Burns Night

Our Burns Supper

Tonight is Burns Night, a night to celebrate the life and works of Robert Burns, Scotland's national bard.  If you've never heard of Burns, then think back to New Years Eve when everyone starts singing Auld Lang Syne just after the bells...he wrote that, and much, much more.

Robert Burns, 1759-1796

The first Burns Suppers were held about five years after Burns died on the anniversary of his death, and quickly caught on.  Cynics will say that the Burns Suppers were moved from July (when Burns died) to January (when he was born) as it was a bloody good excuse for a boozy party in a miserable month!  (They're probably right about that, but the whole night is a massive celebration of Burns, so no one minds!)

I haven't been to a formal Burns Supper since I was at Uni, and since it's just the three of us at the table, it was rather informal.  (No posh frock required, hooray!)  I briefly addressed the haggis before slicing it open with my new knife, which was probably sharper than a ceremonial dagger, and then whacked the poor beastie into the microwave.  (We had a devil of a time catching a haggis earlier today!)

Address to a Haggis
Robert Burns

Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face,
Great chieftain o the puddin'-race!
Aboon them a' ye tak your place,
Painch, tripe, or thairm:
Weel are ye worthy o' a grace
As lang's my arm.

(The remaining verses of the poem can be read here, with an English translation for Sassenachs!)

Tonight's dinner was a simple one;we're trying to eat healthily, so there was no pudding (weep with me, internet) but there was haggis, neeps, tatties and a cheeky whisky cream sauce!  I'm a firm believer in that if you're going to the trouble of making a whisky sauce, it should actually taste of whisky, so mine had most of a miniature of whisky in it, rather than the meagre two teaspoons that the Hairy Bikers advocated!!  Which probably explains why Lucas pushed the sauce aside and ate the haggis instead...

Happy Burns Night to those who are celebrating!

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Christmas lights

One of our favourite things to do at this time of year is to take a drive around Bristol and look at the beautiful (and gaudy) lights that are adorning the city.  We discovered the Brailsford Lights in Brentry a couple of years ago and have loved seeing the display grow and grow every year!

The display is run by the Brailsford brothers, two builders from Brentry who put up a few lights on their Mum's house a few years ago.  When people liked it, they started buying more and more decorations in the sales and now they collect for the Wallace & Gromit children's charity and people come from all over Bristol and the surrounding areas to see the lights.

Just up the road from the Brailsford lights there are another two houses bedecked!

Love the polar bears and penguins!

Brentry is definitely THE place to go for "light-peeping"!  Closer to home we discovered a giant reindeer which is all kinds of fabulous!!  It's almost as tall as the houses beside it!

Have you gone out for a drive (or a walk) to see the lights in your area?  Or have you bedecked your house in them?

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Christmas Day, 2013

via Flickr

I hope everyone has had a wonderful Christmas!  Lucas gifted Dave and I with a wonderful lie-in!  He tip-toed into our bedroom at a blissful 8am.  (Apparently he woke up at 5am, opened his stocking, and then fell asleep again while he was playing with his toys.  Bless!)

Scrambled eggs a la Heston served on toasted brioche with smoked salmon

After a lush breakfast cooked by Dave--with some help from commis chef Lucas--we opened the rest of our presents.  The look on Lucas's face when he opened the Pacific Rim toys that a friend of ours brought over from the States was amazing.  I've never seen him speechless before, and he actually looked like he was going to cry with sheer joy.  He's been having pitched Jaeger versus Kaiju battles ever since, and he's so happy it's unreal.  I'm getting good at tuning out the noise.

Dave and Lucas spoiled me with some Doctor Who goodies, including the seriously huge and amazing Doctor Who Vault book with loads of behind the scenes nuggets of information.  It's so much fun to dip into--I'm going to bursting with obscure trivia!

As is traditional, we went over to Dave's parents house for Christmas lunch and more presents..  We let the kids open their presents before lunch, which is a fantastic way of distracting them from rumbling tummies.

Dave's Mum and Dad love cooking for all the family, and this year there were eleven of us around the table!  The table groaned under the weight of turkey, beef, roasted potatoes and every conceivable trimming and sauce!  It groaned again later on when the dessert buffet was laid out!!  (Wish I'd taken a photo of that, but I was too busy making a beeline for the Black Forest Gateaux!)

