Come inside it’s Christmas

“Although the season of goodwill can be hard work for the women who make it happen, it’s also us that love to uphold the family folklore”

It’s always lovely to see new inspiring ideas at christmas and think about how we can turn our homes into stylish, sparkly grottoes. you’ll find lots of gorgeous festive decorating tips in this issue, and we’ve had adorable children leyland and elia, plus the cutest dog ever, Gigi, helping us create the magic. but a recurring theme that kept coming up in the office when we were planning this issue is nostalgia and how much we all love the age-old traditions that make christmas truly special. and although the season of goodwill can be seriously hard work (not to mention stressful!) for the women who make it happen, it’s also us that love to uphold the family folklore. Is it just me who makes their teenage children put a mince pie and a sherry by the fireplace for santa (and a carrot outside for rudolph, of course), even though they long ago realised it was their dad who made the flour footprints on the rug? we love this stuff, don’t we? creating memories with family and friends, and remembering treasured ones is really what this time of year is all about. In our feature It wouldn’t be

Christmas without... (p96), several readers show us the treasured thing they pull out of the attic every year to remind them of christmases past. I have the ancient tarnished baubles that used to hang on my mum and dad’s tree in essex, and the homemade paper angels my children made at nursery. so while I love the idea of my home looking all chic and minimalist come 1st December, it never happens because I can’t bear not to include all my sentimental treasures in the mix. the same goes for food. my husband adrian is the cook in our household (how lucky am I?), and every year he suggests an alternative to turkey, which I flatly refuse to consider. It’s not that I particularly love turkey (we all know it can be a bit dry – unless you try our recipe on p167), but it’s part of the ritual, and rituals create familiarity and comfort, which is what we all crave.

So, yes, there may be a lot of uncertainty in the world right now but that’s all the more reason to take pleasure in the stuff that’s closer to home – small acts of kindness, our families and friends, and eating Quality street on the sofa.

Cheers to that…

Merry Christmas from us all at woman&home