Country Living Magazine Christmas Fair London!

Posted on November 5, 2013 by Abi

Last week I was lucky enough to attend the Country Living Magazine press tea celebrating the launch of their Christmas Fair in London. The fair always showcases some amazing creative talent and really gets you in the festive mood.

If you missed the London fair or it’s too far to travel then fear not as the fair is moving first to Glasgow and then onto Harrogate. Full details can be found on the Country Living Fair website. Today I thought I’d showcase some of my favourite stalls, in fact it’s almost a Christmas Wish List as I loved them all so much!

Whinberry & Antler

The first stall that caught my eye was the wonderful Whinberry & Antler. Inspired by the British countryside Whinberry & Antler design and print textiles by hand to create sumptuous furnishings and homeware. As the proud owner of two seriously cute Hedgehogs I immediately fell in love with the Hedgehog print, it’s going on my wish list post haste!

My Aunt Agatha

My next discovery was My Aunt Agatha. A wonderful stall full of quirky and delightful handmade homeware products. This draft excluder reminds me of my own dog.

Willow Gromit

I couldn’t resist a photo of this fabulous willow Gromit by Fon Cosens, I usually think of Willow as such a traditional material but Fon proved that it’s also incredibly versatile in the right hands.

Lotus Blossom Textiles

I don’t need a needle case (believe me I have many) and yet strangely I need one of these needle cases from Lotus Blossom Textiles! Or one of her beautiful textile pictures.

Laura Rose Textiles

Keeping with textile artistry I also loved these gorgeous fabric pictures from Laura Rose Textiles, Laura can make custom pictures of your favourite memories or scenes and they are fabulous!

Godminster Cheese

I like Cheese at the best of times but this amazing Vintage Organic Cheddar from Godminster was simply heavenly and even better it’s available in a heart shaped piece!

Benji Bennett

Next I met the lovely Benji Bennett who is the author of a fabulous range of childrens books inspired by the sudden passing of his 4 year old son Adam. Each book promotes love, laughter and play within families and makes perfect bedtime reading for parents to share with their little ones. I was so impressed with Benji’s books and his use of rhythm and language, I can’t wait to get one to read to my own little peeps.

Santa Claus Book

On the subject of books I also came across this amazing display (it snowed!) of books called ‘Santa Claus: The Book of Secrets’. Perhaps a book for slightly older children as it’s chock full of writing and information, my eldest son is an avid reader and he would adore it.

Twool

Twine with a twist! This fabulous Twool garden twine is a British wool alternative to imported Jute, you can craft with it, knit with it, use it for gardening, floristry or gift wrapping and best of all it’s made from Whiteface Dartmoor Sheep wool! It actually makes me quite sad to write about this stall as I fully intended to buy some of their festive coloured twine and completely forgot to go back after I’d finished taking photos (it was a long day!) 🙁

London International Silver Company

Tucked away on the Mezzanine level was one of my favourite stalls the London International Silver Company who made amazing antique handled goods such as magnifying glasses, paper knives, bottle openers and much more. They were so well crafted and unusual, a gift to treasure for years and years!

Daisy’s Dog Deli

Finally I can’t forget Mr Dog this Christmas and I loved the Christmas offerings from Daisy’s Dog Deli.

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Christmas Traditions & Festive Biscuit Icing Recipe!

Posted on December 15, 2011 by Abi

Christmas is a time for traditions both large and small. Some of these are followed en masse such as Christmas cards, but far more are personal to individual families.

In my house we have stockings before breakfast, but we do not, not under any circumstances touch any of our ‘main’ presents until after lunch. We also have a small present in the evening, my Mum used to call these Tree Presents and it really helped to spread gift giving throughout the day. In contrast to this, one of my friends has a long standing tradition of giving a gift late on Christmas Eve. To both of us these little customs seem essential to our day and Christmas just wouldn’t be the same without them.

Charles Dickens is often credited with creating Christmas as we know it today. But in his time people rarely shopped for gifts or decorated their homes far in advance. Charles’ own daughter Mary ‘Mamie’ recounted how her father would take his children every Christmas Eve to a toy shop in London, where they were allowed to select their Christmas gifts. She also mentions that the family did not give presents outside of their own home, resources not allowing for the generosity they might have wished to share otherwise.

