August 2013

Blackpool Illuminations are one of the most famous light displays in the UK. Founded in 1879, the magical lights festival runs from the end of August until the beginning of November every year. The fantastic display spans a whopping 6 miles from the south end of the town to the north! Once described as ‘Artificial Sunshine’ the lights bring thousands of tourists to the city year after year!Each year the great ‘Switch On’ of the lights is a must see event! In 1934 a tradi

Lapland is considered by many to be a magical wonderland, it is known, most famously of course, for being the home of Santa Claus.Lapland really is the place to go to get you in the Christmas spirit; storytelling around crackling fires, reindeer sleigh rides through the woods and meet-and-greets with Santa himself.There's plenty to do there all year round. Activities such as fell walking, mountain biking, canoeing, white water rafting and fishing are popular here. Then there are the snow sports

As we all know, Christmas is a very costly occasion. If it’s not the presents, it’s the turkey and the tree. And it doesn’t stop there. On average, we spend $2.9billion on gift wrapping and related accessories every year. Here is some nifty little gift wrapping ideas to not only get your creative juices flowing, but to also save you some extra pennies in case you have to stock up on extra mince pies!Wrapping PaperWhen it comes to wrapping paper, the sky is the limit. You don&r

The advent calendar is a calendar that is used to count down the days until Christmas; the counting down of the days until Christmas also overlaps with the Christian season of advent. There are many different tales of how the advent calendar came to be and the exact reason for which it was made; the truth is there are many reasons as to why this particular calendar was invented, and not a single one of them can be falsified. One theory is that the advent calendar was came from German Luthe

Nothing gives you that heart-warming Christmassy feeling quite like a good old Christmas movie. Getting curled up in front of the fire with a mug of hot chocolate can be the best way to spend a cold winter evening. Add to this a fantastic festive film and it’s perfect! There are the classics which come around every year and Christmas wouldn’t be the same without them. It’s a Wonderful Life and White Christmas are perennial top picks for a weekend afternoon viewing in December!

Christmas is synonymous with decorations and presents but we know that with this comes waste. Boxing Day sees bin bags bursting with crumpled wrapping paper, which only 24 hours previous was neatly adorning gifts. This can be a disappointing sight as often it means another load going to the landfill, however there are alternatives.Recycled papersThere is now a wide range of eco-friendly wrapping papers available, from traditional to contemporary prints. Eco-friendly papers are usually those whi

The Christmas carol “The Twelve Days of Christmas” is more than just a carol used to celebrate the beginning of the Christmas season; this song was composed in the 16th century by English Jesuits. It’s a common misconception that this song was written with the intent of recounting the splendid gifts that are given throughout the twelve days of Christmas, but it is in fact a tenet that aided young Christians to remember their faith in secrecy, as between 1558 and 1829 it was il