Christmas

Bucket Full of Sunshine  |  The Big Knit

Posted on by tashici

This is super cute and lovely way to help spread Christmas cheer. The idea is that people knit tiny woolly hats for Innocent smoothies, and for each one sold Innocent drinks donate 25p to Age UK. (The smoothies with the hats aren’t for sale until February 2016 though). The money goes towards keeping the older generation warm at winter.

Quote from age UK: Each winter, 1 older person dies needlessly every 8 minutes because of the cold.

And if you can help this problem by buying a smoothie with a little hat on it, how easy is that?

This year you can also buy adult and children size hats from Oliver Bonus. For every adult hat sold Oliver Bonus will donate £5 and for every child size hate sold they will donate £3.

You can also help out by knitting the tiny adorable hats and send them to Innocent who out them on the smoothies. The even provide knitting patterns. Unfortunately, this year I missed the deadline (11th December) but at least I know for next year! I now use one I got from a previous year as a Christmas decoration. You never know, if I get enough I could make a mini hate garland!!

the big knit.png

However, if you create a design for a hat online and share it with your social media, you can help raise 10p per share! The link for that is right here. The photo above is all photos from the hats I created on the Big Knitter site.

so get those creative juices flowing!

TC

xoxo

* BLOGMASS *  | Winter Walk 

Posted on by tashici

Sooo, today is my BIRTHDAY!!!! 🎈 and for my birthday Ian took me away for the weekend to a the Yorkshire Dales! We stayed in a lovely cabin and it was just wonderful to get away from everything and to just relax and enjoy each other’s company!!

  
I say what’s more Christmassy and wintery than a walk in the English countryside!! So he had even researched local walks! But the one we chose to do (for obvious reasons), the J R R Tolkein walk!

  

  
We got really wrapped up all warm and went adventuring! The weather wasn’t the bet either. It had spent all Saturday pouring! Sunday was a little nicer but still very wet. 

  

  
We started off in the village Hurst Green and walked up across the fields to Stoneyhurst college. This is apparently one of the places Tolkein wrote the Lord of the Rings. 

  
This is the college. It’s very pretty! We then continued round and into some woods. 

   
 
Although Ian’s feet got a little soggy and muddy we really enjoyed it. I especially enjoyed just getting out into the country! 

Ian had even “specced” out a local gluten free fish and chip shop! So tasty! 

  
It was a lovely little holiday and we were sad to leave! But I reckon we’ll be back again in the not too distance future! 

  
Keep smiling! And maybe try and get outside! It may even help!

TC

xoxo

* BLOGMASS *  |  HomeMade Christmas Cocktails: SnowBalls

Posted on by tashici

For me, it just couldn’t be Christmas without this cocktail! We have it on Christmas Day but I’ve been a tiny bit naughty and we’ve started early this

 

It’s very easy to make! The main base of it is advocaat! It’s Dutch and kinda like egg nogg esque.

For the cocktail you just need some advocaat, lemonade, lime cordial and to garnish a glacé cherry!

 
To begin, you need about a single (or very generous single) shot of advocaat.

 
Then a dash of lime cordial.

I then add the cherry on a cocktail stick.

 
And top with lemonade. The lemonade fizzy a lot a create lots of bubbles, kinda, sorta, almost like snow!

 
Enjoy! Responsibly!

TC

xoxo

* BLOGMASS *  |  DIY Christmas Cards

Posted on by tashici

Its become a tradition in my family to make our own Christmas cards so I thought I’d share mine from this year and my brothers! Because it’s just so swish!!!

 
I bought my blank cardboard cards from hobby craft for £4 for 10. I also got all my pens from hobby craft!


 

Just simple with different fonts and the highlights with a white pen. The glittery red and green really pop and I love the outcome!

 

This is my brothers! It just looks so professional to me! It’s awesomes!!

People do always say it’s the thought that counts!

TC

xoxo

* BLOGMASS *  |  2 Ingredients Nougat

Posted on by tashici

This is the second sweet I’ve made. This one I adapted from an American recipe for 2 ingredient fudge, however when I tried it, it tasted much more like a soft nougat so that’s what I call it now! This one is the most simple one ever!!

