< Previous50 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY CHRISTMAS Embroidered Santa & List This is a really pretty hanging decoration featuring a fully embroidered Father Christmas checking the ‘nice’ list! Linen style fabric front, back fabric red with gold printed design, ‘merry Christmas’ ribbon. www.countrystitches.co.uk Victoria Eggs Santa’s Sleigh Christmas Stocking Handmade in Lincolnshire, the beautifully hand illustrated Santa’s Sleigh stocking highlights a magical and nostalgic view of Christmas. The traditional festive legend sees reindeer pulling Father Christmas in a sleigh over a snowy picturesque English town while people go about their Christmas shopping, totally unaware of the magic happening above them. www.victoriaeggs.com Black Cat Nine Lives Tote Bag These Nine Lives gusseted tote bags are screen printed and sewn in Lincolnshire. Featuring a gold screen printed pattern that showcases Bounty the Black Cat’s signature reactions, each bag is made from navy cotton canvas. www.quinnthefox.com Handwriting keepsake bracelet This bespoke silver handwriting keepsake bracelet is a truly personal and heartfelt piece of jewellery. This unique bracelet captures the actual handwriting of a loved one, whether it’s a cherished message from a child or the beloved script of someone who has passed away. Each word and is carefully embossed onto a sleek silver bar made from recycled sterling silver, preserving precious memories forever. www.cocobellejewellery.co.uk LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 51 CHRISTMAS Starry Night Jewellery Collection This celestial collection inspired by the cosmos is far more affordable than it looks, coming in at just £45. Featuring dainty stars and moons, each a meaningful symbol, this collection is sprinkled with real colourful gemstones and infused with cosmic magic and is perfect for someone who might want some seasonal jewellery to be worn for only a short time, without breaking the bank. www.foolsgoldjewellery.co.uk Christmas Village LED Advent Calendar Beautifully detailed wooden village scene with tiny houses, pitched roofs, windows, and pines. Adds an enchanting touch to your festive decor and will capture everyone’s attention. Warm LED lights fit perfectly with Christmas decorations, making this an advent calendar which will also serve as a decoration piece. www.adventcalendarshop.co.uk Funko Pop DC Superheroes Christmas Advent Calendar This advent calendar includes 24 exclusive figures, with beloved heroes and villains like Batman, Wonder Woman, Superman, and Joker, all in their holiday outfits or gingerbread form. A great gift for kids, teens or adult fans of Marvel (or avid collectors of Funko Pop figures). www.adventcalendarshop.co.uk Ex Libris British Library Christmas Jumper Celebrate your love for books and libraries in style with the Ex Libris British Library Christmas Jumper. Made from acrylic yarn, this jumper features a rich olive-green base with soft cream details for a cosy, timeless look. The design features an Ex Libris emblem—Latin for "From the library of"—historically used as a personalised mark of ownership inside books. www.shop.bl.uk 52 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY Oil in South Lincolnshire is available at a fair price and with a reliable service from family run J and J Fuels. We are here to ensure you receive the very best service and at a time that suits you. As member of the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers you can be sure of a safe service every time with quality of product also assured. We pride ourselves on our prompt delivery services as well as our competitive prices. Offering domestic heating oil and farm diesel within a 30 mile radius of Boston. 