The online source for all things Christmas
Saturday, 17 December 2022
That's Food and Drink: Brownie Che. Homemade, delicious
That's Food and Drink: Brownie Che. Homemade, delicious: The brownies from Brownie Che are homemade and utterly delicious. They are made with love and with great attention to detail. They carefull...
Enjoy Christmas at Selfridges stores in London, Birmingham and Manchester
Season’s Feastings invites customers to celebrate the power of food to bring us together this festive season. Launching across Selfridges’ four stores and on selfridges.com, Selfridges will offer customers serving suggestions for setting up, dressing up, gift giving and merrymaking, as we all look forward to coming together with friends and family to enjoy cherished Christmas rituals.
A Festive Day Out
The Christmas windows are a must-see as part of a festive day out in London, bringing us together at this time of year. There are 15 windows to explore in total, taking inspiration from the theme with surreal and spectacular interpretations of festive ‘foodie’ moments. Customers can also visit Selfridges’ biggest Christmas Shop to date, open on the fourth floor of the Oxford Street store, reimagined as a magical and immersive place where visitors are invited to spend time savouring the festive experience and choose ornaments that are special to them. Christmas Shops in the Birmingham and Manchester stores are also open, along with window displays to delight and amuse.
Moments of Magic
This festive season, Selfridges is set to bring loved ones together with high energy shared experiences that are a fantastical feast for the eyes. From 25 November, Santa and his squad of Christmas pudding disco balls will be making daily visits to the Christmas Shop and festive destinations at all stores to greet customers and spread joy as the countdown to Christmas begins. Santa will host events such as the iconic Breakfasts with Santa across London, Birmingham and Manchester, giving customers plenty of chances to make their Christmas wishes.
Reimagined Destinations
Selfridges invites customers to think, feel and experience Christmas with joy and delight in reimagined destinations. From 31 October, Dolly’s café in London will be transformed into the ultimate feasting destination abundant with Christmas décor. From 25 November, the party energy will be brought by a cast of Christmas characters and musical entertainment including a Christmas choir, and in the evenings the countdown clock will strike to signal a theatrical festive performance. Rottingdean Bazaar have been commissioned to design the Selfridges Christmas tree this year, located at the Duke Street entrance of the London store.
In Manchester Exchange, a new confetti cannon experience will wow customers. In Trafford, from 1 November local Instagram favourite Gooey bring their sweet treats to a new Christmas Café pop up serving cookies, brioche donuts and hot drinks, and the Birmingham store will also open a Christmas Café as a destination for customers to socialise and be inspired.
Gifts for All
Selfridges is the home of expertly curated Christmas gifts, helping customers to celebrate with gestures big and small. This year, a Season’s Feastings printed guide cooks up the ultimate Christmas at Selfridges with a host of ‘recipes’ from friends and contributors. Customers can discover DeadHungry’s ultimate festive dessert and the Black Power Waffle by Ghetto Gastro, tips on how to have a more sustainable Christmas from Stella McCartney, as well as how to create DIY decorations with Max Allen and Laila Gohar’s recipe for an unconventional Christmas.
Customers will be inspired through curated advice and a personalised approach. A Hampers Concierge can create bespoke gifts tailored to any recipient and through Selfridges’ Experience Concierge customers can gift unique-to-Selfridges experiences such as Cinema membership, lessons in the skate bowl and pampering sessions.
Earth-conscious shopping is easier than ever with Project Earth labelled edits that are better for people and the planet and a host of Reselfridges services such as rental for partywear, beauty refill gifting and pre-loved presents.
Celebrating Community
Selfridges is proud to partner with Centrepoint this Christmas to fund housing and support for young people across the UK. Over the festive period initiatives such as proceeds from a giant 8kg panettone in the Foodhall and a ‘donate as you dine’ scheme giving customers the option to add £1 to their restaurant bill will raise money for the cause.
Meave Wall, Selfridges’ Stores Director, says: “This Christmas is all about coming together with loved ones to enjoy cherished rituals. We’re inspired by the power of food in bringing people together and through our theme, Season’s Feastings, are celebrating what this means to us at Selfridges. With our iconic Christmas windows on Oxford Street, Christmas Shops in every store and a line up of fantastic entertainment, we’re ready and excited to welcome customers in to make their festive season brighter.”
