It’s the start of the most wonderful time of the year, and as November gets into full swing towns and cities across the country come alive with mesmerising twinkling lights, delicious seasonal food, and festive fun to be enjoyed by the whole family. We've put together a list of some of the Christmas shopping events taking place locally to us here in Devon & Cornwall.

Following the important conversations sparked by COP26 about our changing climate, we all have a heightened awareness of our impact on the planet and for many of us we're leaving 2021 determined to make our live a little more sustainable. Christmas can be the hardest time of year to remain conscious of our environmental impact, so we've put together some simple ideas that will make for a more sustainable Christmas, without sacrificing any of the fun.

December has arrived, and with it brings all the excitement and joy of the holiday season. It’s the most magical month of the year, full of Christmas songs, twinkling lights, and family get-togethers, and its arrival is a reminder that in only a few weeks’ time we’ll be putting presents under the tree for our loved ones to open.

The next in our 'Shine a Light' series is Van Hage Garden Centre. Van Hage is a beautiful, British-based garden centre chain with over 60 years’ experience. With three stores in Great Amwell, Chenies and Peterborough, they are still very much a family run independent business which prides itself on being more than just a garden centre.

We are welcoming December with open arms.  With only a few weeks until Christmas, we are delighted to be able to support our local independent shops by shopping in person safely again. Christmas shopping is guaranteed to get you in the spirit, surrounded with decorations, lights and everyone cosy in their warm clothes truly kickstarts the Christmassy feeling.

The next in our 'Shine a Light' series is Great Cornish Food Store based here in Cornwall. Great Cornish Food Store is a beautiful, independent grocery store, with its own butchery, fishmonger and chef deli and takeaway. Filled with exceptional food and drink from Cornwall located alongside Waitrose, Truro, it’s a food retail-first for Cornwall and Britain. 

In this blog series, we wanted to shine a light on the fantastic projects Creative Kernow's FEAST and Re-Ignition programme helps to support. Here are just some of the incredible projects who have benefitted from funding and helped spark creativity, escapism and moments of togetherness when we need it most. 

Cousin Jack's are a Cornwall based professional theatre company that creates work to inspire children and their families. They are most well-known for their adaptation of the much-loved Cornish children's book, The Mousehole Cat. We spoke with Guy Watson, Artistic Director at Cousin Jack’s, to learn more about how FEAST and the Re-Ignition project helped them in their time of need earlier this year.