Retro Holiday

Most of our antique Christmas ornaments and tradition were gifted to us from the Victorian era. Before Queen Victoria's interest in Christmas took England and Europe by storm, there really wasn't a big interest in decorating for the holiday as it was primarily considered strictly a holy day. Germany was about the only country to have developed a decorative spirit. But that all changed with Queen Victoria and her devoted subjects. Christmas decorating became quite the fad during her heyday and so you will find that many Christmas antiques have a Victorian era provenance.

Victorians loved to decorate and their sense of style was opulent, chaotic and very ornate. They loved brightly colored knick knacks and collectibles, so it's not surprising that they brought this decorating sense to the Christmas tree itself.

The Victorians wanted their trees to be as colorful and as fanciful as possible. Thus, small toys, miniature bells, Christmas figures and even candies were used to adorn and further beautify the Christmas tree. They also experimented with various ways of lighting the trees, from candles to gas lamps to oil lamps called bubble lights. Nowadays, we are fortunate to be able to light our trees safely with miniature electric lights, but I have to say, I'd love to see a tree lit with candles. I just wouldn't want to try it in my own home. I'd be afraid I'd set the place on fire!

While candles were frequently a necessity for lighting in Victorian homes, they were also used decoratively and so naturally they wound up being used as a form of Christmas decoration as well. I've already mentioned their use on Christmas trees, but they were also used to create more atmosphere in the home.

Some other Victorian Christmas decorating examples include ornate woven mantles for the dining table, especially during the traditional Christmas Eve meal. The use of gold-sprayed and painted pine cones around the dining area and other parts of the house is another classic example of an antique Christmas decoration and they also loved their candy canes.