Hello, Thank you very much to all our readers for joining us on the blog for another year. We'll be taking a break until January but before then...
An easy and delicious recipe for chestnut hummus
Get-ahead gift ideas – US edition
Hello, Here in Western New York, as small businesses get back on their feet, we encourage everyone to support them by shopping locally when possible, whether in person or online. Wherever you may be, consider purchasing gift certificates for local restaurants, bakeries, galleries, massage therapists, pilates instructors, golf or tennis pros, florists, and farmers…
Get-ahead gift ideas for the festive season, UK edition
Hello, Here on the blog we first posted our suggestions for 'Gifts that do Good' back in 2017. As it already seems to be the time of year when magazines and newspapers are publishing their lists of gift ideas for Christmas, we thought we'd bring you our updated collection, starting with some ideas from…
A Child’s Christmas in Wales – a book recommendation
The Staircase 9 17 Bookshelf choice for December is A Child's Christmas in Wales, by Dylan Thomas (1914 - 1953) It's a nostalgic and funny account of Christmas time in Swansea, south Wales, during the years of Thomas's youth. Here's the description of what happens when there is a fire at the Prothero household:…
Chestnuts and paper chains
Dear Claire, I'm roasting chestnuts as I write - no better tradition at this time of year, when December is almost upon us, the lights are twinkling in the windows and the snow is flurrying. I do miss the chestnut sellers on English street corners and their little blackened paper bags of steaming hot chestnuts.…