by Ellie Moss

Ten sleeps left until Christmas.

While friends jet off to Val d’Isère for their posh skiing hols or Barbados for their barbie-on-the-beach break, I am left to spend my Christmas in the exotic climes of South Wales.

Without fail, I am the first person up on Christmas morning to see what goodies Santa, also known as mum, has generously stuffed into my stocking. Yes I am 23, yes I still have a stocking.

After presents and at least a few mince pies to mark the start of the Christmas binge, my dad and I try, in vain, to drag everyone out for a bracing walk on the beach.

Alright, it’s no Californian dream or desert island paradise but Porthcawl’s Rest Bay, on a peaceful Christmas morning, has a refreshingly brisk and somewhat grounding charm about it.

I’m always in awe of the early morning surfers who brave what must be freezing temperatures to get their Christmas surf in. Feelings of awe are quickly replaced by a sensation of smugness as I stroll along the sand wrapped in the warmest layers I can get my hands on.

This brings me to my essential item to see you through Christmas and the arctic temperatures of January and February — knitwear.

Knits come in all shapes and styles this season. From long cardis and chunky body warmers to cable knit neutrals and cashmere brights. The very best part has to be that our favourite budget store, Primark, stocks them all.

I'm particularly enjoying the fact that the notoriously sniffy fashion world is welcoming back naff jumpers this year. Gone are the days when people were embarrassed to wear Nan’s knitted offerings. In line with the recession-induced trend for all things handmade, proper woolly, Christmassy-looking, I-just-made-this jumpers are everywhere, the best of which feature a good reindeer or two or at least a giant snowflake.

The more sensible folk among us, and this is where my bank balance comes in to play, should bear in mind that the less obviously Christmassy the pattern, the more wear you will get out of an item. I can’t see myself sporting knitted snowmen over a strappy summer frock, for example, no matter how disappointing the Summer of 2010 might be.

Unfortunately my pick of the week is not homemade and I am unlikely to receive a hand knitted gift this Christmas as neither my mother nor I are any good at the knitting thing, despite my Grandmother teaching us both at various points in time.

We have, however, recently discussed taking up our knitting needles again, so watch out SEE readers, this time next year I’ll be up to my eyes in yarn and bestowing my wonkily stitched, snowflake-adorned, knitwear on everyone I encounter.

This old-school reindeer jumper from Topshop is a great find. It’s much more chic than geek and not quite as embarrassingly chunky and woolly as I would have liked, but I love it. The shop assistant tried to tell me that the picture is of a deer, but I beg to differ and insist that this majestic animal would feel right at home pulling Santa’s sleigh. At £48 this is probably one of my pricier picks, but I’m hoping with the help of some serious hint dropping, mum I hope you are reading, it will magically appear under the yet-to-be-decorated Christmas tree.

Sarah: “Always team your knitwear with something girly and try to wear something fitted with your baggier items to stay stylish. My cardigan (£15 from an Oxfam stall) was my best festival find of the summer, which I then didn’t remove until I was forced to. It’s warm and cosy, what more could you want for winter? I added the flower as I think plain colours could always do with a lift. If you don’t like flowers, brooches are also superb and you should be able to find them in your local charity shop. Scarves are my latest winter wonder and I urge you to take one with you everywhere. If you don’t need it straight away, tie it to the strap of your bag and, voila, your outfit has that instant bit of extra sparkle.”

Emma: “I'm a firm believer that fashion should be, at least some of the time, fun. And what better time of year to indulge in a little bit of cosy clothing cheer... This Mickey and Minnie jumper was a steal at £15 from Dirty Harry's in North Laine and comes in a bunch of other colours too so you can relive your early 90s Fruit of the Loom loving days in full Technicolor splendour. Perfect for duvet days this Christmas.”

Keep warm and wonderful this winter and don't forget to check out our street stylers' winter woolies.