Wednesday 24 December 2008

TWENTY FOURTH


Its today! Spread the joy.... its not only about the gifts.
Do
, sit together and think about the ones that are not with you.

Share stories from past Christmases

Sing, eat and be merry

We wish you a very Merry Christmas


we will celebrate Leon's first Christmas!!

Tuesday 23 December 2008

TWENTY THIRD


Christmas give away!!
A little gift from us at vonblum, leave a comment and the winner will be chosen on the 25th!

Monday 22 December 2008

TWENTY SECOND


I have already mentioned sweetpaul on this blog and I must say it is always a pleasure!
have to add one of his Christmas ideas for our countdown...
candy snowflakes!
highly recommend to browse the other ideas

Sunday 21 December 2008

TWENTY FIRST



a classic send to us via nicole

Saturday 20 December 2008

TWENTIETH

lovely origami wreaths tutorial at bloesem for today

Friday 19 December 2008

NINTEENTH


twenty holiday party ideas from food& wine you can still pick out one or more just before Christmas :)

Thursday 18 December 2008

EIGHTEENTH



sit back & enjoy
via
swissmiss

Wednesday 17 December 2008

SEVENTEENTH


From 8th December here in Barcelona there is a interesting & different christmas tradition apart from the caganer I had mentioned to you last year.
Children (and adults!) look after a Tió de Nadal or Caga Tió. This hollow log, often with a smiley face is cared for until Christmas Eve or Christmas Day when it is then brutally beaten or thrown on the fire while children sing to it asking for presents to appear!

Tuesday 16 December 2008

Monday 15 December 2008

FIFTEENTH


its getting colder and darker outside as Christmas approaches
We couldn't think of a better way to get through this is a merrier way then
with a good hot chocolate
At cookie they have the perfect recipe for you to make at home
or come by vonblum and enjoy one made by us.

Sunday 14 December 2008

FOURTEENTH


Today I will tell you about a Scandinavian Christmas tradition,
seeing that yesterday was
Santa Lucia day.

There is another common symbol to the scandinavian christmas and it is that of a straw goat.

They have a tradition of making goats out of straw and using them to decorate
the house at Christmas time.


Some believe that it comes originally from Norse mythology, in which Thor’s chariot was drawn by two goats
Tannginost and Tanngrisnir

Nowadays, it is customary for one of the adults to dress up as a Christmas gnome (tomte) and deal out the presents, but apparently, before this became the custom,
someone would dress up as a goat to do so.


There are other stories told about Christmas goats; one says that there was a game played, whereby people would make a large straw goat and attempt to hide it in their neighbors’ house, who, upon discovering it, were obligated to hide it in another house without being discovered, and so on.

Saturday 13 December 2008

THIRTEENTH


Follow the link to maya's blog and look what a lovely family tradition.... Leon will have something to look forward to the following Christmases ;)

"It's such a surprise every time you unfold a snowflake, but the magic of opening one that my grandfather had drawn just for my delight cannot be described in words."

Friday 12 December 2008

TWELFTH

spread the christmas joy with these lovely angels by Jurianne Matter
more about her and her lovely work at this blog

Thursday 11 December 2008

ELEVENTH


Today we thought everyone should get a chance to make a gingerbread house.
Get a ready made one as Blavish suggests or
for the traditional way and then for the architects around, go to bake for a change.
There you can show all your cooking and environmental skills in one!

If you dont have time to make a real one, have some fun with this online version by Jenny b. Harris from allsorts blog.

Wednesday 10 December 2008

TENTH

Found via FRYD+DESIGN these lovely vintages posters
to celebrate xmas in style
look for them at all posters

Tuesday 9 December 2008

NINTH

We love this creative Christmas card idea
follow cheeky magpies template
and do one yourself
If you dont want to send it off....keep it as a Christmas ornament

Monday 8 December 2008

EIGHTH



Lovely gocco gift tags, will make any christmas present special
Go check this at SAmantha's and Owen's Etsy Store
desTroy

Sunday 7 December 2008

SEVENTH


Today apart from our brunch at vonblum, we also celebrate the second advent.
I found out that many people didnt now what it was about so....

Advent (from the Latin word adventus, meaning "coming"), the period of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus; in other words, the period immediately before Christmas.

So join us light up the second candle on your wreath, if you dont have one improvise with two candles in the house and sing some carols or read a nice christmas story.

Saturday 6 December 2008

SIXTH

Widely celebrated in Europe, St. Nicholas' feast day, December 6th, kept alive the stories of his goodness and generosity.

