Christmas is a coming...2

Well, the lead up to Christmas has begun in ernest here, kicked off by my attendance on Saturday(although only just) at one of my favourite pre-Christmas events, the local Hospice Christmas Bazaar.  I say only just, as I completely got the times wrong this year for the first time ever and found myself arriving half an hour before it was due to end, which was disappointing. 

Anyway, I had a good wander around and still managed to find a few things to bring home with me including these lovely Christmas cards.  Although I have enough already for this year, they will come in useful for next year.  Goodness my Christmas shopping gets earlier and earlier.

 

The Christmas tree cards are last years design from the Hospice itself and cost £1.50 for 10 but they are lovely quality and the mittens are M&S and cost 20p for 10, so I think I did okay and of course it all goes to a very good cause.

I also bought these lovely glass baubles for £1,

and lots of plastic ones for 50p, which are going to go around the bottom of our tree where the dog can potentially reach.

I also bought a stocking filler of three little baking books for Little Bird, as now I've got rid of lots of her children's baking books, she needs something a bit more grown up to guide her in her baking attempts.  These are brand new and cost just £4 for the three.

On my way home I still had a bit of money left over from the amount I'd allowed myself to spend at the Bazaar, £16 in this instance, which was what I had in my purse, so I dropped into a local charity shop on the way home, ostensibly looking for something completely different to what I came home with, which was this lovely vintage pure wool blanket for £3,

and lots of lovely Rowan DK Handknit Cotton in a beautiful range of colours, plus a few brightly coloured new zips for £3. 

I'm pretty sure this cotton is a lot more expensive to buy new and I've never tried knitting with it so I feel a bit of a knitting session coming on.  I'll keep you posted.

There are a few other favourite events that I always enjoy attending in the lead up to Christmas, such as local craft fairs and church fetes, that are coming up in the next few weeks, so I am looking forward to going along to these and hoping I get to them on time.