|
Xmas
Party Balloons & Christmas Decorations
Decorate your Christmas
or New Year Party with our colourful banners, garlands
and streamers. It wouldn't be Christmas wthout a tree glittering
with lights, tinsel and decorations with presents beneath.
Add to the festive theme with a pine or holly swag and
wreath.
Brighten the party even more by choosing an inflatable Santa Claus
or snowman. The xmas crackers and party tablebombs, confetti and
confetti cannons will make the party go with a bang, and the themed
tableware and table centrepieces complete the festive setting. |
|
|
| |
| |
Christmas
Trees & Xmas Balloons & Party Decorations
Most
houses in England, will have a tree of some sort or other which
they will decorate and will place the presents under. The traditional
tree is a fir tree but now-a-days more people buy artificial
trees to 'save the earth'. The decorating of the tree is usually
a family occasion, with everyone helping. The Christmas tree
became popular in England in 1841 when Queen Victoria's husband,
Prince Albert, brought a Christmas tree over from Germany and
put it in Windsor Castle.
The Royal couple were illustrated in a newspaper standing around the
Christmas tree with their children, and the tradition of decorating a
tree became fashionable. Christmas trees, during the Victorian times,
were decorated with candles to remind children of the stars in the sky
at the time of the birth of Jesus. Using candles was, of course, a great
fire hazard. Christmas trees were also decorated with candies and cakes
hung with ribbon. In 1880 Woolworths first sold manufactured Christmas
tree ornaments which proved to be very popular.
Today, Christmas trees are decorated with tinsel, lights and small ornaments
which hang from the branches. Chocolate coins or chocolate shapes are
also hung on the Christmas tree and the presents are put under the tree.
An angel or star is usually put on the very top of the tree.In the weeks
leading up to and during Christmas, people hang decorations in their
homes. These decorations are made of coloured paper and foil. People
will also hang greenery around the house, such as holly and ivy. The
needlelike points of holly leaves are thought to resemble the crown of
thorns that Jesus wore when He was crucified. The red berries symbolise
the drops of blood Jesus shed.
Christmas Holiday
Christmas
is both a holiday and a holy day.
In England it is one of the biggest
event of the year (especially for
kids), and for members of the Christian
religions it is an important day
on the religious calendar.
businesses in England give employees one or two days off at Christmas,
making it an important holiday
Christmas Gifts
The
tradition of gifts seems to have
started with the gifts that the wise
men (the Magi) brought to Jesus.
As recounted in the Bible's book
of Matthew, "On coming to the
house they saw the child with his
mother Mary, and they bowed down
and worshipped him. Then they opened
their treasures and presented him
with gifts of gold and of incense
and of myrrh."
Is December 25 really the day Jesus was born?
No
one really knows. What is known is
that Christian leaders in 336 A.D.
set the date to December 25 in an
attempt to eclipse a popular pagan
holiday in Rome (Saturnalia) that
celebrated the winter solstice. Originally,
the celebration of Christmas involved
a simple mass, but over time Christmas
has replaced a number of other holidays
in many other countries, and a large
number of traditions have been absorbed
into the celebration in the process
Yuletide
Yuletide" for "Christmastime" is
a term derived from the yule log,
which in olden days was a huge log
used as the foundation of the holiday
fires. Bringing the yule log in was,
as recently as the 19th century,
as much a part of the pre-Christmas
festivities as putting up an evergreen
tree today. "Yule" can
be traced back to the Middle English "Yollen" (cry
aloud) and is thought to date from
early Anglo-Saxon revels in celebration
of the discovery (after the winter
solstice) that nights were becoming
shorter.
Up
until the 19th century, the custom
of burning the Yule log flourished
in England, France, Germany and among
the South Slavs. Out of oak, families
carved a heavy, wood block. They
placed it into the floor of their
hearth. It glowed throughout the
year under the flames of household
fires. Gradually it became ash.
Twelve days of Christmas? My Truelove gave to me!
What,
exactly, are the 12 days of Christmas?
The 12 days of Christmas are the
12 days that separate Christmas day
on December 25 from Epiphany, which
is celebrated January 6. Depending
on the church, January 6 may mark
Christ's baptism (the Catholic tradition),
or it may mark the day that the wise
men visited the baby Jesus with their
gifts.
In the past, there was a tradition of giving gifts throughout the 12
days, rather than stacking them all up on the morning of December 25.
That tradition, as you might imagine, has never really caught on. We
just aren't that patient. The song, however, demonstrates that some people
once stretched out their gifts (and gave some fairly elaborate gifts...)
over the full 12 days.
Christmas Fancy Dress Costumes
The
red and white father christmas costume
suit came, actually, from the original
Saint Nicholas. Those colors were
the colors of the traditional bishop's
robes.