Want to attend a Carol Service or Midnight Mass? Ask Google!
Then you can take a look on Google (or Bing, etc) to check out what is available in your area. Just use search times like "Christmas Midnight Mass near me" "Carol Service near me" or "Christmas church service near me."
Baptist, Methodist, Church of England, Church of Wales, Church of Scotland, Pentecostal Churches, Catholic Churches, Salvation Army Citadels, etc, etc, many of them are holding Carol Services and Midnight Masses throughout the Christmas season.
An opportunity to sing carols, wear your Chirstmas jumper and meet up with people!
(Image courtesy of Niek Verlaan and Pixabay)
TfL is reminding customers to take advantage of the great value Hopper fare this Christmas
Some of London's most famous shopping destinations can be visited within the hour of all thanks to London's iconic buses. For a single bus fare, shoppers could:
visit One New Change, the premier retail centre in the heart of the City, then hop on the route 8 to get to the famous Spitalfields Market for one-off vintage items, and board the route 26 to visit independent boutiques at Columbia Road
hop from Covent Garden, to Oxford Street via the route 98, followed by a ride on the route 94 to get to the Notting Hill boutiques, with the added bonus of antique shops on Portobello Road Market only a short walk away
jump on board the route 73 from Upper Street, Angel, and head towards Coal Drops Yard, before boarding the route 214 to visit Camden Market for a mix of gifts to suit everyone
Five buses wrapped with a festive twist are now in operation across the capital and will hopefully bring a smile to Londoners and visitors during winter. The eye-catching white buses are covered with snowflakes, stars and TfL's iconic station roundels - almost like gift wrap - with the names replaced with some of the fun activities people can see and do this festive season including London lights and last minute shopping.
A further 13 buses have had a roundels panel installed at the back to spread some extra festive cheer. The buses are in service on selected routes around the capital passing through Wood Green, Camberwell, Putney and more, and some even have LED lights, providing an extra twinkle as they take passengers from A-Z.
TfL has also put together a list of the best bus routes to enjoy London's most spectacular Christmas lights displays, and a Christmas lights Tube map. Both are available on the TfL blog by visiting londonblog.tfl.gov.uk/festive-bus-routes/. The free TfL Go app also features seasonal things to do. Throughout December customers can discover festive activities and events all across London when planning a journey by tapping "Where to?" within the app.
Seb Dance, Deputy Mayor for Transport said: "As we are in the busy festive period Londoners can enjoy the Mayor's Hopper fare which allows passengers to take unlimited bus or tram journeys for just £1.65 within one hour of touching in. Passengers may even find themselves on a specially wrapped festive bus, which are now in operation across the capital as they visit the many amazing places London has to offer this Christmas.
"Buses are London's most affordable and accessible transport option - it's why the Mayor stepped in to save the vast majority of routes proposed to be cut due to the Government's funding conditions. I'd encourage everyone to hop on our bus network which has a central role to play in building a better, greener and fairer city for all Londoners."
Julie Dixon, TfL's Customer Director, said: "We hope that our eye-catching festive buses bring some extra cheer to Londoners and visitors in the run up to Christmas. The cost-of-living crisis means every penny matters more than ever, so we hope that customers will take advantage of the great value Hopper fare this winter."
The Hopper fare gives passengers unlimited journeys on buses and trams for £1.65 made within one hour of touching in and also applies to discounted rate travel. Passengers must touch in using the same card or device on all journeys to automatically get the Hopper fare.
25 Years of The Lights of Christmas
For the 25th anniversary, we want to honour and remember all those who helped make the event so memorable for countless families across the Pacific Northwest.
“The 25th Anniversary of The Lights of Christmas is a special time because we get to look back and celebrate what God has done through this event. We cherish the memories and traditions created over the years and look forward to making more in the future years," said Kayla Castiglione, The Lights of Christmas Director.
