Featured
Sep 06 2025
Christmas music has a remarkable way of bringing the past into the present. A few familiar notes can instantly summon memories of candlelight services, snowy evenings, childhood Christmas programs, family gatherings, and voices singing together around a piano. Many of the Christmas carols we know today are far older than the recordings that made them …
Dec 16 2024
There are certain flavors that instantly make the kitchen feel like Christmas, and gingerbread is right at the top of the list. Ginger, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, brown sugar, and molasses come together in these soft gingerbread cupcakes for a holiday dessert that tastes every bit as festive as it looks. The finishing touch is a …
Dec 16 2024
Few Christmas treats feel quite as unmistakably British as a warm mince pie. These little pastries have crisp, buttery shortcrust shells filled with rich, spiced mincemeat and finished with pretty pastry stars and a generous dusting of powdered sugar. Set them on a platter beside the Christmas tree and they look as though they belong …
Dec 08 2024
Christmas Eve would be very different without the sound of sleigh bells in the sky. Long after the Christmas lights have been switched off and children have been tucked into bed, Santa Claus begins his most extraordinary journey of the year. His sleigh is piled high with presents, the stars glitter above the snowy rooftops, …
Dec 07 2024
Some of the sweetest Christmas decorations are also the simplest. These DIY circle starburst ornaments turn ordinary pieces of cardboard and colorful yarn into cheerful handmade decorations that look surprisingly pretty hanging from the Christmas tree. The design is wonderfully uncomplicated: a round cardboard base is notched around the edges, then yarn is wrapped from …
Dec 07 2024
There is something wonderfully nostalgic about a Christmas story told in stop motion. Handmade characters, miniature snowy villages, tiny Christmas trees, and carefully crafted sets give these films a warmth that polished computer animation simply cannot duplicate. Some of the most beloved Christmas “claymation” movies are actually puppet-based stop-motion productions rather than literal clay animation. …
Dec 07 2024
Handmade Christmas ornaments have a way of becoming some of the most treasured decorations on the tree. These sweet hand-painted salt dough star ornaments for Mom and Dad are simple, rustic, and wonderfully personal. Made from an easy homemade salt dough, the stars are painted white, edged with shimmering gold, and finished with the words …
Dec 06 2024
There’s something special about a family Christmas movie night. The tree is glowing, everyone is wrapped in blankets, a bowl of popcorn is making the rounds, and for a couple of hours, the busy holiday season seems to slow down. The best family Christmas movies have a little something for everyone. Children get Santa Claus, …
Dec 03 2024
Christmas music does not always need lyrics to create that unmistakable holiday feeling. Sometimes a piano playing “Silent Night,” a warm jazz trio drifting through “The Christmas Song,” or an electric guitar tearing into “Carol of the Bells” can say everything that needs to be said. Instrumental Christmas albums are especially wonderful because they can …
Dec 01 2024
Some Christmas movies are entertaining for a season. Others become part of Christmas itself. They are the films we quote while decorating the tree, put on while wrapping presents, watch with the same people every December, and somehow enjoy even though we already know every scene. But which Christmas movies truly deserve to be called …