Unsurprisingly, we spent the rest of the afternoon in a bit of a food coma and slowly worked our way through the adults Christmas presents.  I think everyone was pleased with their presents from us, and I am certainly very happy with the brilliant combination of Doctor Who DVDs and baking books that I received!  You know this is going to culminate in a TARDIS cake, right?

Later on, once Lucas had succumbed to the heady combination of too much excitement and too much sugar, we sat on the sofa and chatted the night away whilst nibbling on mince pies and stollen.

A fantastic Christmas!

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Festive baking: Jaffa cake cupcakes

Merry Christmas Eve Eve!

Lucas had a playdate with one of his friends today.  Since it's so very nearly Christmas I wanted to make them a really luscious treat, so after much thought--and the discovery of a severe nut allergy to cater around--I decided to make Jaffa cake cupcakes.  After all...what kid doesn't love Jaffa cakes?

This recipe comes from The Hummingbird Bakery's Home Sweet Home book which I picked up at the beginning of the month.  I was a bit sceptical when I saw their sponge cake method, but it produced really moist and delicious sponges with a great crumb.

The cupcakes were a huge hit with the boys!  (With everyone, in fact!)  I'm told that they "taste just like Jaffa cakes", which is probably the best compliments these little cakes could have!  I was really pleased with them--the sponge cake was fluffy, and the bitter marmalade balanced out the slightly too-sweet buttercream beautifully.  As a bonus, they also looked really pretty and festive in their gold cases.  I'll definitely make these again!!

Jaffa Cake Cupcakes
From The Hummingbird Bakery: Home Sweet Home

Makes 12-16 cupcakes

70g unsalted butter, softened
210g plain flour
250g caster sugar
1 tbsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
210ml full-fat milk
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
100g smooth orange marmalade

For the buttercream:

450g icing sugar, sifted
60g cocoa powder, sifted
150g unsalted butter, softened
60ml full-fat milk
mini Jaffa Cakes to decorate

Preheat oven to 170C (150C fan oven, or as per your oven instructions).  Line a 12-hole muffin tin with paper muffin cases to make the number you require.  (If you don't have two tins, then just bake in batches--the mixture is surprisingly resilient.)

In the bowl of a free-standing mixer with paddle fitted (or using a bowl and electric whisk) combine the flour, baking powder, caster sugar, salt and butter.  Mix on a slow speed until a crumb texture forms.

Beat the milk, eggs, and vanilla extract together in a jug.  Slowly pour half the mixture into the crumbs. with the beaters on slow speed, until mixed in.  Then turn the speed up to medium and beat until the batter is smooth.  Turn the speed down to slow again and slowly add the rest of the wet mixture.

Divide the batter between the muffin cases in the prepared tin.  Fill each one about 2/3 of the way.  Bake for 20-25 minutes until risen, lightly golden on top and the top springs back when pressed gently.  Allow to cool in the tin for a couple of minutes then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Once cooled, fill with marmalade.  If you have a Bismark tip, you can pipe the marmalade straight into each cupcake.  If not, cut out a little cone from the top of each cupcake, spoon in a heaped teaspoon of marmalade, then replace the top.  You could always use an apple corer.

In your free-standing mixer, combine the icing sugar, cocoa and softened butter.  Cover with a tea towel to avoid redecorating your kitchen!!  Mix on low speed until the butter is worked in--it'll have a crumb-like texture--slowly mix in the milk until you have a buttercream consistency.  Raise the speed to medium and beat until soft and fluffy.  (I usually close the kitchen door and let it run for at least 8 minutes.)  Add more milk if you think it needs it.

Spread or pipe the icing on top of the filled cupcakes and then decorate with the mini Jaffa cakes.  Enjoy!

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Deck the halls

This year it took the Christmas decorations going up to bring out my festive spirit.  As Dave flicked the Christmas tree lights on, I started smiling.  By the time the wreath went up on the front door, my happiness was complete!  I've been humming carols ever since, and outright breaking out into song in the supermarket!  (Apologies to local shoppers--Lucas started it.  Honest!)

In the hallway is my little 'twiggy tree'.  I was inspired by our recent visit to Swinton Park where they had gorgeous vases of twigs, liberally adored with a single colour of baubles, which looked fantastic.  I think my version looks pretty good!  I'm enjoying the display so much that I think I might keep the vase there all the time and treat myself to flowers.  It's also encouraging me to deal with the post more promptly, as otherwise it spoils the look.  Terribly shallow, I know, but surprisingly effective.