Christmas
Tree Lights & Party Crackers
It
is said that Martin Luther began
the custom of putting candle lights
onto trees (see the legend, Martin
Luther and the Christmas Tree Lights).
Until the late 19th century candles
were the only was to light a Christmas
Tree. There were many experiments
to create safe holders, from hoops
in the 18th century to counter balanced
metal holders and prettily decorated
clips in the late 19th century. At
the end of the century experiments
with gas lights (many of which blew
up!) and early electric lights were
done. The first electrically lighted
tree was done by Edison in America,
in the 1880's. Nowadays
it is quite often that chritsmas
party crackers adorn the tree instead
of lights
Father Christmas & Father Christmas or Santa Costumes
Father
Christmas is our version of Santa
Claus. He is an old jolly man with
white hair, a beard and a moustache.
He is dressed in a red* suit outlined
in white. Father Christmas and his
elves make all the toys for Christmas
in his home in the North Pole. Father
Christmas was originally part of
an old English midwinter festival,
normally dressed in green, a sign
of the returning spring. Santa Claus,
the man we know today dressed in
red, became known in England during
the 1870's. His name comes from the
Dutch name for St. Nicholas which
is Sinter Klaas.
In
shops or at children's parties, someone
dresses up as Father Christmas and
gives small presents to children
and ask them what gifts they want
for Christmas. Children
write letters to Father Christmas
to tell him what they would like
for Christmas. Some children will
send their letters by post or e-mail
but the more traditional way is to
throw the letters into the back of
the fireplace. The draught then carries
the letters up the chimney to Father
Christmas.
On Christmas eve Father Christmas piles all of the toys onto his sleigh
and rides across the sky with his 12 Reindeer. The most famous one is
Rudolf, the reindeer at the front who leads the way with his red nose.He
enters our houses down the chimney at midnight and places presents for
the children in stockings (large socks) or bags by their beds or in front
of the family Christmas tree.
Father Christmas is based on a real person, St. Nicholas. He was a very
shy man and wanted to give money to poor people without them knowing
about it. It is said that one day, he climbed the roof of a house and
dropped a purse of money down the chimney. It landed in the stocking
which a girl had put to dry by the fire! This may explain the belief
that Father Christmas comes down the chimney and places gifts in children's
stockings.
Who is this reindeer named Rudolf?
Rudolf
guides Santa's sleigh with the
biological aberration of a red,
glowing nose capable of penetrating
thick fog? The whole story of
Rudolf appeared, out of nowhere,
in 1939. Santas at Montgomery
Ward stores gave away 2.4 million
copies of a booklet entitled "Rudolf
the Red-Nose Reindeer." The
story was written by a person
in the advertising department
named Robert May, and the booklet
was illustrated by Denver Gillen.
The original name of the reindeer
was not Rudolf. The original
name was Rollo, but executives
did not like that name, nor Reginald.
The name Rudolf came from the
author's young daughter! In 1949,
Gene Autry sang a musical version
of the poem and it was a run-away
best-seller. The Rudolf song
is second only to "White
Christmas" in popularity.
Christmas around the world
Many countries
have their own variations of Christmas customs and traditions.
Here are just a few:
Australia
Christmas here is
like the typical British Christmas,
but without the snow. Many Australians
eat their Christmas dinner on the
beach or in the bush, and since the
1930s a huge Christmas Eve carol
singing event, broadcast worldwide
and involving over a quarter of a
million people, has become popular.
Austria
Enjoy the carol singing, the presents and the visit from St Nicholas
on December 6, but watch out for his grotesque assistant, Krampus. Carp
is on the menu on Christmas Eve, followed by roast goose on Christmas
Day.
Belgium
Children in Belgium get
two visits from St Nicholas, one
on December 4, to see if they have
been good, followed by presents on
December 6. Children leave out their
shoes, rather than stockings, or
small baskets.On the sixth of December
Sinterklaas or Saint-Nicholas is
celebrated, which is an entirely
different holiday from Christmas.
Santa Claus in Belgium is called
de Kerstman or le Père Noël
and he does come around on Christmas
day to bring children presents. There
are different cultures in Belgium,
the Northern part being Vlaanderen
(speaking a Dutch dialect), the Southern
part being Wallonie (speaking a French
dialect) and the Eastern part speaking
German.
Brazil
Father
Christmas is called Papai Noel. Many
Christmas customs are similar to
USA or UK. For those who have enough
money, a special Christmas meal will
be chicken, turkey, ham, rice, salad,
pork, fresh and dried fruits, often
with beer. Poorer people will just
have chicken and rice.
Chile
Chile's gift-bringer is called Old Man Christmas and he climbs through
windows rather than down chimneys. The manger scene is important in all
Latin American countries and the Christmas Eve meal in Chile consists
of chicken soup with potatoes, onions and corn.
