Traditional baubles have been branded ‘boring’ (Picture: Getty Images)
Is nothing sacred anymore?
This is a rhetorical question, of course, as these days it seems everything we hold near and dear is being cancelled, discontinued, or just generally dragged through the mud on social media.
And more often than not, Gen Z are the culprits (first they came for our skinny jeans, then we learned how they’re killing off the traditional Christmas dinner).
The most recent thing to come under fire is yet another festive favourite — baubles.
But this time it’s not only Gen Z who are to blame for this shift in perception, though it seems they are leading the charge.
Apparently two thirds of Gen Z and Millennials think traditional Christmas decorations are ‘boring’, and won’t be hanging them on their tree this year.
The findings from NOW’s research claimed that instead, many will be covering their trees in ornaments that reflect their ‘passions’ and have a special meaning to them.
So think less colourful shiny balls, and more unique decorations inspired by TV shows, sports, singers, hobbies, and food.
If you’ve been on TikTok of late, you might have seen examples of this with Taylor Swift fans creating ‘Swiftmas trees’ — the search for which has had 32.8M views.
The colourful trees see tinsel and baubles replaced with giant handmade friendship bracelets (like the ones Swifties swap at concerts) that wrap around the whole thing.
Similarly Harry Styles fans have been personalising their trees by putting hilarious pictures of the Watermelon Sugar singer on top of their tree instead of an angel.
You can also now buy pop culture decorations to your heart’s content online, and Etsy’s resident trend expert, Danya Isom Johnson, says she’s definitely noticed an increase in bauble alternatives this year.
She told Metro.co.uk: ‘Although traditional Christmas decorations and motifs have long been the norm, I’m seeing pop culture influence spread into the festive season more and more every year, bringing with it increasingly creative designs.
‘For example, this year has been the year of disco mania, thanks to our favourite Queen B. And so it’s no surprise that we’re expecting the disco trend to carry on into the party season! Since Beyonce dropped Renaissance, Etsy sellers have sold over 12 thousand disco balls and purchases of Disco Balls are up 94% year on year on Etsy compared to the same period last year.
‘And with Swiftie mania truly taking over the planet this year, we’re expecting Taylor to take over Christmas in equal measure, and decorations inspired by popular TV shows are also popping up.’
But if this isn’t for you, then fear not, as there are a few more ‘aesthetic’ decorating trends taking TikTok by storm for Christmas 2023.
One of the most popular right now is ‘Christmas tree bows’ which has racked up more than 10 billion views on the app and sees people adorning their trees with bows, tying ribbon straight onto the branches.
‘Some might think it’s plain Jane, but it’ll give Chanel, I promise,’ says influencer Samantha Miller in one viral video as she cut up pieces of ivory and black ribbon for her tree.
‘The girls are girling this year,’ read a comment on another clip which urged people to ‘swap ornaments for bows’.
TikTokers have also been getting thrifty and instead of buying new decorations amid the cost of living crisis, there’s been an uptick in festive DIYs and crafts, with many making their own dried fruit slices and garlands.
Alexandra Johansen, 21, told Metro how she’ll be swapping baubles and tinsel for homemade decorations, after seeing them plastered all over social media.
She said: ‘This year I’ve made cute homemade orange garlands (I was inspired by the trend after seeing a bunch of TikToks).
‘I dehydrated some oranges in the oven and strung them together on twine and so far, they’re looking great! I had some friends over to make some too and they’ve hung one on theirs on their mantle and one in the kitchen.
‘I’m thinking of adding some cinnamon sticks and pinecones next week to see if that overdoes the vibe or not.’
People are also making their own decorations (Picture: Getty Images)
Alexandra explained she’d opted to use dried fruit to add some ‘different’ colours to her tree, rather than going for traditional red and green colour scheme.
‘Now that December is here, I’m also keen to try making some pomander balls – they sort of keep the bauble spirit but are less likely to be smashed by a wayward cat paw!
‘I think there’s also a nice sense of the traditional in these sorts of decorations, but it’s just a bit of a different sort to the tinsel-bauble-red/green vibe or the minimalist white-beige style we’re also seeing pop up now.’
Of course, despite what’s on trend, you might be dusting off those trusty baubles and hanging them on your tee again this year. At the end of the day, you’re the one that has to look at it for the next four weeks…
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Umm… WHAT?!