DIY Christmas Gift Idea | How to Make Your Own Candle with Scotch Miss

Hey everyone,

My name is Abbey and I've only been a blogger for a couple of months, so please go easy on me :-)

My blog is called Scotch Miss, and I try to publish three times a week usually Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I live just outside Glasgow and I have a particular love for candles and Scottie dogs.

With Christmas rapidly approaching (I mean seriously, it could give Usain Bolt a run for his money!) I thought it would be the perfect time to share with you how I make my own candles. I think these would make gorgeous personal gifts, especially for those Secret Santa dips!

So, without further ado, here's what you'll need to make your own candle;

1 Candle Can
24g Candle Fragrance Oil
211g Soy Wax
1 Wick & Sustainer
Glue Dot/Sticky Pad
Worktop Scales
1 Large Pan
1 Small Pan
1 Measuring Jug

Step 1 - Weight, Boil, Melt.

• Weigh out your soy wax. 
• Fill the larger of your pans to a third of it's volume with water and let it come to the boil. 
• Place your wax into the smaller of your pans and sit it inside the now boiling water, making sure you stir it regularly.

Step 2 - Lets Get Sticky

• Use your glue dots/sticky pads and attach one to the bottom of your wick sustainer. 
• Attach the sticky wick sustainer to the bottom of your candle can, making it as central and straight as possible.

Step 3 - Bottoms Up

• Once your wax has melted, pour it into your measuring jug.
• Add your scent of choice and stir for 2 minutes.
• Pour the wax into your candle can and make sure the wick is centred. If the wick isn't straight, pin it in place using pencils or straws. 
• Leave your candle to set for 4 hours and try not to burn it for a week to let it cure.
• Once the candle has cured, trim the wick to 1/4 inch.

You can leave your candle here, or you can cover the tin with paper or material of your choice. The scent I used for this candle is 'Lord of the Glen' so I chose a brown paper to cover my tin. You can wrap your candle in cellophane wrap with some gorgeous Xmas ribbon if you'd like to gift it for Xmas. Or you can do what I did and add a bit of Xmas ribbon with a candy cane.

I hope you enjoy this post and have fun making your own candles, I'd love to see photos of them so please feel free to tweet them to me @scotchmissblog.

Love and hugs,

Scotch Miss Blog

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Top 5 Books for Babies this Christmas with BookBairn

Well, you're probably wondering what is a BookBairn? There's a good chance, if you're a parent, that you have one at home. Usually spotted tucked up under the covers, pleading 'one more story?' or reading by torchlight, or sitting front row at their teachers' feet captivated by the magic of a good book. I am the proud owner of a BookBairn, she's nine months old and already adores books. Our blog BookBairn follows her reading journey as she becomes a reader and storyteller! You'd better watch out, you'd better not cry, you'd better not pout, I'm telling you why... Santa Claus is coming to town! In less than three weeks! And that means there is no time like the present (pardon the pun) to be cosying up and reading festive stories with your little bookbairns. We started our festive book countdown on the 1st December with our Christmas Advent Book Tree and can't get enough of the daily unwrapping and festive stories. Looking for inspiration for Christmas books for your babies and tots? Here are some of our festive favourites so far!

 Dear Santa

I couldn't resist adding this one to our advent countdown of festive books. We love 'Dear Zoo,' also by Rod Campbell, and BookBairn is at that fabulous stage of being able to life the flaps by herself. This book follows a similar structure to 'Dear Zoo' with Santa trying to find the perfect present. 'Dear Santa' has bold colourful flaps set against plain white backgrounds making it perfect for little peepers to get excited and find the flaps easily. The repetitive text would be great for older tots to join in with the reading of the story. It also has a great surprise at the end! #nospoilers This will make a great gift for little readers!

