Christmas Toffee Treats

Stuck for something to make for Grandad, Dad or your brother? Christmas toffee is always an old favourite, and it's one of Santa's favourites too. It is easy to make but younger children will need some help because you have to use the cook and the mixture gets very hot.
One batch of Christmas Toffee treats is enough to make 2 Christmas Gifts.

To make Christmas Toffee Treats you will need...

1 lb sugar
1/3 pint water
1 and a quarter ozs butter
2 level tablespoons golden syrup
1 teaspoon vinegar

Remember to wash your hands and clean the work surfaces before you begin.

Method...

Put the water, butter and vinegar into a large saucepan and as it heats slowly add the sugar and syrup gradually to avoid burning. Stir over a steady heat until the sugar has dissolved.

Bring to the boil and cook slowly for aboout 15 minutes or so.

To test for consistency stage drop about half a teaspoon of the mixture into a cup of cold water, if it sets hard then it is done, if still soft and chewy cook for a little longer and test again.

Pour into oiled or buttered tin, make sure you use a tin and not anything pot or glass because this will make it very hard to get the toffee out once it has hardened. After about 10 minutes or so mark in squares as toffee becomes partially set. This will enable you to break the toffee up when completely set.


Put your broken up toffee peices into a small plastic box or a clean jam jar and make a colourful lable to stick on the front to say whats inside and the date it was made. You can print out labels Here which look like the one on the right with a red bauble. Simply fill in who the toffee is for and your name as the toffee maker.

One batch is enough to make two gifts.


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How to make a Christmas Wreath

Christmas wreaths are an old Christmas tradition that is used to decorate the outside of the house, typically on the front door, to give Christmas time visitors a festive greeting.

To make a Christmas wreath you will need a wreath ring, florist wire (you can get these cheaply from our local florist) and some vegetation.

Take a walk around your local park, your garden or in the countryside. Take a bag and some scissors with you and collect interesting vegetation to make a Christmas wreath. Under no circumstances should you pick plants from other people's gardens unless you have their permission to do so.

Collect evergreens, ivy and loral leave are good. Some leaves are a silvery grey; these add a frosty feeling to the wreath. Conifers are popular in people's gardens. Do you have a conifer in your garden? Conifers don't have overly interesting foliage but they make a great base to the wreath.

Also look out for holly or other shrubs that bear berries. Berries add colour to the wreath. Look out for dried seedpods such as poppies, teasels and pinecones. Seedpods can be spray painted silver or gold and used to add interest to the wreath. If you do intend to use spray paint any pieces do this well in advance of the day you intend to make the wreath to give the paint enough time to dry. When using spray paint always closely follow the direction of use printed on the back of the tin.

To make the wreath To attach pieces of foliage to the wreath ring you cut to piece to length and wrap the wire around the lower end of the foliage and then twist the wire around the wreath ring with another piece of wire. Repeat this procedure an inch or two further down the stem.

During the first round of the wreath the foliage will slide around a little bit but the more you put on the more stable it will become. Keep your work flat on a tabletop to prevent movement.

Much of building the wreath is to place your foliage to make something pleasing to the eye, with interest around the whole of the wreath.

However there are some general rules of the thumb.

Use the inner and outer rings as separate 'rounds' filling both rings makes a full plush wreath.

You will find that you can make rounds appear to have a direction. This is when the stems all lay the same way. Wreaths look best if a round follows the same direction. However, the two rings on the wreath ring don't necessarily have to go in the same direction.

The more you add, the better it looks.

Save the 'feature' or fancier pieces until last so that they sit on the top layer of the wreath where they can be seen.

To add pine cones, wrap some wore around the bottom layer of the cone seeds, and twist the two wire stems firmly together and push the wire into the wreath and twist them together at the back of the wreath. You could also wire on Christmas baubles.

When the wreath is finished hang it on your front door for all to see and appreciate.

