Christmas Cheer

With Christmas music playing and mulled wine warming, Berkhamsted Town Hall was full of Christmas cheer as the stall holders set up their tables on Wednesday evening, getting ready for the final festive fayre for the year.

Boxing Clever

Richard Roscoe Photography

Precious Memories

Prize Draw Basket - winner announced at the end of this post!

Happy Days Designs

Jamie at home

Make Do and Mend Quilt Co.

Millsy Designs

dolly blake

Edgartown Sourcing

Coup de chocolate

Bespoke Verse & Food to Heal

Vie at home

Pampering from Sharon of Vie at home

Katy Leigh Designs

Heartfelt Handmade

Emma from Rockabye Baby visiting Heartfelt Handmade's stall

Stealing Candy

Thirtyfive Flowers

Vintage Clothing from Mary Casserley

Clothes from Love Shack

Nevie-pie Cakes

Isla B Baby

Eco products and cosmetics from Pam Johnstone

Rockabye Baby

Marie Jahn - Funtabiedozie

Bijoux-Bijoux

It was a fabulous evening with a wide variety of sellers, a huge number of visitors, fantastic helpers, our wonderful cellist, Clare from Chroma, played beautifully and the More Than A Mama team were ecstatic that the fayre was supported so well. We are looking forward to a short break over Christmas and then we shall be planning our next fayre dates for 2010.

The Winner of the Prize Draw from the fayre is Sally Leppington, congratulations, you win a basket full of More Than A Mama goodies!

The Winner of the blog giveaway is Bridget from poppyart, Bridget turns out to be a seller from our September fayre we held in Harpenden! Congratulations Bridget!

Merry Christmas and a happy new year to all of you!

Love

xxx

Thank You!

We would just like to say a huge THANK YOU to the many many people who came to the fayre last night and for all the wonderful helpers, volunteers and everyone who helped organise the event. It was such a success, at one stage it was gridlock in the aisles so we hope you all still managed to shop!!

Photos from last night will be posted soon, as will the winners of both the Free Prize Draw Basket & the Blog Giveaway will be announced so watch this space.

Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas and New Year, we will see you at a future fayre in 2010!

Love from

xx

Tonight's the night!

It's finally arrived and we are so very excited to be holding our Festive Christmas Fayre tonight at Berkhamsted Town Hall from 7.30pm until 9.30pm. There will be oodles of lovely gifts to buy for children, grown ups and the home, not forgetting a little treat for yourself too!

There will be free mulled wine upon arrival, lots of twinkly lights and festive cheer. We have a wonderful live cellist setting the scene from 7.30pm-8.30pm so why not pop in and take a look around, it's free entry!

We have wonderful clothes from Love Shack and a fab vintage clothes stall too from Mary Casserley. Scrumptious cakes and cookies from Neviepie-Cakes, delicious handmade chocolates from Coup de Chocolat, stylish home ware, gifts and outdoor accessories from dolly blake, super cool baby and children's clothes, toys and gifts from Stealing Candy and Rockabye Baby, hand crafted Christmas decorations and stocking fillers from Heartfelt Handmade, gorgeous jewellery from Bijoux Bijoux and Happy Day Designs, handmade home wares and soft furnishings from Thirtyfive Flowers, hand crafted tea cosies, decorations and fun felted goodness from Marie Jahn, perfectly personalised pressies from Millsy, lotions, potions and pampering from Sharon Herholdt and Pam Johnston, fabulous hand painted ceramics designed by Katy Leigh, gorgeous handmade bedding, changing mats, wipes, burp cloths and beautifully embroidered bags and tea and coffee pot cosies from Isla B Baby, wonderful photography by Richard Roscoe, clever hand painted wall murals from Wonderwall, a superb bespoke poetry service from Jo Miller, amazing quilt kits from the Make Do & Mend Quilt Co., fabulous fabrics from Edgartown Sourcing, hand painted toy and treasure boxes from the clever Jenny tasker from Boxing Clever and great gifts for all from Jamie at home. Phew, you will be crazy to miss it!!

Hope to see you all there, don't forget to enter your details into our free prize draw and be in with a chance of winning a basket load of More Than A Mama goodies, a perfect Christmas present from us to you!

See you all later....

Love,

x

The Cookie Recipe.....

Becky from Isla B Baby has kindly let us 'borrow' her fool proof cookie recipe to share with all you MTAM readers. A very handy recipe to draw upon to help you through the home baked offering always requested for the school or toddler group coffee mornings and Christmas parties.

Becky says, "I think sometimes you come across a recipe that you just know is going to be passed around and cooked hundreds of times and this cookie recipe is certainly worth its weight. Not only is it super easy to make but you can pretty much throw anything at it and it seems to work!".

So here is Becky's recipe for Cranberry and White Chocolate Chip Cookies.

Ingredients

215g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

115g soft butter

125g light brown sugar

50g caster sugar

1 egg

100g dried cranberries

200g white chocolate chopped into chunks

Set the oven to 190 c /375 f/ gas mark 5.

Put all the ingredients into a bowl and mix it all together until it forms a dough. By hand this takes a bit of work but in my fabulous Kitchen Aid it takes seconds!

Place little rounds of the dough onto a baking tray lined with grease proof paper (you should get about 18 cookies from the mix).

Cook in the oven for 10 mins or until they are just beginning to colour at the edges. (You still want them to be soft as they will firm up as they cool down).

Let them sit on the tray when you take them out the oven for 5 mins then transfer to a cooling tray.

And there you have it! I have tried lots of combinations of these cookies and milk chocolate and hazelnut work really well as does a bar of Chocolate Orange chopped into chunks!. Enjoy experimenting.

Love,

x

Make Do & Mend.....

About Make Do & Mend Quilts:

My name is Deb McGuire and I am a local mum of three kids aged 6, 5 and 1. I was a failed knitter who didn’t think I had the patience for making things. Three years ago I wanted a quilt for my son’s bed. In searching eBay for a department store quilt I stumbled upon an unfinished handmade romantic 1930’s butterfly quilt from Ohio. I was determined to learn how to finish the quilt, and so my patchwork obsession began.

Inspirations:
I didn’t think I could make a quilt, and so many people when admiring my quilts have said the same. The idea of a complete kit with really simple instructions to show that everyone can make a quilt was a simple next step. I am passionate about showing people that they can do it, and after one kit quilt they are usually hooked! I source great modern fabrics and design contemporary quilts that look great in your baby’s room today, but will be a future family heirloom.

Best Sellers:
My best seller is called Jitterbug Butterflies and I love it, as it encapsulates what Make Do & Mend is about. It is a great bright modern design, but made from 1950’s style prints, the perfect marriage of traditional and modern.

At the More Than A Mama - Christmas Fayre:
At the fayre I will be selling kits for all of my baby quilts, and the originals will be there for you to touch and see as inspiration. I will also be previewing my Make Do & Mend Quilty Comforters in kit form. For the nervous sewer, and at under £25, these are smaller than a quilt and make a great Christmas gift idea for an expectant mum (or soon to be Granny!), or make the Quilty yourself and give to a grateful Little Person to snuggle this winter.

Sites:
Visit my website at www.makedoandmendquilts.co.uk
I am also on etsy at www.makedoandmendquilts.etsy.com and folksy at www.makedoandmendquilts.folksy.com

Follow my new work at www.makedoandmendquilts.blogspot.com

Come and meet Deb and all our other sellers at the fayre this Wednesday evening, 9th Dec, at Berkhamsted Town Hall from 7.30pm. Remember admission is free and includes a free glass of mulled wine and music, so come along a soak up some festive spirit!

Love

x