One of my most popular posts of all time is my suggestions on 10 ways to sneakily celebrate Christmas now! It seems like it isn’t only me who
starts feeling festive the second the Halloween pumpkins come down, or wants to
deck the halls as soon as the fireworks have stopped ringing in my ears. Sadly,
we’re still surrounded by Scrooges who moan about how
it’s only November, stop singing Mariah, you are not starring in a Hallmark movie where you're about to quit your high powered job and marry a baker in a small town.
Sigh.
it’s only November, stop singing Mariah, you are not starring in a Hallmark movie where you're about to quit your high powered job and marry a baker in a small town.
Sigh.
As that post is now two years old, I’ve had a little bit
longer to come up with EVEN MORE ways to sneak around these holiday Grinches
and start feeling the Christmas spirit, like, now. So without further ado…hide
this list from your partner/mum/friends, and start rocking around the (at this stage imaginary)
Christmas tree!
1. Get a festive drink
Coffee shops of England seem to have figured out that
December is a bit late to start the celebrations, releasing their Christmas
drinks as early as the 1st November this year – giving you every
excuse to go and get one! My favourite is the Costa Black Forest hot
chocolate, which I literally wait for every year. Plus, nobody can say anything
– you’re just ordering a totally legit drink off a menu. Bonus points if you
sit inside and drink it from a hot mug. Note: mulled wine in a pub completely
falls within this category, and if that pub has an open fire, so much the
better. (I can always get wine in somewhere).
2. Read a
Christmas-related book
I find I read so much more around Christmas time, curled up
with a hot drink and a box of chocs, so really, reading anything – particularly
something cosy and comforting, like Harry
Potter – makes me happy. But if you want to go all out, download a
Christmas-related book onto your Kindle. I recommend A Gingerbread Café Christmas by Rebecca Raisin, which is as
gorgeously fuzzy and heartwarming as it sounds. A Kindle is better than a book
in this case because nobody can see the cover, so they can’t judge you for
reading a Christmas book in November (or, July. What?)
3. Eat Quality Street
Get a massive box of your favourite festive chocolates and
tell your friends/loved ones that you just fancied treating them. Then eat them
all with a glass of wine in front of Eastenders
and pretend it’s a Christmas special.
Don’t do this every day, though, or you might find that by December the
gingerbread man leggings you snuck into your drawer are getting a little tight.
4. Wear a not-quite-Christmas jumper
So, okay, if you come in wearing a jumper with a snowman on
it, people might give you weird looks – so what you need to go for is a jumper
that you know is festive, but other
people aren’t quite sure about. Something with a fair isle print or some
sparkle is always a good choice. I’ve put some options below that I’ve been
eyeing up – I’m definitely snapping up the Miss Selfridge dark green number.
Does anything shout ‘Christmas!’ more than dark green sequins?
5. Get Christmas nails
People don’t really notice your nails as much so you can get
away with this more (although, maybe the Santa hat ones are going a bit far).
The ones above are from Primark and I’ve picked up some more for this year and they look like my nails are wearing little Christmas jumpers and I LOVE
them.
6. Eat a roast dinner and put stuffing and little mini sausages
with it
‘What, darling? Oh, no, I just thought we’d have some little
extras with dinner tonight. It reminds you of Christmas? Does it really? Ah,
well. Pass the bread sauce…’
7. Go Christmas shopping
Preferably on Oxford Street, where the cold, dark nights are
contrasted by the sparkly, twinkly Christmas lights and you can walk along the
Selfridges windows with their wonderful displays and it’s a bit like getting a
hug from Santa. But even if you just get to wander in the Christmas section of
your local Asda, buying Christmas candles and decorations ‘in advance,’ it’ll
bring a bit of much needed festive cheer into your day!
8. Read festive blog posts
My secret guilty pleasure is that I read all The Londoner’s
old Christmas blog posts at work (during lunchtime, okay, if my bosses are
stalking me right now) and get excited for Christmas parties in scarlet
stilettos and Bailey’s in tall frosty glasses and swirly prom dresses and cosy
mornings with presents in brown paper with red ribbons and brand new designer handbags (what - a girl
can dream)!
9. Write a Christmas list to Santa
Indulge your childish side and ask for whatever your heart
desires – world peace, a puppy, a Cartier ring the size of a rock, or just the
bloody YSL lipstick in Lingerie Pink you’ve been asking for every year. I’m
going to do a proper Christmas wish list next week and send it to my husband,
but I’ve popped a few ideas below, you know – jus to get you started (if you
buy any of these for yourselves as an ‘early Christmas present,’ that wasn’t my
idea, and you can’t blame me…)
10. If all else fails…
Stop trying to be subtle. Let your partner or mum or best
friend or whoever come home to find you sitting under a tree, drinking hot
cocoa and eating a minced pie and a Christmas cake AND a Terry’s Chocolate
Orange, playing the Pogues and watching Elf,
with tinsel in your hair.
Let me know how that one goes!
Are you feeling festive, and if so do you have a Grinch? Let
me know how you’ve learnt to deal with it!
Great ideas, loved this post!
ReplyDeleteAnika | anikamay.co.uk
Lovely photos ♡
ReplyDeleteHope you had wonderful Friday ~ Love from Slovakia ~
♡ last days ♡
I may have been smiling all the way through this post and I've been doing half of these since the start of October.. Ooops! x
ReplyDeletewww.pintsizedbeauty.com
Great ideas! Love the coffee shops too! I'm feeling very festive! Christmas candles are around my flat, as is a christmas spotify playlist! x
ReplyDeletewww.beckieeschle.com
These are some great suggestions to feel more festive, though I could read Harry Potter happily at any time of the year, just 'cause it's Harry Potter! Really love the festive nail idea, usually when it gets a little closer to christmas I start painting my nails a sparkly red shade from Essie :)
ReplyDeletewww.thesundaymode.blogspot.com.au
This made me laugh so much. I just did my own blog post like this last week! Great minds :-)
ReplyDeletehttp://geengeenie.com/2015/11/17/10-things-i-love-about-xmas/
Aw this has gotten me so excited for christmas!
ReplyDeleteGeorgia Jade | The Weekend Attic
Great ideas! I love your nails♥
ReplyDeletesummerdaisy.net
Aha loved this post! Shopping & getting your nails done.. Yes please! xxx
ReplyDeletewww.reynaxox.blogspot.co.uk
These are all such great ideas!
ReplyDeletelifeisashoe
Oh my gosh this post was written for me hehe ! I'm obsessed with Christmas and I like to start it as early as I can and I get endless people telling me it's too early and I'm just like how on earth could it ever be too early to be that happy :) You really made me giggle with the one about the christmas dinner hehe it sounded just like me ;)
ReplyDeleteLots of love, Marianne xxx
http://myhappybubblexx.blogspot.co.uk/