Blown Egg Christmas Baubles

This is a cracking Christmas decoration idea. I just know your going to get eggsited by this one. Okay, Less of the foul yokes! But seriously eggs make wonderful Christmas tree baubles.

I don't think that there is anything more festive than making your own Christmas baubles to hang on the Christmas tree whilst listening to Christmas carols, it really makes you feel the spirit of Christmas. Why not make Christmas tree baubles from eggshells? Everyone thinks of eggs at Easter time, but they symbolise new beginnings, like the birth of Jesus Christ.

All you need is...
Some eggs, gift-wrap, ribbon, paint, some wire, glitter and other odds and ends for decoration.

First take your egg in one hand and a darning needle in the other. Hold the egg firmly in your hand and push the needle into the centre of the wide bit, at the bottom of the egg. Once the needle is through, wiggle the needle about a bit to make the whole a bit bigger. Now turn the egg around and make another hole in the top of the egg, again wiggle the needle.

Then with a dish underneath to catch the insides of the egg, blow very hard into one end of the egg, and blow the egg out. DO NOT SUCK! This is very bad.

There are concerns that you can contract salmonella from raw eggs. If you are worried about this you could use a medicine syringe to force air through the eggshell.

Remember not to let the egg go to waste. Make scrabbled egg for your dog or use them to bake some cakes.

Once the eggshell is empty give it a good wash out with disinfectant and leave it to dry overnight. Stand it in an eggcup so any excess water can run out freely.

Give your eggshell a coat of paint. Metallic is nice and festive. Leave the paint to dry.

You need to make an egg threader with a piece of wire, which is about twice the length of the egg. Turn the end over and down to form an 'eye' like you would find on a needle. Wrap some selotape around the turn down bit of wire and the main stem of wire.

Get a length of gift-wrap ribbon, which is roughly 4 or 5 times as long as the egg. Fold it in half and tie a knot in the ribbon about 2cm down, forming the loop for hanging the egg on the Christmas tree.

Insert the threader tool into the tool at the top of the egg and out through the bottom of the egg leaving the eye resting on the top of the egg. Tread the two ends of the ribbon through the eye of the egg threader tool. Gently pull the threader tool and the ribbon through the egg, so that the loop knot you made rests on the top of the egg, and the gift-wrap ribbon dangles out from the bottom of the egg. Tie a knot in these ribbons so that the knot sits at the base of the egg. Tie another length of ribbon to these ribbons at the knot. Pull all the ribbons over a pencil to make the ribbons curl.

Stick a small image from a Christmas card or gift wrapping paper on the side of the egg or create a motif with sequins or other bits and bobs.

Finally, using PVA glue, stick some glitter on to the egg to make it sparkle.

Treat the egg bauble like a glass bauble, pack it away carefully and use it every year. If you don't want to use eggs, try Ping-Pong balls instead.

For more Christmas craft Ideas visit http://www.santaspostbag.co.uk/
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Cheap Unique Gift Idea for all Occasions by Riz Davis

Whether you're on a tight budget or you just want to get a discounted and cheap unique ideas that could help you save more, there are gift shops that offer great deals in online shopping! From the latest gadget inventions to practical homeware, there's definitely a lot more that we can find online. Every product is good not only for its quality but for the entertainment it could give you and the whole family.

With a cheap unique gift idea which comes in a price you can afford, you'd still have a lot of choices that would fit your budget. If you don't fancy making handmade gifts such as baskets, bags and the likes – coming up with a cheap unique gift idea would definitely save time and effort plus you get to inquire about our products and specify what you want so that we could help you get what you want.

If you haven't thought of a single cheap unique gift idea yet, you could start by browsing our site and see if you could find anything that would arouse your interest. In fact, as you can notice, almost all of the products are not just made for display but it also carries a certain purpose – some are even multifunctional that you just have to try for yourself.

With just a few clicks and filling out short forms to secure your order form online – you'd be able to get cheap unique gift ideas in time for any occasion. We also deliver it fast and that means you wouldn't have to wait for so long to reach that over to the one you're giving it to. So please take time in browsing our products – especially the featured ones and our best sellers to give you a lot of cheap unique gift ideas.







