Sleigh this year’s Christmas gift giving with ARRAN Sense of Scotland

Gift a slice of Scottish island life this Christmas and put a smile on the face of your loved one with a sumptuous range of self-care products from ARRAN Sense of Scotland.

The countdown is on to Christmas 2022 and soon the gifting season will be in full swing. According to Retail Week, health and beauty is one of the only sectors expected to be in growth during the festive season as people look for indulgent gifts, stocking fillers and host gifts as Christmas parties and events return with a bang. 

Available from as little as £10, discover gorgeous gifts and stocking fillers for every member of the family. From luxurious wellness products and popular home scents to travel must-haves and bath and body care, there’s something to delight everyone on Christmas morning. Plus, ARRAN's relaxing range of high-quality cruelty-free products will ensure that even your eco-conscious and notoriously difficult to buy for recipients are impressed.

Gifts for her

Treat her to a little luxury in her own home this Christmas with ARRAN’s signature scents of After the Rain, Glen Rosa and Glenashdale. 

Glen Rosa’s velvety fragrance combines the warmth of ripe, honeyed fig with the freshness of crushed green leaves. ARRAN’s soothing glen rosa body care gift set is the perfect gift for your loved one. Presented in a beautiful ARRAN Gift Box proudly inspired by their island home, with fully recyclable gift presentation boxes.

Always on the go? ARRAN’s After the Rain Wash Bag is perfect for those travel lovers. Made from durable cotton canvas with a water-resistant inner, this expertly crafted Female Wash Bag contains a full-sized Bath & Shower Gel, Body Lotion, Hydrating Hand Cream and Eau De Parfum in ARRAN’s most-loved fragrance, After the Rain.

Looking for stocking filler ideas? ARRAN has a selection of hand creams, rollerballs and body mists across their scent ranges including Glenashdale. Invigorate your senses with the energising zest of rasped lemons, oil of grapefruit, uplifted with the fresh, citrus notes of bergamot. 

Glen Rosa Body Care Gift Set, £30; After the Rain Female Wash Bag, £60; Glenashdale Body Mist, £15; Glenashdale Hydrating Hand Cream (40ml), £12

Treat a lucky lady in your life to ARRAN’s gorgeous gift sets such as the Hydrating hand cream set  everything you need for nourished, hydrated hands all in one collection. Featuring ARRAN’s most popular fragrances, After the Rain, Glenashdale & Glen Rosa. 

Looking for something simple? Introduce her to the citrus notes of Glenashdale with ARRAN’s Glenashdale Discovery Set. An awakening blend of grapefruit and green leaf. Each Set includes a 30ml Bath & Shower Gel, Shampoo, Body Lotion and Soap.

Hydrating Hand Cream Gift Set, £30; Glenashdale Grapefruit Discovery Set, £10

Gifts for him

Indulge him in the scents of Lochranza. A delicate fragrance from ARRAN Sense of Scotland, combining patchouli and anise to create a spicy base note, peppered with aromas of a warmer floral scent. The Lochranza Eau de Toilette is a great gift from ARRAN’s best-selling range, guaranteed to put a smile on his face. 

For avid travellers, the Lochranza Wash Bag is a great option this Christmas. The stylish grey carrier will keep bathrooms clutter-free, and he can enjoy a full-sized Bath and Shower Gel, After Shave Balm, Shave Gel and Soap Bar in this warm earthy fragrance.

Lochranza Men’s Eau de Toilette (100ml), £42.50; Lochranza Men’s Wash Bag, £45

Create an ARRAN shaving experience for that special man in your life with ARRAN’s Machrie collection. A clean, crisp scent, designed for men, Machrie combines essential oils of sea salt, labdanum, myrrh, clary, sage, patchouli and rockrose. An awakening and refreshing fragrance, ideal to set him up for the day ahead.

Can’t decide? Introduce your loved ones to the spicy warmth of Lochranza or the mineral freshness of Machrie with the new ARRAN Mens Discovery Set. Includes Lochranza 30ml Shower Gel & 30ml Shave Gel and a Machrie 30ml Shower Gel & 30ml Shave Gel.

Machrie Mens Shave Stone & Soap, £25; Machrie Mens Shave Cream (100ml), £16; Machrie Mens Shave Gel (100ml), £16; Machrie Mens Shower & Shave Gel Discovery Set, £10

Gifts for them

ARRAN Sense of Scotland offers a gorgeous unisex Apothecary range, inspired by the ancient crafts of alchemists. The three scents in this range are tried and trusted, the perfect antidote to modern living with cleansing, restorative, and healing properties.