Winter A Pop Up Book

David A. Carter is nothing short of an artistic genius! 'Winter' is a fantastic book as a Christmas gift for toddlers. The pop-up illustrations make this simple book an engaging and imaginative introduction to simple winter vocabulary, flora and fauna. I should point out that this book is American and therefore many of the animals featured are US-based, featuring the red cardinal in place of our beloved winter robins. But the pop-ups are incredible! It was hard to keep BookBairn's little fingers at arms length so as to not rip the papercraft, but in the end I decided what could be better than a book that is so irresistible to touch?! I love this book and cannot understate it's brilliance but it's probably not for those with a 'don't touch' policy to fragile objects. But for us, this book is too precious to cherish, it's meant to be loved!

A Christmas Carol

You might think that BookBairn is a little young at nine months old to be approaching reading the classics but you'd be surprised! I recently came across a collection of books called BabyLit written by Jennifer Adams with art by Alison Oliver that make reading the classics so accessible for bookbairns. The BabyLit series is a collection of unique early learning books that uses the original context of the classic text to develop learning on a particular theme, making them far perfect for babies and tots. A 'Christmas Carol' is a colours primer featuring the key elements of the traditional tale. This book is undoubtedly as much for the parents as for the child. The themes and illustrations are clearly directed towards toddlers and their development but the references to the original classic plays to the whims of the parents. This would make a great gift for parents and kiddies alike, after all it's us parents who end up reading the books over and over again!

Christmas A Treasure Hunt

When I first saw this book I thought that perhaps it was too tricky for BookBairn to fully enjoy. I hold my hands up and admit I was wrong. Completely wrong! She loves it! In the introduction, Roger Priddy notes that he has "noticed that babies are fascinated by brightly coloured patterns and endpapers in books" and I can see why; when we read this book that BookBairn is truly captivated. There is no story in this book, it is a seek and find book for little ones featuring photographs of festive treats against the bold backgrounds that Priddy Books do so well! BookBairn will look at the pages over and over, flipping back and forth enjoying the bright colours, she has even started to tap at the little bear hidden on each page, recognising that he doesn't quite fit the pattern.This book is great for little bookbairns to play with by themselves and for older ones to show off their treasure hunt skills by hunting out the odd pictures out! A lovely stocking filler!

Nativity Flap Book

Our final recommendation is Usbourne's 'Nativity flap book'. I wanted BookBairn to have a book in her Christmas collection that told her the story of the first Christmas, familiarising her with that beautiful story of the stable, donkey and baby Jesus. We love 'lift-the-flap' books and they are great for developing those fine-motor skills in wee ones! This book is beautifully illustrated, featuring all the characters from the Bible story and the starry sky scenery and the text has been shortened and simplified whilst still maintaining the key parts of the story. This makes it perfect to keep little bookbairns' attention and engaging them further through allowing them to interact with the flaps. This is a great gift for sharing the traditional Christmas story in a fun way for little ones! We would love it if you followed more of our festive reading as we countdown to Christmas with daily book unwrapping on our Instagram feed. And we would love to know what you will be reading this Christmas time! We are always on the lookout for good book recommendations!  

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Thanks for reading, Mummy and BookBairn x

I Believe, Do you? with Gin or Gym

So December is finally here! Everywhere you go you hear Shakin Stevens wishing Merry Christmas Everyone, and the shops have ditched the sale signs in favour of twinkly lights and sparkly frocks! Homes are full of children scribbling or, in this day and age, typing their letters to Santa, eagerly believing that being good will bring them that longed for pressie under the tree. It kind of got me thinking about belief! That child like conviction that Ol’ Fat ‘n’ Jolly will have got their note and is loading his sleigh with whatever electronic wizardry they tidied their room for. It is such a sweet thing but as adults we often fill our lives full of busyness and lose the sense of magic that imagination can bring, especially at Christmas.