Riz Davis, 26, is the Internet Marketing Associate of Gadget Epoint LTD. An internet savvy and geek by heart, she enjoys browsing the net for unusual gadgets and novelty items.


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Positive Parenting Tips - How To Give Your Child The Spirit Of Christmas

Positive Parenting Tips - How To Give Your Child The Spirit Of Christmas by Deanna Mascle

I am the mother of a 6-year-old so I know full well how wild children become when caught up in the full Christmas frenzy. There is the never-ending list of "I want" items from catalogs, television commercials, and random store spottings. There is the sneaking around to find hidden gifts or fondle those already wrapped under the tree. There is the high spirits and wild behavior that come from increased sugar intake on top of the excitement of the season. While I can forgive a certain amount of high jinks, I also do not want my child to forget the reason for the season. Here are four ways I remind my child of the true meaning of Christmas.

Of course Christmas is about presents. That is the true reason why children are so wild. They know the countdown is coming for a big haul of gifts and it is very difficult to avoid this commercial aspect even if you choose to do so. Even when my husband and I make a conscious decision to be restrained there are still grandparents, aunts, cousins, and friends who conspire to deliver everything a boy can dream of possessing. I do not wish to deprive my child of that magical Christmas morning frenzy of shredding wrapping paper, but I do want to make sure he remembers that Christmas is about giving -- not receiving. This means I make sure he is a part of the gift selection process as well as purchase and wrapping. In addition, he also makes a number of gifts and cards for those people important to him. He enjoys this creative aspect as well as making a more meaningful gift that will be cherished much more than a store bought gift by his grandparents and other special people. Any way you can channel although that pre-holiday energy into a positive action is always a bonus too.

Another aspect of reminding my child that Christmas is about giving is also to share with those less fortunate. We go through toys and clothes before Christmas and take a good haul to Goodwill. Obviously it offers the selfish benefit of making way for the new presents, but if an outgrown bicycle can make another child's Christmas a little brighter than that can only make the situation a win-win for everyone. We also participated in several giving projects through school, scouts, church and other organizations.

Last, and certainly not least, as a Christian family we take part in many events to celebrate this most important part of the Christian calendar. My son and I both sing in choirs that put on Christmas concerts. Our entire family supported several efforts to help those in need from putting together shoebox gift boxes to ship overseas to the Joy offering that support specific church missions to the local coats for kids project as well as bringing food for the local food pantry. We also lit the Advent candle during a recent church service which was very special. We always attend church and Sunday School so will definitely attend the Christmas Eve candlelight service which is one of my personal favorites. Our church family hosts several holiday parties as well to make the season even brighter including appreciation dinners for the choirs, a birthday party for Jesus, and decorating the church. These are all great ways to have fun and celebrate together without the commercial aspects.

If you embrace even a few of these tips then you will not only remind your child of the true meaning of Christmas but you will also help make the holiday season a little brighter for others as well. Both benefits also give you the added bonus of adding to your store of holiday cheer.





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Christmas Card Tree / holder

Isn't it lovely to receive lots of Christmas cards? But it's not so easy to display them all. They have a tendency to get blown off the windowsills and ledges. They curl up in the heat and spoil the d飯r if you pin or selotape them to the walls and doors. A Christmas card tree can hold multiple cards securely and decoratively.

To make a Christmas card tree you will need...
A baked bean tin (washed and the top filled) around 200g of decorators all-purpose interior filler, 15 or so bamboo skewers, paint, tinsel, super glue, paint suitable for painting on metal and wood, mini pegs and sand paper.

Mix up the filler with water as directed on the packet and pour the plaster like mixture into the tin. When the filler starts to go off, push the skewers into the filler in all directions bearing in mind that each stick will hold card. Space them out around the tin.

Instead of using skewers, you could try using largish twigs; this would give your Christmas card tree a more natural and rustic look.

