Archive for the ‘Wedding Gift Ideas’ Category
May
21
Posted by dodo
* 175 g/6 oz olive oil soap
* 30 ml/2 tbsp ground almonds
* Grater
* 25 m1/11/2 tbsp almond oil
* 10 drops lavender essential oil
* double boiler
* 25 m1/11/2 tbsp coconut oil
* Spoon
* heart-shaped moulds, oiled
1 Grate the soap. Place the grated soap in a double boiler and leave to soften over heat. Add all the other ingredients.
2 Stir until all the ingredients are evenly mix and begin to hold together.
3 Press the mixture into the oiled moulds at leave to set overnight. Unmould the soaps ready for use.
May
15
Posted by dodo
This little aquarium is full of life! There are fish swimming from side to side and activity all around. The key to the Aquarium candle is that various nonflammable embedments are situated at different heights throughout the container. There are many ways to accomplish this, but this project demonstrates the simplest technique — fast- setting clear epoxy glue. Read the rest of this entry »
Apr
08
Posted by dodo
Candle gel naturally makes a lot of cheerful bubbles, so creating candles that look like champagne is as easy as popping open a bottle of bubbly. Arrange the finished candles on top of a mirrored or silver charger to reflect their brilliance when they burn. Since your guests are bound to admire their beauty, make some extras to give away as memorable party gifts. Read the rest of this entry »
Nov
08
Posted by dodo
`There was a point this Christmas,’ said a girlfriend, ‘as I was struggling to get the turkey out of the oven, and my husband was sweating away over the roast potatoes, when I asked myself for the hundredth time whether it was all worth it. The eager little faces all round the table — knife and fork at the ready in each tight little fist — were not those of the children but of the collection of geriatric grandparents, great aunts and uncles we seem to feed each year.’ Read the rest of this entry »
Nov
02
Posted by dodo
Men, who probably long to be given Samantha Fox in a grass skirt and a lawn mower, tend to get black silk pyjamas as the ultimate in sophistication. Invariably they also get something to do with drink: bottle-openers, glasses, wine-coolers. Noel would prefer a wife-cooler over Christmas. A friend says that one of her uncles got fourteen bottles of various kinds of booze one year, and nothing else. He was terribly upset because, he said, anyone would think he was an alcoholic — which in fact he was. Read the rest of this entry »
Sep
21
Posted by dodo
The men and women sailed narrow boats along the waterways of England created a unique style of painted enamelware, said to be the oldest folk-art in the country. Today only a handful of narrow-boat painters are still at work, yet a novice can apply a simplified version of the classic narrow-boat designs to dull household items, and transform them with the colours and vitality of the original ware. Canal traditions are also popular in France as well as Holland where distinctive styles of decoration have evolved over the centuries. Read the rest of this entry »
Sep
14
Posted by dodo
Quilt-making has nearly as many traditions and patterns as there are stitches in a quilt.
There are examples of quilt-work, from cot-size to grand wedding quilts, dating back through centuries and from such diverse countries as the USA, France, Britain, India and Japan.
Currently popular and collectable are the quilts of the American Amish, a conservative religious sect which shuns adornment and does not use floral or patterned fabrics in sewing. Designs on Amish quilts are made up from the shapes of the fabric pieces and the order in which they are assembled. The quality of the handiwork is especially important, as the stitches stand out clearly on the plain fabric. Read the rest of this entry »
Aug
31
Posted by dodo
Makes 30 buns
Fruit Mixture
(Prepare a day in advance)
140ml(1/4pt) water
40g (1′/20z) mixed peel
15g (1/20z) cinnamon
15g (1/2oz) mixed spice
15g (1/2oz) ground ginger
50g (2oz) soft brown sugar
85g (3oz) currants
85g (3oz) sultanas Read the rest of this entry »
Aug
30
Posted by dodo
The decoration of Easter eggs has evolved over the years to a point now when very few are done by hand. Most eggs are bought ready-formed and filled with commercially produced sweets. Originally Easter eggs were symbolic and decorative rather than edible, and were made of polished marble, wood or real birds‘ eggs. Read the rest of this entry »
Aug
23
Posted by dodo
The custom of a bridewearing ‘something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue and a sixpence in your shoe’ is a chance for friends and family to give the bride an appropriate gift.
The garter is another traditional item, worn by the bride on the day of the wedding. Another custom is for the newly wed bride, on leaving the reception, to throw her posy of flowers to her unmarried girlfriends and her garter to the bachelors, those who catch the flowers and garter are said to be the next couple to announce their marriage. Read the rest of this entry »
