Welcome 2020

Well, Christmas came and went and somehow, I didn’t manage to get back here and post anything.  I hope you all had a lovely time and wish everyone a very happy New Year.  

My little Christmas project was finally finished on Saturday - in time for Twelfth Night, if not for Christmas - better late, than never.

This cushion cover has been in the planning stage since I bought this fabric more than two years ago. I got all the bits together - trimming, wadding for quilting, lining fabric, but never quite found the time to get started, even after I bought a cutting mat and wheel last summer.

I must say that I’m delighted with the end result and if any of you want to make your own version, the link to the pattern is here.

It’s Beginning To Look A Lot Like Christmas....

I finally found time to decorate our tree this afternoon. It seems to have a bit of a lean but, as Mr Candytuft is recovering from surgery, it’s staying like this. 

Christmas Robin Socks

My latest sock knitting is a new pattern for Christmas Robin socks, by the designer, Winwick Mum, in collaboration with West Yorkshire Spinners.  The colours of this yarn are beautiful and a perfect reflection of the colours of the European robin - the one most depicted on Christmas cards.

I’ve knitted more in the past couple of years than I have for most of my life.  Knitting definitely helps with reducing stress and anxiety and is good for my mental health.

Stir-Up Sunday

Today is Stir-Up Sunday, so it’s time to make my Christmas puddings.  I prepared the dried fruit last night and soaked it in brandy.  

Flour, sugar, spices and vegetable suet were mixed before adding the liquid, which consisted of eggs, milk and alcohol.

In a break from tradition, I used a different pudding recipe this year, loosely based on Emma Bridgewater’s recipe, which you can find here.  I tweaked it a bit, changing some of the fruit and my choice of alcohol.

The reason for the change is mostly because of the disappointing results that I had last year when using currants.  It doesn’t seem to make any difference where I buy them, as they are all gritty and full of stalks.  I’ve tried picking through the fruit in advance of using it, but it has been impossible to get rid of every bit and so I’ve opted for a change.  

This last photo is of one of the smaller puddings after it cooked for two hours.  Emma’s recipe is more than generous and made two small and one medium-sized pudding.  Good news, as I have some spare for a pre-Christmas tasting.

Christmas Is Coming...

As the weeks pass, I’m busy feeding our Christmas cake with brandy.  It’s getting two tablespoons per week, so it should be well-preserved, though it won’t last long once Christmas arrives.

Jelly Roll

I’ve had this fabric for quite a while, but haven’t yet found the time to start the project I have in mind.  For some reason (I’m not exactly sure why), this is known as a jelly roll.

There is a PEI connection, as the fabric designs are on the theme of Anne of Green Gables.

One of the reasons for the delay in starting my project was because I didn’t have the necessary tools.  I now have a cutting mat and rotary cutter, so I’m planning a little Christmas project, which I hope to share with you soon.

All is Calm, All is Bright

After more than a month with snow on the ground, we have an almost green Christmas.  Heavy rain late last week caused a sudden thaw.

The tree is twinkling in the corner of our living room and there is a certain peace after the hectic weeks at work.  

This reindeer is a new addition to our tree.  I made a set of felt ornaments and they look very festive.  

All that remains is to wish you all a very Happy Christmas.  

It's Never Too Early For A Mince Pie

The cold and snowy weather has had my thoughts turning to Christmas food and I had a sudden craving for a mince pie.

I'm not in the habit of baking mince pies in November, but I felt that we deserved a treat after the awful weather of last week.

I favour Nigella's recipe for mince pies and made the pastry with orange juice, hence the colour.

My mince pies are star-topped, so I cut the stars out of the pastry scraps left over from cutting the cases.

Once filled with mincemeat, the tops were added.

They came out of the oven looking like this.

I would normally add a festive dusting of icing sugar, but I had forgotten that I used it up and hadn't bought any more.  Still, they tasted great with a cup of tea.  I managed to stash a few in the freezer before Mr Candytuft ate them all!

The Book of Christmas

It may still be November but the arrival of the snow and the cold weather have had my thoughts turning to Christmas.  What better way to prepare for the festive season than by dipping into The Irish Countrywomen’s Association Book of Christmas?  This delightful book is a treasury of traditions and recipes shared by the lovely ladies of the ICA.  I will be starting my menu planning for December within the next few days and hope to include one or two new recipes from these pages.

In the meantime, I’ve bought the ingredients for our Christmas puddings and will be busy with them tomorrow.

Stir-Up Sunday

Today is Stir-Up Sunday, the day on which tradition dictates that we make our Christmas puddings.

I use the same recipe every year and there is something quite therapeutic about stirring all of the ingredients together and filling the pudding basins.