In the living room, we swapped the HOME letters that usually sit on our mantelpiece for NOEL, added a giant bauble and a shiny holly & ivy garland.  I keep meaning to buy a more convincing garland, but it twinkles really nicely when the tree lights hit it...

Dave and Lucas made the sleigh ornament for a competition at work!

It has proven ridiculously difficult to get a full-length picture of our tree.  We wound up getting a new one as last year's tree wasn't strong enough to hold my beautiful Doctor Who ornaments.  I wound up weighing the largest and heaviest decoration, fashioning something of the same weight, and wandering around shops trying it on tree branches until I found one sturdy enough!  I suspect that all the shop assistants thought I was utterly insane!

Finally, I've been slowly putting together a display of Christmas cards on the kitchen door.  It makes me smile every time I walk past it!

A Christmas tree of Christmas cards

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A Very Victorian Christmas at Tyntesfield

On Saturday we surprised Lucas with a trip to Tyntesfield to share A Very Victorian Christmas with them.

We weren't quite sure what to expect...The event was billed as a romp around Tyntesfield House, which could have meant almost anything.  It turned out to be a walking theatre experience which led us through the ground floor of the house.  I don't get to the theatre half as much as I'd like to, so I was quite excited about this.  Plus, for all the times that we've visited Tyntesfield...I've never been inside the house!

We were running a bit early, so we decided to stop off in the cafe for cream tea.  This was entirely justified as Dave and I hadn't had breakfast, and Lucas always has room for a second breakfast!

After a very leisurely cream tea, we strolled down to the house and waited outside.  There were some gorgeous arrangements of greenery and berries outside the entrance which I happily admired.  I love all the gorgeous seasonal displays, and there were wreaths hung on almost every door at Tyntesfield!

We were welcomed in by Miss Ivy, one of the maids at Tyntesfield and we were immediately immersed into a charming little play.  I really don't want to spoil the experience, so I'll just share a few photographs.

The Dining Room, table laid for Christmas dinner

In the main hallway of the house we found the biggest Christmas tree I'd ever seen.  It measured in at 7.9m tall and was absolutely stunning!  I would have loved a few hours to explore and look at all the wonderful paintings and features in the room.  There was a beautifully carved fireplace behind us, festooned with greenery and berries.  A roaring fire there must have been a sight to behold!

The opulent Drawing Room (alas, no flash allowed)

All the actors we interacted with were really fun and firmly in character as they told their simple but charming story.  As we left, after a wonderful hour full of laughter and song, we stumbled across a kindly old gentleman in a red suit.  In fact, we woke him up from a little snooze!

Lucas was absolutely thrilled to receive a present from "the real" Father Christmas!  All the grown-ups got a Christmas orange, too--a rare and special treat in Victorian times.

We had an amazing time at Tyntesfield.  It was wonderful to see inside the house at last, and the walking play was a lot of fun for all ages.  I was a bit worried that Lucas wouldn't find it fun as he's a very modern child who loves high-tech stuff with lots of glitzy effects, but he was as charmed as everyone else and wants to do it again next year.  I'd thoroughly recommend this if you fancy doing something a little different than a pantomime at Christmas!

A Very Victorian Christmas takes place again at Tyntesfield this weekend (21 and 22 December).  Booking is essential.

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Christmas Cracker Tutorial

One of Lucas's favourite parts of Christmas day, once all the presents are opened, is pulling crackers at the dinner table.  One joke can keep him laughing hysterically for five minutes!  (And as the entire family opens their crackers round the table at the same time, he's laughing for a long time.)  So, when Cartridge Save contacted me and asked if I'd be interested in taking part in their Cracker Competition, I was delighted to say yes.

I had a few colour schemes in mind, but it wasn't until I started rummaging through the box of wrapping paper and ribbons tin together that things really came together.  There was a sheet of Cath Kidston inspired paper and I found some red and white polka dot ribbon in the tin which matched some of the detailing on the paper.  Perfect!

For each cracker you'll need
♥ Good quality wrapping paper.
♥ 1 cracker snap
♥ Glue
♥ Ribbon/string
♥ Scissors
♥ 2 toilet roll tubes
♥ Decorations
♥ Gift/joke

Cut a 20x30cm rectangle of wrapping paper.  This is the same size as a sheet of A4 paper, give or take a few millimetres.