In Germany and Poland on the evening before children put letters to the good saint along with carrots or other food for his white horse or donkey on a plate or in their shoes. These are left outside, under the bed, beside a radiator, or on a windowsill in hopes of finding goodies from St. Nicholas the next morning. During the night Sankt Nikolaus goes from house to house carrying a book in which all the children's deeds are written. If they have been good, he fills their plate, shoe or boot with delicious fruits, nuts and candies. If not, they may find potatoes, coal, or twigs.

In the Netherlands and Belgium, St. Nicholas arrived on a steamship from Spain to ride a white horse on his gift-giving rounds. Dutch television broadcasts the official arrival of St. Nicholas and his helper Zwarte Piet live to the nation.

During the next weeks children put out their shoes with wish-lists and a carrot or hay, or maybe a saucer of water, for the horse. When St. Nicholas happens by, the next morning children may find chocolate coins or initial letter, candy treats, pepernoten, and little gifts in their shoes. Everyone hopes for sweets, not coal or a little bag of salt. In the Netherlands, unlike other places, adults as well as children join in the fun. As the Dutch like an element of surprise, a small gift may be wrapped in a huge box, or it may be hidden and require following clues to discover where it is.

St. Nicholas, is a popular saint in Spain, has many churches dedicated to him. As a special devotion people make a Caminata in honor of Saint Nicolas of Bari.

To find out some more about how to celebrate the day like other countries...follow this lovely link.

P.S Tomorrow we have our Christmas Brunch in vonblum

so if you are in Barcelona, come see us


Friday 5 December 2008

FIFTH

did you know....


St Francis of Assisi introduced Christmas Carols to formal church services.

The word comes from the ancient Greek choros, which means "dancing in a circle," and from the Old French word carole, meaning "a song to accompany dancing."

The first instrument on which the carol "Silent Night" was played was a guitar.

The popular Christmas song "Jingle Bells" was composed in 1857 by James Pierpont, and was originally called "One-Horse Open Sleigh." It was actually written for Thanksgiving, not Christmas.

Thursday 4 December 2008

FOURTH


Christmas pudding anyone?
Head to ouissi's lovely etsy store and find out some more about the one you see in the picture
plus some great pudding knowledge

Wednesday 3 December 2008

THIRD


Today we found a different and lovely way to decorate your gifts this year,
with
Creature comforts beautifully recycled pompom.
Will be seen under our christmas tree ;)
Follow the link for the step by step instructions.

Tuesday 2 December 2008

SECOND


Make your own advents calendar at home or even at work
with this lovely idea found on
design sponge by dsharp,
Just download the numbers or do as loobylu did in a hurry, and then with more time this one

Monday 1 December 2008

FIRST



Lets start the countdown to christmas eve in a numerical fashion:

12 Days of Christmas: The popular Christmas song involving leaping lords, milk maids, pipers and partridges. The European song dates back to the 16th century.

8: The number of Santa's original reindeer, according to the 1823 poem, "A Visit from St. Nicholas." Their names were: Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, Vixen, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen. Rudolph --the star of a 20th century American song -- came later.

$848,600: The cost (100 million yen) of a Japanese Christmas cake -- a 35-centimeter (14-inch) chocolate cake -- decorated with 100 diamonds.

200: The number of mince pies eaten by Gus the camel after he broke out of his pen at an Irish riding school's Christmas party. The camel also drank several cans of Guinness -- which he opened with his teeth.

50,000: The typical number of letters the post office at Nuuk, Greenland, receives each year addressed to Santa Claus, or Father Christmas. Santa's helpers at the post office pledge to reply to every letter.

2 million: The number of visitors expected to visit Nuremberg's Christkindlesmarkt, one of the largest and most famous of Germany's traditional Christmas markets.

1434: The date when Dresden's Striezelmarkt began, considered the oldest Christmas market in Germany.

31 million: The number of real Christmas trees Americans will buy this year, according to Forbes.com.

$795.86: The average amount Americans will spend on Christmas this year, according to Forbes.com, with total Christmas spending estimated to reach $154 billion.

50 million: The number of copies sold of Bing Crosby's "White Christmas," the best-selling single of all time. Crosby first performed Irving Berlin's classic song on a U.S. radio show in 1941.

38 meters: The height of the world's tallest Christmas tree in Stockholm, Sweden, which features 5,000 festive lights.

via CNN

The stickers are from etsy shop heyjenrenee