On arrival the team gave me a wicker hamper, which comes complete with a cellophane wrapper, a golden bow and filling to make it look oh so professional. My job was to find items to go inside it, and I wanted to give it a Christmassy theme.
As you'll know Homesense is packed with many, many fabulous items, so what did I choose?
I was pleased to spot these glasses, they're a cross between a champagne glass and cocktail glass and will come in handy this Christmas as we realised, after a quick glass count-up, we realised that we didn't have six of any of our everyday glasses (don't laugh about the everyday glasses - that really is a thing). We're planning a Christmas cocktail for Christmas eve and so these will be just the thing for that.
The sparkly beaded coasters will also come in handy, and I'm sure we'll be using these throughout the year - at just a fiver, I thought these were a bargain. I wanted to include some Christmassy items, so the next items were:
- a small panettone, in a gorgeous tin
- some Willie's cacao chocolate, a favourite of mine
- a pack of four Christmas spreaders
- a Christmas scented candle
- some tea towels to take care of those glasses
- and finally, some LED star lights for some added sparkle.
The star lights are great, and I think they can be used year-round. I'll admit though, even though they're not golden stars, I couldn't help but feel like I was looking for stars on I'm a Celebrity... but thankfully without the critters!
The spreaders look fun and I'm sure will be useful, both on our breakfast table and later for the soft cheeses on the cheeseboard. I've a feeling that they'll be so useful that I'll want to use them year round too. I know MOH isn't seeing the value of them yet, but give it time and I'm sure he'll be convinced, and in which case I'll need to head back there during the year and find some less Christmassy ones!
The candle is understated but hints at Christmas smells and no doubt will help set a soothing atmosphere when things get a bit fraught, as the preparations in the final weekend get underway. For me that's usually when I realise just how many vegetables need prepping, I forget each time that I cook for more than the two of us, how many more are required. It usually works out fine...
And there's usually panettone too. This year just a mini one and I may well have been swayed by the pretty tin too, I've a feeling it will make its way into my craft room at some point in January. About January 2nd I predict...
So if you're still looking for Christmas presents and are stuck then maybe putting together your own personalised hamper could be just the thing, what do you think?
This is a collaborative post but all views and opinions are my own.