All the homemade Christmas people over here please, lets share our ideas :)

[BabyDubsEverywhere]

Do we have a 'Homemade Christmas Thread' going yet? Ive linked to last years below, I am determined to MAKE MAKE MAKE this year and bugger the responses

I need a fail safe mulled wine kit to give people please if anyone can help, Thankyou :)

Last years thread!

Quick question - do you think the Christmas pudding vodka would work with brandy?

Doodle I've never soaked my fruit overnight for marmalade - I just simmer the fruit whole for a couple of hours or so (I think), then add sugar and boil till setting point is reached, and then either a quick pulse in the food processor or I chop it by hand, of course doing this way you have to pick the pips out but it's not too awful. The method I use is in Nigella's How To Eat, it's dead, dead easy.

Bitter - it's got to be worth a try! as it only takes a month to infuse, you could try with a small amount, and taste test after a fortnight. then make much more if it's good, obviously!

Morning, Christmas freaks

Sorry if this has been asked before, but does anyone know how long the lemon hand scrub lasts? Ie, could I start making it now?

And I am doing my head in looking at soap-making sites. Could someone who's done this before recommend any particular one?

I want to dive in but am shivering on the brink at the moment ...

Good Idea kveta- Thankyou

mogs are you really going for my pin cushion idea? brilliant! I'd love to see a photo! Oh and if you end up making millions from them, I'm definitely sending you my address for a freebie!

Hippy - yes, thanks for idea! There are so many great ideas on this thread that I seem to be spending hours researching ingredients etc and forget to thank people for their suggestions and sharing their ideas .

I found a gorgeous picture of one already made online so am aiming to follow that. If they turn out reasonably well (I'm not a natural crafter) then I will gladly send you one!

Oh my word, this is my dream thread! Thanks for all the top tips, I've snaffled them and will duly pass them off as my own ideas/recipes etc :o

I picked all our lavender from our garden a couple of weeks ago and it's drying nicely. I want to make a lavender pillow for my grandmother. My sewing skills aren't great but I'm going to have a go. Two things I'm struggling to find. An empty but ready made cushion pad (so I can fill it with lavender - would I do just lavender or should i add something else?) and I was trying to find some lace applique letters I could stitch on to a plain cushion cover to personalise it. Anyone have any ideas where I could find such things?

My 99p shop had some nice plain cushions in the other day

They also had pillows, so I snagged a couple to use for stuffing for my sock monkeys.

headfairy an unfilled cushion pad would be really easy to make. what size are you after? as for the lace letters, again, pretty easy to do yourself. type the letters you want in Word and print them at the size you want. Then, put the lace onto the paper and trace the letters through. You can use either dressmaker's chalk or one of those magic disappearing pens that quilters use. Or, use some bondaweb (i'm happy to explain the process if you haven't used it before)

mogs you've seen them online? damn, thought i'd had an original idea!

Hadn't thought of that bitterandtwisted.... I'll check out our pound store.

Hippy I'm terrible at sewing and really lazy so was hoping to find some ready made empty cushion pads. As Bitterandtwisted said I could buy some really cheap ones and empty them out. Esp if I'm going to buy make a lovely cover to go over the top with my lace/applique lettering.

bitter what a great idea to use cheap pillows for stuffing!

Poundworld had candy canes in yesterday - box of 18 for 50p - should anyone need them for the peppermint bark They are red & white striped

Am after cheap candy canes JetLi so will hoof it down to Poundworld (if we have one here that is, I get confused by all the variations of Poundmart, Poundshop, Poundworld etc...)!

I've got some massive pine cones at home that we collected on holiday. They're about the size of a large canteloupe. I was going to decorate them with the kids to make christmas tree decorations. We did some last year which I spray painted with silver paint and then sprinkled with glitter while the paint was still wet. These ones are so huge that a can of silver spray paint just won't cut it. Do you think I could buy a tin of white emulsion paint and dip them in, then get the kids sprinkling with the glitter?

Cartblanche - this was the one with the navy blue & yellow signage, www.poundworld.net/ hth just munching one now actually and they are quite nice - red and white but more red than white IYSWIM

thunderbolt that's why ds will love it! :o

Ooh yes we have one of those Poundworlds here - shall try and get some tomorrow!

Hello all, your lovely thread has encouraged me to make my 1st ever MN post

headfairy I like to keep my pinecones rustic looking and roll them in a tray of PVA and them sprinkle the glitter on so it only ends up like a gentle frosting on the ends.

Have any of you ever made Liqueur 44? I believe it is what they make on the continent like we make sloe gin. Very easy to make and looks great in the jar :) Basically you take an orange and make 44 little slits in it, into which you stuff 44 coffee beans (or shards of dark choc), put it in a jar with 44 sugar cubes, pour over a bottle of cheap vodka/white rum/gin and leave for 44 days, and Voila! It comes out tasting a bit like Grand Marnier, smells a bit chocolatey even when made with coffee beans (never tried the choc version), and is lovely drunk as a liqueur or in a champagne cocktail. I give it all made up in the jar, orange and all and it looks lovely and festive.

Looking forward to some more fantastic ideas....

Wow WhinGin that Liquer 44 sounds great - have you got any pics of what it looks like made up in the jar? Would love to see one if you do!

What a great thread - I'm loving some of the ideas and really just marking my place to read more later. Is there any possibility that I could be cheeky and ask someone to send me an invite for pinwheel? I've requested an invite but it seems it might take a while and I'm impatient!

carteblanche I don't have any pics, sorry, I wasn't that organised it never occurred to me last year to take any. Imagine your christingle orange, minus the ribbon, suspended in alcohol in a lovely jar I used asdas cheap kilner type jars last year. The other good thing about it is it not really seasonal, unlike say Sloe Gin, so you can make it any time of year as birthday presents etc and it is ready relatively quickly too.

So my first batch of chutney is made - the house smelt like Christmas whilst it was cooking :)

..OK - Candy Canes at the ready..

Here is a neat idea to add that "USP" to them.... I did these a few years back (lots of years I'm getting on now) for a Craft Fair and they went well - sold out.... Made them from felt (the 1st year) and from card the second year (much cheaper)..

My baby is now a 6+ footer - so I am happy to pass on the recipe - shame I used to love doing this kinda stuff.... now Christmas is a toss between going "somewhere hot" or getting in a "M&S Complete Christmas" package - I miss making those little things so special - sod them all -I shall go to Christmas Lapland and dive in the snow this year......

However, I bow to the Queen of Crafts (or her minions) - Martha Stewart for this....

candy mice