Splurge or Save on Christmas Decorations

Christmas can be an expensive time, but not everything needs to cost a fortune.  For example, when it comes to Christmas decorations you can choose to splurge on super expensive baubles and trinkets, or you can take the saver's route and spend a lot less cash buying something that looks just as good. After all, Christmas decorations are only going to come out for a few weeks once a year. So I'd personally prefer to spend my money on something that is going to be of greater use.  But that doesn't mean I don't want a well decorated tree and a pretty looking  festive house!

Asda have got a load of really lovely decorations that hold their own against a lot of pricier items. I was sent a couple to take a look at.

Take for example the Asda Nativity Scene. The eight piece set compromises of the three wise men, Joseph, Mary, baby Jesus in a manger, a camel and a sheep.  It has a lovely handmade look about it and makes a great display.  The children love it, as it is quite cartoon like, cute and colourful, and the detail on each of the characters is quite impressive. Similar looking nativity sets can cost up to £60.

Other comparable items include the Santa Tree Topper from Asda, which is just £3.50.  The felt covered Santa is nicely made and has a friendly appeal that the kids will love.  A similar one from a department store is £12.  It depends on your tastes but if you are looking for a fun, festive theme, the Asda one fits the bill and saves pounds!

I love letting the kids each choose a new decoration every year to add to our mix and match festive theme. When it comes to baubles and tree decorations, Asda has a range from just £1 that are great value and have designs to suit all tastes.  Made from clay, tin, fabric, plastic or glass, each bauble will help you dress your tree in style. Similar ones, from large department stores and garden centres, can cost so much more.  Once hung on the tree, baubles look lovely and no one will be able to tell if they came from Asda or Harrods!

Asda have lots of seasonal Christmas gifts, cards, decorations, crackers and homeware products in store now.

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

This Christmas is going to be a full on affair as my family descend upon us for a day filled with fun, food and festivities. A big part of Christmas to me is making the house look and feel as Christmassy as possible.

This year, Freddy who is four has got a real grasp of Christmas and is learning all about the traditions and beliefs associated with Christmas Day at school.  He will be performing in his school Christmas play on stage at our local theatre, and he is going to see his first proper pantomime. It has taken him to a whole new level of excitement, but he is adamant that he does not want to talk to Father Christmas when he visits to give out presents at the school disco!

My grandson Ted is one a week before Christmas so this year will be his first proper Christmas and we are so excited to have him here with us, along with his mummy and daddy.  I can't wait to see his little face when he sees his little pile of presents wrapped in pretty paper, the twinkling lights outside and the house all decorated with Christmassy things.

With these two precious little boys ready to enjoy Christmas Day, I want to create a magical setting and give them a day to remember filled with love and laughter.

Last year, I made a big Christmas display in the alcove of my living room with festive teddy bears, books stood on the window sill, candles, ornaments and a rather large, real Christmas tree festooned with baubles, decorations and candy canes.  This year, said alcove has become home to a second sofa which provides extra seating for my ever increasing family.  This has posed a bit of a problem to my usual Christmas decorating arrangement.  Space is going to be very limited this Christmas with all the extra bodies and the extra furniture.   There is nowhere obvious to put a full size tree in our living room.  Also, with Ted just getting up onto his feet and becoming more mobile, I don't want him to get injured by the needles of a real tree.

So I have been looking around at all the different tree options online such as artificial trees, fibre optic trees, cascading snow trees, pre-lit trees, ready decorated trees and pop-up trees and thankfully I think I may have found the ideal artificial Christmas Tree for us among the trees for sale at The Range.  It's a slim tree for use when space is limited. It stands six and a half feet tall but has a much smaller diameter than normal artificial trees, so I can put it in the narrow space between my corner sofa and the wall where it will be out of harm's way, yet still look fabulous covered from top to bottom with decorations and lights. It could work!

Failing that I can buy lots of little potted trees and dot them around the room.  Or maybe go all modern and spray paint a big, bare branch in silver and suspend it from our ceiling covered in baubles? Or maybe I should go all out and have a giant inflatable tree in my back garden?  Ian has suggested a Christmas tree on wheels so we can wheel it out of the room when we need the extra space!

I'm quite enjoying having to think outside the box and get a bit more creative with my Christmas decorating this year and I'm certain there is the perfect tree out there for us.  Whatever I do, I'm sure it will be enjoyed and appreciated by the two precious little boys and the other members of my wonderful family that I am honoured and blessed to be spending my day with!

Silent Sunday - Shattered Bauble

Poundland Christmas

My latest task as a Poundland Ambassador is to buy Christmas essentials across a series of categories for £20.  So armed with my £20 voucher I headed to my Poundland store to stock up. As ever, I was very impressed with the range in store and with everything costing a pound it is very easy to tally up what you are spending.