01205 760 638 Bakers Lane, Freiston, Boston www.jandjfuels.com J & J FUELS BOSTON We would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas 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. 29-31 Mercer Row, Louth LN11 9JG. T: 01507 603230 E: orders@woolliss-butchers.co.uk W: woolliss-butchers.co.uk We would like to wish all our customers old and new a Merry Christmas Christmas orders now being taken tŝƚŚůĂƌŐĞŝŶĚŽŽƌĂŶĚŽƵƚĚŽŽƌƐŚŽƉƉŝŶŐĂƌĞĂƐ͕ǀŝƐŝƚƵƐƚŽĮŶĚLJŽƵƌ ƚƌĞĞƐ͕ƐƚĂŶĚƐ͕ůŝŐŚƚƐ͕ĚĞĐŽƌĂƟŽŶƐĂŶĚŐŝŌƐ͘ We are open for fresh cut and pot grown Christmas Trees from Thursday 28th November to Thursday 19th December 2024 Open 9am to 5pm (Sunday 9am-4pm) /ĨLJŽƵ͛ƌĞƉůĂŶŶŝŶŐƚŽǀŝƐŝƚƵƐŽŶĂǁĞĞŬĞŶĚ ƉůĞĂƐĞĮŶĚƚŚĞůŝŶŬƚŽďŽŽŬŽŶŽƵƌǁĞďƐŝƚĞ͘ ZĞĨƌĞƐŚŵĞŶƚƐƉƌŽǀŝĚĞĚďLJ ͚dŚŝƐ>ŝƩůĞWŝŐŐLJ͛ΘEŽŵĂĚŽīĞĞŽŵƉĂŶLJ &ĂŶĐLJŵĞĞƟŶŐ^ĂŶƚĂ͍ŽŵĞǀŝƐŝƚŚŝŵŝŶ ŚŝƐ'ƌŽƩŽ͕ĮŶĚĂůůƚŚĞŝŶĨŽƌŵĂƟŽŶLJŽƵ ŶĞĞĚŽŶŽƵƌǁĞďƐŝƚĞ͘ ĂƐƚůĞ&Ăƌŵ͕&ŝůůŝŶŐŚĂŵ͕ Gainsborough, DN21 5BX ;:ƵƐƚŽīƚŚĞϭϯϵϴ͕ϴŵŝůĞƐ north of Lincoln) ĂůůϬϭϰϮϳϲϲϳϬϭϰŽƌǀŝƐŝƚ ǁǁǁ͘ĮůůŝŶŐŚĂŵͲƚƌĞĞƐ͘ĐŽ͘ƵŬ 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. LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 53 CHRISTMAS I f Christmas is meant to be nothing but fun and joy, why is it also so stressful? That’s a question that a lot of people seem to gloss over – practically arguing that to even think it in the first place is against Christmas spirit. But what is Christmas spirit really? It differs from person to person. To some, Christmas is more about the religious connections, while others eschew religion entirely and focus more on gift-giving and fun, and then there are those who lean so wholly into the more commercial sides of Christmas that it might as well be a different thing entirely. The truth of the matter is that there’s no one size fits all approach when it comes to Christmas, no matter how aggressively certain groups and political ideologies try to claim it as their own. Christmas is something that belongs to each and every individual, and it’s their prerogative to enjoy it how they wish. That said, being individualistic means that Christmas is as hard work as you make it. There are some who take pleasure in turning their homes into festive lightshows, and just as many who call that same thing garish. There are some who prefer to be tasteful with their decorations, having only a tree and a few pieces around the home, and then there are those who call that half-hearted and not in the Christmas spirit. If Christmas is about fun, however, then it’s worth considering how much work you want to give yourself. Take the Christmas dinner, for instance. Some people enjoy putting it on and showing off, but it can be hugely stressful making it all – and that’s exactly why so many TV adverts for supermarkets are focused on taglines about “taking the work out of Christmas dinner”. That’s also why so many people choose to go out for Christmas dinner instead. Tis the season to be jolly, after all, and there isn’t much jolliness in slaving away in the kitchen or playing monopoly with the grandchildren. Much What is Christmas The answer may seem simple, but the specifics differ from person to person – and perhaps that’s how it should be. Don’t let anyone tell you how you should spend Christmas. It’s your holiday, after all. 55 Á © stock.adobe.com/ Song_about_summerPennells 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 55 CHRISTMAS Win a Christmas Family Celebration Hamper from The British Hamper Company! Celebrate the festive season in style with The British Hamper Company’s Christmas Family Celebration Hamper - a luxurious collection of British artisan treats perfect for a family Christmas. This beautifully crafted wicker hamper, designed for reuse, is packed with savoury and sweet delights to bring loved ones together. Enjoy bottles of Esporao Monte Velho red and white wines, perfectly paired with rosemary & garlic olives, all-butter cheddar biscuits, and