8 Decorations for a Non-Traditional Tree

If you are decorating the tree this weekend take a look at our 8 favourite non-traditional Christmas decorations perfect for a modern and stylish tree...

Copper Handpainted Christmas Baubles, £14.50 for 5, Owl & Otter
These beautiful beech wood decorations have been hand painted in stylish white and copper perfect for adding warmth to your tree.

Brass geometric shape decoration, £4.50 Each, House Doctor at Tate Online Shop
Gold geometric shapes are a great way to add a modern touch to your tree and these decorations by the Danish company House Doctor are available on the Tate online shop.

Hand Drawn Wooden Bauble, £20, Maria Allen Boutique

This personalised bauble allows you to use your child's own drawing on the etched wooden decoration. A wonderful way to store a sentimental memory, it is sure to be one to cherish for years to come.

Bristle Animal Christmas Decoration, From £4.50 each, SMUG
Sweet, fun, handmade bristle woodland animal Christmas decorations, whats not to love!?

Personalised Christmas Wishes Hanging Decorations, £19.95 for 8, Bread & Jam
A beautifully sleek way to personalise your Christmas tree, these glass vials have your own personal Christmas wishes neatly tucked inside.

VINTER 2015 hanging diamond christmas decorations, £3.50 for 5, IKEA

Pastel colours are a great way to give your tree a modern appearance, these diamond decorations available in store at IKEA are beautiful and a great price.

Wooden Cross Stitch Tree Decorations, £12.95 each, Maria Allen Boutique Exclusively at HarrodsThese laser etched wooden Christmas decorations are just some of the decorations we made exclusively for Harrods this Christmas. Visit the full collection in the Knightsbridge store now!




Personalised Opening Glass Proposal Bauble, £25, Maria Allen Boutique
Got a special question to ask this Christmas? Why not do it with a beautiful personalised opening glass bauble. Unusual decoration + unusual proposal? That's got to get you a 'Yes'!

Christmas Gift Guide: For Him

For the second of our Christmas gift guides we turn our attention to the special man in your life. Husband, boyfriend, brother, dad or friend, our gift guide has something for everyone:

From top left: Personalised Wooden Watch, £110, Maria Allen Boutique // Moustache Print, £16 Old English Company // Mono Stripe & Spot Beanie Hat, £13, HYPE // Personalised Wooden Mix Tape Key Ring, £25, Maria Allen Boutique

From top left: Chocolate Cheese Board, £30, Chocolate on Chocolate // London Skyline Chess Set, £80, Skyline Chess // Friday Night Curry Subscription, From £19.95, The Spicery // Personalised Child's Drawing Travel Mug, £35, Maria Allen Boutique

From top left: Millook Crew Merino Wool Jumper, £95, Finisterre // Personalised Leather Wallet, £38.50, NV London Calcutta //  Cube Walnut Wood Clock, £27.99, Gingko // Personalised Wooden Christmas Jumper Cufflinks, £55, Maria Allen Boutique

For more gift ideas visit www.mariaallenboutique.com

Christmas recipes: Baileys Fudge

For this week's Christmas recipe Katie shares her very popular Baileys Fudge recipe:

'I definitely associate Baileys with Christmas and have made this recipe lots of times for friends, family and the team at Maria Allen Boutique. It's so easy and quick to make and people are always really impressed by it!'

Ingredients

500g white chocolate

200ml condensed milk

Baileys 50ml


1. Grease and line your baking tray. Melt the white chocolate over a Bain-marie and add to a sauce pan.

2. Add the Baileys and condensed milk and heat slowly until the mixture has combined.

3. Pour the mixture into the tin and leave to cool. Once the fudge has set cut and enjoy!

7 Ideas For Your Perfect Christmas Table

Decorating the table for Christmas dinner has always been an exciting occasion in my family, the anticipation for the grandest meal of the year never fails to make me feel like a small child again. I'm quite sure that Christmas dinner tastes even better when you are eating it at a beautifully decorated and thoughtful table. Here is my guide to the best table decorations on the market this Christmas:

Glitter
It's not Christmas without a certain amount of glitz, this chevron table runner adds just the right amount of glam to your Christmas table. It looks great over a white table cloth or straight onto a wooden table for a more rustic look.

Chevron sequin table runner, The Sweet Hostess,  £18.00

Personalise
Your guests will be so impressed by the personal touches you have added to the table that they will barely notice that the turkey unintentionally had an extra 30 minutes in the over. These calligraphy place name are laser cut from a choice of three suitably christmassy pearlescent shades of gold, silver and copper. 

Set of 10 Laser Cut Calligraphy Place Names, Maria Allen Boutique, £35

Scandinavian
The trend of Scandinavian minimalism continues to grow and can be easily brought to your Christmas table with evergreen sprigs and light, untreated woods. These wine bottle holders are made from birch plywood and are a beautiful and unusual way to display your table wine!

Penguin & Reindeer Wine Racks, £23 each, Array Collection

Christmas Crackers

Surprise your guests with personalised crackers. These beautifully illustrated crackers are bought empty allowing you to add your own contents to each. You could add your own jokes or turn it in to a fun trivia quiz, whatever you decide to do your guests are sure to be delighted not to receive a plastic whistle or tiny padlock this year!

Fill your own cracker, The Cracker Boutique, £2.95 each

Keep it natural

Some of the best table decorations can be found in the garden. Rosemary, holly, fur sprigs, pine cones and ivy can all be found growing at this time of year and are great to use as table decorations, adding both colour and rusticity to your table.

Wood
Another great material to add to your Christmas table is wood, both natural and warm in colour small wooden decorations will add to the natural appearance of your table. These personalised drinks charms will also help your guests to hang on to their drink, perfect for larger dinner parties or for new years eve.

Set of 10 Personalised Wooden Wine Glass Charms, Maria Allen Boutique, £30

Geometric

A great modern twist on your Christmas table, beautiful coloured crockery can be combined with subtle festive touches, such as white pillar candles, snowflake table confetti and sprigs of holly to create a modern and stylish Christmas table.

Hand decorated Grid Tableware, Lollipop Designs, from £45

For more Christmas table and home decoration inspiration follow us on pinterest now.