopping aims this year is to only purchase items that are useful, multi purpose or they must have a charitable element to them.  So look away now if you know me in real life as if you get s gift from me this year it will most likely be this hedgehog notebook and pen from The British Hedgehog Preservation Society. After cats hedgehogs are my favourite animals. I was thrilled to finally see one in my garden last year and I now have 3 hog houses, several feeders and a selection of hog food and water for my discerning guests. When I started researching what I should feed them I was horrified to see that the hedgehog population has declined by 90% since the 1950s and they will be gone within the next 10 years unless this decline is reversed.

Founded in 1982 The British Hedgehog Preservation Society is a charity which offers help, advice and support to finders of sick and injured hogs and can provide a list of volunteer rehab centres that they can be taken to (most centres can be followed on Twitter and there has some heart warming and sad cases). TBHPS is dedicated to preserving, helping and protecting hedgehogs and they have a reasonably priced gift shop. 

I chose the A5 hedgehog notebook (£3),  which is designed by RieDesigned.  I love her products and have reviews them several times in my blog. The notebook pages are blank, there are 36 pages, it measures 15x21cms, it is made from recycled paper and is designed and made in the UK. The print is adorable and the notebook is the perfect size for jotting down lists and notes etc.

The ball point pen (£1) is the society pen. It comes with black ink. I find it comfortable to hold as the grip is cushioned. It clips securely on my notebook and the pair make a useful, thoughtful gift. 

TBHPS web shop has a range of relatively inexpensive gifts which are cute and thoughtful.  Even if you do not purchase anything please leave bowls of water (low bowls as they can’t move their necks), hog food or kitten biscuits as they are currently waking up from hibernation and there is little or no suitable food around for them at the moment. If your garden is locked in think about installing a hedgehog corridor so they can widen their territory and also use animal friendly gardening items and check before you strim - there may be a hog asleep under that bush or leaves and strummers kill or can inflict horrific injuries.  If you see a hog out in the day it is not cute it needs help so please catch it, don’t feed it and contact your local hog rescue for advice. Finally don’t feed the meal worm, bread and milk, nuts etc as they can kill them. You may not see hogs in your garden as they are shy and nocturnal so watch out for their poo!! 

I purchased these items myself and the views expressed in my blog are my own. 

The items are available Here.