I fell in love with the Gingerbread Man range of goodies. I picked up a set of three melamine tumblers and three plates that would make great stocking fillers or pressies for little friends, if separated and paired up.  The 3 Tier Cake Stand is such a great bargain and I can't wait to bake festive cupcakes to display on it.  The pack of 3 gift bags is another great bargain.  I'd love to bake my own gingerbread men and give them as gifts  packaged up in these lovely bags.  

I was really impressed with the snowflake design tableware.  The plates, napkins and cups come in packs of twenty which is enough to cater for unexpected party guests.  The cupcake set and stand will make a beautiful themed centre piece for my festive table.  The bauble card holders are fantastic.  Each glass ball is filled with fake snow and will stand on the table with a name card attached to let everyone know the seating plan!

When it comes to decorations, Poundland has plenty for the tree and the house.  The Novelty Inflatable Santa or Snowmen are a good size and sure to delight little ones.

  The gel window stickers come in a variety of designs and add a splash of festive fun to any room.  They fit together like a jigsaw puzzle to build up a bigger picture and Freddy is obsessed with them! 

 The giant balloons are guaranteed to provide hours of entertainment as they are bashed about!

When it comes to presents, Poundland has a load of great value gift ideas for men, women and kids!  From scarves, diaries, jewellery and cosmetics for her, to toiletries, mugs and socks for him, the grown-ups are well catered for.  Perfect for pressies for teachers!   I particularly love the cosy mug that comes with a knitted cover and the festive fur trimmed rubber gloves that add glamour to washing up!  The kids have a great choice of gifts too from money boxes to toys to books to craft sets, there is so much to choose from.

I fell in love with the fun festive bag kit.  A small tote bag is pre-printed with a design which can be coloured in using the felt pens that are included.  I thought this would make a lovely personalised gift bag for a loved one, or a great little bag to pop in some treasures for carrying about.  I loved the Little Pudding socks that come in a variety of sizes.  The Milkybar selection boxes are excellent stocking fillers and examples of the top brands for sale in Poundland.  They are on sale for 4 for the price of 3 which makes them 75p each.  And of course Poundland also sell a range of stockings and present sacks to put them in!

 I was so impressed with the range of gift bags.  They come in all different shapes and sizes and in loads of different designs suitable for any taste.  They make gift wrapping so easy, I just had to buy a few packs!

Poundland stocks so much for Christmas, it really is a one stop shop for picking up lots of essentials this year.  It is such good value for money and makes budgeting so much easier!!  

If you want to try your hand at winning £250 of Poundland vouchers, there is a great competition on Pinterest.  Simply create your own board called 'Poundland Christmas' and pin twenty Poundland items to it from the website at www.poundland.co.uk.  Take a look at my board if you want some inspiration.  Full details are in the image below.

Get Into The Festive Spirit with Scotch Restickable Tabs

Christmas is here again and it's the perfect time to get together with the kids and create some unique hand made decorations to give your home a traditional festive feel.  Hand made decorations are not only fun to make, but they are also budget friendly.  Decorating your house for Christmas can be really costly so to have a fun, festive, family activity that will save you money is the perfect solution!

Scotch Restickable Tabs make hanging your Christmas decorations really easy.  The double-sided adhesive tabs are easy to use and stick to any surface.  They remove cleanly, leaving no marks and mess, and because they are clear they are barely detectable even on windows or mirrors.  Best of all, when you have finished with the tabs, you can wash them clean with soapy water and they will be ready to use again for your next creative project!  Being re-usable makes them even more cost effective.

This Christmas why not try the following ideas:


Christmas Card Displays
Every year we get sent lots of lovely, colourful festive cards from friends and family.  Why not use them to create the ultimate, personalised Christmas wall decoration?  Simply hang your beautiful cards in vertical rows on your internal walls, doors or mirrors using Scotch Restickable Tabs, safe in the knowledge that they will remove cleanly and easily afterwards without leaving a trace!


Tip: You can get really creative by cutting out scenes or shapes from the cards to create a festive arch over focal points such as lights or pictures.

Christmas Window Scenes
Turn everyday ordinary plain white paper into beautiful Wintry Christmas scenes.  Simply draw snowmen or snowball shapes and cut them out (make sure no pencil marks show.)  Using the Scotch Restickable Tabs attach them to the bottom of your window panes.  The tabs appear invisible leaving passers by able to admire your fantastic homemade creation!

Tip:  Why not spray some fake snow onto the corners of the window to add to the festive feel?

Paper Chains
This is an activity that children love to do!  Choose some different festive paper (red and gold works well) and cut into even strips about 2cm wide.  Stick the ends of one of the strips together to create a closed loop.  Take the next strip and put one end through the hole in the first loop.  Stick the ends together to make a second loop.  Continue until you have the length of chain that you want.
Then attach your Scotch Restickable Tabs to the ends of each chain and stick your beautiful home-made decorations around the house.

Tip: Why not try sticking them across door lintels, pictures frames, mirrors and mantel pieces to create a fantastically festive feeling?

Scotch Restickable Tabs are available in Ryman, Staples and from www.3Mselect.co.uk

 **This is a featured post for Scotch.**