Finding Christmas joy within the chaos

Christmas is a time for... panicking. But also joy, as well as planning, and cooking, and sipping, and sleeping. The secret is going through all those things in the right order. I’m a planner (no surprises there), but even I lose my way some weeks in December. The thing is, I like everything to be just right, and that takes time and care.

To help you get on the front foot, we’ve given you loads of inspiration to have your home feeling festive. Whether you go for a more natural look, or like it luxe, Jono Fleming’s feature on page 42 will have you hanging stockings (metaphorically, obviously) in no time.

Once your home looks the part with twinkling lights and a decorative flourish on the door, I promise, it’s much easier to wrap your head around starting your gift shopping. Again, we’ve got you. On page 58, you’ll find 100 of our top picks for under $100, and even better, you can go in the draw to win one of the five packs. Whether you give them away or pop them in your own cupboard is entirely up to you – we won’t judge.

If you’re happy with making the last-minute dash, by all means, flip past the Christmas section. However, you might want to cast your eye over our feature, ‘The Art of Good Gifting’, which among other things, is helpful with a quick turnaround pressie that needs almost no wrapping or legwork.

Jingle bells aside, we hope you enjoy the issue. It’s packed with tips and advice that doesn’t involve trees and wreaths, so hang in there. Keep turning the pages until you hit the renovation gold.