Maubles.

I love this time of year. Everyone I know knows that I am mad about decorations, in particular, baubles.

I've hardly bought any new ornaments this year... Well, I get told off if I buy more. I do have five big suitcase sized boxes, each with a different colour colour collection, after all. In fairness though, they're usually bought when the sales start, and tucked away carefully for another year.

I confess to buying a couple including these rather beautiful 2 for 3 gems I discovered hiding in Marks & Spencers. And yes, that is a big handful of loose sequin stars floating round in there!

(UPDATE: It was kind of lucky I did - apparently people go MENTAL in the sales- there were NONE left when I went out the day after Boxing Day! I mean seriously, the shelves were literally empty and Marks and Sparks staff were dragging empty units out!)

Ooh, and these were another bargain at 50p for a box of 12.

I mean, yeah, they're only plastic, but they're nice space fillers in bright metallic red and matching glitter red, which go well with my black and red theme this year.

Your "icicle" bauble is traditionally glass or crystal (and I confess, I have got some long glass ones in silver sparkle tarnish stashed away somewhere!) and I don't normally buy plastic - but seriously, they're actually pretty nice. I bet you wouldn't have known if I hadn't told you!

Pastafarians have the fortune of having one of the longest festive seasons of all religions, going throughout December AND January - and believe me, I have been making the MOST of it. First of December, these suckers went STRAIGHT on our £3.50 summer bargain jet black tree along with some cherry globe LED lights.

Funky!

The "onion" is one of my favourite bauble designs; a cheeky hat tip to the old school teardrops. Suddenly, surprisingly, they have become very much in vogue this year.

Yes, it does have a spiked base under that wide bell and there's something very... sexy about this shape, especially when it's been crafted in this darkly lustrous red glass. Opaque, glossy, decidedly metallic under the deep red glaze, it has a certain sense of class!

I've always preferred glass baubles for the craftsmanship that goes into them, and for their fragile, fleeting nature. It adds to the preciousness for me, knowing that once they're gone, they're gone!

Actually - I think I have more baubles than items of jewellery for myself...

Worth it.


And then sometimes, you find something that's just deliciously tacky. Alright, I know I said I prefer glass baubles, but you don't find quite so many peculiar glass ones in funky designs, and c'mon, you can't deny it in all honesty - that's just adorable, isn't it?!

After all, it's the perfect counterpoint to the very grown up, sensible "Onions" - they were so kooky, I couldn't resist; especially when they were on sale at 99p for a box of four!

The rest of the black tinsel tree was decorated with some space filler gloss plain black baubles and matching glitter ones to add a subtle dimension to the reds, sparkly silver stars decorated the room, and my summer bargains provided a nice surprise...

Those ones are clear roundy onions - that pop open in half. Luckily, it happens to be that Thornton's Cherry Kirsch chocolates come in red metal foil and are the perfect size to pop just the one in the middle of each little bauble.

Chocolate baubles with a difference!