Once again, this year The Lights of Christmas will present... A Drive-Thru Christmas. The drive-thru format will lavishly celebrate the meaning of Christmas through new and classic displays while striving to be as accessible as possible. You don’t need to leave the comfort of your car to enjoy this festive spectacle!
This year will also feature an expansion to Santa’s Village allowing people to park, stretch their legs, have some silly fun, and purchase merchandise!
The Lights of Christmas opened this year on November 25th and run through select nights through December 31st.
Tickets must be purchased online before arrival. More information can be found at
www.TheLightsofChristmas.com, or by phone at 800-228-6724.
When is the best time to do your Christmas shopping? Lidl has the answer!
In the week leading up to Christmas last year, data found the quietest times to shop at Lidl was between 8am and 10am, and from 6pm onwards. Meanwhile, the middle of the day was the busiest, with stores seeing the highest levels of footfall between 12pm and 2pm. Lidl The is expecting to see similar trends this year as customers visit their local stores to get their festive favourites and all that the Middle of Lidl has to offer.
The supermarket’s sweetest showstoppers include its Deluxe Dark Chocolate & Salted Caramel Cottage and Deluxe 24 Month Mature Christmas Pudding, while its Hortus Clementine Winter Light-up Gin Liqueur or its Elixiris Champagne Montaudon are also sure to go down a treat. Not to forget the all-important dinner staples, including fresh turkey, as well as potatoes, parsnips, carrots and spouts, which are priced at just 19p each.
Customers are encouraged to use the Lidl Plus app where they can check how busy their local store is in real-time, allowing them to avoid the festive crowds. The app also offers customers exclusive weekly rewards and discounts for their next shop after they’ve scanned their digital card at the till, with discounts of up to 25% on selected products.
And this year, in the spirit of Christmas, the discounter has been offering customers a new coupon every day throughout December, ensuring Lidl GB shoppers get the most bang for their buck.
Here at That's Christmas Christmas wouldn't be the same without the Lidl Panettone, the Lidl Stollen , the Lidl mince pies and the Lidl Speculoos Chirstmas biscuits!
Want a real Christmas tree at a nice price? Check out Aldi
Aldi shoppers can make 'fir' massive savings compared to other tree retailers including B&Q where a 150-180cm Nordman Fir Cut Tree will set shoppers back by £38, that's more than double the price of the Aldi equivalent.
What’s more, customers can be assured that all live Christmas trees sold by Aldi have been grown in the UK, with all trees in Aldi’s festive range coming from a sustainable plantation in the heart of Scotland.
Friday, 16 December 2022
Retailers brace for a "Black" Christmas as even Black Friday deals fail to win back shoppers
Today’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) retail sales results show an unexpected fall in the amount of goods sold in November, despite the allure of Black Friday deals.
The amount of goods Brits bought in November fell by -0.4% compared to October and tumbled -5.9% compared to November of last year.
ParcelHero says these latest figures are a particular blow as they include Black Friday’s results, normally a good indicator of how well Christmas is likely to go for retailers.
ParcelHero’s Head of Consumer Research, David Jinks M.I.L.T., says: "Looking at the overall parcel volumes for late November we feared Black Friday had been something of a clunker, and that seems to be the case. Experts had been talking of a 0.3% uplift in sales in November but that didn’t happen.
‘Perhaps even more concerning, even though Brits bought fewer items in November, we actually spent 0.5% more than in October, and 4.2% more than in November 2021. That’s the impact of galloping inflation, and also indicates there were fewer bargains around over this year’s long Black Friday period."
He went on to say: "The gloss has certainly been taken off Black Friday sales. There was a notably lower seasonal spike in sales this November, compared to 2021, and online sales suffered as a result. The value of goods we bought online this November collapsed by -5% compared to last year, even though we actually spent 0.6% more than in October, reflecting the lack of great Black Friday online discounts.
"Online sales did manage to cling to their 26.2% overall share of the entire November retail spend, however. That’s been the case since May and shows that, at least, we now know the new “normal” for online shopping post-pandemic.
