Let’s Light Up The Christmas Spirit

It has been a difficult year. And it has impacted us all in different ways. The recent memory of COVID lockdown still hangs over us.

⭐️ Which is why we all need the spirit of Christmas this year more than ever ⭐️

Christmas is about joy and celebration. It is about coming together with the people we love. It is about spreading love. It is about happiness and surprise and delight.

To help you get in the Christmas spirit, I have pulled together some ideas that will bring the happiness and cheer of the season into your hearts and homes. Indulge your senses and give your inner child permission to get excited!

Create a new tradition

We can often get caught up in the hustle and bustle of Christmas. Frantic present shopping. Cajoling kids into their best clothes for the family lunch. Organising the work Christmas event. Finding a present for that one person in the family who is sooo hard to buy for.

But what is Christmas really about? It is about creating special memories with your loved ones that will bring you closer together. It is about sharing moment of fun and laughter and love and hope.

Christmas traditions are a wonderful way to bring people together in a shared experience. Do you have a family Christmas tradition? Maybe it’s going out and picking a real Christmas tree together. Or wearing silly Christmas jumpers or shirts on Christmas Day. The Christmas backyard cricket match? Maybe you don’t really have a Christmas tradition. Or maybe the last few years those traditions have fallen away.

Well, this year is the perfect opportunity to start a new tradition. Why not create a beautiful Christmas floral decoration? 

This year I have three different workshops available to help you create a stunning and unique Christmas piece

• In person wreath-making workshop (1 Dec)
• In person table centrepiece and candle making workshop (19 Dec)
• Online wreath-making box and tutorial

Places are filling fast though, so book now to avoid missing out!

Breathe it in

So much of what makes Christmas so good is about the smells! Cinnamon, gingerbread, peppermint candy canes, spruce pine from the Christmas trees. 

Our sense of smell is so powerful in impacting how we feel and the memories we have. The whiff of a familiar scent can transport us. It can instantly lift our mood, or make us feel more calm and present. So when it comes to boosting our Christmas spirit, breathing in the scents of Christmas is a must!

There are lots of ways to bring the scent of Christmas into your home this year:

• Bake some gingerbread or sugar cookies
• Candles
• Use essential oils in a diffuser or room spray
• Fresh flowers
• Ornaments using dried herbs like cinnamon, cloves and star anise
• A real Christmas tree 🎄

Give someone the smell of Christmas with fresh Christmas blooms, a Christmas pudding candle (smells sooo delicious!) or a diffuser with the special “Holiday Peace” essential oil blend. 

Spoil yourself

Many of us spend a lot of time during the lead-up to Christmas thinking about others and trying to create a special Christmas for everyone else. Finding the perfect presents. Organising family get-togethers. Planning the Christmas menu. Juggling the finances. Cleaning the house. 

So I would love for you to take a little time out to spoil yourself this Christmas. Give yourself permission to pause, enjoy the moment and soak up some Christmas spirit. 

It could be fresh flowers, a facial, a cup of tea and a good book, a massage, a bath or a walk in the sunshine. Or all of them!

To indulge in some self care – or gift it to someone else – I recommend checking out my bath soak, self care hamper and happiness hamper. I can also put together customised hampers full of your choice of goodies from my flower and gift range.

Cook something special

One of the other things I love about Christmas is the cooking and the eating! Giving someone the gift of homemade goodies is so delightful. And the smell of something tasty baking….so good!

A few months ago I joined Thermomix and I have been having so much fun experimenting and trying out new recipes. If you come along to one of my Christmas workshops you can try my baking wares first hand with some delicious slices.

Here is one of my favourite Thermomix Christmas recipes

Red and green Christmas shortbread

Ingredients

• 40 g white rice 
• 60 g raw sugar 
• 300 g plain flour 
• 250 g butter, cut into cubes
• 100 g shelled unsalted pistachio nuts 
• 100 g dried cranberries 
• 300 g white chocolate, broken into pieces

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 150°C. Line a baking tray (30 x 40 cm) with baking paper and set aside.
2. Place rice and sugar into the mixing bowl and mill 1 min/speed 10. Scrape down sides of mixing bowl with spatula.
3. Add flour and butter and mix 5 sec/speed 5, then knead Dough /40 sec.
4. Add pistachios and dried cranberries and chop Turbo/1 sec/3-4 times, until a roughly chopped yet even consistency is achieved.
5. Transfer mixture onto a silicone bread mat or lightly floured work surface and work mixture into a log (30 cm long). Wrap in plastic wrap and place in refrigerator for 1 hour to rest. Clean and dry mixing bowl.
6. Remove from refrigerator, then using a serrated bread knife, cut into round slices (approx. 0.5 cm thick) to form biscuits. Place biscuits onto prepared baking tray and bake for approx. 20-30 minutes (150°C), or until biscuits are lightly golden.
7. Leave shortbread to cool on baking tray for 10 minutes before transferring onto a wire rack to cool completely.
8. While shortbread is cooling, place white chocolate into mixing bowl and grate 5 sec/speed 8. Scrape down sides of mixing bowl with spatula, then melt 3 min/37°C/speed 1. Scrape down sides of mixing bowl with spatula again, then melt for a further 5-7 min/37°C/speed 1, or until chocolate has completely melted.
9. Once shortbread has cooled, dip half of each biscuit into the melted chocolate. Place dipped shortbread onto a plate or tray lined with baking paper, then transfer into the refrigerator until chocolate has set (approx. 30 minutes).
10. Serve immediately or transfer into a sealable container to store until use.

I will be delivering right up until Christmas Eve, and will then be taking a break until 22 Jan 2022.

I’d like to wish all of my customers, suppliers and supporters a truly magical Christmas and all the best for the new year. Thank you so much for your support, I truly am so grateful for all the beautiful people in my life.

Have a browse through my Christmas menu, or if you are after a customised gift please get in contact. I love making your Christmas wishes bloom into reality 😊