Simple Steps for a Stress-Free Dinner Party
Last week we had friends over for dinner – and I realised that a Stress-Free Dinner Party is the latest in the long line of things I appear to have conquered without being aware I’d done so. Our Friday night entertaining was nothing big, nothing fancy; just having some friends over for a few hours, and feeding them. Calling it a ‘dinner party’ would be seriously stretching it – and yet in years past this...
When People Come To Stay – Rules For Good Hosts
I was recently commission by Mobility Plus (stay with me here) to think about making homes guest-ready and welcoming. All thoughts & opinons my own, obvs. Planning for houseguests over the holidays? Don’t fret. Whilst yes, it’s an invasion on the normal household rhythm, and yes it does require a little more than simply pumping up the spare bed and pointing them to the spare duvet, it can also be fabulously fun. No one...
‘Our top 5 family card games for Christmas’
Don’t know about you, but our Christmas is filled with silly games in the evenings; no TV for us, we spend hours playing parlour games, family card games, Pictionary (our own version; no board, a hat full of Christmas-themed paper slips, and yes, we might even have our own flip chart & stand…) and the like. Every year we add a couple of new ones, but every year some of the old faithfuls come out again –...
The Best Cheese Board – yes, of course you (don’t) need one.
I’m a sucker for a perfect cheese board. Of course we don’t get it out every week. But everyone loves sitting around at the end of a meal, nibbling on the cheese and accompaniments as you ‘fill up the corners’, finish up the wine and relax in the glow of a few hours spent in lovely company.And of course at Christmas, nothing beats it – and not just for when you’re entertaining. In the odd quietness...
Better-Than-Butterkist Crunchy Butterscotch Popcorn Recipe
While we were photographing for our ‘Ingredients for a Family Movie Night’ post, I happened to post on my Instagram Stories that I was making Crunchy Butterscotch Popcorn. I immediately and repeatedly got asked for the recipe – so here it is. We happen to have our own home-grown popcorn expert. Years ago, a very young Boy was fascinated by microwave popcorn – it was a rare treat, but watching it expand and pop...
The Ingredients for Family Movie Night
We’ve been looking at the new Autumn-Winter range from Fox & Ivy – Tesco’s own luxury brand of homewares and soft furnishings. They challenged us to pick the key ingredients for Family Movie Night from the range; knowing how perfectly our outdoor cinema was thanks to them, I didn’t bat an eyelid and headed straight to my local Tesco Extra… See, there are just a few key ingredients for a truly successful movie night –...