Apothecary Seaweed and Sage Discovery Gift Set, £10; Apothecary Seaweed & Sage Body Lotion (200ml), £14

Or give them the full luxury experience with ARRAN’s Home Fragrance Gift Set in their signature After the Rain fragrance. Bringing the beautiful aroma of rose, sandalwood and lime to the front room, ARRAN’s reed diffuser uses essential oils to provide an awakening and enlightening scent to the home.  

After the Rain Home Fragrance Gift Set, £40

Transport them to the south of the island with ARRAN’s newest fragrance, Kildonan.  A blend of sweet and delicate violet warmed with the glow of velvety orris. Encapsulating the tranquillity of Kildonan basking in the later, summer sun. Escape to paradise with ARRAN’s Kildonan Hand Wash, Bath & Shower gel and Hand Cream products. 

Kildonan Hand Cream (300ml), £16; Kildonan Bath & Shower Gel (300ml), £16; Kildonan Hand Wash (300ml); £16

Looking to create your own ARRAN gift bundle? Try out ARRAN’s gift builder. Choose your products and ARRAN will wrap everything up in their personalised gift boxes, perfect for creating a unique ARRAN scent experience for that someone special this Christmas.

You can shop ARRAN Sense of Scotland’s full collection at www.arran.com.

Find ARRAN’s gift builder here: https://arran.com/collections/personalised-gift-builder 

Get in the Festive Spirit This Winter With Double Dutch Christmas Cocktails

As we move ever more quickly into the Festive season and get ready for those colder winter nights, it's time to spice up our go to cocktails and discover new Christmas flavours and tasty winter warmers. 

See you later summer fruits, it's time to welcome ginger, cinnamon and cranberry back into our cosy homes and taste the most wonderful time of the year with this range of new cocktail recipes from female-founded Double Dutch. (The real meaning of Girl Power as far as That's Christmas is concerned!) 

Double Dutch is the award-winning producer of some delicious premium tonics and mixers that are first-class, fabulous and eminently flavoursome. 

Led by twin founders, Raissa and Joyce de Haas, the brand's range of refreshing soft drinks are the perfect pair to any event, or sister serve to any spirit. 

A favourite amongst bartenders, their drinks take inspiration from the world of natural flavours, and are double the fun with unique, bold and unexpected flavour pairings, made with high quality ingredients and no artificial flavouring, colours or preservatives. 

To try the Double Dutch range, but also try some of the season's most festive cocktail recipes, turn your hand to these easy to make delicious cocktails perfect for making at home for Christmas parties and family gatherings.

Double Dutch European Highball 

INGREDIENTS 

Double Dutch Ginger Ale 

50ml Irish Whiskey

Dried Orange Wheel 

Ice

METHOD 

Pour 50ml of Irish whiskey into an ice filled highball glass. 

Top with Double Dutch Ginger Ale. 

Stir gently to combine.

Garnish with a dried orange wheel.   

Double Dutch Limoncherry 

INGREDIENTS

Double Dutch Cucumber & Watermelon 

50ml Limoncello  

Maraschino Cherry 

Long Lemon Twist 

Ice

METHOD 

Pour 50ml of Limoncello into an ice filled wine glass. 

Top with Double Dutch Cucumber & Watermelon. 

Stir gently to combine. 

Garnish with maraschino cherry and long lemon twist.  

Double Dutch Gin Pom Pom 

INGREDIENTS 

Double Dutch Pomegranate & Basil 

50ml Dry Gin 

50ml Fresh Pomegranate Juice

Fresh Basil 

Slice of Lime 

Pomegranate Seeds 

Ice 

METHOD 

Pour your dry gin and fresh pomegranate juice into an ice filled highball glass. 

Top with Double Dutch Pomegranate & Basil. 

Stir gently to combine.  

Garnish with a sprig of basil, a slice of lime and a few pomegranate seeds. 

Double Dutch Blood Orange Gin-ger Spritz 

INGREDIENTS 

Double Dutch Ginger Beer 

50ml Blood Orange Gin

Blood Orange Slice 

Cinnamon Stick 

Ice

METHOD 

Pour your blood orange gin into an ice filled highball glass. 

Top with Double Dutch Ginger Beer. 

Stir gently to combine. 

Garnish with a fresh orange slice and a stick of cinnamon. 

Double Dutch Paloma Negra 

INGREDIENTS 

Double Dutch Pink Grapefruit Soda 

30ml Coffee Liqueur 

25ml Mezcal or Tequila 

Pink Himalayan Salt 

Grapefruit Half Moon 

Ice

METHOD

Salt the rim of a highball glass with pink himalayan salt and fill the glass with ice. 

Pour your coffee liqueur and tequila or mezcal into the glass. 

Top with Double Dutch Pink Grapefruit Soda.  

Stir gently to combine. 

Garnish with a grapefruit half moon. 