 
In the original recipe I found they list a bag of white chocolate drops and a can of frosting so here’s my adaptation. As for quantities, you need about double the weight of chocolate to marshmallow fluff.

 
( Please excuse the mess on the hob, its a rented place and we can’t clean it off! ). You then just need to melt the chocolate using a ban Marie or a double boiler. Simply put water in a pan and sit a bowl on top. A lower to medium heat is best.

 
Just make sure the chocolate is silky smooth.

 
You then simply take off the heat and add the marshmallow fluff. And stir! Like crazy a little. You then have to pour straight into a mould as it sets pretty quick. Just make sure you pre-grease.

 
I then put sprinkles all over it! These gold ones are pretty festive and a nice contrast to the cream. You do need to press them in a little so they stick.

  

 

It then sets in the fridge for an hour or two. You then pop it out and cut to size.

These are my brothers and my favourite ones! So more-ish!!!

Enjoy!

TC

xoxo

*BLOGMASS *  | Christmas Jumpers

Posted on by tashici

I love a good Christmas jumper and try to wear them as often as possible in December!

I actually only have a few Christmas jumpers; at the moment! 😉 so here they are:

PRIMARK

  

This one I got at Primakr last year for I think £8/9. I love it because its outrageous but cute. I really lover gingerbread-men! 

MUMS

  

This was originally my mum’s and I actually remember her wearing when I was really young so it means a whole lot to me!

Harry Potter

 

This is one I got from Harry Potter studio tour!!! Eeeee!! 

Star Wars

 

This one I got at Play Expo this year! I bought it for £30. It’s perfect the perfect geeky and Christmas combo! and the Force Awakens is out this month!! Win, win, win!!!

Because I only have 4! I have been searching the shops and the internet for a others! Here are my top picks!

If you click the photos it will send you to the websites! 

primark cardigan

Primark £14

Debenhams

Debenhams £20 (SALE £14)

H&M

H&M £24.99

New Look

New Look £24.99

Tesco

Tesco £18

harley quinn

£29.99

knitted star wars

£29.99

lrgscaleoriginal-playstation-christmas-jumper-2

£34.99

Time to get all snuggled up!! 

TC

xoxo

* BLOGMASS *  |  HomeMade Marzipan 

Posted on by tashici

Each year I make a large batch of sweets that I wrap up for presents and just have around the house at Christmas time!!! This year I’ve started with marzipan! Ive never made marzipan before but now I have now idea why not! It’s so simple, quick and easy! Here’s how it went down!

 
What you will need:

200g blanched almonds,

100g icing sugar,

1 tsp vanilla extract,

However, I wanted to make loads so I tripled ( yep tripled), the mix.

 
First things first, in a food processor blitz the almonds to a paste. This takes a while! Sometimes about 5 mins. However, my almonds were very dry so never quite made it to a paste.

 
You may wish to keep scrapping off the sides as the almond crumbs can get stuck up the walls of the processor.

 
You then add the vanilla. This should also help dampen the mixture to help create that paste.


Then add the icing sugar to the almonds and vanilla and blitz again. This will probably turn to crumbs that when squished will form a dough.

 
My secret ingredient!! So shhhhh! Some almond extract, it just helps add that almond hit and makes the marzipan nice and rich.

 
Now just combine into a dough. If the mixture is too dry, add a touch of water. If the mixture is too wet, add some more icing sugar. When rolling out use the icing sugar to dust the surface and your rolling pin.

 
You can be creative with the shapes! I got this cookie cutter out of my colleges cracker at the Christmas party! They did say they weren’t going to use it!

 
Finally, I decorated them with a little chocolate icing.

And now, Enjoy!! Nom, nom, nom!

TC

xoxo

* BLOGMASS *   |  Top 15 Christmas Movies

Posted on by tashici

Christmas is time for Christmas movies! Christmas is not Christmas until I see some of my favourite movies! Here are my top 15 Christmas Movies!! 

