Design Dilemmas

Episode 88. Festive party spirit this week with my favourite three after dinner Christmas table games complete with rules and health warnings. Plus eight top quiz card games in the Sunday Niche Edit.

We are less than two weeks from the big day and, as per previous years, I have realised that there is quite frankly no point in me writing about anything to do with interiors for the next fortnight as no one is interested in anything but festivities. My Design Dilemma inbox is dilemma free; there is no one to discuss room layouts or tiling issues with as they’re all off wrapping presents, drinking Baileys and eating mince pies whilst watching Christmas films. Talking of Christmas films, I rushed to watch Tinsel Town with Kiefer Sutherland and Rebel Wilson as it was filmed in Yorkshire - in fact, I’d seen The Dubliner pub in York festooned with greenery mid Summer so had been waiting for it to come out. I will discuss further in Wednesdays List Of Joie, but suffice to say that Rebel looked like she wanted to be somewhere else and I doubt I will be able to look at Kiefer the same ever again.

This Christmas will be a different one to usual as it’s the first as a family of four and not five on the day so we are heading South to our extended family to celebrate, starting at my Mums where she’s making Christmas lunch for the first time since my Dad died 17 years ago. Yes, a momentous event indeed but I am sure she is up for the job. Boxing Day we are at my in laws for a day of fun and games and then the day after, the kids and I are boarding a plane to Miami, baby. I cannot WAIT. Honestly, I can’t. We know nothing about Florida and have never been so it’s a whole new experience and we are MORE than ready for it. The boys have already booked rounds of golf; Ella and I will be checking out the beach and the Design Districts and the idea of having nothing to do is a DREAM. I’ll be taking notes the whole time to report back to you, however, obvs.

I am feeling, weirdly, emotionally drained at the moment in the same way as I felt after I had my last chemotherapy treatment when my body literally went WTF with relief and collapsed for a bit. It’s been quite a stressful few months and I am now feeling as though things are starting to become normality once more, so it’s a bit like I am breathing a huge relaxed sigh and basically want to sleep a lot. I’m finding a lot of joy in the house coming together into a proper family home and could spend every single evening on the sofa eating party food with a glass of wine for the whole of December if forced. Or not even forced. Yes, I have events to go to but honestly? I would be equally happy just relaxing on my newly out of storage Togo in PJ’s with a mince pie. It’s the little things, hey?

But ANYWAY, back to festive merriment and I am always online over Christmas on Instagram Stories sharing what I’m doing and there is one thing that I always asked to explain and that’s the game Sixers. We play it multiple times with multiple family members and EVERYONE always looks forward to it. It’s ridiculously easy, cheap to play and extremely good fun. So this week, I am once again giving full instructions so that you can play it too, plus two other games that we play at the table after dinner that are equally fun and don’t require a board. Be warned, they are very competitive and may incur injuries. Plus the Sunday Niche Edit is covering Christmas table card games that get everyone talking and into the festive spirit.

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