Festive painted pinecones

After a Sunday walk through the woods a few weeks ago, we returned home with bags full of pinecones wondering what to do with them. Before long, we decided to turn them into a festive garland and save any extras for tying onto presents. If you also have pinecones at home, or fancy collecting some, here’s what to do if you’d like to make a homemade decoration of your own.

Pop your collected pinecones into a basin of warm water with a cupful of vinegar and leave for half an hour. This cleans, removes sap and de-bugs the cones; let them dry naturally upon sheets of newspaper.

Mix 4 tablespoons of white emulsion with 500ml cold water. Once the cones are thoroughly dry, dip them into your diluted paint, then put them on greaseproof paper to dry naturally again.

Once dry, loop a small length of twine or string through the top of your pinecones and hang them upon a felt ball garland (you can buy them online or in homeware shops) or tie them onto your wrapped presents for the prettiest of presentation! 

Last orders for Christmas delivery

U.K. Standard delivery: Friday, 20th December | U.K. Express delivery: Monday, 23rd December

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For her, for him, for little ones

How are you getting on with your gift shopping? Still have bits and bobs to pick up? We've been on a bit of a crazy present dash lately, so are grateful for ideas that make it easier. Here are a few ideas of our own; ones we think make great gifts for those closest to you. 

for her

Rosa Cushion (£58)      Candle (£35)      Elegant Lady Serveware (£27-£85) 

for him 

Monogram Tile (£37.50)   Beetle Hankies (Set of three, £15.95)   Geo Notebooks (Set of three, £12) 

for little ones 

Wol Cushion (£50)  Folk Stacking Cups (Set of three, £45)  Woodland Bed Set (£95)

Last orders for Christmas delivery

U.S.A. and Canada: Friday, 13th December

Europe (outside of the U.K.): Friday, 13th December

U.K. Standard delivery: Friday, 20th December | U.K. Express delivery: Monday, 23rd December

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Don't miss our festive Facebook give-away: more, here! 

Our Top 5 Gifts for Cooks this Christmas

Christmas is well and truly on its way and here at Roost Living HQ, we're getting just a bit excited. Especially when it comes to planning all the delicious Christmas food. And as you know we love to cook (almost as much as we enjoy eating it!) and here are our top 5 gift ideas for the cook in your life...

Golden Deer Butter Dish by Fliff, Exclusive £80

Wooden Boards by Bojje from £28

Fruit Bowls by Fliff, Exclusive £85

Artichoke Apron by Thornback & Peel for Roost Living £22.50

Artichoke Tea Towel by Thornback & Peel for Roost Living £12.50

A healthy, happy new year to all

This Saturday, at the strike of a clock, a fresh start arrives; twelve new months for us to explore. Some of us will choose to get fit, to look for a new challenge, or perhaps vow to spend more time with the family.

What will you be promising and how will you be seeing in the new year? However you plan on celebrating, and whatever your resolutions may be, we wish you the very best of luck.

Happy New Year one and all.

A little mood lighting goes a long way

If you’re anything like us, you’ll love nothing more than lighting a candle and slipping into the bath for a little ‘me time’ after a long, stressful day – even more so at this time of year, when overtime and the present dash all too often take their toll.

This is exactly when we turn to Sparrow & Co.’s hand-poured candles – with the strike of a match; the bathroom (or any room!) is filled with the sweet scents of coconut, wood smoke, and vanilla (Camp Fire). Notes of sandalwood, patchouli and leather permeate through the air (Drawing Room), and spicy cinnamon, cloves and orange (December) evoke time-old memories of Christmas.

Each one is wrapped in a gift box and adorned with the handwriting of illustrator Debbie Powell – making them simply too divine not to share, too.

The simplest of statements

As the saying goes, 'less', is invariably so much 'more' - our exact thoughts when we first spotted artisan Shan Valla's collection of minimalist vases.

Each mini vessel takes its inspiration from the patterns and shapes found within handcut glass and crystal decanters. Shan handcrafts them in London, specifically designing them to hold mini flowers. Try clustering them together and dropping in freshly picked blooms from a countryside stroll - we'll be doing just that.

"Plant your own garden and decorate your own soul, instead of waiting for someone to bring you flowers." Jorge Luis Borges, poet.

Gifts for all occasions

Can't quiet believe it's November already? Us, neither!

Heading into the penultimate month of the year can only mean one thing - it's time to start thinking about the gift giving season ahead.

Whether you have a difficult dad, or a mother whom has everything, take a peek through our favourite gift sets - we're sure you'll find just the thing.

For her

For him

For the budding chef

For the tea lover

For the present drawer (just in case!)

For plenty more ideas, head on over to our Gift Sets.

Christmas Collection Sneak Preview

Everyone behind the scenes in the retail world is gearing up for the very busy festive season. I know I certainly am. I've been finding some lovely new products for the Roost Living Christmas Collection. So I thought I would share a few with you...

Above is Reiko Kaneko Reindeer Bauble - capturing the last animal to peer into it - in this case a Reindeer.
These cushions are just divine!!! And I'm selling them exclusively! Handwoven silk by Preeti Gilani, a well known fabric designer. Her attention to detail is just amazing. What a truly inspiring designer. Also by Preeti, her lovely Tote bags and purses and stunning silk ties below:

Mizuyo Yamashita, designer of my best selling Wobbly Bowls, has a wonderful new product - The Paper Cup. Handmade using porcelian. Each cup has a gold butterfly or floral motif detail. They are so so lovely! Would make wonderful Christmas presents, so delicate and elegant!
I'm planning for the Christmas collection to go online in October but please let me know what you think! I'd love feedback. Is there a product you feel is just gorgeous?

And if you do know of any wonderful designers you think would be perfect for Roost Living, do let me know, i'm always on the lookout for great design talent....
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