Christmas Jumpers

A firm favourite in Britain, the Christmas jumper’s history can be traced back to pre-20th Century and the warm, hand knitted sweaters from Scandinavia and Iceland.

“Characterised by contrasting bands of geometric patterns, which are popular in today’s Fair Isle knits, the jumpers distinguished fishermen from different communities,” says Dr Wild in an interview with BT in 2017.

By the 1960s, the growing popularity of knitwear saw a change in Christmas advertising from dresses and suits to cardigans. And it only grew from there. A famous scene in Bridget Jones’ Diary where Bridget meets Darcy is questionably one that brought Christmas jumpers into the limelight - and a lot of throught went into exactly what the jumper should look like. Find out more HERE.

Nowadays many UK businesses have a ‘Christmas Jumper Day’ in December to help raise money for Save The Children - this year it is on 10th December. The idea is to don your jumper and donate £2. This is such a wonderful way to raise money for a charity for children than before Christmas.

The site states: “You don't even need a new jumper. You can dig out last year's, or take a boring old sweater and add some tinsel, or get one from a charity shop (I can't believe what people have cleared out in lockdown)”

This year though, with lockdown happening, Christmas Jumper Day in an office is likely not on the cards. But the charity still needs your support, so why not rally some friends together and have a virtual Christmas Jumper celebration, or even donate to toys, school kits snd winter clothing HERE.

And now, let’s get warm and snuggly! Welcome to my 12 Days of Christmas, #ecoedition continuing with Day 8! Check out the quiz question at the bottom of the page and stay tuned for the answer tomorrow!

QUIZ ANSWER FROM DAY 7: What city did Tom Smith create the Christmas cracker in? London!

Did you know:

Some more interesting facts about jumpers:

• Christmas Jumper Day has raised over £17 million for children living in poverty in the UK and around the world

• Around 12 million jumpers were bought last year in the UK despite there being about 65 million already around in people’s homes

• Research by Hubbub shows only 2 out of 5 jumpers are worn over the festive period

• In 2017, 1 in 4 Christmas jumpers was thrown away after the festive season after one use

• 1 in 3 under-35s buy a new Christmas jumper every year

• A survey of more than 3,000 UK consumers in 2017 showed that 24% did not want to be seen in the same jumper as previous years

• 29% said Christmas jumpers are so cheap that they might as well get a new one every year

• 95% of the jumpers are made from plastic materials but only 29% of consumers know this

• 44% of a sample of 108 jumpers tested were made completely from acrylic which releases a lot of microfibres when washed…a staggering 730,000 fibres per wash

fun and Eco friendly alternatives

Why not try one or more of the below ideas:

• Dig out your jumper from last year

• Check out charity shops for a preloved jumper

• Make your own Christmas jumper using one you have lying around and Christmasify it. Ideas how HERE

• Organise a Christmas Jumper Swap Party with friends and family online so you can get a new jumper without having to buy one. Better yet, agree to swap jumpers without seeing them, drop them off / post them, open them for a surprise and wash them before use ;)

• Check out how to be involved with Save the Children this year at home, with work or with friends

FUN QUIZ QUESTION - find out the answer tomorrow!

Which charity does Christmas Jumper Day raise money for?

Good luck and let’s raise money for Save the Children!

Please note, I am not affiliated with any company mentioned in this post.