Why Do People Like to Wear Ugly Christmas Sweaters?

 

When it comes to wearing ugly clothes, most people choose to avoid those clothes like the plague because they do not want to feel uncomfortable or look even the slightest bit ridiculous. However, when the holiday season starts approaching, many people purposely choose to go out and shop for the ugliest Christmas sweaters they can possibly find. These sweaters may be bulky, made of weird materials, and could have a lot of crazy Christmas designs on them, such as images of snowmen, Santa Claus, and string lights that are commonly placed on Christmas trees and in windows during the holiday season. So, why exactly are people so excited to purchase these kinds of sweaters?

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“The Night Before” and It’s Modern Take of the Tacky Christmas Sweater

As the holidays roll in as swiftly as Santa’s sleigh, the cold weather approaches as well, allowing our festive sweaters to finally emerge from the closets and be adorned to showcase our holiday cheer. But what is it about Christmas sweaters that people far and wide have come to love? Not only do they provide warmth during the chilly weather, they can lift anyone’s spirit with their cute and symmetrical patterns. The upcoming and widely anticipated movie for the Christmas season, “The Night Before”, reveals some of the most outlandish and creative holiday sweaters of our time. But by looking back into the depths of Christmas past, the festive sweaters we’ve grown to love haven’t always been that way.

Rock Your Ugly Christmas Sweater This Year!

So it seems like more and more people are catching the ugly Christmas sweater fever and getting into the mood this year!  This will be great because the truth is, I’m tired of explaining to friends what they are!  I’ll probably buy a few sweaters this year but I have already found an early favorite on this site.  I am very picky about these and usually wait until mid or late November but once I noticed the extra carrot on this sweater I was sold!  It might get awkward if I end up in a tight line at the store!  I certainly won’t be wearing this to church though.  Nevertheless I give this sweater 5 out of 5 stars!

Ugly Christmas Sweater Party Ideas

Why not make this year’s Ugly Christmas Sweater Party unforgettable by creating Christmas gift bags or baskets for your family and friends? A personalized assortment of ribbons, wrapping and treats allows you to get creative in extending the spirit of the brilliant tackiness that is the Ugly Christmas Sweater beyond the end of the party.

With so many decorations in stores this holiday season you’ll be spoilt for choice, and you can include the wrapping materials as part of the gift.

Start with simple robust cardboard boxes – be careful to get the right size, better to overfill a nicely decorated small basket than give a gift that looks sparse and under wrapped. No doubt your Ugly Christmas Sweater Party will be very popular, so make sure you consider how many gift baskets you’re going to need.

Next, the wrapping. Decorative wrapping paper for Christmas gifts that would otherwise be left over after Christmas makes an ideal decorating material. Remember – this is your first chance to really make your gift baskets stand out as belonging to an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party. The more snowflakes, Santa’s, reindeer, eggnog and decorations you can cram onto the wrapping, the better.

Finally, the decorations. A great way to pad out your gift baskets is with a base of bubble wrap, then decorated with reams and reams of ribbon. Ribbon is an inexpensive and flexible way to tailor your gift baskets regardless of their shape and size. From the garish to the tasteful, an arrangement of ribbon is a means of personalizing a range of gift decorations as diverse as Ugly Christmas Sweaters themselves.

Ugly Christmas Sweater Party

These parties are becoming more and more popular.  They typically include a contest to see who shows up with the most over-the-top, ridiculous sweater.  There are different criteria for winning.  Sometimes it’s the tacky sweater that wins.  Other times, it’s the irreverent or naughty sweaters that takes the cake.

Party Ideas

These parties can also take on other forms including bar crawls, races, and even involve dismembering these sweaters.  The event can take place indoor or outdoors (those of us in colder areas are forced to do this indoors).

Decoration

As for decorations, well that’s easy.  You can actually just use more tacky sweaters to decorate your surroundings.  Funny and embarrassing kid of family photos are always popular.  Whatever you do, try and keep a vintage feel to it.  You might even want to create a Bill Cosby or Chevy Chase shrine (ok, that’s just me).

Invitations

Like any other invitation, only tackier.  Make sure the design on these invites matches the tackiness theme!  Don’t be caught using generic design for such a niche event!  Include anything else you think is important (date, time, RSVP requests, contact information , etc).  Be VERY specific as to the rules of the party.  Expect this to be the first time many of these people will attend such an event, so be explicit but also don’t bury them in details!

Drinks and Drinks (I mean food and drinks!)

Ok here is where it gets fun.  The typical Christmas finger foods generally apply here.  So think cookies, deli, cheeses, oh, and lots of eggnog.  But try and steer towards bright colors.  Bright greens and reds are a favorite.

Ugly Christmas Sweater Day

Ugly Christmas Sweater Day falls on December 20th.  This is the momentous day where people around the world (ok, mostly just in the US, and even then, it’s not that many people–but I digress).  It’s like the million sweater march.  Only without the marching. And instead of protesting, people are celebrating and largely inebriated from copious amounts of eggnog + whiskey.

Light Up Sweaters

These are a favorite among many when it comes to ugly Christmas sweaters.  They are especially popular with children it would seem,.  There are several options when it comes to these.  The lights can come from any number of sources.  They can be stars, snowflakes, xmas tree lights, Rudolph’s nose, or even all of the above (white space is anathema to an ugly sweater!).  There aren’t many rules to light up sweaters other than a preference of dark colors.  The lights (usually) contrast better against darker-colored sweaters.  Also, LED lights are often (but not always) preferable.  Much of this depends where you’re going to be sporting it.  These sweaters are best in low lighting where they stand out the most.  But don’t overdo it by blinding your fellow party members!

Vintage Christmas Sweaters

These sweaters are a beauty.  Not only are they classic, they remind us of the Ugly Christmas sweater founding father himself; Bill Cosby.  Another advantage of these is that they are not expensive–you can find them at your second hand store around the corner.  Heck, let’s be honest; you probably have a few in your closet.  So do yourself a favor this Christmas don’t let the moths monopolize all of the joy these sweaters bring!

But back to Bill Cosby.  You may be wondering how he became the founder of the modern vintage xmas sweater.  Well, wonder no more!