sea salt crisps. For those with a sweet tooth, indulge in caramel sea salt fudge, bean-to-bar chocolates, lemon butter shortbread, and a traditional iced Christmas cake. To add a festive twist, the hamper also includes spiced cookies and jalapeño & lime mixed nuts. The sustainable wicker basket makes this gift both a delicious and eco-conscious choice. Enter now for your chance to win this delightful hamper and bring festive joy to your family! Simply send an email to competitions@blmgroup.co.uk with the subject 'Christmas hamper'. Please also include your name in the email. FREE Giveaway easier, and more relaxing, to take the kids out somewhere and let others entertain them, and maybe have a little fun yourself. Easier to have the Christmas meal out, enjoy some find food and not have to worry about preparing it, or cleaning it up afterwards, or having to fight tooth and nail for your turkey at the supermarket - the deli counter at Tesco might as well be a re-enactment of the Battle of the Somme in some cases. It’s worth taking a load off this Christmas and outsource some of the hard work. You’ll have earned it after dragging the decorations out the attic and setting them up and fixing the lights that break every year because you didn’t roll them up properly and shoved them in the box any way they’d fit instead. You’ll probably say you’ll store them properly this year, but you won’t, and that’s fine. It’s part of the experience, and the “experience” differs from person to person, year on year. The same expectations and hard work can be applied to activities and entertainment as well. You could try and keep the whole family entertained at Christmas via boardgames and trivia, but if that’s been done in prior years then it can get boring. When guests are bored, that’s when family feud stops being a game and starts becoming live drama in the living room. There’s so much available to do at Christmas, and very few reasons to believe that they have to be spent locked away at home in a private setting. Christmas used to be a huge street party back before it became this “stay at home, give gifts” phenomenon. In the UK (and across much of the world) people would take to the streets and drink and party wildly, and it only began to change when governments in the US started to fear that this would lead to unrest and riots. As much as that may sound like a conspiracy theory, it’s worth © stock.adobe.com/ LIGHTFIELD STUDIOS 57 Á ¤Å¬é¾úƹÝûÙéäZÄÖĖƴÄĔĕ ÅËAÄÖĜËä¤Å¬ÅÖH䩤¬Bä; û¬Ù#ËäûÅËAÄÖĘƴÄĔėƥĔĕ ¬££HúË ƺäÝé¤é¤ ƺĬaÄÙaƹÝDŽûÝéaǑÝDŽûÅ ƺÝû¬¾Ë)»ÅÝ˾ƹû ûõ©äŬÝÄä ÅÅ飩äŬŠ٬©äÝéô¬¤ËäÝ ©ä¬õûAŬÅéÙ Ù¬©äÙ¬©äÙ ©ä Ù ú¬Ä ¤; ÅÅ ¾¬r A ÝÅˬäéËÙSÅË侬rû¾ÅËä ÝÄäݬ٩ä©äËäŬä¤û¾¾ Ääݬ٩Åݾ¬ÝéÄ£Ëú äû¾¤é©Ý¬©äƤÅ˾û¾¾¤ ¾éäÖÝÝÄäݬ٩¾éÅ ËäÅÙéäÙÝÅˬäéËÙSÅËä¾ ¬ÝéAǑËä¾äݬA ƣÅÝ äݬ٩¤Å¬äÙäÝ»¬»Ƥä¬Ù¬ÖÝÝ Å¬Ë¸ÅÄËƣݬÝÝ¾Ý ÝéËäÅÙéäÙÖéËÙ¤äž Ù¾é£ÙÅËõ¤Å¬õ˾¾Ë#ƣÙ ÙË£Ùä©ä䩤¬Ùõ˾S©äË Ý¾ éËx ÄËä ) äé ¬©a ©ä A ĚĕÅË »ËAÄË٣Ĭ©õËŻ䩤¬Äé ƣÝËäÄ ËäݤŬ©ääÅäÙËÖĬÙËÄÝ© Ý»ÄäNJÅÝË©äݾää ÅË7ÅË侬Aƣ¾¬ÝéÄäËÅÝ¬Ý ÝÅˬäéËÙSÅË侬rû¾ÅËä Aƨ)ƴÝÅË7ÅË侬A A ƺÝ£Ýé¾ÖƹĔęƣĖėǧęĖĔĖûÙéÅ7ęĕûÝÅ ƺÝ£Ýé¾ÖƹĔĔƣěĕǧĘĖĔĖÙÄĜĕÝrƴ ƣäÙäÝ©ä ƣÝÅÝÝ»Ää¬õËÅ»éËx ƣ££¬Ù£Ë¾ÖËÖ©ä£Ëݩݬõ© ƤŤ¬ÖÄ٩䩤éË£ƤûäÙS¾ÅˬäB©Ý¬ä ÙHƣĘˬVÙË˾¾ËÖ©ääô¬;Ƥ»r©ä äéËä¬ÝNJÙ©äÅƣƣƣÝ££Ù¬¤»¬;ƣÝÝéÝ¬Ë ƣä¬äéËÅŤÅË ƤÄ©äû©Ù£ËÝÅÝËÅÝ©Å£ÅËäݬÝÅ ƣÅÝ ÅË侬A Ě r r õ äé ©ä éËx ÄË٣ݻ˸ÝŬäÅËƮ$B,BV xƣÝÝÅ䣣ËõË©Ýõž˩õ ©ääÖÝÙËä©Å©äŬä ääËZ©äÙË£ËËäݩĬää »ËAÄË٣Ĭ©õËŻ䩤¬Äé rLINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 57 CHRISTMAS 1 Decemb6 - 324ber 20 555636 6510 .aralacenew 75 kPmcom Book W!no remembering that those same governments also thought “rock n roll” was satanic and would brainwash children to violence and called up famous rockstars to Congress to accuse them of trying to instigate violence. Before those times, it was Christmas on the chopping block and, sadly, Christmas lost. What was once a party atmosphere about fun and celebration was twisted and changed via the power of