Candle light and fresh flowers, a Christmas table

I'm so happy to share my Christmas table today, for me it's my favourite part of festive decorating and I get to do it twice - hooray. I set this for a "Friends Christmas" we have every year at the beginning of December, not only does it give me a chance to get ahead for the big day but it also means I can share it before Christmas. 

Continuing my challenge of using up what I've got I re-dyed an old tablecloth from lilac to dark using Dylon Denim Blue machine dye - which is SO easy. Made a wall hanging using sequins from my stash and air dry clay stars that I'd never used. Topped the plates with cardboard stars painted white and sprigs of heather. I had intended these stars to be for the wall hanging but I when I put it together I loved its simplicity so left them out. If you want to see more of my festive creations I've been putting everything on my Instagram stories which I've been enjoying so much plus I'm loving interacting with you all. 

A few years ago I wrote a post on How to Lay a Christmas Table and all the points still apply. The only aspect I change is the colour, this year I went for dark blue with mini trees, ivy and loads of candles. I've been really inspired by all the tables I see set for fashion dinners - abundant tables full of the most beautiful flowers and candles and wanted to create something similar but more accessible for our Christmas table. Whilst dying the tablecloth I also dyed some floral print fabric (similar here) to create napkins which I layered onto vintage print dinner plates. Making napkins is really simple, after dying the fabric I cut into squares (I didn't bother edging but you could) pressed and placed onto the plates.  I repotted mini trees from Morrisons into terracotta pots placed them into large storm lanterns that I had from our wedding and then swirled wire fairylights and more ivy . I used all my vintage candle sticks and small glass bottles (these are empty reed diffusers from Lidl) in between the lanterns plus another repotted hellebore (also from Morrisons). The pink candles gave everything some warmth and tied the whole table together.  

I think this might be my favourite table yet and I really hope it inspires you to get creative next week. I've linked last years table, 2015's table if you'd like some more ideas. 

Little gold box

These images feel very November to me - glimpses of sparkle sit happily with fading hydrangeas. This little brass box is a new treasure I bought with my mum a few weeks ago, it wasn't expensive but I love how it looks like it might hold some secrets. I used to fight the change in season but learning to embrace it feels so much better  - blankets are extra snuggly and is there anything cosier than coming into a warm house full of golden lights after a walk in the rain?

I can't believe December is nearly here, it catches me by surprise every time. I've started to add fairy lights around the house ready for a friends Christmas dinner at the weekend and I have a festive film on as I type. It's easy to get swept up in the busy-ness  of Christmas but I think it's important to take time out too. I love putting these images together - for the 45 minutes or so that they take, I think about nothing else and enjoy the process so much. December is the perfect month to create, be it, baking, wreath making, sewing - I hope you manage to squeeze some creativity into the month ahead. 

10 Recycled (but still beautiful) Christmas Crafts

The word recycled never conjures up images of anything beautiful but without realising so many of the tutorials I have written over the years make the best of unwanted materials, scraps of fabric and forgotten about ribbon. For all my Christmas making this year I'm challenging myself to use up my craft supplies and not buy anything new. As a maker I've always felt the need to have new materials for projects - I don't feel bad about it, it is often the materials that inspired me but as I'm not able to make as much as I used too plus seeing how damaging waste is for the planet - I want to consciously reduce the amount I'm consuming in this area. I've been sharing the process on Instagram Stories but today I want to give you a list of my favourite projects that all have a recyclable and reusable element. I know that this is just a tiny step but I figure a small step is better than no step.  I've loved looking through my stash - all the sequins and beads I've been saving for best are finally getting their time to shine. I can't wait to make this Christmas beautiful and I really hope you join me. Happy making. xx 

Top Project - Mollie Makes Christmas Wreath (best for using up wool, ribbon, baubles, the kitchen sink!!) 

Nature Inspired Advent Calendar 

Colourful Star Garland

 Lampshade Wreath 

Cashmere Stockings 

Simple Colourful Christmas Ideas 

Soy Candles

White and Metallic Gift Wrapping (use up fabric, tissue and small bits of ribbon) 

Fairy themed gift wrapping

Fabric Gift Bags  (a great alternative to paper ones and they use up small pieces of fabric) 

The last of the cosmos

I'm so happy with these photo's, I'd wanted to photograph in my greenhouse before the garden finished for the year and I managed just in time. If I was to recommend one plant to grow it'd be Cosmos. You can start the seedlings off as early as February and they produce an abundance of flowers from early August all the way through to November. If I'm being honest, I was always put off by the harsh magenta colour in classic cosmos mix but after realising there was more one type - I decided to try a few different varieties this year. Candy Stripe was my favourite followed by Purity, Pop Socks and Pinkie Sensation. I still grew a few classic white and magenta (which I have come to appreciate) and they have happily danced away in the garden for months. Because of the cold late start to growing season I grew all mine from seed in pots rather than direct sowing and staggered  throughout February and March and maybe early April - I can't quite remember.  I found some really great advice on @SwanCottageflowers  which I really recommend taking a look at if you're new to growing like me. 

It's bittersweet cutting the last of the flowers. Whilst it's exciting to gather seeds for next summer with so much more knowledge behind me its also a little sad to say goodbye. This year has been challenging and on the days when I've felt the full weight of motherhood lay solely on my shoulders its these (and all my plants) that provided so much support. Their joyful colours gave me the energy I needed after long nights, their softly curving stems calmed me down after particularly testing mealtimes. 

I'll miss them for sure but nature doesn't stop during winter, it changes and slows but is no less beautiful. I'll continue to take a daily trip around the garden - chatting to the worms and looking optimistically for signs of spring. I've started to make a list of all the plants I want to grow next year and I have to say cosmos are right there at the top. I hope you enjoy these photo's as much as I do, I'll put some more garden links at the end of the post. x

The Garden Before
A beginners guide to growing flowers
A simple guide to growing sweet peas
My dahlia experiment 
Dancing Flowers

Autumn Flatlay

A moodboard to reflect the change of seasons today. Whilst these pumpkins have already been used for halloween fun, the colours and tones are still keeping me inspired.  I'm naturally drawn to light bright colours but this time of year has me seeking darker, richer shades. I always like to set myself a project during the winter months and this year I really want to experiment with my camera's a lot more. I'm really curious about light and what it can do, I have some basic knowledge but its only by playing that I can really understand it. Flatlay's are perfect when time is short or when little hands are close by. I put this together in about 20 minutes using the autumn light to bounce off the pumpkins. As the light was quite harsh and yellow I edited these in photoshp to give an almost painterly effect which I'm really enjoying. 

I used to dread going into winter as I was always looking for an even light to shoot tutorials but as I'm not able to post as frequently as I once did, it's time to use the change for gathering new skills and giving myself permission to try a few new ideas. 

Do you change your projects in Summer and Winter, I'd love to hear if you do. 

The creative process - making a wall hanging

I love seeing behind the scenes of a creative process - any glimpse into a working studio or a work in progress has me hooked. I snapped these as I made my wall hanging, inspired by the 'journey' as much as the final piece.