It’s official: GH readers love Christmas. That’s what you told us in our big Christmas survey. In fact, 60% of you declared yourselves huge fans of the festive season, with just 3% saying they’d rather forget about it and 75% of you saying that reading the December issue of Good Housekeeping is a tradition in itself! But while some traditions remain as cherished today as they've always been, others are on the way out. Welcome to the changing face of Christmas . . .
GH Christmas survey - new ways to celebrate
More than 2,600 of you responded to our survey, which asked you about your festive habits – when you start preparing, how you decorate and shop, what you’re looking forward to (as well as what you’re worried about), and how you’ll be celebrating on the big day itself.
First up, the traditions you love. Over half of you have an Advent calendar (52%), with the most popular being those that contain – you guessed it - beauty products and chocolates.
While 58% of you still send Christmas cards every year, digital Christmas cards are rising in popularity. Parents love to keep the Christmas magic alive with an ‘Elf on the Shelf’, while a massive 30% of you celebrate Christmas Jumper Day, making it the most popular work-based celebration. The traditional, tinsel-strewn office party is losing its lure, with 60% of you deciding not to bother. Other Christmas activities you're doing less of include attending church services and going to pantomimes.
How you prepare for Christmas
The build up to Christmas starts in earnest from the beginning of November, when many of you start researching and planning your decorations, deciding on menus and finalising gift lists (although serious preppers begin festive planning before summer even gets started!).
As planning intensifies, so does stress and worry about the festive season also rises - 42% of you say you're more worried about the cost of Christmas than ever; 47% feel anxious about the need to be social – and two in five of you eat and drink more than you’d like to over the festive period. To keep financial worries under control, you spend your money on quality items, and shop around for the best deals.
‘For many of us, this can be an incredibly expensive time of year,’ says Emilie Martin, Consumer Affairs Director & Sustainability Editor at Good Housekeeping, ‘but our readers know how to keep the cost of Christmas under control without compromising on the trimmings that make the festivities feel special. Our research shows that although just over half (55%) of readers will pay a little more for great quality products at Christmas, roughly the same number will also shop around for the best deals and plan their Christmas food shop to keep spending in check.’
Christmas decoration trends
We know the December issue of Good Housekeeping makes you feel Christmassy (job done!), but other things marking the start of the festive season for you include watching the festive ads on TV (25%), seeing Christmas lights go up (24%) and hearing the first Christmas song (inevitably Mariah) playing in a shop or on the radio (20%).
The majority of Christmas trees go up between December 2 and December 23. But for a sizeable minority, Christmas starts on the dot of December 1, when one in four of you spend the day putting up the tree and decorating the house. But many of you are ditching the plastic and tinsel and create natural decorations and wreaths instead. Whether it’s due to wanting a greener Christmas or the cost of living crisis, a huge 59% of respondents told us that they wouldn’t be spending anything on décor this Christmas.
‘Using natural materials to decorate your home can be a great alternative to shop-bought decorations,’ says GH’s Emilie Martin. ‘Nearly a quarter of readers forage for things like pinecones, sprigs of holly and lengths of ivy and the same number make their own wreath. A fifth choose a potted tree over a cut one, which can be to reused the following Christmas or planted outdoors.’
‘You might think that when we’re focused on celebrating, environmental concerns take a back seat,’ she adds, ‘but 84% of GH readers say that making Christmas more sustainable is important to them - almost a third say it’s very important.’ Reducing food waste tops the list of sustainable actions for almost 8 in 10 readers.
Favourite Christmas food
There is one thing that GH readers are happy to spend on and that’s the Christmas food shop. You plan menus meticulously; after all, 61% of you are the main shopper and cook for the big day, and you pay a premium for quality.
While a higher budget for food remains consistent (78% are spending the same as last year on the Christmas menu), what we’re eating doesn’t. Turkey is falling out of favour with 48% of you telling us you’re considering roasting other meats as a Christmas day centrepiece; 75% thinking of doubling up the puds; and 64% have binned the traditional Christmas pudding altogether. Four out of ten are also rethinking Christmas meal starters and serving canapes instead.
Other trends you’re embracing are pre-made cocktails and prepping food and freezing it ahead. Buying shop-bought elements helps make it a hassle-free celebration. But you’re confident cooks and 52% are happy to experiment at Christmas, with only 14% worrying about things going wrong.
‘It comes as no surprise to me that our readers love spending time in the kitchen, whether perfecting traditions or indeed experimenting with new ones,’ says GH cookery director Meike Becke. ‘Happily, fear of failure is not an issue for the vast majority, as we all know that GH recipes are Triple-Tested, and therefore guaranteed to work!’
Christmas games you love
While 50% of you say tech is really useful over Christmas to connect with loved ones, 47% of you prefer offline games like quizzes, charades and boardgames, as this makes it easier for older generations to participate (only 15% say they love to play together using tech at Christmas). TV still has the power to connect young and old, with half of you saying you watch TV together over the festive season. In fact, 65% of you say watching a much-loved film or programme with family and friends is part of what makes Christmas Christmas.
