A FESTIVE EVENT TO GET INTO THE SPIRIT - ARTISAN CHRISTMAS MARKET AT WATER LANE
Make a date for Water Lane ’ s Christmas Market on Saturday 3 and Sunday 4 December , from 10am-4.30pm . This event will not only be a great source of inspiration before you craft and cook any of your own creations , but is the perfect place to get those professionally made goodies , bespoke gifts and lots of little treats for yourself . All around the site and in the glasshouses will be stalls from craftspeople , makers , and artisan food producers . There will be festive food and hot mulled drinks , to keep the chill off , available throughout the day . The Water Lane shop will also have plenty of festive gifts and products , especially curated by Water Lane custodians Nick Selby and Ian James , and shop manager , Pia Carpenter . Their combined intent is to champion the local , the artisan and the small-scale .
Find stoneware ceramics handmade by Eleanor Torbati ; intricate botanical porcelain tea light holders and lamps by Chrissy Silver ; bold hand painted tableware and wool throws from Casa Cubista ; cosy knitwear made by Rove Knitwear ; candles and home fragrance from The Botanical Candle Co and Wax Atelier ; ethical and natural skincare by Dr Jacksons , Pelegrims and Norfolk Natural Living ; trusted Japanese gardening tools and accessories by Niwaki ; unique illustrated stationery from Hadley Paper Press , Harriet Watson and Studio Wald ; hand bound books by Seagull Bindery ; garden-inspired Italian silk scarves by Rory Hutton ; a hand-picked selection of books and magazines on the garden , food , flowers and stories for children , and fine chocolates and treats made by The Chocolatier Aneesh Popat and Melrose and Morgan .
There will also be Water Lane Kitchen mince pies , puddings , jams and chutneys for sale ; Christmas cards , concertina garlands , recycled paper decorations , woollen stars , decorations , Christmas trees , festive foliage and wreaths made in association with floral styling studio , Bloom and Burn - so this is really an event to attend if you do not have the time to make your own but still adore the homemade look .
GET CRAFTY
Shop bought decorations can be very expensive , and you cannot always find what you want or you may want decorations that are completely unique , personal to you and mean a whole lot more sentimentally . There are dozens of beautiful Christmas ideas you can make yourself , at very little cost and often with very little effort , with the opportunity to even get the children involved . The extra bonus is a glow of satisfaction from seeing the results of your own work .
WINTER WREATH MAKING COURSES WITH BLOOM AND BURN AT WATER LANE
For those that need a little guidance from the experts , plenty of workshops are held across Kent this month for extra help and guidance .
Winter Wreath making courses with Bloom and Burn at Water Lane 1 , 9 , 10 & 11 December
Enjoy this morning session creating your own Christmas wreath . Your own beautiful creation will be crafted using dried flowers , seedheads and other fresh and foraged materials harvested from around the Water Lane garden . Create a stunning , naturalistic wreath under the careful guidance of Graeme Corbett , floral stylist at Bloom and Burn , perfectly complemented with a luxury velvet ribbon . Graeme will guide you through the process and help you create your own unique design from the cornucopia of materials made available to you . Tickets include a festive drink and mince pie too .
insideKENT ’ s Christmas Crackers
© Nick Fewings / Unsplash
It wouldn ’ t be a Christmas dinner party without Christmas crackers . In the 1840s , Tom Smith , a London confectioner , copied the idea of wrapping sweets in coloured twisted paper from the Parisians . Tom Smith refined and embellished the idea , adding snaps , jokes and tiny gifts and Christmas crackers have remained a hit in the UK ever since .
Your own bespoke crackers are very easy to make with insideKENT ’ s guide . This gives you the option to make them really personal for friends - get creative with fillings from joke presents to expensive gifts - you can put whatever you like in these fun festive delights .
You can easily personalise your own crackers by adding your choice of decorations . Dried flowers , leaves , a tiny ivy frond , sequins and bows make these look especially tantalising . Get creative with your own ideas when it comes to embellishments too - stencils , beads , tinsel , or even tiny cones , acorns and nuts for a rustic look make them look even more impressive .
For each cracker you will need :
• A rectangle of coloured paper 45 x 18 cm
• 3 rectangles of thin white card 10 x 18 cm
• Gifts
• Snaps ( can be purchased on Amazon )
• Coloured cord
• Scissors
• Double-sided tape
• Pencil
• Ruler
• Decorative ribbon and foliage
Method :
1 . Place the rectangles of card on the wrong side of the coloured paper 4 cm in from the short edges with 4 cm gaps between them . Fix in place with double sided tape . Place the gift and snap along the centre of the card and roll up around them to form a tube about 5 cm in diameter .
2 . Wind cord around the tube 15 cm in from each end and pull gently to . Tie the cord to hold in the gathers . Fold the 4 cm overlaps at each end of the cracker to the inside .
3 . Decorate the crackers with cardboard shapes , ribbons and dried foliage , then trim the ends with crowns of gold paper if wished .
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