Jet2 Christmas, festive fun with local small businesses
Have you ever fancied making candles, shaking cocktails or decorating baubles to get in the festive spirit? I joined a Jet2 Christmas event doing just that and I came away feeling like I’d spent the day in Santa's workshop, ready to put the tree up and break out the mulled wine!
Headrow House for a Jet2 Christmas
Last Sunday I spent a wonderful few hours making candles, cocktails and calligraphy decorated baubles courtesy of Jet2, and it was fantastic. I came away feeling like I’d spent the day in Santa's workshop, ready to put the tree up and break out the mulled wine.
I received the kind invitation from Jet2 to join them at Headrow House for some festive fun and chat about all things Christmas. Meeting a group of new people for the first time can sometimes be awkward to start with but the Headrow House team were quick to put us all at our ease. We had a quick meet and greet with mulled wine and mince pies before launching into the activities.
Golden Hour Co, Leeds
We divided into two groups, and I started with Golden Hour Co for a candle making lesson. The small-business owner Christian led us by the hand (or should I say nose) through the intricacies of top notes, base notes, and other scent-selecting secrets. She was so knowledgeable and made the whole process easy and fun.
We were given a list of scent mixes to choose from as a starter, each named after a city served by Jet2. We could either make a candle with the same scent or switch things in and out and experiment with what we thought might smell good. Christian gave us plenty of guidance around which scents went well together and how they would impact on your mood, these are high quality essential oils after all.
I love the smell of bergamot, so it was an easy choice for me to make, Barcelona it was!
In a bold move, I switched out lemongrass for orange, which Christian said moved the fragrance from being invigorating to something more soothing, I was happy with that. We mixed the oils at the right percentages and then it was time for the pour. Those of you who know me and know how clumsy I am, will be glad to hear that Christian decanted the wax into small chemistry style jars so that we didn’t burn ourselves! Once the wax was safely poured and left to cool, it was lunch time.
The Ox Club, Headrow House
I need to give huge praise to the Ox Club here, the food was absolutely amazing, all cooked on their solid fuel stoves. It was obvious that a lot of thought had gone into the menu, vegans and vegetarians were very well catered. The vegan shawarma was melt-in-the mouth amazing, and my carnivorous counterparts raved about the meat dishes.
If you haven’t eaten at the Ox Club yet, I sincerely recommend giving it a try.
They are taking bookings for Christmas, if you still need to get your Christmas party sorted.
Winter Margarita
What goes down nicely after a delicious lunch?
Cocktails?
Absolutely!
This time Jared, the expert barman, showed us the ropes with a couple of options for the drinkers, and mocktails for the non-drinkers. We had a run through of the equipment needed, and the blends of sweet, sour and citrus that we would be using.
Full disclosure, I was a little too focused in achieving the end result of a ‘winter margarita’ to remember exactly what went into it, but I had a great time. Star anise on the top adds a little flourish, I think that you’ll agree? It was delicious!
Phylecia Sutherland, Handmade Paper
The final activity of the day was calligraphy, well, faux calligraphy to be precise. The incredibly talented Phylecia Sutherland skilfully guided us through the alphabet, where to make the slim upstroke or the thicker downstrokes that make calligraphy so beautiful. She brought the letters to life, and her own writing was absolutely exquisite.
I’m truly envious of Phylecia’s talent for decorative writing, imagine how beautiful her wedding stationary must be, handwritten on her own handmade paper. The paper that she makes is of archive quality, she has a vision that her wedding stationery is a keepsake to be treasured and handed down through the generations, isn’t that a wonderful idea?
Today though, she was tasked with helping a roomful of absolute beginners create beautiful Christmas messages on baubles and gift tags and then judging which was the best. The lucky winner received one of Jet2’s famous winter breaks for two people!! (Sadly it wasn’t me!)
Feeling full and gloriously festive, we ended the day there. I couldn’t have felt more Christmassy if I had spent the day wandering around a Christmas market, with gluwein and roasted chestnuts!
There are links below if you want to check out any of the activities you’ve read about today, and also if you’re feeling like you’d like to go the whole hog and get totally festive follow the links to Jet2’s Christmas Markets and see what takes your eye, I’ve popped a couple of other Jet2 winter holiday ideas on the list too, y’know, just for a bit of inspiration.
Thanks for reading!
THE DETAILS
This was a PR event. I was invited by the Jet2 free of charge in exchange for an honest and frank article. All my opinions are my own and in no way have they been swayed by their kind invite. Girl About articles are always 100% honest. We only publish posts that, for the most part, are positive.
Phylecia Sutherland images reproduced with permission
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