< PreviousPennells Lincoln Newark Rd, South Hykeham, Lincoln, LN6 9NT Tel: 01522 880033 Pennells Cleethorpes Humberston Rd, Cleethorpes, N E Lincs, DN36 4RW Tel: 01472 313600 Pennells Sleaford London Rd, Silk Willoughby, Sleaford NG34 8NY Tel: 01529 304970 CHRISTMAS DECORATIONS | GIFTS | LIGHTING | TOYS & GAMES | FOOD OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK* *excluding New Year’s Day, Easter Sunday, Christmas Day, & Boxing Day For more information visit: www.pennells.co.uk Explore our magical Christmas displays & see what each of our Gardeners Restaurants has to offer!LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 51 CHRISTMAS With more and more people staying home for Christmas, family dinners – or a Christmas party with friends – are becoming more ubiquitous. Throwing a good one means more than just serving food and drink, however. W e’ve all been there. We’ve been invited to a Christmas dinner with friends or family, show up, have what is essentially a Sunday roast with a little more variety than usual, pull on some crackers, tell bad jokes from them and then retire to watch TV re-runs of old Christmas classics. It’s the quintessential Christmas lunch, but quintessential does not mean quality – and there’s more to throwing a successful Christmas dinner for friends or family than food and drink. Aside from some food options that are more “christmassy” than usual, everything served at the table could be served at any other time of the year. If you want to create a real Christmas feel, you need to delve deeper and work a little harder. Throwing the perfect Christmas bash © stock.adobe.com/Syda Productions 53 Á52 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY CHRISTMAS PON PR S:NSORED BY YYROUDLLINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 53 CHRISTMAS Decorations and lighting If we’re relying on more than food to evoke Christmas spirit then atmosphere must be considered. Otherwise, it’s just going to feel like a family dinner. Consider first the décor but look further than a tree and tinsel – those are less likely to be in a dining room in the first place. Instead, consider the table. Obviously, there needs to be room for food and drink on it, but is there room for some decorative pieces? A few scattered pinecones, sprigs of holly and lit candles can offer an air of decadence and theme. Speaking of candles, it’s worth going with a meal by candle-light if possible, mostly because LED and electric lights can create quite a harsh glare. Candles provide warm light, usually in a softer glow that not only makes for a relaxing mood, but which will also make the food look better. When looking for candles, a quick cheat can also be to grab a few scented candles with Christmas fragrances – just be careful to only use a few for that, as you may have a lot of candles to light a medium-sized room and you don’t want it to reek of Christmas. A few here and there, as people come in, can immediately give off a Christmas feel, however. Create a feast for both the eyes and the nostrils. As for light levels, less is more in many cases, as a warmer atmosphere will make for cosy feelings. If you want to create a memorable theme, it can be a good idea to avoid any cheap supermarket cheats in this regard. Tinsel decorations, paper-thin Christmas hats and cheap light-up trees are marketed solely to try and eke money out of people, but they rarely look good. You don’t need to buy plates and decorations that can only ever be used once a year either. Take the time to look for natural shapes and materials – wood and bronze, for instance – and go with © stock.adobe.com/Irving Sandoval 55 Á54 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY CHRISTMAS natS 30.9 30.9 8 N2 S teekicid TdTdanr )ati & Srr d (F30..m t0atr nu m s & Srhu 0pm Ths( o 7 o 4pmm trn) ember T ce 0am oember tvoo 1 ND :k r 2c ) 42024 yehlgruB gnihopps y a toEnj ias FChristma tae y encxpperi gical g e mmyluatr ri he ooB isaaotor ssnanI hguBr naavAdv ud t t A inek onl epheedue o hehsnuuse fdRyerTeHhor eee d tlCl S e s for t nhhhitionwiacotngCommiet ncol e Lindr heA oma ht oSe,souy Hhld gk f ae p t re e y | Fg onooncebyrpr nsh kin rea5 y1- Fnlkin 5dlih10 Ct £d £l5 (3a3 iceall HoaHsp YJ39EPeirh s) E LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 55 CHRISTMAS f !emimotnaP t cef-rruP nilkcubhsawS ,laciret-ssiH w eNehT Chris Moreno in association with the Grimsby Auditorium S29D2029DS29D20S7 f ds RichareithKectore oodoapherae achlannne MacL A rre enoe eeeWritten & Directed by Chris Mor Associate Poducer ChoreogrThomas W Musical Dir BOOBBFFCCCCJJSSBBSJCCFBO$ ! g n , & e E m m e r d a da SIR l L H L A C SO iaia M R F E F !! o l ooll AA‘f r f S t a S o l l A lll G l NADNIT o RISLEAM dd n a m e ra lluu po p y p B a c k b d e m a caMET n LNALHCATOLRAH EGDOHEU C S m present 02424 <:@ ! !