Leave to one side to completely dry.

It's time to paint the structure. Paint in any colour, making sure you pain the tin, sticks and filler and all. If you are going to use spray paint it is important to follow the instructions carefully on the side of the tin.

Leave to one side to completely dry.

Before sticking the pegs to the skewers you will need to give the skewer a rub with sandpaper to remove some paint and to give the glue something to attach itself to. Just sand a space the size of the peg.

Put a small amount of super glue to one side of the peg, and with the jaws of the peg facing sky wards carefully stick the peg to the stick. Making sure that you don't also stick your fingers to the stick.

You may want to put two pegs on some sticks for smaller cards. Add a second peg just above half way down the stick in the same way as before.

Finally to finish off your Christmas card tree, wrap a length of tinsel around the tin. Stick the ends of the tinsel in place with a dab of glue. Add your Christmas cards by putting a card in the jaws of each peg.

For more homemade christmas trimming Ideas visit http://www.santaspostbag.co.uk/homemade-christmas-trimmings.shtml

Potpourri Bundles

These neat little bundles of potpourri are pretty and fragrant sachets to hang on coat hangers in the wardrobe. Hang them on door handles and when the door moves the potpourri bundle wafts the sent around the room. They are also great for freshening up the car. With so many places to hang these bundles, they make a great little Christmas gift, and best of all they are not difficult to make.

To make potpourri bundles you will need...
Fine or broken up Potpourri, lace doilies or net curtain material, some lengths of ribbon, needle and thread and silk roses to decorate.

First cut a circle from the lacey material, about 12 cm across.

Sew a row of running stitches 2 cm away from the edge of the fabric. Draw the stitching up slightly so that the fabric starts to make a little 'pocket'. Leave the needle and thread attached for later.

Fill the little pocket with potpourri. Compact it in as much as possible and then pull the thread to draw up the material to close in the potpourri.

Wrap the thread tightly around the scrunched up top or neck of the bundle, and finish off with a couple of stitches on top of one another.

Take a length of ribbon about 30 cm and wrap it around the neck of the bundle and tie it into a knot leaving two long tails. Cross the tail ends over each other to form an 'X' and with a needle and a similar coloured thread, Tack the tail ends together with a couple of neat stitches.

Finishing touches
You can either sew on small silk ribbon roses if you have any, or make a bow with more ribbon wrapped around the neck of the bundle.

When wrapping up your potpourri bundles, pop them into an airtight bag to keep the scent in.

For a real Christmassy feel use a spiced Christmas fragrance potpourri in the bundles.

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Nestle Rowntree Quality Street Crafts

Nestle Rowntree Quality Street chocolates are probably as traditional at Christmas as Christmas pudding and a Christmas tree. If you are lucky enough to receive a big tin of Quality Street chocolates for Christmas, here are a few great ideas of things to do with the plastic wrappers.

Christmas Lantern
To make the Quality Street lantern you will need...
Lantern Ball Paper Lampshade in any size you wish, lots of Quality Street plastic wrappers, and PVA Glue.

First you will need to erect the paper lantern. It should have assembly instructions with it. Unfold the lantern and insert a wire expander inside the lantern, this slots into place and keeps the lantern erect and taught.

If you stand the lampshade in a cereal bowl it with make it easier to work on.

Working on the top half of the lampshade first, cover a patch of the lamp shade in PVA glue and stick the chocolate wrappers to the lamp shade, smooth them down with your brush. You can make some wrappers overlap slightly. Try to evenly spread the colours out.

Let the first half of the lampshade dry before turning the lampshade the other way up and sticking more Quality Street wrappers to the other half, in the same way.

Allow to dry before hanging up at a light. Great for creating a funky retro feel.

For more quality street sweet wrapper crafts please visit http://www.santaspostbag.co.uk/Nestle-Rowntree-Quality-Street-chocolates-crafts.shtml

http://www.santaspostbag.co.uk/ packed with Xmas Craft Ideas

What are you doing for your pets this Christmas?