Measure 10cm to the centre of the page from each short side, then draw a line from long side to long side.  Score these lines with scissors.  Go lightly.  I was over-enthusiastic on my first attempt and scored all the way through on one end!

Place the cracker snap along the long edge furthest away from you and secure each end with a blob of glue.

If you look carefully, you can just make out the drawn lines

Cut one of the toilet roll tubes in half and line them up at the other edge of the paper as shown.  Glue the paper; if you're using liquid glue rather than a glue stick, then make sure you don't apply too much.

Roll up neatly, trying your best to keep the paper even and taut.  Add a little more glue if necessary.

Hold the middle of the cracker in one hand, twist one of the ends gently to make a puller, then tie with ribbon.  If you struggle to tie a beautiful bow, then this video will sort you out!  (I watch it every time I have to tie a decent bow.)



Once you've tied the first end, it's time to fill your cracker!

See how nicely the ribbon matches?

I filled my cracker with a joke, courtesy of Dave who delights in coming up with new jokes, some Santa's Belt chocolates from M&S--I really wanted to pop some Chocolate Sprouts inside, but they're all sold out--and I also made a little paper hat.  Now that I know how easy paper hats are to make, I might make my own for Christmas!  I have a ridiculous amount of hair that never fits under the hats from crackers!!

Once filled, tie your second bow.  I wanted both of mine to face in the same direction, giving the cracker a distinct top and bottom, but you might have different ideas!

To decorate it I used some little paper roses that I spotted in Hobbycraft last week.  I added some Christmas sparkle with some glitter glue, dabbed carefully on to the petals here and there.  In the right light the roses sparkled beautifully!

Et voila!

Would you ever make your own Christmas crackers?  You can download your own copy of the instructions from Cartridge Save if you want to have a go.  (There are some lovely other projects available, too!)

Disclosure: I received a craft gift pack from Cartridge Save.

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Festive Baking: Clementine Cake

Nigella's Clementine Cake is a firm favourite in our household.  I've been making it since Nigella's How To Eat came out, all the way back in 1998.  (I can't can't believe it's been so long!)

It's an incredibly easy cake to make, especially if you have a food processor, and very useful if you have gluten-intolerant visitors as it uses ground almonds rather than flour.   It's gloriously squidgy from the clementines, which are simmered in their skins until squidgy and then puréed.  They also give the cake a gorgeous orange hue, which always makes me smile when I cut the first slice and reveal it.

For extra citrus punch, I decided to get all fancy and plate up the cake with some Clementine Curd (more on that another day) and Chantilly cream.  Normally we just eat warmed wedges of the cake with some clotted cream dolloped on top, or even some custard, but since I just bought some slates, I wanted to have some fun with them!

Nigella's Clementine Cake, from "How To Eat"
Serves 8-10

375g clementines, whole
6 large eggs
225g caster sugar
250g ground almonds
1 heaped teaspoon baking powder

1. Put the clementines in a pan with some cold water to cover, bring to the boil and simmer for 2 hours.  Drain, and when cool, cut each clementine in half and remove the pips.  Put the clementines--skins, pith, fruit and all--in the food processor and give it a quick blitz, until you've got a rough puree. It doesn't have to be super-smooth, just no big lumps!!
2. Preheat the oven to 190C (Gas Mark 5).  Butter and line a 21cm / 8 inch springform tin.
3. Add the rest of the ingredients to the food processor and mix.
4. Pour the cake mixture into the prepared tin and bake for an hour, when a skewer will come out clean.  Check it at the 40 minute mark and cover with some foil to prevent over-browning.
5. Allow the cake to cool in the tin, on a rack.  When the cake's cold it can be turned out.

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Festive Friday Favourites

Happy Friday, everyone!  Twelve sleeps till Christmas!

My little car has passed its MOT with flying colours, so with no fear of a massive garage bill, I can get my shop on!  (A December MOT is just evil.)  I've spent a happy couple of days shopping and I think that I've bought almost everything...

Famous last words?

Favourite Decorations: Star Wars Snowflakes

via ManMade

Our neighbourhood seems to have gone snowflake crazy.  I've seen lots of paper snowflakes appearing in windows.  I haven't seen any Star Wars themed ones...we should get right on that.

Favourite Crafted Gifts: Last minute handmade gifts from the Purl Bee

© The Purl Bee

The Purl Bee blog is one of my favourite places to haunt for knitting and crochet inspiration.  If I ever manage to make it to America again, I'll make a beeline for their shop which looks absolutely gorgeous in every single photo I've seen.  It's yarn heaven, basically.