Double Dutch Winter Tonic (alcohol free) 

INGREDIENTS 

Double Dutch Cranberry & Ginger 

50ml Fresh Apple Juice 

Cranberries 

Slice of fresh Apple or Pear 

Ice

METHOD 

Pour your fresh apple juice into an ice filled wine glass. 

Top with Double Dutch Cranberry & Ginger.  

Stir gently to combine. 

Garnish with cranberries. 

The full range of Double Dutch flavours are available via the Double Dutch website, with some of the brand's mixers available at Waitrose or Ocado as well being available to purchase via Amazon.

https://doubledutchdrinks.com.

Looking for a good gift idea? Nip down to Lidl!

My wife is a gardener, RHA trained, so she knows her stuff.

She has been sorting out our gardens, front and back, and has decided that the gardens required some new bulbs.

She had decided that the garden requires some new bulbs for the spring and she looked at several nearby garden centres and on line and could not find quite what she wanted.

After several days of searching, visiting and thinking, she suddenly said: "I think a trip to our local Lidl branch is called for to see what they have available as someone told me they have some bulbs available."

This morning my wife visited our nearest Lidl branch and returned with a whole shopping bag filled with a wide variety of bulbs.

There are Iris hollandica mixes, Narcissus mixes, Black Parrot Tulipia (which look awesome!) some Tulipa Triumph 'Seadov", some lovely alliums, some Tulipa Crispa Mix and so on.

Available bulbs include Crocus, Narcissus and Hyacinths and cost £1.29 per bag of bulbs. Others cost £1.49 a packet. "A vast difference to the £16 a packet other places are charging!" she has just informed me. 

My wife points out that the bulbs are all of very good appearance and cost a fraction of the price of bulbs from places where she would usually buy bulbs from.

Which set me to thinking. If you have someone with a small garden, or who has a flat with a balcony, why not get yourself off to Lidl, buy some bulbs and plant them in suitable compost (also available in Lidl) and give them out as unique and very acceptable Christmas presents?

If you want to learn more about what's available at your nearest branch of Lidl you can check out where your nearest branch is at https://www.lidl.co.uk.

They also have, at the moment, a special range of indoor and outdoor plants which are on a "when it's gone, it's gone" basis, so worth while hurrying down there ASAP!

It's also worth checking out Lidl's rival retailer, Aldi, to see what they have. You can visit Aldi here https://www.aldi.co.uk.

Incidentally this isn't a feature officially sanctioned by Lidl or Aldi, I saw the large bag of bulbs bought at a very decent price and thought they'd make nifty Christmas presents!

Just in time for Christmas! Double Dutch New Pink Grapefruit Soda Launches in Waitrose

Double Dutch, the skilled, expert producers of award-winning premium tonics and mixers, have announced that its new Pink Grapefruit soda is now available in Waitrose stores around the UK. 

The brand-new utterly zesty flavour is now available instore and online via Waitrose, with the 150ml cans ready to be paired with Tequila, which has been dominating the spirits sector throughout this year, as well as with Mezcal or other white spirits, allowing you to level up at-home cocktail creations, just in time for Christmas and the New Year. 

(That's Christmas suggests you buy some spirits along with the Double Dutch Pink Grapefruit soda from Waitrose to run some cocktail making experiments before you unleash your newly developed cocktail making skills on friends and family this Christmas!)

Double Dutch's Pink Grapefruit soda follows the distinctive dual flavour style of the Double Dutch range, making for a flamboyant, fresh drink. 

It was developed in response to the burgeoning consumer-led demand for citrus-flavoured non-alcoholic beverages, attracting the attention of Waitrose, which has seen online searches for grapefruit soda increase by an astonishing 400%! 

The Pink Grapefruit soda begins with an intensely rich grapefruit flavour which then slides beautifully into the luscious tastes of Persian lime (yum!) creating a well-rounded mixer that offers a blend of sweetness and depth that's utterly delicious on its own, or paired with white spirits. 

For the signature Paloma serve, you can pair the Pink Grapefruit mixer with tequila, and fresh lime, and serve in a Pink Himalayan salt-rimmed highball glass. The new mixer is a simple, yet effective way to crack the perfect Paloma at home, a rising cocktail trend set to rival the popularity of the classic margarita this year. 

The Pink Grapefruit soda joins the Double Dutch portfolio of innovative and flavourful mixers like Cucumber & Watermelon, Pomegranate & Basil, Cranberry & Ginger Tonic as well as a premium Skinny Tonic Water, Ginger Ale and Ginger Beer. 

Double Dutch is committed to continually innovating in the category, identifying flavourful spirit mixers which make for easy and consistent cocktails at home, as well as being a bartenders' favourite and the exclusive tonic brand for Soho House globally. True to their mission, the brand launched two Cocktail Sodas in 2020, the unique Bloody Mary Soda and spicy Margarita Soda.

