CHRISTMAS HINTS
+ Keep a notebook with you during the year to jot down Christmas present ideas for family and friends. It will make the job much easier and prevent last-minute panic-buying.
+ Don’t throw away the net bags that contain oranges. Instead, cut the tops off, thread a Christmas or tartan ribbon through the raw edge and fill with little gifts and sweets for an inexpensive Christmas stocking.
+ Use an oven bag to line your Christmas pudding basin. When the pudding is cooked, simply lift it from the basin and store until Christmas, or decorate the bag and give as a lovely gift to a friend. Puddings should be replaced in a basin (still in the oven bag) for heating on Christmas Day.
+ Ask your greengrocer for any spare polystyrene boxes to use as practical coolers for storing drinks and salads at hot Christmas barbecues.
+ Take a photograph of your children opening each Christmas gift sent by friends and relatives far away. Use the snaps as thank-you notes.
+ Instead of throwing out an old wall clock, take off the clock hands and put a photo inside behind the glass. It makes an interesting photo frame and a great Christmas gift.
+ When Christmas is over and it’s time to scrub the fake snow off your windows, simply spray it with oven cleaner and leave for 5 minutes. It will then come off easily when you wipe it with a wet rag.
+ Next year, try writing your Christmas cards in September! You will be more relaxed and have the time to write that extra special personal message. It will also give you pleasure to see the cards all ready and waiting to be posted.
+ Always be on the lookout for gifts at garage sales. You can often find bargains; toys and games at a fraction of the price of new ones. Sometimes all that is needed is a few minor repairs or a new coat of paint.
+ These days, with many artificial Christmas trees and decorations, the lovely Christmas smells of pine resin no longer permeate the air. Recapture that evocative aroma with essential oils. Simply spray a fragrant oil mixture, such as pine oil and water, or sprinkle a few drops of the same oil around the base of the tree. A few drops of oil on a piece of material wrapped around the trunk is also effective.
Festive house perfume
+
Dissolve 8 drops mandarin oil, 4 drops tangerine oil, 2 drops cinnamon oil and 2 drops frankincense (optional) in 10ml methylated spirits. Add to a pump spray bottle containing 500ml distilled water and spray throughout the house to give it a Christmas aroma.
TREE DECORATIONS
+ If Christmas lights are always tangled when you get them out, leaving them in danger of fusing, ask at an electrical store for a discarded cable spool. The lights wind onto the spool without damaging the globes. Alternatively, wrap them around a cardboard roll (such as a Christmas wrapping roll).
+ If you have small children and boisterous pets, stop them toppling the Christmas tree by putting it in a baby’s playpen.
+ Old light bulbs make good Christmas tree decorations. Save them during the year, paint them in bright colours, scatter with glitter and add a hanger. They show up against greenery and are very effective.
+ If your silk-covered Christmas tree balls are past it, simply strip them, cover them with glue and roll them in glitter.
+ For a cheap and effective way to decorate a Christmas tree, thread popcorn on long lengths of cotton and twine around the tree like tinsel strands.
+ Christmas decorations can serve a dual purpose. First you can use the baubles and tinsel to add sparkle to wrapped gifts, then, when everything has been unwrapped, you can hang them on the tree.
+ Hold onto empty egg cartons – they make excellent storage for small fragile Christmas tree baubles.
+ Glittery earrings that no longer have a mate can be recycled as Christmas tree ornaments – they already have a hook!
+ When the stand of an artificial tree has seen better days, replace it with the base of an old pedestal fan. It is secure and looks very smart.
WRAPPING PAPER
+ Have a length of string with your wrapping paper when you’re wrapping Christmas presents. If you’re unsure how much paper to cut from the roll, quickly wrap the string loosely around the package. Use this as a handy measuring guide to gauge how much paper to cut.
+ Wrap Christmas gifts in pretty fabric and ribbon offcuts from your local haberdashery store. It works out much cheaper than wrapping paper and, what’s more, it won’t break and tear!
+ If you run out of wrapping paper, use aluminium foil. No sticky tape is required and awkward shapes are a breeze to wrap. The presents are silvery and shiny under the Christmas tree when the lights are on.
+ Instead of throwing out old Christmas cards, cut the pictures from the cards, pierce a hole in the top corner with a hole punch or skewer and thread with ribbon to make gift tags for next year.
+ An interesting alternative to using expensive Cellophane for wrapping Christmas gifts or baskets is to use oven bags with a bit of ribbon.
+ As soon as Christmas is over, hit the sales. Buy plain, coloured or metallic Christmas wrapping paper when it is cheaper and you can use it all year for birthday and wedding presents. You can also buy your Christmas paper and cards for next Christmas at half price – and buy presents when you see likely items. It’s amazing how much money can be saved this way.