1. Polar Express

  1. polar express 

I only saw this for the first time this year but it had to make my list!! 

2. Jingle All The Way

jingle all the way

Arny in a Christmas movie!?! This is so much fun and so cute! it shows the lengths parents will go to make Christmas for their children!

3. The Grinch

the grinch

This is a movie about how the magic of Christmas can even defeat an evil monster living outside your town! Don’t be a Christmas Grinch!

4. The Santa Clause

santa clause

This movie is great, especially for warming you up for Christmas! If a very grumpy Tim Allen can be persuaded then so can you!

5. Miracle on 34th Street

miracle on 34th street

A magical tale where you are never too old to believe in Santa. All the gooey loveliness of Christmas.

6. Die Hard

die-hard-original

It has become a huge Christmas movie and it so much fun and full of action. Especially good when you need a pause from the non stop Christmas emotions. A perfect action movie and a perfect Christmas movie!

7. A Christmas Carol

a christmas caral

This is a little more true to the original Dickens novel. It helps remind us to live the life we want. A classic!

8. Elf

elf

So much fun! Try and say you don’t like Buddy, the Will Ferrell Elf!!

9. Love Actually

love actually

I feel like everyone will always watch this movie if it is on! IT has something for everyone! But will drag you through a few feels!

10.

Home Alone

Home-Alone-1-v3

A fun family Christmas movie with enough action to keep everyone entertained!

11. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York

home alone 2

This movie has all the magic of the first but also allows me to see my favourite city in the world!

12. The Snowman

the snowman

I feel like this is the original Christmas movie. It feels like the first Christmas movie I remember watching year in, year out.7

13. Rise of the Gaurdians

Rise-of-the-Guardians-2012

I knew as soon as I saw this movie that I would watch it every year! It is so full of magic that I skipped the entire way home!

14. The Holiday

All the holiday feels! So happy and cute!!

15. Holiday Inn 

Holiday Inn

The holiday Inn, to me is perfect! I’m not a “It’s a Wonderful Life” girl because I don’t like crying that much. But this is a pure Christmas classic.It cannot be Christmas until I’ve seen this film!

Let me know your favourite Christmas movies and any I should check out! 

TC

xoxo

* BLOGMASS *  |  Hot Chocolate and Pumpkin Pies

Posted on by tashici

For a festive treat we bought special hot chocolate. We are both huge lovers of white chocolate so we had a white hot chocolate. The one we got was from Wittard, the luxury white hot chocolate. They had a sample of it when we visited the store in Manchester and it was absolutely delicious!! So we did splash out for a festive treat!

We had one with our last pumpkin pies. The recipe is over on Ian’s blog, Coeliac by Proxy.  Thu are super tasty!! Almost like a thicker spicier custard tart.


We indulged and put whipped cream on top of our pies and hot chocolate! On top of the cream we sprinkled a mixtures of icing sugar and the spices used in the pies, ground cloves, ginger, nutmeg and cinnamon! We think it really works! Giving a little extra depth to the hot chocolate and complementing the pumpkin pies!

 

Yummy yummy yum!!!

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TC

xoxo

* BLOGMASS *  |  Christmas Tree Trimming! 🎄

Posted on by tashici

This is one of my most favourite Christmas things!!! We got our tree up nice and early as well, just a so we made the most of it. We are both spending Christmas with our families and then Ian is coming to mine for a while and then we are both spending New year with his; so once we leave we won’t see our tree again! But this way we get a good 2 almost 3 weeks with it.

 
It’s also a real tree!! I just love real ones! I know everything about a fake one is more sensible and environmentally friendly but I just love real ones! That smell!! We got a Norwegian pine, the one with the thicker needles which isn’t meant to drop as many!

We started with the lights! Then the baubles and finally the tinsel! We had Harry Potter on in the background! And it was lovely!!

 
Although the hooks I have ordered didn’t get delivered in time! So there are still some missing but it doesn’t look as bare as I thought it might! For our first tree, we are always going to LOVE it!!!

 
“I’m the happiest Christmas tree! Ho ho ho! He he he! “

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TC

xoxo