festiveness

  Earlier this week I mentioned that I'd been on the hunt for very specific ribbon, well I found it. It's a glorious deep red velvet, about an inch and a half thick. Ideally I would have preferred a three inch, but it's not easy to get exactly what you want. I could have gone for a three inch satin ribbon but I didn't want that. Nor did I want it wired.
I'm not being overly picky, ribbon can really make or break a wreath. Nothing wrong with wired ribbon, but I prefer it unwired. If you've ever gone out to buy a Christmas wreath and dithered over something because it was the right price but not quite 'right' I would bet it's because of the ribbon. The basics of a wreath are foliage and berries, but it's the bits and pieces added that changes the overall look. A lot of places sell wreaths with the thick plastic florists' ribbon. Totally understandable, it does the job, is easy to source and is reasonably cheap. But it does not look great. My advice is if you are buying or making a wreath for you door, add the best ribbon you can. It will make it go from ordinary to 'wow'. For me a good velvet ribbon always makes things look luxurious. It doesn't have to be super expensive either. This 5 metre roll cost £8 from Amazon, in the photo it looks ok but in real life it's gorgeous. The added bonus was the price, it was the cheapest I saw, usually it's around £15.
Christmas is going to be pretty simple this year, from presents to decorating. I plan on having little splashes of red in the kitchen and on the front door, that will literally be it for festive colour.

As I've been quite enjoying thinking about Christmas, I decided to treat myself to this book. I've looked at it so many times on Amazon but resisted. One day I just thought you know what, I'd really like this book so I ordered it.
What a treat. It is beautiful and has so many tasty looking recipes. I already know I'm going to try out the macaroni cheese as I'm always on the lookout for the best recipe. It's one of my favourite things, I've tried out great recipes and one that turned out so gloopy and horrible I felt sick just looking at it.
If you are looking for a book to give your festive spirit a boost, then I give this ten out of ten.
Or if you want an idea for a really lovely gift for someone, ditto. It's a proper treat of a book.