As “grown ups” we quickly lose that belief in Santa, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy usually when someone blabs in the playground or we catch Mum scoffing the choccy eggs. I guess it is a bit like the belief that Mr/Mrs Right is out there! That one person we imagine will complete our lives so we trawl through endless find romance type websites, speed dating and the dreaded blind date, all in bid to find THE life partner. Perhaps it would be easier to be good and drop the man in the red suit a quick text? So what sours the theme that for all of us THE ONE is out there? Having been through some horrendous dates from a guy whose Mum came to pick him up, to another one where Mr Full Of-Himself brought his washing to do while I made dinner, I guess I am just a teeny bit sceptical. I have asked myself many times, if it is scepticism or as one so called gentlemen told me, as he picked his teeth with his knife, that I have too high standards!!!!! Actually it is none of the above because I know my worth and like the children making their case to Santa, I know what I have done in my life to deserve a half decent pressie.

I guess I would rather be “good” for a little bit longer and send that virtual wish up the chimney for Bradley Cooper to come to his senses but in the meantime, it is time to embrace the season. I will cope with putting up my large Christmas Tree on my own, curse at the lights that do not work, try to remember where I put the spare bulbs and electrocute myself as I fix the fuse when the lights blow! At the end of it all, I know I can slob out in my seasonal PJ’s with a wee sherry, a slab of Christmas cake and blub at schmaltzy films. I guess that will be reward for being a (ahem) good girl, so in a way I do still believe in Santa, it is just that my Santa wears jeans, is in her fifties and lives in the West End of Glasgow.

I believe in me!

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Christmas in Glasgow with The Tinberry Travels

It’s officially December and the countdown to Christmas is on. Whether you need some organised festive activities or are just looking for somewhere to soak in the music and lights of the season, there’s plenty to keep you in the Christmas spirit here in Glasgow. Here’s just a few ideas to get you started…

George Square and Glasgow On Ice

Glasgow on Ice in George Square 

Based in the heart of the city, Glasgow on Ice festivities take pride of place in George Square. With the ice rink itself open from midday til 10pm throughout the week and from 10am at weekends, this fantastic winter activity allows visitors to glide around under the George Square Christmas Lights. With specific sessions for under 8s and reduced capacity ​ones for those of us who are more Bambi on ice than Torville and Dean, there’s a place for all abilities on the ice.

If skating isn’t your thing, George Square has plenty more on offer including the festive funfair and Big Wheel, free kids activities every weekend such as Christmas storytelling, arts and crafts and face painting or if you’d rather just relax you can find a nice spot in the cosy Winter Lodge with a festive drink and just watch the skaters glide by.

Festive Films Screening

Frank Capra's It's a Wonderful Life

What better way than a Christmas classic to give you that warm and fuzzy Christmas feeling? Top pick this year is the Glasgow Film Festival’s selection of favourites including It’s a Wonderful Life, A Muppet Christmas Carol and of course Die Hard. Films will be running throughout December.

Santa Dash 

Glasgow's Santa Dash

If you’re looking for a more active way to celebrate the season then why not try the 5K Santa Dash taking place on Sunday the 6th of December. This popular event sees thousands take to the streets in their Santa suits to raise money for charity. The fun run is suitable for all ages and abilities but you’ll need to be quick if you want to be part of the run as applications close on Thursday December 3rd. Even if you’re not interested in running this is a spectacular sight as Santa travels en masses through the streets of Glasgow so make sure to note this one in the calendar!

Glasgow’s Christmas Markets

Glasgow's Christmas Markets 

Christmas Markets have become an integral part of the Scottish Christmas season and are gaining popularity year on year as people search for something a bit different to gift to loved ones. Here in Glasgow, it’s no exception with traders from across the globe setting up shop in St Enoch Square and along Argyle street bringing artisan craftwork and tasty festive foods to Glasgow’s busiest shopping season. This year, the beautiful log cabins will be filled with traditional treats from countries such as France, Germany, Italy and even as far away as Ecuador. Make sure you get yourself down to the Christmas Markets to enjoy the fantastic festive atmosphere and of course a mulled wine or two.