It was during the Victorian era as a whole that many of the rules of Christmas were defined. Houses had always been decorated with greenery but the Christmas Tree did not become common in British homes until the mid 1800s, after an 1848 edition of the Illustrated London News showed the Queen and her family around their tree. The Victorians also observed many customs that are rarely celebrated in the modern age, how many of us take down the Christmas tree almost immediately? This would have puzzled our ancestors exceedingly as Christmas Day is only the first day of Christmas and technically there are twelve days leading up to ‘Twelth Night’. This used to be a great period of celebration but now these days often go by unmentioned.

For many of our parents stockings meant an Orange hidden in the toe rather than the elaborate gifts which ‘Father Christmas’ seems to have been favouring of late. I myself grew up in a small country village and I mourn the loss of Christingle Walks with our neighbours, Church Bells on Christmas Eve and other signs that Christmas was nearly here.

If nothing else though the loss of past traditions does at least hold an opportunity to create some new customs. So this year that is precisely what my family and I intend to do.

We plan on making ridiculously large quantities of Gingerbread with the kids. These will be decorated by hand with a fabulous biscuit icing which sets hard. Then placed into gift bags and given out to friends and neighbours.

Gingerbread works particularly well for this project, but any other roll out style of biscuit works too. If you’d like to give them a go the icing recipe is below.

What are some of your favourite Christmas traditions?

Biscuit Icing

10 oz/ 280g Icing Sugar

2Tbsp = 3Tsp Dried Egg White Powder

4 Tbsp Cool water

Mix the icing sugar, egg white powder and water together until smooth.

Colour small quantities to ice your biscuits. The icing will set hard over several hours (we leave ours overnight).

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Country Living Christmas Fair

Posted on November 10, 2011 by Abi

Yesterday I took great pleasure in attending the Country Living Christmas Fair at the Business Design Centre, Islington, London. I had a wonderful time, discovered some amazing new talent and was generally spoilt rotten. The fair ends on 13th November so there’s still time to get yourself down there. In the meantime, here are my must see stalls!

The fair, much like Country Living Magazine is always a beautiful spectacle before you even begin to start browsing. A giant Christmas Tree glittered away on the second floor, enormous bunting hung from the rooftop and the scent of Cinnamon, Spiced Apple and Mulled Wine seemed to follow you in a dreamy festive haze. After recovering from a slight sensory overload I made my way to this Christmas Cabin, designed by none other than textile extraordinaire Jan Constantine. You may have to fight an overwhelming desire to cross the barrier and spend an afternoon in this festive hideout, but take note as many of the items inside can be found on stalls at the fair.Vintage was a huge theme at this year’s fair, with everything from old milk bottles to bobbins upcycled into lights. So if your house is in need of a few unique and striking accessories make sure you keep your eyes peeled.Next I made a beeline for Mary Kilvert‘s stall. A designer and illustrator whose sheep design textiles and home-wares threaten to make even the most devout minimalist smile, I couldn’t resist her brightly coloured creations. Mary even designs wallpaper covered in quirky houses! Keeping in the festive mood I discovered a designer who was new to me Halinka’s Fairies. Halinka makes decorations that have such movement and skill, you could easily spend hours mesmerised by them. Halinka obviously has a real eye for movement as even her ballet dancers display lifelike turns and twists of their arms and waists.

The fair is not limited to homewares or decorations though. There’s also adorable designers such as Poppy Children. This stall stands out instantly due to their fabulous dress shapes and fabrics. They even make a few dresses in adult sizes (I can feel a mother daughter promenade coming on). I challenge any Mother of a girl not to feel an almost uncontrollable urge to buy one of these designs. But how would you pick just one?My feet were rather worse for wear at this point, but that doesn’t mean you should automatically run for one of the cafes situated about the fair. Instead make your way to the food stalls and sample some of the most delicious homemade delicacies.After a good rest and several cups of tea I found my way to the Millstone Mills stall. Not ones to see pepper and salt grinders as mundane; they have taken this most basic of household items and transformed it into a stylish and functional piece that exudes class. If making your own is more to your taste though, there are plenty of stalls selling festive and fun kits. These beautiful traditional mohair toy kits are from Emily’s Ark. I did buy something larger and rather more blue from this stall but I’ll save that for a future post 🙂Unfortunately I can’t feature all of the wonderful stalls at the fair, so if you can make it along do try. Tickets can be purchased on the door, full details including an exhibitor list and floorplan are available on the website here.