The mantelpiece is by far my favourite spot to decorate for Christmas and it will be done before any of the other decorations are put up. So they are easily to hand and because they are quite precious the selection of items for the mantel are kept separately in a box in the house and not with the rest of the decorations that reside in the loft.
It is an odd collection – a real assortment of little bits and pieces; everything that appears on my mantel (to quote a well known person) gives me joy and over time I add a few new things and remove others.
Christmas cards that I have received and loved over the years are also kept and are added to the display and as it is quite a ‘busy’ little arrangement for my normal tastes I use the cards to give it some height and balance. This must be recycling at its best! Whatever I choose to put on the mantel my lovely dad is always amongst them.
I tend to put the things I want to display out and over the coming days I will often find myself moving and adjusting until I am satisfied. I have yet to spray the little cones with snow but that will be another day. I love the effect once the main lights are dimmed and the twinkly lights and candles are switched on.
Below are a few pictures of the same mantel going back over the years.
2020
2019
2017
2014
2009
Just a small reminder if anyone is wanting to read the previous years posts attached to the little photos on Day 1 you need to click on the wording on the thumbnail pictures. If you just click anywhere else on the picture you will just link through to a larger picture not the actual post. I can see in my admin page that some people are having difficulty so I hope this helps.
You can also find all the previous posts for past years by clicking on the Creating Christmas picture in my sidebar.
There is nothing like the smell of a Christmas cake baking in the oven. I love the whole procedure of weighing out the fruit and soaking it in brandy and orange juice a few days before adding it to the cake mixture.
My mum always made our Christmas cake along with one for my brother and sister, then when dad became less able and she had to provide a lot of care for him she was struggling to carry on the tradition so I took over and made my own. I have used the same recipe for years now and it has served us well. Neither of us like candied peel too much and the recipe I use has dried apricots cut into small pieces instead, which we much prefer.
I normally make the cake near to the end of November and then drizzle a little more brandy into the top until I am ready to decorate it – not that I always decorate it – if I have the time it gets done, otherwise it is just as good without.
Last year I had lots of help from little L who arranged these Christmas figures I found reduced in Home Bargains.
This year, like last, I plan to put marzipan and roll out icing just on the top again and dress the sides with one of those lovely old fashioned paper frills. What decorations go on the top will be anyone’s guess at the moment but I will take a picture when it is finished.
Here in Yorkshire you can expect to be given a slice of Christmas cake with a good chunk of cheese – and Wensleydale is usually the preferred variety as this is a cheese that matures well for the winter season and has a crumbly texture, though Blue Stilton is becomming quite popular.
The tradition can be traced back to Victorian times in Nidderdale, North Yorkshire when it is mentioned in a book by Joseph Lucas in 1871 called Studies in Nidderdale and reads:
“On Christmas Eve one Yule cake is given to each member of the family, along with a piece of Christmas cheese. As a rule, part of it is left for Christmas morning, and eaten at the breakfast.”
Along with the Christmas cake I have been baking three Victoria sponge cakes for my younger daughter’s 40th birthday in a few days time. They have now cooled and been popped in the freezer ready for when I have to assemble the layers and decorate it. I thought I would have another go at drizzling a chocolate ganache over the sides – fingers crossed it will be a better outcome to the one I made for little Sweetie as I won’t be able to hide the mistakes quite so well without the million and one little sprinkles I put on hers.
Tomorrow our plans have already changed, or been changed for us! Instead of a day out in Derbyshire to see the lovely Christmas decorations in all the villages and perhaps calling in at Chatsworth Farm shop we are now looking after Master Freddie for the day. Having just put out a few more Christmas Decorations in the lounge I will have to run around and move some to a higher level….he is just at that enquiring age and some items might be a bit fragile.
Years ago on Christmas Eve when the children were about 8 and nine we would attend our Church crib service at 4 o’clock and then go into town to the local cinema to watch a Christmas film – for some reason it was never very busy. Afterwards, we would have a Pizza at one of the Pizza chains and both events were a great treat for the girls and after days of rushing around a lovely way for us all to wind down together and begin Christmas.
