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"Decorating" For The Holidays

 I have a theory about how ugly Christmas sweaters came to be, rooted in a bygone day of American thriftiness:

HOW UGLY CHRISTMAS SWEATERS CAME TO BE

  1. You buy a Christmas sweater that's stylish, colorful and fits well. You wear it with pride.
  2. Next year, your Christmas sweater is not quite as stylish, but it's still colorful and fits well.
  3. By the fifth year, your Christmas sweater is noticeably out of date, not quite as colorful, and - let's face it -  no longer fits quite as well. But hey, you only wear it once a year and you paid good money for it.
  4. By the seventh year, this sweater is ugly! Voila, the ugly Christmas sweater is born.

Now you can buy your ugly Christmas sweater right off the racks, like a pair of pre-washed jeans. Why wait for your Christmas sweater to become ugly?

AN ALTERNATIVE TO UGLY SWEATERS

The obvious answer, and the one you would expect from me, is to purchase your ugly Christmas sweater used. This is certainly a viable answer. I'm wondering, though, if it might not make more sense to leave the Christmas sweater behind altogether. If we did, what would be the alternative?

How about some Christmas tree earrings? Here are two sets of Christmas tree earrings that I received as gifts from friends; I find occasion to wear them every year:




How about Christmas socks? I discussed these as gifts in my last post, but if you don't get socks as a gift, you can buy them for yourself.




How about a Christmas scarf? I don't have one to picture, but it checks so many boxes - it's warm and it's visible. (Hmm, I'm adding that to my list...)

I'm not asking you to give up a Christmas sweater you love - hey, wear it until it's ugly! I'm just wondering if it's time to renew our "American thriftiness" around a few quality (and/or small) Christmas things to "decorate" for the holidays.

I hope you have a wonderful holiday season! I'll be taking a break for a couple of weeks; see you in the new year.

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