When should you put up your Christmas tree?

 

When is the right time to put up your Christmas tree and decorations? Each year, it seems like Christmas decorations start appearing a little bit earlier, but there are many different traditions and beliefs when it comes to the best time to start decorating your home for Christmas.

Once upon a time...

During the Victorian period, Christmas trees were traditionally put up much later in December, often on the afternoon of Christmas Eve.

Straight after Halloween

For some, Christmas decorations go up as soon as Halloween ends on 31st October, and so Christmas lovers embrace 1st November as the start of the festive season and begin decorating their home at this time.

Shopping insights reveal decorations are going up early this year

2020 has truly been a year like no other, and in the midst of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, data from some of the UK's biggest retailers all reveal the same thing – record sales and customers shopping for decorations earlier than ever.

Nearly 40 per cent of customers plan to decorate areas around the house they haven’t decorated in previous Christmases, such as the hallway, stairs and outdoors, according to a new poll by John Lewis & Partners.

And, in the Tesco Christmas Report 2020, 2.4 million people say they’ll decorate the home before December even arrives.

But, putting Christmas decorations up early actually makes you happy...

Psychoanalyst, Steve McKeown, told UNILAD that putting up Christmas decorations early extends the excitement of the festive season. It acts as an 'anchor or pathway to those old childhood magical emotions' and so ultimately makes you happier.

Psychologist, Deborah Serani, also told TODAY Home that decorating your home for Christmas early can 'create that neurological shift that can produce happiness'. She explains: 'Christmas decorating will spike dopamine, a feel-good hormone.'

It depends if you buy a real tree...

If you're buying a real Christmas tree this year, the British Christmas Tree Growers Association suggests that trees should not be purchased earlier than 1st December. Why? The tree should survive for at least four weeks, though properly caring for the tree (it should be treated like any plant being brought into a warm, dry atmosphere) could help it last longer.

The 1st December

A popular choice, many decorate their home for Christmas and deck out the tree as soon as it hits 1st December. One in four (25 per cent) aim to have their tree and decorations up by this date, according to Tesco. The festive season has now officially begun.

Advent

An important date in the Christian calendar, Advent is the period before Christmas which celebrates the birth of Jesus, and is a period of preparation. Tradition dictates that Christmas trees should be put up at the beginning of Advent, which begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas. This year, Advent begins on Sunday 29 November 2020.

12 days before...

For others, they choose to put their decorations up 12 days before Christmas, which means you'll be turning your home into a festive abode from 13th December.

What retailers say...

According to a previous Tesco Christmas Insights Report (2018), it turns out age has a lot to do with the festive traditions we keep. The majority of us like to get in the festive mood by decorating our trees and homes early December. The 18-34 age group are more excitable, putting their Christmas trees up earlier. While over-55s tend to be more in line with tradition – they'll often uphold the 12 days before Christmas rule.

According to Dobbies, the second Saturday in December has historically seen an influx of shoppers buying real Christmas trees, an event officially called 'Bring Your Christmas Tree Home Day'. Research shows sales on the second Saturday of December had doubled, tripled and sometimes even quadrupled compared to other shopping days at Dobbies.

Once the tree is up, when does it come down?

There are many different traditions for this too! Read our guide > When to take the Christmas tree down, Twelfth Night & Epiphany tradition explained.

https://www.housebeautiful.com/uk/lifestyle/a25333519/when-to-put-up-your-christmas-tree/