Pretty ways to deck the halls, and unusual ideas for making your own Christmas presents, cards and decorations.
Snowball Truffles
Jane: Easy, delicious white chocolate truffles made by my friend Sue – pack them into Christmas bags or decorated boxes and they make a fantastic home-made present for teachers, relatives, as a house party gift etc.
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Hanging Santa
Jane: I
was digging around my parents’ Christmas decoration box recently and came
across an old, homemade Hanging Santa. He was always a real family favourite, strung
up from a hook in the middle of the hall corridor so he kicked everyone in the
eye every time they passed (funny how no one thought of putting him anywhere
more convenient). Twenty years on, he was looking a little ragged around the
edges, so I decided to make him afresh for Xmas 2008. And here he is, looking
very sparkly and chipper, raring to go for some chimney action come the 25th.
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Pipe Cleaners, Colds and Christmas
Tamsin: Yesterday I had two droopy children lying on my sofa – my daughter, Carla and her friend, Harriet – both had come down with colds. There is only so much TV watching that can be done, even in this state, and by the afternoon an activity was needed – something not too strenuous or taxing on the brain.
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Bath Bombs
Jane: I’ve just finished a couple of months’ whopping workload and lifted my head to see…snow! A few flakes anyway, fluttering down yesterday, and more on the way according to the weather people. So we decided to spend the freezing weekend inside, lighting a big log fire, doing Stir-up Sunday pud-making and thinking of new present ideas to make for Christmas. One of them was Bath Bombs, inspired by the belief that at Christmastime you can’t go wrong with a bit of pampering and a lot of fizz.
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The Fun of Christmas Decorations
Tamsin: In the hecticness of Christmas I always try to take a couple of minutes to think of some craft activities to keep the kids occupied in the days between the end of school and Christmas. This mainly means decorations for the tree and house. Keeping the kids’ hands busy will help put to good use some of that over-excited energy that’s building up and up. For this reason I keep to the old family tradition of decorating the house on the 23rd December and the tree on the 24th.
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Old-fashioned Crêpe Paper Chains
I remember making these as a kid; it took ages but there was a real buzz of achievement once we’d criss-crossed the long chains over the rafters. Today they look as quaint and festive as ever and make a great Christmas project for the family to do together.
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Secret Gilded Walnuts
A Victorian yuletide treat. Place a tiny gift or coin in each one and hang them on the tree.
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Beaded Icicles
A very simple Christmas decoration using threading, so all ages from toddlers upwards can get involved and create something magical.
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Feather Angels
These fluffy angels look divine hanging from the Christmas tree – or make them into a mobile and let them flutter celestially above the Christmas lunch table.
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Christmas Bunch of Baubles
Edie: My sister and I decided to make two big bunches of baubles to hang on our walls. My mum went to John Lewis and bought a box of 100 silver baubles (Jane: reduced to half price – hurry!) and some big fancy baubles too. We got some silver beading wire and started to thread the baubles and stars on to it. Once we had put on lots of baubles, and one coloured one, we twirled the end of the wire and twisted white ribbon on to which we hung our finest bauble so it dangled below.
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Crackers and Pullers
Tamsin: Crackers are a wonderful respite in the middle of the Christmas meal – a bit of fun as paper hats are forced on to heads and corny jokes read out. In recent years, I’ve filled my own crackers as there are only so many plastic trinkets one family can take... A few years ago, I put in false ears, eyelashes and noses making for hilarious results round the table and embarrassing photos to place in the album.
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All Presents and Correct
Jane: Christmas isn’t Christmas for me without a panic about presents. In our family, almost everyone has birthdays in November and December (including 21st Dec and Christmas Day itself) – so the idea of just going ‘Christmas shopping’ sounds an incredible luxury. We’re still bogged down in birthdays as the turkey hits the table. As a result, all questions about what the children are going to give relatives/friends/teachers are easy – it’s got to be homemade, otherwise we’d go mad and no doubt bankrupt too.
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Shrinkie Key Rings
As a kid, I used to heat’ n’ shrink crisp packets and make them into badges – Quavers were always the most successful. You can make key rings, badges, jewellery or fridge magnets using a bit of shrink plastic and the same method.
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Funky Bookmarks
You can never have too many bookmarks, and they make the easiest, most personal Christmas gifts. We use thick artist's card to make them look posh but as a young child, Tamsin used to make the Simplest Bookmark Ever from ordinary white envelopes…
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Christmas Pud Truffles
These funky truffles always make people laugh when they open the box – use good-quality chocolate and they’ll taste as good as they look.
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Herb Jelly
You don’t often come across herb jellies nowadays, but I love this one spread on oatcakes with a bite of cheese or cold meat on top. It’s also a bit different as a thank-you party gift at Christmas time.
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Crunchy Sugar Mice
An old Victorian favourite… though our kids still love a sugar mouse with a string tail. These make a neat Christmas stocking fillers for little ones.
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Old-fashioned Peppermint Creams
These simple, old-fashioned sweets make a great Christmas present dressed up in a pretty box. This recipe was given to Tamsin by one of her lovely volunteers at the museum. Make them about a week before you need them.
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Christmas Star Biscuits
Edie made these last year for her teacher – who rushed up to us later in M&S to tell us how much she and her family had enjoyed them. They taste deliciously buttery, and look stunning dusted with icing sugar and wrapped in cellophane.
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Chocolate-dipped Orange Peel
One of my Christmas treats and so easy to make – a great present for the grandparents and aunts when placed in a decorated box or cellophane packet with tied with a bold ribbon.
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Cherry Shortbread Mice
Joe made these cute little mice last year for his teachers. He placed each mouse on a triangle of cardboard and wrapped it in a cellophane sheet, tied with a Christmas ribbon.
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Candy Striped Pencils
You can’t get a simpler, more useful gift than a decorated pencil. Kids can make these easily. Use unvarnished natural wood pencils – I found these in Paperchase.
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Decorated Wax Candles
These decorated candles are really easy for young children to make and make good Christmas gifts for teachers or relatives.
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Honeycomb Rolled Candles
Easy for even the youngest children to make, yet the results make simple, elegant gifts that any adult would delight in.
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Christmas Wreath
It's an old American custom to hang an evergreen wreath on your front door at Christmas time - and we love it so much we've adopted it here.
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Kissing Bough
One lovely Old English tradition – the precursor of the Christmas tree – is the kissing bough, an evergreen sphere speared with mistletoe and hung on a beam inside the front door.
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Glass Tree Biscuits
These stunning Christmas ginger biscuits are delicious to eat or hang them as decorations on the Christmas tree.
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