For our friends down under Christmas falls slap bang in the middle of the summer. This means one thing; it’s going to be very, very hot!

Obviously the scorching hot weather plays a big part in a traditional Australian Christmas, but you might be surprised by some of the traditional British customs that are a part of their celebrations in the glorious sunshine.

Decorations

As there’s such a strong European influence in Australia you’ll find that a lot of their traditional decorations are similar to ours here in Britain. Christmas trees are decorated with baubles and tinsel and lights are put up on the outside of houses. You’ll even find that most Australian Christmas cards feature snowy winter scenes instead of a sun glazed landscape.

Gifts

Christmas gifts are exchanged in Australia on the 25th of December just like in any other country. Friends and family gather round to swap presents after Santa Claus has stopped off in Australia on his Christmas Eve gift-giving tour of the world.

Food

No matter where you’re celebrating Christmas food is always going to be an important part. You’d think that on a hot day the last thing you’d want to do is sit down and tuck into a thick slice of roast Turkey served with all the traditional trimmings, but this is exactly what a lot of Australians do. Other popular Christmas meats include chicken, duck and honey-glazed ham.

If this similarity is a disappointment you’ll be relieved to know that a healthy proportion of Aussies prefer to have a barbecue on Christmas Day instead. This could be set up in a local park, down at the beach or just in the back garden. More seafood is eaten over the Christmas period in Australia than at any other time of year, so shrimps will always find their way onto the barbecue.

For desert it’s back to the traditional. Mince pies, heavy Christmas fruit cake and chocolate logs are all eaten to celebrate the season.

Entertainment

This is probably where traditional British and Australian Christmas celebrations differ the most. In Britain it’s cold, so most people tend to turn the heating up, or light a fire, and stay indoors. In the afternoon families often gather round the television to watch the year’s specials, and let’s not forget the Queen’s Speech!

The speech is broadcast in Australia, but a lot of people prefer to head out and make the most of their days off work in the sunshine. Some locals go for a family walk in the countryside whilst others play a spot of cricket in the back garden but for tourists in Australia there’s only one place to spend Christmas Day…the beach.

In recent years it’s become a tradition for tourists in Sydney to head down to Bondi Beach on Christmas Day. In fact each year around 40,000 people set foot on the sand over the course of the day. I can’t imagine Skegness attracts quite so many visitors on the 25th of December.

Sport

In Britain thousands of us head off to football grounds around the country on Boxing Day. It’s a big day for sports fans in Australia too, as every year since 1950 a test match has been played on the 26th of December at the MCG in Melbourne between the Austrian Cricket Team and a visiting international side.

About the Author:

Mike H loves the festive season. In fact he wishes it could be Christmas every day! He works as a copywriter for Find Me A Gift, where you’ll find great Christmas gifts for all your friends and family.

During the festive period, one thing that has people split right down the middle is gift buying. Some people relish the thought of scurrying round the shops from October at the latest, trying to find that perfect gift for a loved one, whilst others abhor the idea of spending Christmas Eve frantically rummaging through bargain bins for a barely adequate present. There is, however, another way to go about this yearly ritual, and that is via personalised gifts. For those who have everything or seem to want nothing, why not try these out for size?

• A simple one up first, chocolate. Although it might not sound like much of a special gift, it certainly beats an off the shelf tin of sweets, especially if you take some expensive chocolate to a chocolatier and have a message written on it. Fairly cheap and easy to pull off, there isn’t far to go wrong here.

• Personalised mugs, t-shirts, caps, dressing gowns, you name it, you can probably have it personalised. Again, getting something like this sorted out is particularly easy, but means a lot more than just the gift in its standard form.

• Drawings, paintings and other general arts and crafts projects by little ones might sound like a cop out, but framed and presented right make a great gift for family members, and in their own way are priceless. It’s also a good reason to get involved with the kids with a fun activity over the Christmas period

• If you really want to break the bank for someone this year, why not give the gift of a personalised number plate? The effort and expense increases tenfold compared to some of these other ideas, but the gift itself is difficult to beat. Just remember to go through all the necessary procedures, even if the red tape seems to be never-ending.

• To finish, a digital photo frame or photo displayer is a fresh take on a classic custom gift. Upload the required photos to the frame and watch it display them in order, or at random in a slideshow, so your loved ones will never get bored of looking at the same photo again.

Have you never browsed through a selection of beautifully adorned personalised baubles? They are a thoughtful and charming little gift for any newly-weds or anniversaries. There’s a large variety of baubles to choose from with each and every one of them able to be unique.

Typically a Christmas ornament, baubles are simple yet classy decorations that everybody can enjoy. Their plain spherical surfaces proffer a huge potential for a variety of designs to be prescribed onto them. Baubles are delightful gifts for momentous occasions at any time of the year but make gifts for weddings nearer Christmas time even more perfect.

If you want to make a bauble for yourself or for others, browse through them and imagine the delights of having limitless options for special occasions. When personalised baubles are made of precious bone china it makes them truly exquisite presents to be treasured for years to come.

For couples, you might choose the simple Fabulous Couple bauble or the ‘Mr and Mrs’ Bauble. The couple’s names are inscribed on the front with a picture of a bride and groom outside a church. There is also room for your own personalised message on the back, spreading over 4 lines.

The Wedding Keepsake Christmas Bauble is perfect for weddings near Christmas time. It’s a great ‘first Christmas as a couple’ gift which is sure to give a smile to your loved ones’ faces. You can add the wedding date as well as the couple’s names on the front of the bauble, with a picture of a bride and groom. There is also space for 80 characters over 4 lines worth of your own irreplaceable message on the reverse.