It is that time of the year again when pretty much all of us are looking out for the best possible gifts for our near and dear ones for Christmas. It is definitely one of the most exciting shopping seasons in the entire year where even the men don’t mind going to the stores to buy a special gift for someone they truly care for.

It is a time when we remember everyone in our family and friends list and really dig deep to find out what they would want for Christmas and buy accordingly. But unfortunately there is one member of our family who is often overlooked on the holiday Christmas list, and that is our beloved pet.

Pets are an integral part of a family. People love their pets as much as their own family members and of course for the pet, the owners are his or her entire world. There is no one besides you or above you as far as your pets are concerned. Yet the most enthusiastic and loyal member of the family is left out of the most magical and special time of the year – Christmas.

The unfortunate part is that even though we love our pets with all of our hearts, we often take them for granted and make a distinction between their feelings and those of family and friends. We feel our pets will be excited for us as we open our Christmas treasured and won’t be disappointed or feel left out of the merriment.

Our pets are much more intelligent than we give them credit for. They can pick up on things very fast and always know when there is a special occasion in the house. Getting ignored during these times definitely hurts them and sadly most of us never even notice this as we are too busy sharing our joy with the rest of the family.

Of course some of us do want to do something for our pets but often don’t know what really to gift their dog or their cat. That is where the internet comes to the rescue once again. The fact is that there are several online stores that sell the most adorable pet gift baskets that you can imagine. We here at SugarPaww.com offer pet gift baskets that are well thought out and contain a variety of items like squeeze toys for pets, special treats, healthy edible bones, decorative boxes, rawhide candy canes, special breath fresheners for pets, razzle dazzle collars and a whole lot more.

Your pets love you as much as any of your family members do and like to share the special occasions with you just like you like to share your special moments with rest of the family. So this holiday season, ask yourself this question – what are you doing for the most loyal member of your family? And if you don’t get an answer, I hope you will do something about it.

Linda Lee is the founder of Sugar Paww, a company specializing in the most adorable pet gift baskets for our beloved dogs and cats. For more information please visit http://www.sugarpaww.com/

Pressies for poochies Click here...

Chocolate Fudge for Christmas

Home-made Fudge is a luscious addition to any Christmas, either as a gift for a sweet toothed friend or family member or just for the family to eat at Christmas time. Everyone will think you are really good cook to make your own fudge, it will be your secret of how easy it is to make this scrummy chocolate fudge.
Younger Children will need help to melt the chocolate.

To make chocolate fudge you will need...
300g of good Dark Chocolate with a high coco percentage (70% or 80% coco content) The fudge will not work with other chocolate.
400g tin of Condensed milk.

Remember to wash your hands and clean the work surfaces before you begin.

Method...
Break up the chocolate into a microwavable dish. Microwave the Chocolate for 1 minute and stir, repeat again. If the chocolate has still not melted microwave for an extra 20 seconds and stir. Repeat the 20 seconds until the chocolate has melted being careful not to over cook the chocolate.

Then add the tin of condensed milk to the chocolate, stir in well. You will feel the mixture thicken.

Pour into a tin foil lined tin, spread evenly and smooth the top. Allow to cool for a couple of hours.

Take the fudge out of the tin and peel off the tin foil. Cut in to small mouth sized chunks.

Your chocolate fudge is now ready to eat or put into a little box if you are giving it as a gift.

One batch is enough to make two gifts.

Have a go at the Christmas Criss Cross Puzzle - Print it off for the kids

3D Reindeer Christmas Cards

What's the best way to wish all of your friends and family a Merry Christmas? With a fleet of festive reindeer of course! Make festive reindeer 3D stand up Christmas Cards. This is a fun and unusual Christmas Card idea is quick and easy to make ? just print, colour and cut out. Pop all the pieces into an envelope, with the assembly instructions send to your friends and family to wish them a very Merry Christmas.

