Every year, people seem to put up Christmas decorations earlier and earlier, with some people these days doing it the day after Halloween. However, some fear that jumping straight from Halloween to Christmas (sorry, Thanksgiving) is problematic.
“I think Christmas shouldn’t begin before Halloween or right after. Christmas has become a three-month-long holiday…You should at least wait a week or two after Halloween to begin setting up your miscellaneous decorations,” said FCHS senior Caylee Holsapple.
Decorating for Christmas prematurely can often overshadow Thanksgiving, making it seem like Thanksgiving is forgotten and overshadowing its themes of gratitude, family, and spending time with loved ones.
“I think people should wait a couple of weeks. That way you can be ready for Thanksgiving and go from Halloween to Fall and Thanksgiving, and then to Christmas,” said junior Sara Everard.
What are the pros and cons of waiting to put up Christmas decorations until after Thanksgiving to decorate? One pro is that waiting until after Thanksgiving can give you a chance to enjoy one holiday at a time, rather than rushing them. On the other hand, putting up Christmas decor later in December can actually increase holiday stress since the weeks before Christmas are often busy with shopping, planning, and holiday events.
Changing decorations from Halloween to an autumn theme can help provide to have a slight change of scenery, something subtle to make a difference. “I agree with taking down Halloween decorations after Halloween is over, but change them to fall rather than Christmas first,” said senior Stevie Maquinto.
On the other hand, putting up Christmas decorations too early and you may tire of them. Plus, delaying decorations can help keep the Christmas spirit nice and fresh, instead of worn out.
In the end, it’s a personal preference about when you should decorate.
“I would say you decorate after Thanksgiving. Get all festive for that, eat turkey, and then, the day after, start setting up the tree,” said junior Mac Hamshar.