You can find personalised baubles for male and female civil partnerships. A wonderful new way of celebrating love, a bauble can be kept forever and be used annually to commemorate any partnership. Some male baubles have two grooms on the front in adorable tuxedos and top hats, with the special date and their names arching across the top and bottom of the picture. Female baubles have the brides in wedding dresses and love hearts dotted around, with their names and date designed the same way as the others.

Personalised baubles are not only for the bride and groom. We have bauble designs for Flower Girls, Page Boys and Bridesmaids, giving more people reasons to celebrate and take something special away.  They are distinctive ways of showing appreciation by giving them their own little treasures to keep forever.

With the advantage of having personal names, dates and messages you can even use the baubles as unique and memorable wedding invitations. There are many ways of showing love, appreciation and commemorations. Why not add a touch of Christmas cheer to your special date, or for others, with personalised baubles? Picturesque with a certain charm that has lasted for centuries, baubles are adorable treats that enhance any celebration. A personalised bauble is the ideal way of celebrating two fabulous occasions in one simple but beautiful package.

 Joan writes for personalisedgiftsshop uk where you will find a wide range of personalised gift ideas.

This year lots of people are on a tight budget which means that there will have to be a few Christmas cut backs. However there are lots of things you can do in your home to create a Christmas atmosphere without having to spend a fortune on decorations.

The most important element of a Christmas home is of course the tree. Most people opt for a fake tree rather than the real thing and you can easily find a tree that looks very realistic and will last a lifetime if you pack it carefully at the end of the season.

However if you want something a little more unusual that will barely cost you anything why not have a go at creating a Christmas branch. You will need to find a reasonably sized fallen branch with no leaves on it. You’ll need your branch to be as dry as possible so find it a few weeks in advance and then store it in a warm dry place.
Then paint your branch with white emulsion paint and leave to dry. Once it’s dry place some clay or sand in a pit and insert your branch so it stands upright. You can then wrap fairy lights around your branch. You can use whatever fairy lights you’ve already got but white ones look best.

If you can’t live without a tree you could decorate it with home- made treats like gingerbread men. Gingerbread men are one of the simplest biscuits you can make. All you need is flour, sugar, eggs, butter, golden syrup and ginger. You can also find biscuit cutters in lots of fun Christmas shapes. Cakescookiesandcraftsshop.co.uk has an extensive collection. You cookies can be decorated using anything you want such as candied peel, hundreds and thousands and edible silver balls. They look great and are perfect for making with the kids.

Creating a cosy atmosphere is a good way to give your home a Christmassy feel. You could choose some scented candles in tealight holders which will give a gentle flickering glow when lit and remind you just how glad you are to be indoors. You can buy candles with Christmas scents like cinnamon, orange and ginger.

Although it will take a bit of time you can make an amazing Christmas wreath with just a coat hanger, some ribbons, scraps of material, newspaper and sticky tape. First bend your coat hanger into a circle, then cover it in newspaper to make a sausage shape all the way round the wire (you can use the sticky tape to secure it). Nest cut all your ribbons and material scraps to the same length, around 8 cm is fine. Then tie your ribbons and scraps around the hanger until the whole thing is full. Lastly, tie a large piece of ribbon into a bow and cover the hook of the coat hanger.

We all dread seeing that look of underwhelming apathy that greets the unwrapping of an ill-conceived gift, or the lack of excitement from your beloved when you reveal where you’re taking them for their birthday ‘surprise.’ But fear not, don’t put yourself under unnecessary pressure, just relax, take a deep breath and put yourself in their shoes and imagine what they want, what they really, really want, as the Spice Girls would say.
Listen for hints

Always listen for hints, positive and negative ones. Being dragged around the shops by your girlfriend one Saturday? Then take your hands out of your pockets and pay attention. Don’t sneak off to the pub, but pay attention when she points out home furnishings she loves, or gazes lovingly at a pair of shoes. Even take a sneaky photo on your mobile phone to remind you, especially if you can’t tell your Jimmy Choos from your tennis shoes. It’ll mean even more because “you remembered!”

Get something you can enjoy together

Whether it’s a jigsaw, meal out or a holiday, things are always more fun when you do them with your loved ones. Same goes for birthday presents, if it’s something that the two of you can both enjoy then it will mean more. Don’t limit it to presents you can unwrap either, experience days, a night at the theatre or activities for two are an original gift that will create memories you can both treasure for years to come.

Add a personal touch

Nobody knows your other half like you do and you want your presents to reflect that. Something simple like a framed photo from your favourite holiday together means more because it could only have come from you. Even adding a personal message to the gift tag or throwing in some quirky little presents that remind you both of a funny time together make it all seem a lot more thoughtful then just getting an anonymous gift. If you’re looking for 40th birthday ideas for example or marking another major age milestone, it is sure to be a nostalgic time, so gifts that look back on some happy memories will always go down well.

Think about what they enjoy

Fed up of listening to your boyfriend or husband bang on about football? Well don’t just switch off when he talks as you could be missing some crucial present-buying tips. What team does he support? Maybe you can book a stadium tour. Or remember that cup final he kept calling “the best day of his life”? Well, a framed photo or signed shirt from the day could be the perfect gift. The same principle applies for a whole host of other hobbies.

Add a touch of luxury

Gifts sprinkled with some luxury always make a birthday feel more special. Girls love to be pampered and men love to be made to feel like a rock star or action hero, so add a celebrity-inspired flourish to your gift ideas for something really memorable. A day of luxury spa treatments, being wined and dined or enjoying a makeover is often a winner for the ladies, or an adrenalin-packed day out firing guns, driving fast cars or jumping out of a plane should win you plenty of brownie points with the man in your life.

This article has been created by Activity Superstore, the UK’s leading gift experience days supplier.