mass media into something that espoused families staying at home, cooking turkey, not causing trouble, and staying peaceful. Not because it’s what religious texts asked for, not because it was tradition (it very much wasn’t), but because people in power were scared when large groups of citizens got together. Nowadays, they’re less scared – thankfully – so going out in public and joining a party is more socially acceptable. There are also events that differ om age group, so people with children can enjoy a festive party just as easily as those without. There are always a wide range of such events in Lincolnshire, and you can check our “what’s on” pages for ideas. Given how many days there will be in December where there’s little to do but stay at home, it only makes sense to go out for the rare days when events are available. In fact, since a lot of people go on holiday for Christmas anyway, Christmas dinners are increasingly happening on other days – sometimes before people go away, or after, when they return. There’s very little in the way of tradition © stock.adobe.com/ Татьяна Креминская 58 ÁCHRISTMAS 58 LINCOLNSHIRE TODAY or rules that say you must have a dinner on the 25th of December. It’s just things that have been made up to help sell us products and boost the economy. The more we feel we need to buy, the wealthier other people become, and it’s those people releasing adverts on television all over December trying to convince everyone to make a huge, ostentatious, laden dinner table that probably will only see half of its contents eaten. Outside of the home, it’s pantomime season soon, and even if you’re not interested in that or your children are older, there are many other shows more suited to older audiences, and other experiences entirely. Many towns across Lincolnshire will be putting up their Christmas lights in the latter half of November, transforming streets with festive cheer and (luckily or unluckily depending on taste) carollers and bands will doubtless be playing some favourite Christmas jingles. At a time when many children have spent the last few years cooped up because of the pandemic, the lockdown and everything else, now more than ever is a time to get out and enjoy the freedom and ability to experience Lincolnshire in its fullest. It’s not only more fun than staying cooped up at home, but it’ll save all the stress of keeping everyone entertained as Christmas draws near. © stock.adobe.com/ oneinchpunchLINCOLNSHIRE TODAY 59 FAMILY BUSINESS P eople have always felt an affection for, and affinity to, family run businesses. Their presence harkens back to a simpler time where personal relationships, community values, and a genuine passion for the product drove local traders. When consumers describe family businesses, two of the most common adjectives used are stability and commitment. In a family business, it is natural for all family members to exhibit and express a high degree of commitment to the enterprise. This stems from the fact that the foundation of any family business is based on a shared business vision and identity. Such a level of dedication is rare and challenging to replicate in non-family businesses, as success or failure is rarely so linked to the stability of a family unit. As a result, the family firm’s vision is both consistent and cohesive, paving the way for more extensive opportunities for business growth and continued success. Additionally, this level of commitment fosters a more unified leadership structure and reinforces solidarity among all family members involved in running the business. This sense of loyalty often permeates throughout the organization’s Old business, new ideas Family businesses are an old institution but they’ve started to adopt very new ideas in the last twenty years. 60 Á © stock.adobe.com/Africa StudioNext >