"The only crumb of comfort we can offer retailers is that the volume of parcels booked this week through ParcelHero has spiked significantly. We may be experiencing a late jump in online spending as shoppers brace themselves and reluctantly start last-minute Christmas shopping.
"ParcelHero has re-launched our popular Christmas tool in the nick of time for a late online surge. Shoppers can now discover retailers’ final online order dates in time for Christmas, find out the last mailing dates for presents to UK and international destinations, and see handy packaging and Customs clearance hacks to help ensure gifts reach their destinations in time."
To check the easy-to-use retailers’ final order and final mailing dates tool, see: https://www.parcelhero.com/events/christmas-gifts-delivery
(Image courtesy of cdz and Pixabay)
Massive Christmas savings on Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra and Apple iPhone Pro Max
Available from 16 December (00:01) to 20 December (23.59). Both offers are on a 36-month Phone Plan and 24-month Airtime Plan.
illustrative photo of the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra in burgundy
Save £564 on device and airtime. £41 monthly. £49 upfront.
close-up photo of the rear cameras on the iPhone 13 Pro Max
Save £296 on device and airtime. £47 monthly. £29 upfront.
Terms and conditions apply. please check with Vodafone for details.
For more information about Vodafone UK please visit: www.vodafone.co.uk.
Incidentally I already own a Samsung S22 Ultra through Vodafone and it's an absolutely phenomenal piece of kit which I can strongly recommend. I will make an excellent Christmas present for a loved one or perhaps a nifty bit of self-gifting?
Families to receive Christmas help
The City Council has repeatedly made £15-per-week vouchers available to all pupils who receive free school meals (FSM) over holiday periods.
These are issued to parents before their children breaking up from school.
Alongside the supermarket vouchers are a range of outdoor holiday activities throughout Nottingham. At these, FSM pupils will receive a free lunch, plus a programme of activities focused on healthy eating, fitness and mental health.
The two projects are funded through a combined award of £3.55 million from the Household Support Grant Scheme and the Holiday Activity Fund (HAF).
The £1.8m HAF grant was, through a bidding process, made available to community groups, charities and schools with the ability to deliver outdoor holiday activities in neighbourhoods across the city.
Nearly 20,000 children attended these clubs and were fed over the Easter, summer and October half-term holidays, and this money will be used to deliver more activities during the Christmas holidays, via a continued link-up between the Council and Nottingham Forest Community Trust as its lead project partner this year.
The HAF funding is allocated from the Department for Education with certain criteria attached. This stipulates the support for tackling holiday hunger should be through free school meals pupils attending holiday clubs.
Parents can book places by visiting www.asklion.co.uk/funandfood to see the list of clubs and the contact details of the groups.
There are also a limited number of places available for children who aren’t eligible for FSM and these will be allocated on a first-come-first-served basis.
Councillor Cheryl Barnard, Portfolio Holder for Children, Young People and Schools, said: “We are aware of how hard things have been for people in our city and so it is great news that pupils in need of help will be able to benefit from supermarket vouchers and activity clubs again this Christmas.
“The Council has made this support available throughout the year during school holidays, but this is a special time for children and their families. We want to help them in every way we can.
“Nottingham has some 15,000 children eligible for free school meals, and many of these families are already be feeling the strain because of the national cost-of-living crisis. It is right and proper that we are given this funding to ensure healthy meals for young people in need.
“I’d also like to take this chance to wish everyone in Nottingham a very merry Christmas and best wishes for the New Year.”
Calum Osborne, Deputy CEO of the Nottingham Forest Community Trust, said: “We are delighted to work closely with Nottingham City Council to offer high-quality, enriching activities and healthy meals for children across the city as we come to the end of a hugely successful year of running this programme.
“By collaborating with Nottingham City Council, local community-based organisations and business, we can achieve so much more when we work together to positively impact thousands of children.”
Nottingham City Council has previously endorsed Manchester United and England footballer Marcus Rashford’s campaign to tackle holiday hunger.
At a meeting of the Full Council in November 2020, councillors highlighted the levels of child poverty in Nottingham and gave a commitment to support free school meals to children throughout the holidays in 2021.This has since been extended through 2022.
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