Getting my volunteering on this Christmas.

I have always thought about volunteering. It's always been in the back of my mind but I didn't want to be one of those annoying folk who rattle cans around and harass you in the middle of the street when you're on your way somewhere. I've also been held back by fear which is ridiculous because there's nothing scaring about helping people!

I was surfing the web and loosing myself amongst the maze of gorgeous blogs and stumbled across Vision Australia's Gift Wrap program. They set themselves up in the Australian department store Myer every year from the 17th-24th December and offer a gift wrapping service. The cost of the service is a simple donation ($2, $4 or $6 - depending on size) although you are welcome to pay more if you like. 

I love wrapping gifts - it's one of my favourite things about Christmas so my natural response to this was HELLS YEAH! It automatically put me in a great mood and all I'd done was sign up! I attended a training session yesterday afternoon and am really looking forward to getting into it in the next few weeks. 

The theme of the gift wrap this year is pretty and classy with corporate white boxes, corporate white tissue paper & wrapping paper and a gorgeous red grosgrain ribbon tied into a classic bow. (I will be posting sneaky pics as soon as I start.)

It's nothing nearly as extravagant as the scene in Love Actually, which is what I thought of as soon as I saw the advertisement for it and it put a huge smile on my face (I really like that scene - if you have forgotten I've linked it below).

I'm going to be based at the Chadstone and Doncaster (and possibly Spencer Street) locations, so if you're in need of getting your gifts wrapped pop in! 

Christmas shopping: done and dusted!

Apart from my birthday and Halloween, Christmas is my favourite time of the year. It's the best time to indulge in baking (and eating) all those gorgeous little treats (bonbons, cupcakes, cake, mince pies, oh how the list goes on) and shopping (of course!).

I know it's only October, but this year my Christmas shopping for my immediate family has been done and dusted, with thanks to online shopping. And yes, a majority of those stores were from the United Kingdom. I have to say though, shopping online can be just as exhausting as it is in the actual store! Some reasons why:

> Registering an account.
This can be a huge pain especially if you are an international shopper. They don't recognise your home address or your telephone number! What to do?! You have to find tricky ways around it to ensure they have all your details in the form.

> Converting.
Oh God. Conversion rates! I'm rubbish with maths. I really am terrible, so I have to open up xe.com on another tab and quickly do a conversion to see how much it will be in AUD and if I have enough in my account. Then you have to log onto NetBank.

> Decisions.
The one thing I find really really great about online shopping are the reviews and the descriptions. You need to read them all to see exactly what people think about that product. You don't want to spend lots of money on an item to find out it won't work properly, or look the way it does on the screen.

Apart from those three main troubles I have with online shopping, I still love it. Everyone loves getting mail! It's even better when the item you purchased fits exactly. You don't have to deal with the massive rush in the stores and snotty customer service staff. Yes, it's a wee bit antisocial, but that's the way it's going. I'd take online shopping any day!