-* !,* 024024 f rr a t e e r t nn oii aannoorr oo & CC t io S t r e e t S tt t slllleBwoBBy TTOAMA a E B N r f Sun 29 Dec 20un 29 Dec 2Sun 29 Dec 2-Sun29Dec20Sat 7 at 7 ==FOF9<?KKKEFJI<GE@K@J@M ! bl%^if%dl`ifk`[lXXYjd`i^ *''''*''*' JJ<::88J<C8JGLFI> *''''*''*'<:@==FOO9F & p 8 Sat 7 f nerrawzttiiFyF SKRALCSO d N d tatRnReeu RPENNAI Q TSS Q E earthy tones of green, brown and red, all of which are very thematic colours for Christmas. The musical score Christmas music can be polarising, and with good reason. Walk into any store in the UK and you’ll be blasted with oldies that have been traditional Christmas filler for decades now. The problem is that the songs are growing older and older, and not everyone is as thrilled with them. “Last Christmas” by Wham! is from 1984, and that’s before even I was born. “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is from 1944, and it’s growing increasingly less common to 56 Á © stock.adobe.com/Anjelika Gretskaia56 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY CHRISTMAS Horncastle Cake Art & Hobby House Everything for the Christmas Crafter Cake Decorations, Knitting, Crochet, Felt, Ribbons & more www.horncastlecakeart.co.uk 25 North Street, Horncastle, Lincs. LN9 5DX Tel: 01507 525926/522659 17 Market Place, Louth, LN119PD info@striacroft.co.uk 01507 604029 www.striacroft.co.uk Family Jewellers Established in Louth Since 1979 Large selection of Diamond, Gold & Silver Jewellery Nomination Retailer Agents for Citizen, Iron Annie, Zeppelin, Lorus & Kronaby Watches Pre Owned Rolex & Omega Watches Jewellery & Watch Repairs. Woolliss & Son Butchers –– AWARD-WINNING LINCOLNSHIRE BUTCHERS –– LOOKING FOR A TOP QUALITY BUTCHERS IN LINCOLNSHIRE? Look no further, we have a proven track record when it comes to providing top quality cuts of meat and home made pastries at a competitive price. We are proud of our locally sourced produce and our 5 star hygiene rating. Christmas orders now being taken find people alive from that age. There are plenty of modern retakes on old classics but consider also what music your friends and family generally like. The priority should be on them enjoying themselves rather than being forced to accept Christmas songs they may have heard in every supermarket and shop for the last two months, so keep that in mind. With YouTube and Spotify and such, it’s easy now to look up festive songs that are a little less common and make a playlist. They’ll still have the theme but won’t be as over-played as Christmas Rock and Santa Baby. A lot of those songs have been ruined for a lot of people just by the sheer number of times they’ve heard © stock.adobe.com/Monkey BusinessLINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 57 CHRISTMAS them, and you don’t want your family get-togethers to evoke the feeling of a supermarket. Don’t play it all too loud, however. The music should be background accompaniment for conversation and chatter, not something to drown people out. In an ideal scenario, it will hardly even be noticed. Fun and games Christmas gatherings are meant to be a time for fun and activity, which is why it’s commonplace to bring out boardgames. Many people do away with this, seeing it as childish and wondering why we play them at Christmas but never at any other point in the year, but that’s kind of the point. Leaving aside the religious angles (most of which are ignored anyway in a lot of these parties), the main priority of Christmas is to have fun. Boardgames that involve a lot of talking and gesturing are popular for this – games like Charades, Pictionary, and word games like Taboo. Anything where people can be encouraged to talk and get excited and involved. Avoid games like Monopoly – a true and tested way of making people both bored and angry – but also avoid games that force everyone to be quiet as dice are rolled. The point of these games is to evoke laughter and chatter, to keep people’s moods up and get them relaxing and having fun. While rolling dice and making complex decisions can be fun, they’re less so when you have people of all ages and personalities playing in one go. On that note, keep in mind the age of attendees, especially if children are involved. Certain games are better for them – and a lot of trivia games for adults rely on references young children will have almost no hope of getting right. These are often pop or movie questions from before they’re even born, which will hardly feel fair or fun to them. Instead, have a look for games where all ages can play – Pictionary is a good example. © stock.adobe.com/iubomir58 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY COUNTY MOTORING Sustainable Hyundai KONA LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 59 COUNTY MOTORING The focus of this month’s motors is exciting new developments in EVs, which are fast becoming popular – and affordable – on our roads. Hyundai KONA The Hyundai KONA/Hyundai KONA Electric emerged victorious ahead of big-selling models from some of the country’s most established mainstream manufacturers to take the award for Best Compact SUV at the 2024 Business Car Awards. Since arriving in showrooms in 2023, the Hyundai KONA and Hyundai KONA Electric have proven to be a major hit with media and customers alike thanks to their winning blend of futuristic design, excellent cabin comfort and advanced tech. The KONA was immediately crowned Auto Express Car of the Year, and further success has followed in 2024 as it was named Medium Car of the Year at the Company Car and Van awards, while the KONA Electric was hailed as the number one electric car on sale by the Telegraph and earned another Auto Express accolade as Best Small Company Car. Next >