China
Christians in China decorate
their houses with paper lanterns
and their 'trees of light' with paper
chains, paper flowers and lanterns.
Some children put out stockings for
Dun Che Lao Ren (Christmas Old Man),
but the main festival in China is
the non-Christian Chinese New Year,
or 'Spring Festival', towards the
end of January, when ancestors are
worshipped and children receive new
clothes and toys and enjoy luxurious
meals.
Denmark
Eat up your special rice pudding in Denmark on Christmas Eve, as you
may find the single almond hidden inside, bringing you good luck for
the whole year. Don't forget to leave out some rice pudding for Julemanden,
the bringer of gifts, as well as his reindeer and his Juul Nisse, or
elves.
Finland
Finnish people believe that Father Christmas (Santa Claus) lives in the
north part of Finland called Korvatunturi, north of the Arctic Circle.
People from all over the world send letters to Santa Claus in Finland.
(It is only fair to say that the people of Greenland say that really,
Father Christmas lives in Greenland!) There is a even big tourist
theme park called 'Christmas Land' in the north of Finland, near
to where they say that Father Christmas lives.
France
In France, Christmas is always called 'Noël. Everyone has a Christmas
tree, sometimes decorated in the old way with red ribbons and real white
wax candles. Fir trees in the garden are often decorated too, with lights
on all the branches.
Germany
Christmas is a big celebration in Germany, beginning on December 6 with
advent wreaths, candles and calendars. On December 5 children put out
their shoes and St Nicholas fills them with fruit and biscuits overnight.
Christmas markets abound with lots of goodies and the Christmas tree
is the centre of attention. The mother of the house decorates the tree
on Christmas Eve and no-one is allowed in until it's finished. The December
25 is a family day and Boxing Day a day for visiting friends.
Greece
Easter is more important than Christmas in Greece, but there are nevertheless
many Christmas traditions. Children travel from house to house singing
the equivalent of carols on Christmas Eve, and are rewarded with sweets
and dried fruits. There is no tree, but fresh basil, wrapped around a
wooden cross, is dipped in holy water every day and sprinkled round the
house to keep the Killantzaroi, or goblins, away from the house during
Christmas. The hearth is kept burning for twelve days and nights to stop
these goblins from making mischief, such as souring the milk or riding
on people's backs. Gifts are exchanged on January 1, when all the water
jugs in the house are also emptied and refilled.
Holland
Look out for Sinterklaas, the Dutch St Nicholas, who arrives by steamer
on the last Saturday in November. All traffic stops in Amsterdam as people
pour out to greet him and his assistant, Black Peter. He first visits
the royal palace, where the children must account for their behaviour.
There are usually no presents on Christmas Day, but on December 5 Sinterklaas
gives presents called 'surprises', which are even more exciting because
they are disguised. A small gift may be in a large box, or hidden in
a vegetable or pudding. Often presents are hidden in a cellar, with clues
given as to how to find them.
India
India is mainly Hindu and Muslim, so there is no official celebration
of Christmas. But this time of year is seen as a time to give gifts,
to tip, or to give charitable handouts to the poor. Christians in India
decorate their houses with mango leaves and sometimes burn small oil
lamps on the tops of walls or on flat roofs.
Ireland
Candles are put in
the window on Christmas Eve to
help light the way of travellers
or the Holy Family. The table
is set with bread and milk after
the evening meal and the door
left unlocked, as a symbol of
hospitality to Mary, Joseph and
the baby Jesus.
Italy
La Befana, either a fairy queen, old crone or witch, brings gifts for
the good children and punishment for the bad on January 6. Christmas
feasts vary from region to region but include roasted, baked or fried
eel, tortellini and cakes.
Japan
Christmas was introduced to Japan by missionaries, and is now popular.
Gifts are exchanged, turkey is eaten on Christmas Day, and houses are
decorated with evergreen and mistletoe. A priest or old man known as
Hoteiosho carries a sack on his back, and resembles Santa Claus, apart
from the eyes in the back of his head. On New Year's Eve houses are cleaned
thoroughly from top to bottom and the next day people dress in their
finest clothes. The father of the house throws dried beans into each
room to drive out evil spirits and encourage good luck.
Latvia
Latvians believe that Father Christmas brings presents on each of the
12 days of Christmas starting on Christmas Eve. Usually the presents
are put under the family Christmas tree. (What a good idea to spread
Christmas out longer!)
The special Latvian Christmas Day meal is cooked brown peas with bacon
(pork) sauce, small pies, cabbage and sausage.
