Mince Pies

I have had a very productive christmassy baking day today. I am planning on giving a few homemade baked gifts this christmas so I wanted to try out a few recipes before hand to see how successful they were. First on my list was obviously mince pies, these ones were super easy to make because I cheated and used jus-rol pastry. I always remember hearing Jamie Oliver say that there was no point making your own pastry because the stuff you buy from the supermarket is just as good. If it's good enough for him then it is definitely good enough for me! 

You will need:

1 Roll of Jus-Rol Pastry

1 Jar of Mince Meat

1 Egg Whisked or Some Milk (to brush over the top)

Sugar to Sprinkle

All you have to do is cut your pastry cases out using a round cutter

Pop them into a shallow cupcake tin (I made 12)

Put a small spoonful of mincemeat into the centre of each pastry case

Cut out stars from your pastry

Place your lids onto each of your mince pies

brush on the whisked egg or milk and then sprinkle with sugar

Place in the over for 10-15 mins at around 180 degrees c or until golden brown.

After my mince pies came out of the oven I dusted them with icing sugar, I think this really finished them off and made them look like they had been sprinkled with snow.

Christmas Crafting

It is that time of year again when I absolutely love to get my craft on and do all things christmassy! I decided to make my own christmas cards again this year and took my inspiration from Pinterest (my absolute favourite website at the moment!!) 

This year I decided to go with a 3D Christmas Tree design using twigs and ribbon and a gold glittery deer head design. I knew I was going to need a lot of ribbon and a lot of glitter but I didn't want to spend a fortune so I was advised to head to The Range, somewhere I had never thought to shop before, and it was crafting heaven. I did end up spending quite a bit but I got so much stuff so it was worth it. Plus I have really enjoyed spending my evenings chilling out and making my cards. 

I feel really proud of my cards this year and I hope the people I am sending them too enjoy them as much as I have enjoyed making them! 

If you would like to see my Christmas Pinterest board click here!

Dear Santa.....

I have often been told that I am a very difficult person to buy for because I have very particular taste. This year when I was asked by my family what I would like for Christmas I really didn't know, I am quite lucky in that if I really want something I will usually just go out and buy it for myself. I said to my Aunty 'but I don't really need anything' and her response was, 'Christmas isn't about what you need it is about what you want!'' This made me take to the internet to design my ultimate christmas list. 

I had heard of the app wantfeed from watching The Michalaks weekly family vlogs (highly recommend) but I had never used it before and I have actually become obsessed. It allows you to put in the links of items you like from anywhere on the internet and keeps them all in your own feed. You can also scroll through other peoples feeds, which I really enjoy, because I am nosey like that!

Obviously I don't think christmas is just about presents, I love when my whole family gets together to eat and drink and relax and as I have got older I enjoy giving gifts more than I enjoy receiving them. But that didn't stop me finding a fair few items to lust after online....

 You can probably sense a bit of a rose gold theme!! I am also aware that this list is very unrealistic and I can assure you I will not be getting a Kitchen Aid for Christmas as much as I would LOVE one. Sometimes it is just nice to do a bit of window shopping!

If you want to know where any of the items are from then go to my wantfeed page where you can click on any item and it will take you straight to the website where you can buy it.

Happy Shopping 

Ruby the Christmas Kitten

Happy New Year everyone, I hope you all had a wonderful time over the festive period, I know I did. 

We acquired a new member of our family just before Christmas and I thought it was about time I shared a few pictures of her. Her name is Ruby and she is a 3 month old tortoiseshell kitten who we rescued from the Cat Protection League. My Dad finally decided it was time we had another pet in the house after our other cat sadly passed away last year, so he organised Ruby as a surprise for my Mum. We all love her so much and she is slowly getting used to us and settling into our family.

 She has been absolutely fascinated by the Christmas Tree and had a great time running all over the presents on Christmas Eve

 This made me laugh, she is such a princess she even sits with her legs crossed

Christmas Table Centrepiece

Another Pinterest inspired Christmas DIY today. I put together the centrepiece for our Christmas Day table using candles, pine cones and sprigs of holly. 

To make this I wrapped some tea lights and pillar candles in different ribbons and secured them with super glue.  Then I arranged them on a cake stand with the pine cones and holly. It was very easy and I am really pleased with how it has come out. 

I can't wait to light all the candles on Christmas Day, I think it is going to look so pretty and festive!

DIY Christmas Cards

I saw this idea for Christmas cards on pinterest and I thought they were so cute I had to make them! You could also do this for present gift tags as it might be a little late to send out Christmas cards now. 

Here is what you will need:

 

Card

Envelopes

Super glue

A Pen

Buttons

Ribbon

To make the wreath card, I first set out the buttons into the shape and design I wanted.

I then glued down the buttons in place with super glue.

 

 Next I tied a bow out of some ribbon

 Finally I stuck the bow to the button at the top of the wreath, and that is it. It is so easy and looks so effective! 

You do exactly the same for the baubles card except after you have stuck the buttons down you use the pen to draw strings from the top of the card to the button. You can then write whatever message you want on the cards, I opted for Merry Christmas on this one.

Blogmas!

This weekend I have been visiting my boyfriend in Manchester as it was his Birthday last week. We decided to go into town today and have a wander around the Christmas market. Christmas is my favourite time of year, so expect to see quite a few blog posts in the next few weeks now I have finished uni and can finally get into the Christmas spirit! I was having serious camera issues today, it was raining, I had numerous memory card errors and my camera refused to focus on anything! (I am starting to wish I had asked for a new camera for Christmas!) However, I have managed to salvage a few so I thought I would share them with you. 

I hope everyone is enjoying the run up to Christmas as much as I am!