To Make your Reindeer Christmas Card you will need
The reindeer pieces printed out onto card. You can print out the reindeer card for free here. You will also need scissors, colouring pens, crayons, or pencils, and a C5 sized envelope for each reindeer card.

To Make your Reindeer Christmas Card
1) Print out the reindeer shapes onto card. Click Here for Printout

2) Colour in your reindeer with colouring pens, pencils or paint.

3) Write a warm Christmas message on the reindeer's back.

4) Cut out the reindeer pieces. Cut along all of the black lines. Some lines go into the body of the shapes. These are slits that are needed when assembling the reindeer, cut these slits as you cut out the reindeer shapes.

5) Put all the reindeer bits and the assembly instructions into an envelope and post the card.

When the card arrives at your friends or family's house they can assemble the reindeer to make a festive 3D Reindeer card.

Want to try something different? Rip up some Christmas Wrapping paper into small pieces and glue it onto the reindeer shapes. Do worry if the paper over hangs a bit, you can trim the edges when the glue is dry. Metallic paper looks really nice. You could also decorate with glitter to make a really sparkly, magical reindeer.

Christmas Robin Tea Cosy

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The cheery Christmas robin is no stranger to cold bleak winters. He knows how to keep warm and he will keep the teapot warm too. The festive robin novelty Tea Cosy is quick and easy to make and adds Christmas cheer to the kitchen or breakfast table, he also makes for a very unusual gift.

To make the Christmas Robin tea cosy you will need...
5.5 mm, UK size 5 or US size 9 knitting needles,
50g Brown double knitting wool,
50g Red double knitting wool,
25g White double knitting wool
And scraps of felt for the eyes and beak.

Divide all of the balls of wool into two balls so that the yarn can be used in double thickness but knitted up as a single strand.

The Back
Using double thickness brown yarn cast on 28 stitches and work 38 rows in straight garter stitch (Knit each row)

Leave the stitches on a spare needle until later.

The Front
Using double thickness brown wool, cast on 28 stitches and work 4 rows in garter stitch.

Break the yarn and change to white (again double yarn) Work another 4 rows.

Row 9: Knit 6 stitches with white, Join Red (double yarn) knit in red to last 6 stitches. Knit 6 with white.

Don't carry the yarn behind the work, instead use separate balls of wool and twist the yarns together when changing colours to avoid leaving holes.

Row 10: K6 white, K16 red, K6 white.
Row 11: K4 white, K20 red, K4 white.

Repeat the last row 21 more times.

Row 33: K5 white, K8 red, K2 white, K8 red, K5 white. Repeat this row again.

Row 35: K6 White, K6 red, K4 white, K6 red, K6 white. Repeat this row again.

Work two rows in white.

The Tea Cosy Top
Using brown double yarn proceed to knit across the tea cosy front and then tea cosy back as follows...

Shaping the top Row 1: *K5, K2 tog* repeat to end

Next and every alternate row Knit.

Row 3: *K4, K2 tog* repeat to end.
Row 5: *K3, K2 tog* repeat to end.
Row 7: *K2, K2 tog* repeat to end.
Row 9: *K1, K2 tog* repeat to end.
Row 11: *K2 tog* repeat to end.

Thread the end of the yarn through the remaining stitches and through the loop of the yarn itself and draw up the knitting tightly and Finnish off.

With the front and back right sides together, sew about 9.5cm from the finishing off point down the side seam towards the cast on edge.

At the bottom of each side seam, sew about 3cm upwards. The holes are left for the teapot handle and spout.

From felt cut out two eyes (Approximately 4cm in diameter) and sew into position.

Cut a 5cm long kite shape from black felt and fold the fabric in half along the long edge and over-sew this edge with small stitches. With the seam at the bottom, flatten out to form a slender pointed beak. Sew into place.

Now the rosy robin can keep your rosy lee piping hot all winter.

This novelty Christmas robin tea cosy fits teapots up to 47cm round and up to 17cm high, a medium sized teapot.