Xmas decs etc in John Lewis today!!!.....

[Becaroooo]

....oh! it was lovely!

I feel all festive now....got some felt stockings for the dc and a 1st xmas bauble for my new niece and some jingle bells....

Seriously, its lovely stuff and not too expensive

And then on the bottom floor there was all the foodie bits...pannetone, lebkuchen, marzipan, candy canes, mulled cider and wine....

I am making french toast with left over pannetone this year!

How exciting. Debenhams also had Christmas decorations for sale and M&S had Christmas food galore

Agree that John Lewis have lovely stuff. We always get our advent calendar from there and a bauble or two...

i got that little shiver today when i saw a tree with all lights on in local g centre

Honestly, I was beside myself!!!

They had a wonderful wooden advent calendar.....wish I could convince dh its worth spending £45 on it!!!!

Wooden advent calendar you say? We usually get a traditional one with pictures behind it but I am tempted by a wooden one......argh!

I've already decided I need an Elf on the Shelf thanks to the other thread.

This Christmas lark costs a flippin fortune

We are going to Dobbies Christmas event on Thursday next week. Tickets are £1 and you get a mince pie and a drink. I can't wait!!!

Sunshine! ('tis me from the Elf thread!), I bought this wooden advent calendar last year: www.amazon.co.uk/Vintage-White-Wooden-Advent-Calendar/dp/B004CD851M/ref=cm_cr-mr-title. It is fab! (The review on Amazon is actually by me!)

you're all nuts

NoHun! That advent calendar is lovely, what kind of things do you put in it?

That's a lovely advent calender, NoHun (I seem to have followed you all from the Elf thread!). We have this one which worked really well last year.

Sunshine One of the more simple ideas from last Christmas that worked surprisingly well was little handwritten notes from relatives as most of ours don't live near. Some included a little hair clip or chocolate but it was the notes that made it special. Quite fancied incorporating the little origami wishing stars this year. Ready made or make your own.

Sunshine, we are vegan so I can't have mainstream chocolate advent calendars - a tragedy! I filled this one with various vegan chocolates. When DS is older (he is one today!), I may think of other things to put in it, maybe messages of stuff to do, or clues where to find little gifts!

Ooh, winefairy, that house is gorgeous! Hm, is it OTT to have two advent calendars?! Love the wishing stars! Oh, I just love Christmas and magic and fairies and glittery shiny things! :)

A couple of years ago I made 24 little red and green envelopes with numbers on the front and attached them to a long piece of ribbon. I hung them up and inside each envelope I put a little note. It was either something simple like "let's make mince pies today" or a surprise like "we're going to the pantomime today!".

DD and DS loved it and we worked out that one of them would open the advent calendar door and the other would open an envelope and the following day they'd swap.

I'll be hanging the envelopes up again this year but I just have to think of some different things to write in them!

Cute idea!

What lovely ideas!