Christmas Carols in the Concert Hall

Raymond Gubbay performing Carols

This year there will be plenty on at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall but carol singing really does add a little magic to that chilly winter air. Why not play time traveller and watch the Raymond Gubbay Christmas Festival Carols by Candlelight. Performers will be donning 18th Century period customs and singing plenty of seasonal classics in evocative candle-lit style to make the whole evening a somewhat Dickensian affair.

If you’d rather get a bit more involved in the festive tunes why not join The London Concert Chorus and Orchestra as they perform their favourite carols and Christmas hits but all as Sing-a-long versions in this audience interactive evening. With everything from O Little Town Of Bethlehem to I Wish It Could Be Christmas Every Day, the group will be looking for an enthusiastic audience when they perform on the 23rd. 

 About the Author

Kirstin is part time traveller with a passion for exploring; whether it's solo adventures abroad or local day trips from her home in Glasgow, Scotland. In recent years Kirstin’s been to Iceland, Canada and the US but previously spent a year in Australia and also lived on Jersey in the Channel Islands for a stint. With a passion for walking and hill climbing Kirstin is also treehugger environmental type and so nature always plays a big part in all her adventures. You can find her travel stories, reviews of days out and plenty of travel related nonsense over on the tinberry travels.

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Baby's First Christmas with More4mums

Hi, I am Lynn Hogg and I blog over at more4mums on all things pregnancy and parenting. I run an ecommerce site offers stylish and affordable clothes and bras for pregnant and breastfeeding mums. You can find me over on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. Please give me a follow and I will follow back. I see lots of mums getting very excited as this will be their baby's First Christmas and they are going all out to make it fabulous. Now this is all well and good but I can tell you now baby won't remember a thing about it !! All this excitement is really for you and the family so try and keep this in mind when planning the festive events. 

1. Routine, Routine, Routine.

I have never been a big fan of "Gina Ford" telling you when to feed, burp and make baby sleep. What we are suggesting is that you stick to what is your own routine. If your baby likes a nap around 12 - 2pm then don't expect a happy baby to be sitting up eating Christmas lunch at that time! This could be a perfect time for you to get your lunch and enjoy some time with friends and family. If your baby is a bit older and can join in the lunch then maybe schedule it for around 2pm after they have had a nap and will be happy and alert. Try and avoid getting baby over tired as they will get grizzly and grumpy . If they just won't sleep then just wrap them up warm and take a nice stroll out†with the pram - maybe a great job to delegate to dad or doting grandparents. 

2. Home or Away

What ever you are planning for Christmas you can be sure lots of people will want to see baby over the festive period. Remember that you don't have to see everyone on Christmas day itself, you can spread the visitors out around the festive period. If you want to be alone with baby and your partner then tell everyone, but be sure to let them know when you will visit or when they are welcome to yours. 

3. Food, Glorious Food

If you are hosting a Family lunch plan ahead and get help where you can. If your mum is a whizz with Crispy Roasties and gorgeous gravy then get her on board to help. Don't be afraid to ask for help and don't feel you have to spend all day in the kitchen and miss out on the fun. If at all possible I would advise getting someone else to do the lunch, you have enough to be getting on with at the moment! If you are Breastfeeding you may want to think about how and where you will feed. Remember to plan your outfit to make it easy to feed discretely - you don't want to have to undress to feed ! A pretty Nursing Top or Nursing Dress would be a lovely Christmas present to yourself and give you confidence. Find a big comfy seat and snuggle in with your baby, don't feel you need to hide away unless you feel uncomfortable feeding in front of others. 

4. Presents

At this age presents are really not high on the agenda. Your newborn baby won't care if they get a present or not and slightly older babies will just love the wrapping paper. We love Not on the High Street as they have a range of lovely, personalised gifts that you will treasure. 

5. Mementos

You will want to remember Baby's first Christmas so think ahead and make sure you take some lovely photos. I love a cute baby outfit so select something for the Christmas photos that you can then keep as a treasure. A family tradition in our household is to buy our children a new Christmas Tree decoration each year and as they get older they will love to hear about each decoration and the celebrations around it. I have even heard that when they leave home they get all their own decorations away to start their own tree. 