Their round-up of last minute handmade gifts is particularly handy if you always feel a twinge of guilt--like me--for being a crafty person who never seems to actually give crafty gifts.  I always remember too late, but now I have no excuse as these are all fantastically quick!

Favourite Recipes: Thoroughly English's Hamper Series

© Thoroughly English

I've been really enjoying Bess's Christmas Hamper series over at Thoroughly English.  Not only is she running an amazing giveaway to win a hamper stuffed with all sorts of homemade goodies, she's giving us the recipes for everything!

Favourite App: Clumsy Ninja

I have to say straight up that our friend Rob was the lead artist on this project, but that doesn't take away from how fun and awesome this game is!  I'm afraid that my ninja is still very clumsy--I got sidetracked from training because tickling him is so much fun--but Dave and Lucas have been playing avidly and their ninja is slightly less clumsy but still very cute!

Have a wonderful weekend!

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Displaying Christmas cards

© Martha Stewart

We've reached the point where Lucas is coming home with handfuls of Christmas cards in his book bag on a daily basis and the postman is cheerfully posting more through the letter box, too.  There's only so much space on the mantelpiece, so it's time to think about how to display those cards!

I'm not a fan of Martha, but I do love her Christmas Card Tree (above).  It's very easy to make and it looks fantastic if you've only got a few cards to display.

Source

If you grew up with cards hooked over a length of twine (or yarn) pinned to the wall, then this pretty garland is a nice upgrade on that idea.  It would look stunning against a white wall!  You could also use clothes pins to clip cards onto a length of tinsel that's been pinned to the wall!

I love this garland, ribbon and clothes pin combination on the bannister in what surely must be a gorgeous home!  If we had a bannister like this--ours is just a solid sheet of wood--I would totally wind greenery around it and pretend that I lived in a stately home!

If the thought of doing anything remotely crafty in December makes you laugh slightly hysterically, then you can buy some beautiful card holders!  I really like this over the door one from Lakeland.

Source

As for me, I'm going to arrange our cards into a Christmas tree shape on the kitchen door!  I think I'll have to make a little star for the top...I don't think I've ever had a triangular-shaped card in the post before!

Source

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...and breathe

Source

Yesterday was our school Christmas Fayre, and what a fabulous--but tiring--day it was!

I foolishly said that I'd run refreshments--remind me to sit on my hands next year--so spent half of the day yesterday setting up the stall, artfully arranging cakes, and heaving around the rest of the stock.  I really wish that I'd remembered to take a picture of the finished stall as it looked really pretty!  I crocheted a "paper chain" garland to swag along the front of the stand as well which several people said really nice things about.

Chocolate-Peppermint Slice

I snapped this picture of my Chocolate-Peppermint Slice fresh out of the tin.  I am still kicking myself for not taking a picture of it cut up nicely!!  I also made some Chocolate Tiffin and some cupcakes.

The Fayre itself passed in a total blur.  I remember serving the first cups of tea, seeing Dave, Lucas, his cousins and Nanny for a few minutes, and then all of a sudden the cakes were all gone and everyone was feasting on mulled wine and mince pies, and then the binbags and brooms came out... I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we've made pots and pots of money for the school!

I've spent most of today curled up on the sofa relaxing and starting to think about our own Christmas.  I've written a grand total of three Christmas cards and am feeling rather accomplished.  (I am also covered in glitter just from those three cards!  Tis the season to be sparkly, I suppose...)

Just after Lucas went to bed tonight, we heard Christmas carols being played at full blast.  Just as I was about to get cross, I heard Dave tell Lucas to look out of his bedroom window quickly!  Being nosey, I ran to look, too!

The Great Western Round Table were helping Father Christmas warm up his sleigh in preparation for The Big Night.  Lucas ran downstairs and we waited at the door.  Lucas's face was an absolute picture when Father Christmas waved right at him!  A lovely end to the weekend!

Christmas preparations begin in earnest tomorrow, with a trip to the Mall.  I am steeling myself to buy One Direction make-up for my niece...

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The Christmas Tag

I've seen a few of my bloggy friends doing Hello Ella's Christmas Tag recently, so I thought I'd join in with the fun, too!  This is a tag-less tag...if you see it, and like the questions, feel free to do your own!