Co-founder of Double Dutch Raissa de Haas said on the launch, “We couldn't be more excited to launch our Pink Grapefruit soda to make every Double Dutch party that bit better! 

"A Paloma is one of mine and Joyce's favourite cocktails and we've developed a delicious, zesty recipe to ensure each, and every Paloma made with our Pink Grapefruit soda is the quintessential taste for every season!” 

Double Dutch is the award-winning producer of premium tonics and mixers that are first-class, fabulous and flavoursome. Led by twin founders, Raissa and Joyce de Haas the brand's range of refreshing soft drinks are the perfect pair to any event, or sister serve to any spirit.

The range now contains thirteen delicious flavour variations, bringing the energy to any event, at any time, in any place – whether that's Sunday brunch or a Tuesday evening. All the products are naturally vegan and gluten free, and as part of the twin founders mission to do business the right way, the brand is now proudly Carbon Neutral. 

Double Dutch Pink Grapefruit soda is now available exclusively at Waitrose or the Double Dutch website, £3.50 for 6 x 150ml cans. 

To stock Double Dutch Pink Grapefruit soda, email sales@doubledutchdrinks.com 

To order online visit www.doubledutchdrinks.com.

Mince Pie Bundt Cake

Mince Pie Bundt Cake, using Cottage Delight's delicious Luxury Tipsy Mincemeat

Prep: 20 minutes Cook: 1 hour Serves: 10

Ingredients

• 250g unsalted butter

• 220g golden caster sugar

• 200g light muscovado sugar

• 4 large eggs

• 350g plain yoghurt

• 2tsp mixed spice

• 1 jar Cottage Delight Luxury Tipsy Mincemeat 

• 320g plain flour

• 2tsp bicarbonate of soda

• Tiny pinch of salt

• 1tsp ground cinnamon

For decoration

• 170g icing sugar 

• 1 egg white at room temperature

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice 

• Thinly sliced orange or frozen berries (preference)

Method

• Preheat the oven to 175ºC/150ºC fan/gas 3.

• Grease the bundt pan with melted butter and dust with flour.

• In a stand mixer, mix the butter and sugars until pale and fluffy.

• Add the eggs one at a time and mix together.

• Mix the plain yoghurt and Luxury Tipsy Mincemeat together and add to the mixer.

• In a separate bowl, measure and sieve out the flour, bicarbonate of soda, salt and all the ground spices.

• Sieve in the flour gradually and stop when the flour is evenly mixed in.

• Pour the mix into a greased and floured tin and bake for 1 hour or until a skewer comes out clean.

• The cake will pull away from the edge of the tin when it is ready.

• Leave the cake to cool fully before removing from the tin. While waiting to cool, make your icing sugar drip. Place icing sugar, egg white and lemon juice into your mixer. Beat on med-high for around 5-7 minutes until it forms soft peaks and is loose enough to drizzle. Pour over and allow to cool/set. Finish with sliced oranges or frozen festive berries (your own preference!).

To learn more about Cottage Delight and to put in some pre-Christmas orders please visit them on https://www.cottagedelight.co.uk.

That's Books and Entertainment: Failed Redemption

That's Books and Entertainment: Failed Redemption: Failed Redemption is a new novel from author R. A. Jordan's John England  series of books. At the beginning of the story we find John En...

Uh Oh Milo! The Excited Elf

In Uh Oh Milo! The Excited Elf Kate Wogan and Helen Faulkner have produced a very good Christmas present for the little ones in your life.

They will learn all about The Excited Elf. The Excited Elf has a very important job. Before Santa arrives and glides down the family's chimney, the children of the house must be sound asleep. 

But who helps them fall asleep on Christmas Eve? The Excited Elf, that's who!

But unfortunately The Excited Elf is far too excited about his exciting job to be able to perform his elfly duties to make certain the children are asleep.

So, what will happen to The Excited Elf? What will happen to the children Milo and Mary if they are too excited to go to sleep?

This has all the hallmarks of turning into a bit of a disaster. But what if their Granny stepped in and offered her expert help and guidance to get The Excited Elf to calm down, just enough, to get his important Christmas task completed and help Milo and Mary to fall asleep before Santa arrives to go down their chimney?

The simple and compelling words of Kate is beautifully complemented by the vibrant and awesome illustrations provided by Helen.

This book, along with the other three books in the Uh Oh Milo! series of books, The Impolite Imps, The Tantrum Trolls and The Beastly Bogels are must haves for the four-year-olds in your life.

They are £7.99 each and, in our opinions, worth every penny.

You can buy them, and other fantastic books and gifts at https://uhohmilo.com.