OS Yuletide...what have you made so far??

InfamyInfamy

foxgloves wrote: »

On the food front, have made pickled beetroot, chutneys, pickled pears, damson jam & damson gin. For presents, I've knitted 3 pairs of socks (some of that funky sock wool like 'Regia' knits up into fab colours & patterns) & 2 shawls with glittery bits & fringes. Still to do, another pair of socks & a 'hoodie' for my 20 mth-old nephew. Got all the ingredients for Christmas cake & pudding on a list and am buying a couple of things a week to avoid paying out for it all at once. I love this time of year. I like to get everything done early then can spend the run up to Christmas enjoying myself.

How do you make the pickled pears please....got a bag full off of Mum's tree today!
13 yr old DS made grape juice today with Mum's grape vine (without being asked!) and stuck in freezer for Yule, so he must be getting the OS bug!!
:j

Paulie'sGirl

I was thinking about those who are adding mince pies to their gifts. How soon before you give the gifts do you make the mince pies?

Thanks

PGxx

irishwexford

Talking of home made gifts, my granddaughter bought two jars of jam for my birthday (chefs special from her care home job) and OH has asked me to order some more as its so nice. I hate receiving gifts I cannot use, such as ornaments as I hate dusting but love things I can eat or use such as hand or foot lotion or a jar of preserves. We tell the family not to spend more than £5 on each of us but they never listen.
The only thing I have made for Christmas is a resolve not to try too hard and treat is a just one special day in the year.

foxgloves

Agree about home-made presents. I was drooling over all the big posh expensive Easter eggs in Waitrose this year and do you know what gift meant the most to me when Easter Day came around? My nephew (6) had constructed a little box all by himself out of recycled cardboard, lined it with a piece of plastic bag, filled it with compost & sown some mixed salad seeds for me. They were tiny seedlings when he proudly handed it over but they all grew & we had mizuna, pak choi & rocket to add to our salads during summer.

floss2

So far I've made 5 litres of sloe gin (not all for presents ), 6 jars of sloe jelly, 6 jars of curried fruit chutney and 6 jars of strawberry jam.

I will also be making 3 extra christmas cakes, and I've got a pudding from last year in the pantry (will make another this year to mature).

louisaL

hi is it too late for me to make stuff that need to mature for christmas?

also how long do chutneys and pickles keep? i'm just wondering i would like to add the chutneys to salads and sandwiches after xmas but wondered how long for?

InfamyInfamy

foxgloves wrote: »

Agree about home-made presents. I was drooling over all the big posh expensive Easter eggs in Waitrose this year and do you know what gift meant the most to me when Easter Day came around? My nephew (6) had constructed a little box all by himself out of recycled cardboard, lined it with a piece of plastic bag, filled it with compost & sown some mixed salad seeds for me. They were tiny seedlings when he proudly handed it over but they all grew & we had mizuna, pak choi & rocket to add to our salads during summer.

It is definately the little things that count! I shall tell that to anyone who turns their nose up at my HM offerings!!!
:A

InfamyInfamy

I had a brainwave! My Brother is a minimalist & lives in the US so couldn't think what to get him for New Year (he is Buddhist) but he loves F1. I remembered that when we went to Goodwood Festival of Speed a few years ago (free tickets from The Times) I got some racing driver autographs (including Nelson Piquet Jnr) so I have mounted them on a card with photo hinges and popped them in an envelope. Won't cost much to send to US and slightly diffrenet gift.
So free autographs can make a great & thoughtful gift!! (Hopefully).
:j

beautiful_ravens

Ive made a bit of Sloe gin, some elderberry/sloe/blackberry vodka, apple blackberry & sloe rum and rosehip and blackberry gin. Some of it is for presents, but ....Ive had some too!
Plan to make fancy flapjacks with extra ingredients, but have had to buy some presents for the snobby types who cant handle a HM pressie...

For my 3 DD's Im making 3 play boards - this is something I had made for me when I was little. It is a flat piece of wood, I'm using mdf, about 3 foot by 2 foot. I will prime it and then use acrylic artists paint to do a road, some houses, a pond etc, so they can use it to play with their toys on [make sense?!]
One is having a 'fairy princess' land, another is having a farm, and the third is maybe having outer space or safari, maybe a stable, can't really decide.. I might buy some cars/animals/dolls furniture in the same theme to go with them, and when wrapped they'll be quite big and exciting...!

I never had any feedback from my HM gifts last year, so this year Ive bought everyone a book from a charity shop instead, and have a few 'yummy mummy' things from mothers day which I bought reduced, they'll do the ladies

sunflower76

So far I've made all of the following as gifts:

• scarf for my niece
• blackcurrant vodka (berries coming from my allotment)
• rhubarb chutney (rhubarb from my allotment)
• apple jelly (apples from my allotment)
• tomato chutney (tomatoes from allotment)
• Christmas cake
• about 30% of the cards I need to send