Get ready to deck the halls with 1920s flair! and embrace nostalgia this Christmas as we share with you everything about Christmas in the UK during the 1920s.
Christmas in the UK during the 1920s saw a massive resurgence of some of the more popular traditions we have now including carol singing and decorating homes with holly and mistletoe.
How Did The UK Decorate Their Homes for Christmas In The 1920s?
SHOP CHRISTMAS LIGHTS & DECOR HERE
Decorating the house for Christmas in the twenties was done a bit differently from the way we do ours today, however, the rise of electric Christmas lights was on the up which replaced real candles on trees.
So how did families decorate the tree? They would decorate their feather tree – which was goose feather during this era, using elaborate paper decorations such as bells, fancy pom-pom balls or stars which became very popular. Tinsel was also used, you could get a thin design for a penny and a ‘plush garland’ for threepence which is around £1.05p today.
Also available were glass balls and birds which you could buy at a store which they could then hang on the Christmas tree. The baubles would be colourful and bright in colours such as pink, orange, silver and gold and larger than they are today.
If the house had electricity then they would also place fairy lights on the tree which would often be a set of coloured lights known as ‘fairy lights’ along with lametta and a treetop fairy which would be in front of a large star. Within the branches, Christmas crackers were laid and the whole lit with real candles.
Decorating the rest of the room with Holly or Kissing Bough was a must. Its frame was made from a wire in the shape of a sphere or a globe. It was made up of mistletoe, holly or ivy and a selection of decorations. Paper garlands were also used and were a great way to keep the kids busy while mum was getting all of the food ready in the kitchen for the big day which we’re sure is still a tactic used by mums and dads across the UK today!
Mantlepieces could be adorned with popcorn decorations or real foliage, like today this would be one of the main focus points of the home,
What Was Inside a Christmas Stocking In The 1920s?
Hanging up stockings back in the twenties was often the only place Santa left all the nice presents which often consisted of an apple, oranges, nuts and maybe a toy and would not be the nice red or green stockings that we have today but instead a large sock!
Was Sending Christmas Cards Popular In A 1920s UK?
Yes, sending Christmas cards was highly popular during the 1920s in Britain. The practice had become widespread by this time, with intricate designs reflecting the Art Deco aesthetic of the era. It was a way for people to convey festive greetings and sentiments to their friends and family, contributing to the overall holiday spirit.
Decorations today haven’t changed much since the 1920s even though we have shatterproof baubles, personalized baubles and plastic trees, the glitz and glam of the 1920s and its traditions are still seen today in the way that we decorate our homes at Christmas.
Do you have any vintage/1920s decorations that you use when you decorate your house for Christmas? Get involved without a bygone era and comment below and let UnderTheChristmasTree know.
