Well, there’s no point asking what you have been doing. But we do understand – sometimes life gets away from us, we think we’re in mid-November with bags of time ahead of us to write Christmas cards and organise monogrammed presents for our godchildren, and then suddenly, apparently without warning, it’s the 20th of December, and nothing – literally nothing – has been done.
There are two approaches facing anyone in this predicament. One involves deciding it’s far too late, and you’re going to introduce your children to the tradition of Thai takeaway for Christmas dinner followed by a whole tin of Quality Street (after all, nothing says Christmas like the preferred confectionary of Saddam Hussein – yes, he really did love a chocolate toffee finger.) The second is to recognise that, actually, in as little time as maybe half a morning – and without necessarily spending a fortune – you can pull Christmas out of the bag, even at the very last minute. We’re here to help with the latter.
You can breathe a sigh of relief and forget the former; Royal Mail is notoriously cavalier about delivering letters and thus you’ve totally missed your chance for real cards – though you could consider doing as Alidad has done and send e-cards via Paperless Post, while making a note to write proper letters to your great aunts in the New Year.
It's a little risky to send a present through the post at this point – but there’s always Amazon, who conveniently stock gingerbread houses in kit form which are the ideal last minute present for just about anybody, and come with interiors credentials; Sibyl Colefax & John Fowler joint Managing Director Emma Burns’s family has a competition every Christmas to see who can make the best one. Otherwise vouchers or subscriptions services are gifts that keep on giving, and do ponder theatre tokens, especially as so many of our playhouses are struggling financially and facing significant Arts Council cuts.
For people you’re going to see in real life you’ve got more choice. Museum and gallery shops are a treasure trove (and probably more bearable than Hamley’s or Selfridges two days before Christmas), and you can feel smug in the knowledge that in buying from them, you’re again helping cultural institutions that are still in post-Covid recovery. There are prints, art materials and stocking fillers galore, by way of fridge magnets, Christmas tree baubles and, at the Royal Academy of Art, ceramic fruit which also make a lovely table decoration (see below.)
If you live in splendid rural isolation, and the only stocking-filling option is your local Spar, theme the foodstuffs around a recipe; collect sugar, sweetened condensed milk, flour and butter, and Christmas morning can start with the observation that “Father Christmas must have thought it would be fun to make millionaire’s shortbread.”
Finally, remember that presentation is as important as the present; in a recent issue of House & Garden, Decoration Editor Ruth Sleightholme has demonstrated effective wrapping ideas, using materials from the recycling bin and home office stationary supply cupboard.
The Christmas tree, of course, is the big one; firstly, know that by continental standards, you’re actually not behind - most Germans and Austrians don’t get a tree until the 23rd, and don’t decorate it until the 24th December. Secondly, this being the UK where many families put their tree up in November, by leaving it so late you will potentially have scored yourself a bargain. There’s already a healthy sale on artificial trees and lights at Homebase, and 50% off real trees, while they last. John Lewis has also got a sale on artificial trees, while if you want a tree delivered, Pines and Needles still have stock – and a variety of special offers.
Then you just need to get your decorations out of the attic – or, if you’ve just moved house and can’t find the box, think about other options. Philip Hooper, the other joint Managing Director of Sybil Colefax & John Fowler, believes in leaving trees bare, “as nature intended.” If, however, you’d prefer something a little more festive, a lot can be achieved with fairy lights and red satin ribbon (available in the wrapping section of WH Smith, and many other shops) tied in bows.
Tree aside, foliage will always look good, and can be foraged for, even in London – just check the bylaws and country code of your intended patch before setting out with the secateurs, no one wants to get nicked for nabbing holly.
Consider the table – while remembering that you don’t need matching place sets and runners to create a vision of beauty. Our late Queen’s preferred approach was simply to stick a poinsettia in the centre (a plant currently available from literally every supermarket in the land.) Designer and antiques dealer Jermaine Gallacher recommends buying a length of natural calico, which is 99p a metre from most fabric shops (he recommends a trip to Shepherd’s Bush Market to get “the most bang for your buck”) and painting it. And Emma Burns creates a sense of plenty by scattering tangerines, walnuts and chocolate coins down the centre (also all available at Tesco’s/ Sainsbury’s/ Morrison’s etc.) They get eaten, of course, which is satisfying.
Finally, and if nothing else, a mass of candles, and Christmas music piped through your speakers, will create seasonal atmosphere in abundance.
One year, when my son was being treated for cancer (he’s recovered) and we didn’t want to jinx Christmas by pre-planning it (there was a high chance of our spending it in hospital) we set off to Borough Market early on Christmas Eve with no fixed idea of what we’d have, and came home with the most delicious venison sausages for supper that night, duck breasts which we prepared à la Yotam Ottolenghi for lunch on Christmas Day, and a glorious assortment of vegetables, cheese and cured meats. It’s become our annual tradition (and hugely cuts down on the panic of planning and booking supermarket delivery slots - though if you are in a supermarket, do buy some extra tins and drop them at the Foodbank collection point.)
Turkey aside, much of Christmas is about the food that comes on the side, including the cakes, puddings and biscuits - the gingerbread, the stollen, the mince pies and the chocolate roulade - all of which can be bought or baked by you (especially if you’ve put the ingredients in stockings.) And crackers; crackers make any meal feel like Christmas.
“What is most important over the whole period is the togetherness,” says Henriette von Stockhausen of VSP Interiors wisely – and this applies to whoever you are spending Christmas with, whether it’s family, friends, or your dog. “It’s when we take the time to slow down, and that’s what makes it special,” she continues. So bake with your children, go for a wintery walk before curling up for a Christmas film or ten, get out the board games and puzzles, and channel Dr. Seuss’s The Grinch Who Stole Christmas in the realisation that “Christmas doesn’t come from a store.”