Once filled, a piece of baking parchment covers each of the puddings and then a foil lid is added.  I use the slow cooker for boiling the puddings, as it generates much less steam in the kitchen than steaming them on a pan.  After two hours, the puddings were cooked and two of them are now tucked away for Christmas...the third didn't last long enough to go into storage!

Christmas Kitchen

One of the joys of my preparations for Christmas is baking our Christmas cake.  This year’s cake came out better than ever.  

I find that baking a fruit cake in a new oven can be a case of trial and error, so last year’s cake was a little overcooked.  This year, I used an oven thermometer, set the temperature lower than the recipe recommended (our oven seems to be hotter than it should be) and kept a very close eye on it from about three hours into the baking time.  It was definitely worth the effort.

Our cake is all tucked up in greaseproof paper and comes out weekly for a feed of brandy.  It is the aroma of Christmas.

Scandinavian Christmas

One of the joys of the Christmas season is baking.  I love this book, which I received as a Christmas gift last year. I didn't have an opportunity to try any of the recipes at the time, so I decided to get a head-start this year and try a simple cake recipe.

I chose Nana's Apricot Cake, which is the sort of recipe my own Nana might have made.  I produced two apricot loaves, one of which is now safely tucked up in the freezer as one of our Christmas teatime treats.  This is one of those recipes which improves with age, if you can manage to keep the cake for a day or two.

If you fancy trying it for yourself, you can read the recipe if you enlarge the photo.  I did tweak it a little, as I added vanilla essence to what would have otherwise been a plain cake.  I can highly recommend it.

Handmade Christmas

I can hardly believe that I bought this book in 2012 and it sat on my bookshelf for years.  It was one of those projects which I intended to start, but I couldn't seem to find the time to get underway.

Last year, I got as far as tracing all of the pattern pieces and the mammoth task of cutting out all of the felt.  By the time this was completed, I had no time left for the more creative part of the project. I started the Christmas pudding, then laid it aside, carefully placing all of the pieces in a tin.

Who would have thought that a few simple felt decorations could be so time-consuming?

Last week, I came across this project in my craft room and decided to make a start.

The reindeer one isn't in the photo, but is almost completed, apart from a missing piece of felt for the bow.  I'm certain that I cut this out, but it seems to have vanished.

The Christmas pudding is finally completed and here is the collection of the other finished pieces.  I have five left to sew and then I will have my Christmas dozen, finished in time for decorating the tree next month.

The English Home

One of the joys of the season is the arrival of The English Home, which appears in the shops long before any other Christmas magazine.  

There is nothing nicer than dipping into a bit of Christmas cheer and delighting in the prospect of the coming festivities.

Christmas Robin Sampler

I started this sampler in the spring, but put it aside to focus on my knitting and other projects.  I had hoped to finish it by Christmas, but that isn’t a realistic goal, as it is very detailed and takes a lot of stitching.

Anyway, I’m enjoying working on it when I have an hour or two to spare and it is coming along nicely.

Reindeer in the Snow

The original name for this knitting project was 'Christmas in July' because I started knitting it in July and finished it in two months.

I decided that I wasn't going to delay starting this project until later in the year because the weeks leading to Christmas are always busy and any knitting becomes an added stress as I rush to complete it.

Instead, I was able to pick it up and add a few rows when I felt like it, or leave it untouched for a week or so without feeling guilty.

The whole process was much more enjoyable because of this, although I did have a few surprised looks at my knitting group when they saw what I was working on.

Now that it is completed, I've decided to call it 'Reindeer in the Snow'.

Just For Fun

Another knitting post today.  How could I resist knitting a light bulb?

This was a fun stocking filler at Christmas.  I suppose that when opened, it could have been described as a lightbulb moment...

The View From Here

This was the view from our window on the evening of Boxing Day.  It was a real winter sky: the weather turned cold again and we had snow on Christmas Day, though not as much as expected.
  

As we head towards New Year, the mercury is going to fall as that cold, arctic air heads in our direction.  It is definitely the weather for staying indoors and keeping warm.

Update: we went out this morning and the temperature was -18 C (bear in mind that this is the temperature of a domestic freezer).  It was extremely cold and windy: factor in the wind chill and the temperature felt like -28 C.

Christmas Eve

It is Christmas Eve.  The candles are lit and the tree lights are glowing.  Darkness falls and all is right with our little corner of the world.

I just love the candle lights in the windows.  They make our home look friendly and welcoming.

 

The Christmas cake is cut and tastes delicious.  Santa is on his way and should be heading down a chimney near you.

 

 All that is left is to wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

 Peace and joy to all this Christmas time.