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2 days ago | Advertorial | Harriet Ellison

“After 36 Christmases, I’m closing my workshop” – Why 68-year-old Philippa is selling her last Homecoming Reindeer at a special price

In an old stone byre outside Rothbury, Northumberland, Philippa Fenwick has made evergreen reindeer by hand for 36 Christmases. Now she is stopping – and saying goodbye with her best-loved design, the Homecoming Reindeer. This is the last time it will ever be offered.

Rothbury, November. The old stone byre at the end of the farm track smells of wood smoke, strong tea and cold air off the Simonside Hills. Wire frames hang from the beams. Along the walls stand reindeer in every stage – some still bare wire, some half-wrapped in green, some already finished with their burlap bows and little brass bells. On the long table lie wire cutters, spools of florist’s wire, boxes of tiny warm-white lights and bundles of soft faux-cedar sprigs. Philippa bends over one of her last reindeer at the same long table where she has sat every morning since 1990. But this year is different. It is her last Christmas season.

“I’m 68,” she says quietly. “My hands don’t want to do it any more. The joints ache, and the arthritis is getting worse.” She rubs her fingers. Thirty-six years of twisting wire and layering greenery have left their mark. “But that’s not the only reason. The world has changed. Hardly anyone pays for real handwork now. Everything is mass-made. My way of working is slowly disappearing.”

36 Christmases, more than 11,000 reindeer – a life spent bringing a warm welcome to people’s front doors

Philippa has done the sums. In 36 years she has bent, wrapped and lit more than 11,000 reindeer. Every single one went through her hands. “The very first winter it was just wreaths and garlands for the neighbours,” she says. “Then people started asking for something special for the front door – something with a bit of soul. That’s how the Homecoming Reindeer was born: not a stiff plastic deer standing on the lawn, but one that lies down by the door like it’s waiting for somebody.”

What makes Philippa’s Homecoming Reindeer so special

It isn’t only the calm, gentle look on the reindeer’s face. It’s the way each one is built: like a small sculpture of greenery and light, made to be enjoyed every December – not something off a conveyor belt.

Underneath sits a sturdy wire frame that Philippa bends by hand. Over it go hundreds of soft faux-cedar sprigs – artificial, but so lifelike they look just like real cedar needles – layered like feathers so no wire shows through. Warm-white fairy lights are woven right through the greenery, so the whole reindeer glows softly from inside without ever looking harsh. The antlers are shaped like weathered branches, the dark eyes and nose give it a gentle, watchful face, and around its neck sits a cream burlap bow with a pinecone and a little brass bell. Lying down, it measures about 60 centimetres long and 55 centimetres tall to the tips of its antlers – big enough to greet people at the door, small enough for a doorstep, the hallway or a spot beside the fireplace. The faux greenery doesn’t shed, doesn’t turn brown and doesn’t mind a frosty doorstep. The lights run on batteries tucked out of sight, and a small remote control turns them on and off – no bending down, no fiddling around in the greenery.

The result is a decoration that does more than just “look like Christmas”. It turns your front door into the warmest welcome on the street – with a little reindeer keeping watch in the glow.

“Some of my customers have had their reindeer by the front door for over 15 Christmases”

Philippa pulls an old biscuit tin out from under the workbench. Inside are hundreds of letters and Christmas cards. “These are thank-you notes from customers. Some have written to me for decades,” she says. She takes out a card dated 2011. It reads: “Dear Mrs Fenwick, your reindeer has lain by our front door every December for years now. Every evening I switch it on before I draw the curtains – and it still glows as warm and lovely as the first day.”

There is a simple reason for this: care instead of speed. Big factories are built for volume. Philippa works on one reindeer at a time. A Homecoming Reindeer takes the better part of a day – from bending the frame, to layering every sprig, to threading the lights and tying the final bow.

The end of an era – and one last chance

At the end of November, Philippa will close her workshop for good. “There’s no one to take over. Nobody wants to learn this kind of work any more – it takes years before you really have it in your hands.” 316 Homecoming Reindeer are still lying in rows on the old stone floor. Her life’s work. The last batch that will ever pass through her hands.

To make sure they go to good homes, she has made an unusual decision: a clear special price on every reindeer. “It’s not about the money any more. I want my reindeer lying by front doors, in hallways and beside fireplaces where people really love them. With people who understand how much work goes into a piece like this,” Philippa says. “My grandchildren Imogen (24) and Callum (27) are helping me sell them online – at my age I’ve no idea how all that internet business works,” she adds with a laugh. “They’ll keep posting them after I lock the workshop, until the very last one is gone.”

Callum also came up with the name. “He said she looks like she’s lying by the door, waiting for everybody to come home for Christmas,” Philippa says. The name stuck. And for many customers, a simple decoration became a much-loved evening ritual: switch on the lights at dusk, and the whole house feels like someone’s on their way home.

What sets Philippa’s Homecoming Reindeer apart:

What real customers say about the Homecoming Reindeer

“The perfect present for the people you really love”

Her customer Clare D. (48) from Hexham agrees: “I gave my mum a Homecoming Reindeer for her front doorstep two weeks ago. She had tears in her eyes – not because of the reindeer itself, but because she could feel straight away how much love and work had gone into it. Now she switches it on every evening as soon as it gets dark and says: you can’t put a price on that feeling of coming home.”

Where can you buy Philippa’s Homecoming Reindeer?

Philippa’s Homecoming Reindeer is only available through Cedar & Tin – an online shop that specialises in real handwork from selected makers. Her grandchildren Imogen and Callum run Philippa’s own little corner of the shop there. Only there will you get the original Homecoming Reindeer from her workshop. Similar-looking reindeer from mass production have started to appear on Amazon and other big sites. At first glance they may look alike, but they have nothing to do with Philippa’s work.

Only this winter – then it’s over

Philippa plans to close her workshop for good at the end of November. “By Christmas I’d like every Homecoming Reindeer to be lying by somebody’s front door. After that, it really is the end,” she says quietly. She gives a wistful smile. “36 years. It’s been a lovely time.”

If you would like one of the original Homecoming Reindeer from Philippa’s final batch, don’t wait too long. With the special price and so much demand, the remaining stock is not expected to last. Imogen and Callum will keep posting them after the workshop closes – but only until the last reindeer is gone.

It is the last chance to bring a piece of real handwork to your front door – before Philippa’s glowing reindeer are gone for good.

The verdict

The Homecoming Reindeer is the Christmas decoration people fall in love with. It is made by hand in Philippa’s workshop and feels like a small, glowing welcome for your home – with warm light that makes the doorstep, the hallway or the fireside instantly cosier.

A feel-good piece with real heart – lovingly designed, well made, thought through – and every evening a small moment of magic when the Homecoming Reindeer starts to glow in the dusk. Thank you, Philippa!

The internet loves the Homecoming Reindeer