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We would love to feature more christmas themed blog posts between now and the big day! If you have any ideas send us an email at scottishbloggers@hotmail.com because we love hearing from you.

Baking Christmas Gingerbread with G is for Gingers

My name is Claire and I blog over at www.gisforgingers.com. My blog is mainly fashion and lifestyle but because I have a real passion for baking I try and do a recipe post every few weeks. I hope you enjoy something a little bit Christmassy (though it doesn’t have to be) I’ve been making this recipe for years so without anymore chat we’ll get on with how to make these yummy biscuits.

Ingredients:

350g of plain flour

1 tsp of bicarbonate of soda

2 tsp of ground ginger

100g of butter

175g of soft brown sugar

4 tbsp honey (or golden syrup)

1 egg (beaten)

Firstly you should sift the flour, bicarbonate of soda and ground ginger into a large bowl then begin to rub in the butter. It should be a room temperature so take it out of the fridge a while before you start. Keep rubbing it together until it resembles breadcrumbs. If you are having trouble run your hand under the cold tap and it should make the mixture easier to work with. Add the sugar and mix well.

Warm the honey (a few seconds in the microwave should do it) and pour it into the bowl along with the beaten egg. Continue mixing until they are well combined.

You should then transfer the dough onto a clean, floured surface and knead it for a few minutes. The dough should be smooth and pliable.

Roll out the mixture to about half a cm thick. Keep the dough and rolling pin floured so it doesn’t stick. Next you get to do the fun part- cutting out the shapes. Here I have used Christmas shapes from IKEA. They are a little tricky to build once the dough has expanded in the oven (nothing a little cutting with a knife can’t fix once they are out the oven).

I hope you enjoy these gingerbread biscuits whatever shape you choose to do. It would also be a great recipe for a gingerbread house. Last year my house was a fail so I would love to see any blog posts about them you’ve done. 

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Enjoy Claire's guest post? She did another one for us back in May which you can read here.

Festive Edinburgh with Miss Lola Lollipop

Hi, I'm Louise, a.k.a Misslolalollipop, a lifestyle blogger based in Edinburgh but I travel a bit for work and love a visit home to Ireland. Edinburgh is, of course, one of my favourite cities in the world which is why I choose to live here. There is no time in the year where you would come to Edinburgh and not think it's great. But, Christmas time may be one of the extra special occasions when Edinburgh shines even brighter than normal. Or should I say glows!



This year the Christmas market was the biggest yet. Spread over two locations, both with ice rinks, one is even circular. Too much fun!!





It does be freezing at the Christmas markets but luckily they sell mulled wine, German sausage and other hot treats to keep you warm on the inside.



And sweet treats.

There are some pretty stalls selling nice gift, for other or for yourself. We all deserve a Christmas treat for the hard work we put into present shopping, in the crowds.

But for me the market stalls would be more interesting if there was local retailers. We have a great community of pop up shops, cafes and restaurants and the market is missing the best Edinburgh has to offer.

The wonderful world of social media let me know that there was more lights on offer, a light projection show on down the Grassmarket. (Edinburgh Spotlight is one to follow if you want to keep up with the goings on in Edinburgh) 

Hey there Mr Elf

The best festivity around Edinburgh this year has to be Edinburgh Secret Santa, the brian child of some of Edinburgh finest creative and community minded motivated folk. Secret Santa grew to over 200 people signing up, being given an elf name, buying a present for your match, leaving it at a drop off place for them to pick up and unwrap on Christmas day, or earlier if your a naughty elf like myself.



Its has to be the funnest thing this December! What an amazing way to reach out into the community. I have no idea who the other Elves are but all the comradery on Twitter has been brilliant. I cant wait to meet them in January at the get together. I picked up my Secret Santa pressie while on my way to have a festive dinner at Alright Treacle, one Edinburgh's tasty supper clubs. This is not my first visit to the Alright Treacle dinner table and this visit was just as beautiful a food experience as the first.