Poland
Polish children get presents both on St Nicholas Day and on Christmas
day itself. The Star of Bethlehem is the most popular element of the
Polish Christmas and all the family gathers to look for it on Christmas
Eve. Once the star appears, a special wafer called Oplatek is broken
and shared by all. The feast consists of twelve courses, one for each
Apostle, with hay under the tablecloth to remind everyone that Jesus
was born in a stable. Poppy seed cake, beet soup, prune dumplings and
noodles often feature on the menu.
Portugal
People pretend that Father Christmas brings presents to children on Christmas
Eve. The presents are left under the Christmas tree or in shoes by the
fireplace. A special Christmas meal of salted dry cod-fish with boiled
potatoes is eaten at midnight on Christmas Eve.
Russia
In the days of the Soviet Union, Christmas was not celebrated very much.
New Year was the important time - when 'Father Frost' brought presents
to children. With the fall of Communism, Christmas can be openly
celebrated - either on December 25th; or more often on January 7th.
This unusual date is because the Russian Orthodox church uses the
old 'Julian' calendar for religious celebration days. Special Christmas
food includes cakes, pies and 'meat dumplings'.
Sweden
The most important day is Christmas Eve. A special Christmas meal is
eaten on Christmas Eve - ham (pork), herring fish, and brown beans
- and this is the time when families give presents to each other.
Many people attend a church meeting early on Christmas Day.
Syria
On Christmas Eve, the gates of Syrian Christian homes are locked as a
reminder of years of religious persecution. Candles and bonfires
are lit. The way the fire spreads through the wood will determine
the family's luck for the following year. Syrian children receive
gifts from the Smallest Camel of the Wise Men. The camel was exhausted
by the long journey to visit the baby Jesus, but refused to give
up, and was blessed as a result.
USA
The USA is so multi-cultural that you will find many different ways of
celebrating Christmas.
Venezuela
In Caracas, the capital city, it is customary to roller
skate to the main Early Morning Mass between December 16 and
24. Before bedtime children tie one end of a piece of string
to their big toe and hang the other out of the window. Next morning,
the roller skaters give a tug to any string they see hanging.
New
Year Celebrations
The
day celebrated as New Year's
Day was not always January
1. The celebration of the new
year is the oldest of all holidays.
It was first observed in ancient
Babylon about 4000 years ago.
In the years around 2000 BC,
the Babylonian New Year began
with the first New Moon (actually
the first visible cresent)
after the Vernal Equinox (first
day of spring).
The beginning of spring is a logical time to start a new year. After
all, it is the season of rebirth, of planting new crops, and of blossoming.
January 1, on the other hand, has no astronomical nor agricultural significance.
It is purely arbitrary.
In order to set the calendar right, the Roman senate, in 153 BC, declared
January 1 to be the beginning of the new year. But tampering continued
until Julius Caesar, in 46 BC, established what has come to be known
as the Julian Calendar. It again established January 1 as the new year.
But in order to synchronize the calendar with the sun, Caesar had to
let the previous year drag on for 445 days.
Traditionally, it was thought that one could affect the luck they would
have throughout the coming year by what they did or ate on the first
day of the year. For that reason, it has become common for folks to celebrate
the first few minutes of a brand new year in the company of family and
friends. Parties often last into the middle of the night after the ringing
in of a new year. It was once believed that the first visitor on New
Year's Day would bring either good luck or bad luck the rest of the year.
It was particularly lucky if that visitor happened to be a tall dark-haired
man.
Traditional New Year foods are also thought to bring luck. Many cultures
believe that anything in the shape of a ring is good luck, because it
symbolizes "coming full circle," completing a year's cycle.
For that reason, the Dutch believe that eating donuts on New Year's Day
will bring good fortune.
Many parts of the U.S. celebrate the new year by consuming black-eyed
peas. These legumes are typically accompanied by either hog jowls or
ham. Black-eyed peas and other legumes have been considered good luck
in many cultures. The hog, and thus its meat, is considered lucky because
it symbolizes prosperity. Cabbage is another "good luck" vegetable
that is consumed on New Year's Day by many. Cabbage leaves are also considered
a sign of prosperity, being representative of paper currency. In some
regions, rice is a lucky food that is eaten on New Year's Day.
The song, "Auld Lang Syne," playing in the background, is sung
at the stroke of midnight in almost every English-speaking country in
the world to bring in the new year. At least partially written by Robert
Burns in the 1700's, it was first published in 1796 after Burns' death.
Early variations of the song were sung prior to 1700 and inspired Burns
to produce the modern rendition. An old Scotch tune, "Auld Lang
Syne" literally means "old long ago," or simply, "the
good old days.
UK Partyshop
can help with your new year celebrations. Take a look at our
new year balloons, new year fancy dress, tableware, party crackers,
new year confetti and many other new year extras
|
