Handmade Christmas Gifts

My Auntie is a fab knitter and we've been really lucky to receive lots of lovely presents from her over the past few years. We had a knitted bride and groom for our wedding...and lots of knitted animals when our daughter was born - you can see all her hard work here

This year was no exception - she kindly knitted our daughter a gaggle of Father Christmasses and a snowman. They are so cute and my daughter loves them! They've all had a trip round the house in the pushchair - an honour usually only offered to her Peppa Pig toy :)

My online stores will be closed from 20th December through to 27th December whilst we spend time with my husband's family over the holiday period. This will probably be my last blog post before Christmas, so I would like to wish all my customers and blog readers a very merry Christmas!

Charity at Christmas

It's so easy to get caught up in shopping, decorating and planning for our own family Christmasses that we forget people who are much, much less fortunate than ourselves. I read about this clever idea in my local newspaper and wanted to share it on my blog.

It's such a simple idea, yet since StreetSmart was established in 1998, it has raised over £4.7million for the homeless. Basically, you eat in a participating restaurant (there are lots all across the UK) and a voluntary £1 donation is added to your bill. A 100% of that £1 goes to homeless charities.

In my home city of Bristol there are over 12 restaurants taking part and the funds raised will go to help charities such as Bristol Soup Run Trust, Caring at Christmas and One 25.

So, whilst many of us are out celebrating, the StreetSmart campaign reminds us how important and how easy it can be to give a little bit back to charity at Christmas.