Ah yes, the age old question. When is truly the appropriate time to display that dazzling Christmas tree of lights and ornaments? Better yet, when is it considered too lazy to still have your tree up? Some mark any time after Halloween as part of the holiday season. Others won’t even think about tinsel till Thanksgiving passes.
We asked our TABLE Magazine staff and a Christmas tree expert (Anne Dickson from Fox and the Fleur, creator of beautiful holiday decor installations in homes around the city) to spill the tea on their years of “professional” experience to get the perfect range. Surely with the information below you’ll be ready to be the hippest and trendiest house on the block.
When Should You Put Up and Take Down Your Christmas Tree?
Anne Dickson of Fox and the Fleur
I have slightly different approaches depending on the type. For a live tree, I’d suggest the first week of December as the earliest to ensure it maintains its freshness throughout the holiday season. For a faux tree, there’s really more flexibility, though I personally prefer to wait until after Thanksgiving is completely wrapped up, and celebrate one holiday at a time. As for taking it down, typically the first week of January, after New Year’s, feels appropriate.
My favorite tradition centered around decorating the tree is lighting a fire in the fireplace, putting on some festive Christmas music, and decorating with my boys. Going through all the ornaments, many of which we’ve collected from various places and times, brings back so many happy memories. The handmade ones from their school days are a favorite.
Keith Recker, TABLE Magazine Editor-in-Chief
Because I was raised by “Mrs Clark Griswold,” I have a real love for Christmas and all its traditions. We start early and end late…and we are always looking for new ways to rekindle the holiday spirit.
Anytime after the clocks change is an acceptable time to put up the tree and light it. Because we need the cheerful lights until the clocks change again in the spring, we often leave the tree and light up until March.
We bring out the ornaments over Thanksgiving weekend so that our family can decorate together. The ornaments come down after Epiphany on January 6.
Our daughter has many ornaments from friends and family that have been part of our holiday traditions since she was born, and she wants to be the only person to put them on tree.
Star Laliberte, TABLE Magazine Director of Operations
Ideally, I like to have a few of my trees up with white lights only for Thanksgiving (at least the tree that stands in front of my dining room windows and the table-top tree that goes on the buffet, as well as the tree in my entrance and the tree in the sun room).Then the 2 trees in the piano room, the 12 foot tree in the family room, and all the decorating happens over the next week. The only deviation is when I add in live trees. Those come around the second week of December and come down by mid January. I try to have all of the trees down by the end of January.
Our family room tree is covered in ornaments that we have collected over the years. I buy a new ornament for my husband and our children every year, as well as our pups. Although I am happy to beg for assistance in finding which bulb has taken out an entire strand of lights, I, however, am the only one permitted to place ornaments on any of the trees. How’s that for tradition? Lol!
Mark Chutko, TABLE Magazine Associate Publisher
I always cut live trees with my family the day after Thanksgiving and then we decorate together that night. Normally, we take the trees down the second to third week of January, if my dead trees can hang in there that long. The trees tell you when they need to come down.
I have two live trees. One is the family tree we cut down the Friday after Thanksgiving and I’ve been buying ornaments for the family each year so we all decorate the tree with them together. I also have a 12′ live tree in my living room with the more formal and fragile ornaments that I’ve been getting for my wife.
Kim Stark, TABLE Magazine New Mexico Associate Publisher
I like to set up my tree the weekend after Thanksgiving. Then, I’ll take down the tree the weekend after January 6-ish as that ends the 12 days of Christmas.
My kids help me to put up the ornaments. We have a fake tree these days to make things easier. We also have a Krampus tree topper because we are heathens.
Ethan Chmura, TABLE Magazine Advertising & Editorial Coordinator
I don’t have a tree yet since I recently moved, but when I did, I would put it up the week of Thanksgiving so that it’s ready for everyone to enjoy during Thanksgiving dinner. The day after Thanksgiving, I would decorate it with my whole family. We would take it down after my dad’s birthday on January 14.
Our other special tradition is putting up our Parol—a traditional Filipino star-shaped lantern that’s a prominent symbol of the Christmas season. It’s made with a bamboo or wire frame and covered with paper, tissue paper, or capiz shells. The tradition originated in the Pampanga province of the Philippines, where San Fernando—my mother’s family’s hometown—is known as the “Christmas Capital” because of its Parol Lantern Festival.
Another tradition we celebrate is Oplatki, a Polish Christmas Eve custom. Oplatki are thin, edible wafers similar to altar bread, shared among family members while exchanging blessings for good health, success, and happiness. The ritual symbolizes reconciliation, forgiveness, and love, and we do it every year with my dad’s Polish side of the family.
Story by Kylie Thomas
Photo Courtesy of Frames For Your Heart
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