Is It That Time Already?

Here we are, the first of the month and there’s still so much to do…

However, it got us Foxes thinking about timepieces: Alarm clocks, cuckoo clocks, grandfather clocks, digital watches, wind-up watches and, of course, fob watches as worn by the White Rabbit.

We don’t sell many clocks but that doesn’t mean we aren’t partial to a bit of good design. The Fox kitchen sports a George Nelson ball clock and Mama Fox owns a couple of vintage Goblin Teasmades.

The countdown begins!- Mama Fox

“Oh my ears and whiskers, how late it’s getting”

December 17th- Homemade Presents- Part 3- Chocolate Truffles

Chocolate Truffles 

Our other baking and cooking blog posts haven't always gone to plan...! But this one involves hardly any cooking so I think we'll be just fine. Pop these truffles in a sweet box and you've got a lovely, cheap and thoughtful homemade present. We've used a recipe from our favorite Good Housekeeping cook book.

You'll need;

225g Plain Chocolate

2 Eggs Yolks

25g Butter

15ml Single Cream

Drinking Chocolate Powder/ Chocolate Sprinkles

Melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water, making sure the bottom of the bowl doesn't touch the water.
Add the egg yolks, butter and cream and stir until the mixture is thick enough to handle.
Cool slightly, then form into balls and roll in chocolate powder.
Leave until firm and pop them into paper cases.
We made approximately 24 out of this batch!

The best thing about this recipe is the flexibility it offers you! We added vanilla essence to our mix, but you could also try spiced rum, black coffee or some chopped nuts.
So get in the kitchen and make some truffles!

Alice x 

December 16th- Mulled Wine

Mulled Wine

We are a household divided on the subject of mulled wine so this blog post is all tried and tested by me! I love the way mulled wine makes the house smell and how it warms you up. You cant beat having a pan on the go at your Christmas party!
You can buy mulled wine spice kits, but I like to keep it simple. An orange, some cinnamon and some nutmeg is all you need. This bottle is from Asda, but any "spiced/ mulled wine" will do!

Pour the required amount (read ALL) in a saucepan on a low heat. Add the spices to suit your taste. While this is warming through, slice your orange. When the wine is warm, remove from heat. I like to serve it from a large jug, with the slices of orange floating on the top!
There are no pictures of the end product, I was too busy tasting, oops!

Alice x

December 15th- Decorating The Tree

Decorating The Tree

Putting up the tree in the fox household is the biggest time for family traditions! We have the day booked in, weeks in advance to ensure everyone can be present. I've not lived at home for 5 years and still head home every time to help.

It tumbles out of the attic, along with box after box of decorations. We've had the same fake tree for as long as I can remember. The box is so tatty, its tied around the tree with string. We'd get a new one, but we're a sentimental lot! 

We don't have a theme for our tree, but we like to mix up old and new, with some classic Christmas decorations and some of our own. We love our old decorations the best. Most are hand me downs or have been given to us. These old glass ones are from my Grandma from the 50s and they're super fragile so we keep them in egg boxes to protect them. There are have been a few smashes and tears over the years! A few years ago, I found these replica baubles in Paperchase and they go on every year.

 

Every year we purchase a new decoration, and this year was no exception. How could we resist his little foxy charms?! 

You can find him, and lots of other treasures over at Belle and Blue.

Last year, we stumbled upon these in Asda of all places. They're wired at the bottom so you can pop them straight on a branch. In case it wasn't blinding obvious, we are big fans of the British countryside so to us, they're perfect. 

Following on with toadstools are these birds. They were a present from an old friend and we always find them a home on our tree.

This year we were lucky enough to recive a foxy decoration from the beautiful Kitty Lou! New tradation staring from today! Thank you!

Other things we like to include are bells, candy canes, wire hearts, handmade decorations we made when we were little and kitsch things that we've picked up on our travels. Elvis guitar anyone?!
So there's a quick glimpse at what we put on our tree! What decorations do you use and love every year?

Fox girls x

December 14th- Christmas Market

Christmas Market 

Today we had a stall at our first ever Christmas market! This time last year, we were dreaming about such things. It was at our local City Farm where we were often taken as little foxes to go play and have a look at the piglets! If you're Bristol based and have never been, we thoroughly recommend it as a fun day out! 

 

We have had the best day out! We've met so many lovely families and stall holders, like Quilting Demon who we had the pleasure of sharing a gazebo with and the ever sweet Gemima Lou!
Thank you to all the farm staff for putting on such a wonderful market and their cheerful support, even when the winds kicked in!
We sold all of our Hornsea and Pyrex, so I guess we're going treasure hunting again soon!

Alice and Suzan x

December 13th- Christmas Jumpers

Christmas Jumpers 

Christmas jumpers are everywhere this year, but I can honestly say, that I've not seen a single new one that I like! Now, I love a bit of tat, but, as always, retro is always better!

These are all from my personal collection and have been found in charity shops. I love how charity shops have seasonal window displays, and they go all out at Christmas! If you're after a unique, jumper to wear on Christmas day, that's the best place to look. But here's a little treasury we've put together from independent sellers on Etsy.

Have a vintage Christmas jumper? Show us! We'd love to see!
Alice x

December 12th- Music

Music 

I don't think Alice believed me when I told her that Christmas day when I was a child always ended in a sing-song around the piano. That was until I found the old reel-to-reel tape with the recorded evidence!

Grandma Alice (yes, it's a family name) played the piano and we would all take it in turns to sing a popular song of the day such as "Send in the Clowns". A particular favourite group were the Seekers so I was very pleased to find one of their song books at our favourite Bristol charity shop (not telling!). I would have included a picture of it on the blog but it has disappeared into the vintage black hole that it is the fox loft!

Oh well, how about "The Girl from Ipanema". I love this LP cover picture which includes a BOAC 'plane in the background.

Not many homes have pianos now but that shouldn't stop you enjoying a sing-song with the family. Check out Cerys Matthews' Hook, Line and Singer book for inspiration.

Mama Fox