What time of year do you start your Christmas shopping?
Um...I have yet to start my Christmas shopping!!  I feel terrible saying that.  I'd love to be ultra-organised, but it just doesn't seem to happen.  I'll start shopping after the school Christmas Fayre is over and there's room to pile up presents.  I did pick up some wrapping paper and bows in the January sales, though!

Do you have any festive recipes for food or drink you limit solely to the Christmas season to share?
I love baking over the festive period.  I know Christmas is supposed to be all about family and togetherness, but food is the binding strand.  I almost always make Nigella's Clementine Cake--might be a bit tricky this year due to the almond shortage--and frangipane mince pies.  I usually do a ham, simmered in spiced apple juice until the house smells amazing, and then glazed and blasted in the oven.

I don't bother making a Christmas cake any more as Dave isn't very keen on them, and Lucas is too young for a properly boozy cake.  I do sometimes make one for school fairs, which is almost as good as getting to eat one!

Christmas Pudding Christmas Cake, made for a school fair years ago

Tell me how Christmas goes down in your home
We usually get woken up around seven by Lucas running in with the stocking that Father Christmas has left for him.  He opens the presents in his stocking while tucked up in bed with us, scraps of paper flying everywhere in his excitement.  At some point I'll get up, and make breakfast for us all.  Some years I make Nigella's Christmas Morning Muffins, stuffed full of clementines and cranberries, other years I go for croissants with smoked salmon and super-creamy scrambled eggs on the side.

We always go to Dave's parents for lunch on Christmas Day along with the rest of his family, and absolutely feast.  Then there's presents to be opened, with the kids having fun playing postman and 'helping' open presents if the grown-ups aren't fast enough!

We usually spend the evening curled up on the sofa watching Doctor Who and nibbling on some cheese and crackers.

Do you have any Christmas traditions?
On Christmas Eve, Lucas always leaves a glass of milk and a plate of mince pies out for Father Christmas, along with a carrot for Rudolph.  Other than that...I don't think we have any real traditions.  Oh!  We always go and see the Brailsford Lights, which are stupendously tacky but also rather impressive.

Do you have a favourite festive coffee?
It's got to be the Eggnog Latte from Starbucks.  I'm sure it's an entire day's worth of calories in a single mug, but goddamn it's good!  This is closely followed by gingerbread lattes.

What's your favourite Christmas song?
"Fairytale of New York" by the Pogues.  I know that it's always played to death, but I love it.  I'm quite fond of the Tom Jones and Cerys cover of "Baby It's Cold Outside" but that's not strictly Christmassy.


What do you do on Christmas Eve?
Try to find the last two bags of chocolate money in the city, frantically wrap last-minute presents and try to tidy the house for vaguely presentable photos on Christmas morning.

What's your Christmas wrapping strategy? Do you have a strategy?
I like to wrap as I buy, and I do try to have a general colour theme for the presents so that they all look pretty when they're piled up under the tree.  This year we're going Scandi-style again, with red and white patterned paper!

What's your dream gift this year
A new camera.  I've got my heart set on the Panasonic Lumix GF5 which isn't cheap, but it takes lovely photographs.

Describe your Christmas tree. How tall? Real or artificial? How is it decorated?
We have a 6ft artificial tree.  I'm not a fan of the smell of pine--apparently this is weird?--and I loathe dropped needles, so artificial wins big-time in my book!  We haven't put the tree up yet, we usually do it towards the middle of the month...

Last year I was given some gorgeous hand-blown glass Doctor Who ornaments by my brother-in-law.  I've got the TARDIS, K-9, and two new-series Daleks.  I love them so much, but I may need to find a tree with stronger branches to support their weight!

Do you decorate just the tree or other areas of your house e.g. windows, bannisters?
I love hanging my wreath on the front door!  The house instantly looks more inviting.  We hang those metallic garlands and chains from the ceiling in the living room and hang up a string of train lights for Lucas.  He's loved their shifting colours since he was a train-mad toddler.

What do you wear to Christmas parties and what do you wear on Christmas day?
I am so the wrong person to ask!  I am no clothes-horse.  I did get a lovely wine-red top the other day, so I'll probably dress that up with a necklace, some nice trousers and a pair of heels.  A bit of lipstick to match the top, and BOOM! I'm done.

Do let me know if you do Hello Ella's Christmas Tag, too, and I'll pop over for a look!

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