No sooner has Thanksgiving Day been celebrated with the family, than the thoughts of adorning the home with Christmas decorations begins. Often the Christmas decorations are packed away in the attic or other storage room within the house waiting to emerge and allow for cascading memories and joy to fall upon the home once again.
Often the decorations are priceless in nature not because of their monetary value, but because of the richness of the familys memories that they hold. Christmas decorations such as the babys first ornament for example or the picture of your little girl on an ornament that was made in kindergarten or those paper chains that were made by your little boy in first grade are truly fantastic.
History of Christmas Decorations
Much of the history surrounding it has to do with a belief in the spiritual world. For example many centuries ago individuals believed in adorning bushes during the winter season. The rationale for this action was to make these bushes appealing to the spirits who they felt had disappeared in their attempts to take refuge from the harsh weather.
As this practice evolved, the winter foliage was taken into an individuals home. This action allowed for the spirits, located with in the plant, to be sheltered from the elements during the winter season. In addition, it was believed that this greenery was to be returned to the outdoors following the end of the Christmas season in order to prevent adversity from falling upon the household. Early day followers of this belief system believed that the spring season began on February 2nd.
These pagan beliefs eventually became part of the Christian faith as St. Gregory realized that in order to reach the masses certain rituals needed to be incorporated into the churchs belief system. The mainstay of Christmas decorations remained through the use of the branch from an evergreen tree. Eventually color was added to Christmas decorations through the use of the branches of the holly which was adorned with red berries. Eventually red mistletoe was added to the mix as it also provided a contrast to the greenness of the branch.
The Glass Ornament
The art of producing objects made of glass is thought to have originated in Bohemia or modern-day Czechoslovakia. Originally, these glass balls were gathered up by the enterprising wives of husbands who practiced the trade of glass blowing. The wives, in order to make them more appealing, would decorate them with a silver nitrate solution and take them to market to be sold.
Eventually, the process of manufacturing these ornamental balls became easier and could take on different shapes through the use of wooden moulds. Somehow, this trade was exported to England where an individuals prestige and affluence was measured by the number of these glass ornaments placed upon the Christmas tree.
Todays Christmas Decorations
Today, glass ornaments are still a traditional part of Christmas decorations. However, it seems that along with the traditional Christmas glass ornaments are a variety of other decorative items that adorn the Christmas tree. These items include the traditional silver and gold garland, candy canes and popcorn strings. In addition, are many other decorative items that capture the popularity of the present day fads, and these Christmas decorations could include cartoon figurines, comic book figures as well as symbols of ones faith.
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