Wee Birdy

Wee Christmas finds: My ultimate wishlist

A few of my favourite things this Christmas season... *sigh*

1. Marc by Marc Jacobs Jumbled Birds umbrella, US$48, from Shopbop.com (ships internationally).

2. Frankie Diary 2011, AU$24.95, from Lark (ships internationally).

3. Floral Wiltshire Liberty print mini suitcase, £60, from Liberty (ships internationally).

4. Bengt Lindberg Moose blanket, £86, from SCP (ships internationally).

5. This is not a pipe tea light, US$28, by Jonathan Adler.

6. Belle & Sebastian Dog on Wheels Brooch, £25, by Tatty Devine (ships internationally).

7. Belle and Sebastian Write about Love, £8.83, from Wee Birdy's UK Amazon shop (or US$11.05 from Wee Birdy's US Amazon shop. Both ship internationally.)

8. Lipstick Queen Jean Queen lipstick, AU$33.95, from Kit Cosmetics. (UK readers can purchase from SpaceNK.)

9. Funkis low red sandal, AU$120, from Funkis (ships internationally).

Wee Christmas finds: Trims for gift wrapping

Here's a wee Sydney secret shop find: Fenners in Mona Vale. This relatively unassuming haberdashery and fabric store on Waratah Street in Mona Vale stocks a good range of reasonably priced fabrics, as well as an impressive collection of ribbons, trims and braids. Just look out for the Australiana tea-towels of galahs and lorikeets out the front.

I pounced on these glorious trims from Thailand and picked out six sweet shop hues in miniature tinsels, braids and cords (including a fabulously fluffy white one), which work beautifully with my white vintage Christmas tree, glossy white wrapping paper and Wee Birdy gift cards. The spools range from 2.75m to 4.5m in length, and are priced around AU$3 per spool.

Fenners
11 Waratah Street
Mona Vale NSW 2130
Tel. 02 9999 2299

How to make: the prettiest eucalyptus Christmas garland

I've been desperate for a stretch of mantel to decorate at Christmas for a very long time, so there was no way the wee fireplace in our new flat was going to go unadorned this season. So, amidst a sea of unpacked boxes, bubble wrap, tissue paper and stuff that has no home (we only moved in three weeks ago), I set about decorating our Christmas tree and fireplace.

I had my heart set on making a eucalyptus garland for the mantel, so I enlisted the help of my mum, along with Martha Stewart and some other online sources.

I wanted a modern Australian look, with different textures and hints of pink to complement our rather girlie candy-coloured white Christmas tree (poor husband), so I picked up a bunch of eucalyptus leaves from the florist, and mum brought a basket full of fresh rosemary and lavender foliage from her garden. The scent in the kitchen as we selected the choicest sprigs was heavenly!

If you want to make your own garland, you'll need:

• bunches of complementary foliage (we used eucalyptus leaves, fresh rosemary and lavendar foliage)
• flowers for colour (we used a pink flowering gum blossom)
• 1/2 inch sisal rope (we picked up a roll at Bunnings)
• fine floristry wire
• green floristry tape
• gardening pliers to cut foliage and wire

And follow these steps to make the garland:

• Cut rope to fit your mantel, leaving some room either side for it to hang down.
• Starting at the top of the rope, take a few sprigs of eucalyptus leaves (choose ones that drape nicely) and strip the leaves from the bottom of the stems.
• Holding stems against rope, tightly wrap wire around rope and stems several times.

• Next, moving slightly down the rope, do the same thing with rosemary, ensuring it overlaps the eucalyptus but doesn't cover it.

• Do the same with the lavendar, and continue down the rope, wrapping the sprigs in the same direction and alternating the foliage.

• When you get about half-way, you'll need to change direction of the sprigs, so that it drapes from the other side.
• We only covered one side of the rope, as my fireplace is small and we already had quite a thick garland going.
• When you're finished, secure to your mantel with temporary hooks, or just drape it across the top, leaving the sides to hang down.
• If you have some flowers (like our gum blossom), poke the sprigs into even intervals along the garland.
• Finish with a misting of water.
• Mist your garland at least once a day to keep it looking fresh (important during humid Australian summers).

So how did we do? Have you made a fresh garland or wreath for your house?

(My snow angel candle is from Caravan in London, and my kozyndan 'Bunny Blossom' print is from Outre Gallery in Sydney/Melbourne. The white Christmas tree was a vintage find on eBay. And I'm still waiting for our stockings to arrive from Toast in the UK!)

Thanks to mum for all the help!

Free! Wee Birdy Christmas gift tags to download

Mr Birdy and I have been busy designing some very special downloadable Wee Birdy gift tags* for all you lovely readers. Hope you like them - I'm using them on all my presents this year.

All you need to do is print out the PDF onto (printable) white card stock (or just print them out on white paper and glue to cardboard). Cut out around the tags and use a hole punch to create a hole. Thread through ribbon or string for the merriest of presents.

Click here to download the pink and red tags.

Click here to download the blue tags.

Happy Christmas!

* The gift tags are copyright Wee Birdy, and are for personal use only. Not for commercial usage.

Wee Christmas finds: Gifts for London lovers

Some nice gift ideas for the discerning lover of all things London (I want those Snowden Flood mugs!).

1. Set of six bone china River Mugs, £70, by Snowden Flood (ships to UK, EU countries, USA and Canada).

2. I love London lunch box, AU$9.95, from Lark (ships internationally). London readers can purchase the lunchbox, along with other products from the 'I love London' range, from Lapin & Me in East London.

3. Paumes Editions London Family Style, £20, from Lapin & Me. Australian readers can purchase the book from Lark for AU$38.

4. London tray, £25, from Liberty (ships internationally).

5. 'Have a Nice Day' print by Tokyo-based illustrator, Takashi Furuya, £15, from Shelf.

6. London Transport in a Bag, £5.95, from Muji.

7. St Nicolas London bus bauble, £8.50, from Selfridges (ships internationally).

8. Lizzie Allen Royal Guards Cushion, £79, from Liberty (ships internationally).

9. 'Love London' mug, £10, from The London Company (ships internationally).

10. London cotton/linen tea towel, £12.50, from Pedlars (ships internationally).

11. Underground Bottle Opener, £8.95, from Pedlars (ships internationally).