How To: Make Your Own Christmas Wreath

You have found the perfect tree, hung the mistletoe, strung up fairy lights everywhere and anywhere but you feel as though something is missing.... enter your handmade wreath! Making a Christmas wreath is so easy and adds a little holiday cheer to your front door or wherever you choose to hang it! It has become somewhat of a tradition for me to make one. Off into the garden I go wielding a pair of old secateurs, a large wicker basket and a healthy dose of festive spirit! I then proceed to cut down any foliage that looks remotely Christmassy (I always end up with far too much) and then organise it all into nice little piles once inside and warm again! 

Now, there are probably more professional ways to do this - I am certainly no florist, but this way is easy and you should have everything you need to get started.

What you will need:

Secateurs 

Wire cutters

Wire

2 metal coat hangers

Ribbon 

Foliage

1. Collect your Foliage

The very first thing you will need to do is wrap up warm and go into your garden (or local woods) and cut down some nice festive foliage!

2. Make a Frame

Now it many not be high tech but the humble coat hanger really comes into its own here! The shape is perfect and comes with an in-built hook for you to hang your masterpiece! Bend 2 coat hangers into a circular shape and then overlap them slightly. Get some garden wire and wrap it around the two loosely, fastening at the top so it’s nice and sturdy.  

 

3.  Attach the stems and decorations

Now comes the fun bit! To build your wreath start poking in a base of foliage, you can go for anything - fir, bracon, spruce, it really doesn't matter! Once you have a nice base all over start adding some festive touches. I am a fan of holly leaves and anything that has red berries! I also like to cut down some teasel heads and attach them too. You could spray yours silver / gold to make it even more beautiful.

4. Time to adorn your front door or even a bare wall

Skate at Somerset House

For those of you that know me you know how much I LOVE CHRISTMAS, and for those of you that don't, I’m declaring it now! So, what better way to ring in the festive season than to take to the ice! What could be more satisfying than spending a crisp winter’s eve skating with two of your best friends? Well add Fondue and outrageously indulgent hot chocolates (courtesy of Fortnum & Mason) to the mix and you have got absolute perfection. 

After eating and drinking way too much, we waddled on over to the rink, put on our skates and glided onto the ice. With holly jolly songs drifting through the air we held hands, laughed and went round and round until we all felt rather dizzy. 

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Photos by Pascale and Tabby

My Christmas Wish List

O the weather outside is frightful, but dreaming of gifts is so delightful!  Christmas is just around the corner, the air is crisper, hearts more joyful and our favorite shops have got their festive windows in full swing. So with the ever looming festivities we need to decide what we want to find under the Christmas tree and in our stockings! Whether you have been naughty or nice, here are some decadent treats to put a smile on your face this holly jolly time of year. Which one will you wish for?

1. Tiffany & Co Atlas Bangle

2. Yves Saint Laurent Black Opium Eau de Parfum

3. Conde Nast Traveller Subscription 

4. Vinoteque Decanter

5. Russell & Bromley Lancaster Double Zip Tote

6. I'll Drink to That: A Life in Style, With a Twist by Betty Halbreich

7. The White Company, Seychelles Signature Candle

8. Diane Von Furstenberg, Mini 440 Grained Leather Shoulder Bag

Winter Viewing list: Top 10 Documentaries

To quote Game of Thrones ‘winter is coming’. The air is getting crisper, the trees barer and the hours of precious daylight are dwindling. So what better way to embrace the long dark evenings than to snuggle up on the sofa with a hot chocolate (Baileys optional) and explore this extraordinary planet we call home by watching a documentary? Not always the easiest thing to watch, they may make you squirm uncomfortably, question your morals or even simply shed a tear. This is, however exactly why you should watch them. A good documentary has the power to improve our awareness and thus impact the world and our collective future. Not all documentaries are life changers, but the good ones are influential, provocative and enlightening.

Here are my absolute favorites:

1 - Waste Land 
A touching story about the lives of those who work on the biggest waste disposal site in Rio de Janeiro and the transformation that occurs when Vix Muniz, an artist of international acclaim decides to visit them.

               


2 - Born into Brothels: Calcutta's Red Light Kids
A heartwarming tale of what can happen when someone believes in the children of Calcutta's prostitutes.  

               

3 - Darwin's Nightmare
Documenting the consequences of fishing Nile perch in Lake Victoria. This not only explores why the local people starve when there is a plentiful supply of fish, but also exposes the African gun trade. 

                

4 - Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations
A raw, rollicking ride across the globe with food critic, chef and writer Anthony Bourdain. Full of adventurous charm, piercing wit and sagacious insights about cultures all over the earth. 

                

5 - Jiro Dreams of Sushi
One man's quest for the perfect piece of sushi. 85-year-old Jiro Ono has dedicated his life to his passion. Now his son and heir Yoshikazu must prove his worth.

               

6 - The Cove

A gritty and gruesome exploration of a cove in Japan where dolphins are brutally abused and executed.

                  

7 - Life in a Day
Can you remember what you were doing on the twenty-fourth of July 2010? Filmed by people all around the world, this shows what it is like to be alive on a single day and acts as a time capsule for future generations. 

               

8 - Food Inc.
Showing what really goes on inside America's mass food production and the harmful effects it has on independent farmers as well as the environment and livestock. 

               

9 - Advanced Style

Seven inspiring New Yorkers prove that you do not have to fade into the background when you get old. 

                

10 - I Bought a Rainforest

Shot over 3 episodes, this chronicles what happens when wildlife photographer Charlie Hamilton James purchases 100 acres of Peruvian Rainforest in the hope of stopping illegal logging. It is, however, riddled with more problems than he could have ever imagined.

              

               

Please let me know of any great Documentaries you have watched recently......