This was eventually superceded by the purchase of our first DVD player one year just before Christmas and the first DVD we watched was the National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. It is this film that has become our family Christmas film; in fact Christmas would not be Christmas without it. We watch it at some point every year – though often we each watch it separately now our girls have their own homes and children. Over the years as you can imagine we have become word perfect but their partners like DH are still mystified as to why we still howl with laughter at the moment the Griswald lights are switched on and Aunt Bethany wraps up the cat for a present! (It must be a girl thing).
Picture from Google
Now we have a whole Christmas channel on the TV so we can watch as many Christmas films as we want to at any time of day in the run up to Christmas. I find they are great to watch when ironing or baking, but my favourites are always films like Little Women, in any of the versions, and more recently The Christmas Candle has been added to my list.
So when I woke up to the grayest of days with lashing rain I knew today was the day to snuggle down on the sofa, light the candles and switch on the twinkly lights and watch my Christmas film – not forgetting to make the moment a little more special with a mug of hot chocolate and indulge in one of the recently bought Ecclefechan tarts.
I don’t know about you but I love to see twinkly outdoor lights at Christmas, though they are increasingly becoming a year round occurrence and I have mixed feelings about that as it does water down the Christmas season and the feeling it is something special.
Today we attended to our outdoor lighting, I say we, but in reality it is DH that does most of the technical stuff – attaching cables and timers and winding lengths of lights around branches. I daresay he does it just for me as if he were on his own I doubt he would bother at all.
I would love to say any of the more spectacular lights in the photos above are our lights but of course they are not….the one below is actually ours. A simple Christmas tree with tiny lights and a star on top and to the side (off picture) we have a few more in the climbing Clematis. But they look quite effective as you approach the house.
When our two girls were young we would all pile in the car one evening after tea during Christmas week and drive around the neighbourhood to survey the lights awarding people first, second and third prize with a highly commended for anyone who had made the effort but it had just not worked out. You will know the ones I mean where they have started to decorate a tree or the edge of a house and partway have run out of lights.
My friend and neighbour up the road here would fall into this latter category and now they have moved I will miss Mr J’s efforts at decorating. Urged on by Mrs J and a bit of nagging Mr J would eventually put a single ring of lights around the bush at the end of their front garden. Every year it was wonky, as if he had just opened the front door and hurled it onto the bush, and every year it looked forlorn as if there were more lights to come but they had run out of time. It was the only Christmas gesture he made and he didn’t make it quietly but Mrs J had to be satisfied with his effort lest he took the whole thing down again!
Although I would never decorate my garden to the extremes some people go to there is something quite appealing to me to come across the house and garden that has been decorated to within an inch of its life. There is always one to be found on every street and I think they are good fun; though how the neighbours sleep with the multi-coloured, show stopping, flashing lights all evening I don’t know.
My own outdoor decorations seem pretty minimal in comparison but I always look forward to a bit of twinkle, whatever we can manage. Some years we have done more and some less. Last year I hung some large silver baubles on our Cherry tree in the back garden – I bought them years ago from a junk shop, I think they had been shop window decorations. I was pleased with the effect but they didn’t fare too well in the cold weather up here and the coating came away in patches and some broke. I suspect they were not really for outdoors but they were nice whilst they lasted. This year I have more pressing things to attend to and hanging the baubles won’t be one of them.
Once done DH can relax and his only other Christmas obligation is to fix the real indoor tree securely into the pot when we decide on one. I think he is all in favour of the small rooted ones that come ready to put in place in a decorative pot – it cuts down on the effort to wedge a larger cut one in place and lift it into the living room whilst avoiding losing all the needles.
I usually complete the outdoor trimmings by adding a wreath or spray on the door or filling my wire cone with Christmas flowers – but that will be another day.
Today we had a stroll down to the village after lunch to post birthday cards and parcels. I have so many in December including my younger daughter who is 40 this year and my neice on Christmas day. They are all extra tasks on an already lengthy To do list. The walk was a welcome break though and we kept off the main roads as much as we could as the traffic is just unbelievable – where is everyone coming and going to?
Tomorrow I have one last birthday to attend to, a dear friend who is 70. After I have sorted a card for her and the present I will get back to the Christmas list. I have baking to do and the cards – perhaps I will toss a coin.
where the journey takes me 2 