Each course was at take on one of their favourite Christmas songs.

The starter was "Last Christmas" which translates to Duck hearts in tarragon and port, with vegetarian haggis bon bons, candied beetroot, blueberry chutney and sliced fennel. Heart is daring but I actually enjoyed it. 

The main course song was "Rudolf the red noise reindeer". Can you guess what meat it was? Yes it was Venison, Venison wellington served with truffle mash, sprouts broccoli and roast jerusalem artichokes to be exact. Ive never had venison before which I now realise was a silly silly mistake.This dish made my body and soul melt!!



Desert was inspired by "Deck the Halls". This Willy Wonka style creation consists of cranberry sorbet, mince pie ice-cream, Chestnut truffle loaf, a hazelnut cream bauble with a roasted fig.



It was as exciting as it looks and we were all like amazed kids eating it. I do love this city and all the wonders it has to offer. And the best part is that its all year round and not just for Christmas.

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The Gift of Giving Boozy Gifts with The Usual Saucepans

What do you mean you 'don't do' homemade Christmas gifts? I don't care that it's 'only November' and you're not feeling like making stuff; it's time to throw both those ideas out of the window, because today we're talk making boozy Christmas gifts.

I'm not a 'crafter' (although some would say 'crafty', and not entirely kindly), so if I was making Christmas gifts I think people would be justified in mistaking them for the work of a primary school kid; I'm happy to stick what I'll modestly claim to be good at: booze.

OK, so that probably makes me sound like an alcoholic, but be as it may I quite like making interesting drinks, and those who get them as presents are yet to complain either. The best part is that they're all dead easy – the hardest part is being patient enough to wait for it all to settle, then having to give it away!

Each of the following works as a gift in its own right, and it's well worth making a little extra for yourself. They go along the lines of mixing sugar and flavourings then letting them infuse the alcohol slowly – the full recipe for each can be found on The Usual Saucepans on the links included. Judging on what other parts of the internet says, you can leave them for a good three-four months (and I suspect longer) without causing them harm, but none of mine have ever lasted that long.

Christmas is a great excuse for a bit of excess, so whether you're normally one for the home made or not, I suggest you try one or two of these. My one major piece of advice though is watch your base spirit – anything 'too good' would be a waste (you'll over-power the subtle flavours), but if you go too cheap, well let's just say that if you start with paint stripper you'll just end up with paint stripper that has notes of Christmas in it. I tend to use Gordons/Smirnoff red label, but it's up to you.

Limoncello:

Bright and vibrant, both in colour and flavour, limoncello is an excellent gift. I've heard many people say that it's one of those drinks that only tastes good whilst you're on holiday, but I disagree. Serve it ice cold and you can enjoy it all year and anywhere.

Chilli & Lime Gin:

I'm a big fan of all three of those things, but combined they are even better. Both a vibrant colour – I mean, who doesn't want to drink something green? - and warming in taste, this drink is one for the guys who like to pretend they're tough (and anyone else who enjoys a warming gin!).

Christmas Pudding Vodka:

It wouldn't be Christmas if Christmas Pudding wasn't involved somewhere, but if yours doesn't contain enough brandy (not a problem in our family), then why not go to the other end of the spectrum and start with the alcohol and make it taste like Christmas Pudding? This vodka is flavoured by the fruit and spices, it'll be closer to the taste of an actually pudding than you'd think.

Mulled Gin:

We all love mulled wine (don't we?) and most of us are exciting that mulled cider is becoming 'a thing', so why not go the whole hog and mull your gin as well? It's Christmas-y goodness many times over and one which I will be making in an even bigger batch this year, if only to ensure there's a bottle left over for me!

So what are you waiting for? It's time to get your Christmas on and get creating something we'd all love to receive. If you like these ideas and want more Christmas, then please come over to The Usual Saucepans and join in the festive celebrations.

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