Start Now and Knit Your Own Wrapping Paper

As you might have noticed, I've recently fallen back in love with knitting. It's the combination of cold weather and a little tiny person for whom things knit up wonderfully quickly -- there's nothing like feeling you can finish a whole piece of clothing in a week or so!

And with my needles out and itching for new challenges, I've considered trying out this lovely way of wrapping a present:

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Surely, it is just a large rectangle of stocking stitch that has been seamed at the back and the end? What a great way to make friends and family feel all woolly inside.

And for those that can't knit (or those us who can, but inevitably run out of time), there's a cheat: faux-knitted wrapping paper!

And, to write your message, faux-knitted cards!

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Just, please, don't compare the knitting inside the present to the wrapping paper... you'll be sorely disappointed!

Adventures with a Can of Chalkboard Paint, Part II

We all know about the circle of gift bags -- you have a birthday or a baby, and suddenly have a stash of six million bags to repackage with gifts for other people's birthdays or babies. And on it goes. Magic. But what about gift tags? Wouldn't it be lovely if you could just erase that "Happy Birthday, Astrid" message, and reuse the gift tag, too?

Well, ladies and gents, here it is, the reusable gift tag:

Chalkboard paint + those cheap paint-it-yourself wooden Christmas ornaments at craft stores = a gift tag that works again and again.

(Just be careful of tricksters with their own sticks of chalk -- a few minutes alone under the Christmas tree, and suddenly all the presents are for Uncle Jesper...)

Gather Ye Pinecones

For the third instalment of Start Now and Be Ready for Christmas, I've got some pinecones for you. There's something just lovely about bringing nature into the home at Christmas, and pinecones are relatively easy to find -- most craft shops sell them by the sack-load. But perhaps these ideas will inspire you to start early, and have time to collect your own this year.

1. Pinecone Wreath

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A lovely alternative to greenery, I'm sure this wreath would be quick work, with a variety of collected pinecones and acorns, a circular foam base and a lot of hot glue.


2. Pinecone Centrepiece

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Old candlestick-holders, pinecones, and a glittery star or two, and you've got a little Christmas sparkle for the table. I love that the pinecones are so compact, so if your Christmas feast consists of dozens of dishes, they will squeeze in nicely between the turkey platter and the brussel sprouts.

3. Pinecone Gift-Wrap

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If your family is competitive each year about who can wrap the fanciest presents, then perhaps a pinecone and pretty ribbon will finally put you in the lead?


4. Pinecone Garland

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Simple, natural, beautiful. I could imagine this garland in a cosy Christmas log cabin, or in a sleek Scandinavian apartment.


5. Pinecone Christmas Cake

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Martha Stewart design, of course. And though you can't eat the pinecones, the pine-needles are made of chocolate!


6. Pinecone Tree

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And if you hit the jackpot and find a mountain of pinecones, why not make your whole Christmas tree out of them! Just be careful if your dog is anything like Bella... or else Christmas morning might be a carnage of chewed cones!

(Start Now and Be Ready for Christmas is inspired by a series over at The Fable of the Table)