The holidays are the perfect time of the year to decorate your house. However, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas are so close together. Unfortunately, many people tend to get too wrapped up in buying Christmas decorations that they just forget about Thanksgiving and Halloween. So, is it okay to put up Christmas decorations before Halloween?
Christmas decorations before Halloween are not good. If you like both holidays, it’s best to give each their monthly time. Besides if you decorate for Christmas in October you end up skipping Thanksgiving. There’s also the risk of getting sick of Christmas before it’s here if you decorate too early.
It seems to me that with each passing year, Christmas decorations start to go up earlier, with stores putting them up even before Halloween! When you put Christmas decorations before Halloween, it’s like each holiday loses meaning. I’ll share my thoughts on Christmas decorations before Halloween and what that entails below.
Contents
When Should I Put Up My Christmas Tree?
For some, Christmas decorations won’t make their appearance till mid to late December, but others start decorating much earlier for various reasons. So, if you’re wondering when it’s acceptable to put your Christmas lights up or whether it’s unlucky to do it early, here’s everything you need to know.
In general, you should put up the Christmas tree when it suits you. Most put up the tree in December. Some do it the day after Thanksgiving while others align it with Advent. Traditionally, people put up the tree on Christmas Eve. The only time that doesn’t make sense is to do it after Christmas.
Putting Up the Tree Too Early:
Putting up the tree too early runs the risk of your decorations getting worn or looking un-fresh. This is for both real and faux decorations.
When you buy the tree too early, you run the risk of the tree needles and branches drooping the time Christmas day rolls around. Typically, fresh trees often last for four weeks, so waiting gives your tree more time to be fresh for Christmas.
If you put your artificial tree up early, it’s possible for it to get damaged, being out so long, or for your bulbs and other ornaments to get dingy or damaged as well (especially if you have little kids or pets in the home.)
Putting Up the Tree Late:
Of course, if you wait too long to put up the tree you run the risk of limited supply, for live trees that is. The good ones are likely gone as you get closer to Christmas.
The same is true for artificial trees (we bought ours on Amazon). If you are buying an artificial tree, for instance, waiting too long can greatly reduce your buying options. If you have your tree already, waiting to put it up can feel lackluster.
As far as holidays go, December is best for Christmas decorating and putting up the tree in most people’s view. If you put your tree up in November, at least wait until the end of November so that Christmas decorations don’t overshadow Thanksgiving.
Putting it up even sooner runs the risk of overshadowing multiple holidays like Thanksgiving and Halloween, where they have their own decorations.
To be on the safer side, putting up the tree a little later, such as the first or second week of December, will help keep it looking healthier during the entire festivity season.
Below I’ll address some specific suggestions about when to put up the Christmas tree and the pros and cons for each.
Can You Decorate for Christmas Before Halloween?
In most situations, it’s up to you when put up your Christmas lights and other decorations for the holiday, even if that means you can decorate for Christmas before Halloween. However, doing so has its drawbacks.
Sometimes decorating early might be tedious and get boring, the exact opposite of the effect you probably were aiming for by putting them up so early! But seeing the same lights and decorations up for months at a time can get stale. It may feel like your early excitement goes away by the time Christmas comes.
As well, there are other considerations about decorating for Christmas before Halloween. If you live in a controlled space, you might be breaking bylaws and rules by decorating so early. You could in fact need special permission to do it.
Many Homeowner Associations have restrictions about decorating. This is true for condo buildings and apartments, too, even rental situations. If you go against regulations, you could be fined or evicted in some extreme circumstances.
Thus, before doing anything out-of-the-norm, I highly recommend checking about this. It could save you time and money.
You might also like to read these holiday articles:
- Some Say Halloween Is Dying. Is It Going Out Or Coming Back?
- I Hate Christmas Shopping Reasons and Tips
- What to do When You Think I Miss Christmas Already
Decorating for Halloween and Christmas at the Same Time?
Since stores often start stocking Christmas and Halloween decorations on the shelves at the same time, people can end up buying both and wonder if it’s appropriate to decorate at the same time.
Overall it’s not appropriate to decorate for Halloween and Christmas at the same time, even if stores sell decorations for both simultaneously. Halloween and Christmas decorations (like color schemes and icons) have little in common, so it’s better to keep them separated.
Can pumpkins and black cats be used alongside reindeer and Frosty? Not really, that is in the traditional spirit of each holiday.
Of course, there are plenty of neutral holiday decorations, including wreaths like this all green one at Amazon, that could be used for both Halloween and Christmas, but there are limits for making this work. For instance, I use one wreath all year on our front door, and this includes Halloween and Christmas, but I do this by changing out the colors on the wreath, not leaving the wreath unadorned and neutral.
For Halloween, I use orange and gold bows typically, whereas for Christmas I change it to red and gold. I could easily keep it only gold and use it for both Halloween and Christmas (and Thanksgiving for that matter) ‘simultaneously’ and go from one season to the next seamlessly, but then the lines are completely removed from one holiday to the other.
Staying neutral takes away the good and unique about each season! If you go too neutral and avoid all traditional holiday colors like orange for Halloween and red for Christmas, you won’t really be decorating for the holidays.
– Is October Too Early to Decorate for Christmas?
Shops start filling with Christmas gifts and toys early every year, and Christmas adverts are released seemingly every day. But deciding when to put the Christmas decorations is a task that comes under much debate.
Decorating for Christmas in October is too early and can be deemed inappropriate. That’s because it’s inconsiderate to your neighbors, and may even be against regulations. You may be tempted to decorate for Christmas in October, but it’s better to wait and enjoy Halloween and Thanksgiving first.
Why Do Some People Put Christmas Decorations Up Too Early?
As people start shopping and talking about Christmas there are those who seem to jump the gun for putting up decorations too early. Why do some people put Christmas decorations up too early?
Some people put Christmas decorations up too early out of zeal and holiday enthusiasm. Putting up decorations is fun, brings back childhood memories, and puts us in the Christmas spirit. And research shows that those who decorate for Christmas early are actually happier.
There are also those who prefer to put up Christmas decorations early to get it out of the way. With so much shopping to do at Christmas and other holiday activities taking up time, in some ways it’s easier to put the decorations up and be done with it.
Besides, putting the Christmas decorations up early could extend the excitement of the season. Psychoanalysts argue that this can also have a positive effect on people’s moods.
When Is the Latest Time to Set Up Christmas Decorations?
So on the flipside, some people wait what seems like a really long time before putting up their Christmas decorations. In that case, when is the latest time to set up Christmas decorations?
In the past, during the less commercial period, people waited to put up Christmas trees and decorations until Christmas Eve. They would then leave them up through the feast of the Epiphany on the 6th of January that marks the wise men’s visit to baby Jesus and the end of the Christmas season.
This is what’s known as the 12 Days of Christmas. The first day of Christmas started December 25th, so people decorated on the 24th in anticipation. Then, over the next twelve days they celebrated. Christmas ended on the feast day of Epiphany or the Three Kings Day.
Many Catholic homes, like ours, observe Christmas through January 6th to this day, maintaining 12 Days of Christmas. However, the clear latest time to set up Christmas decorations should be Christmas Day since that’s when Christmas officially starts.
Keep a Live Christmas Tree Lasting Even If Early Decorating
Putting up a fake tree is the easiest way of putting up your decorations early. If your attic space is large, you can even store it decorated. How simple is that? But this isn’t the case for live trees.
If you’re looking for a live tree or just prefer using a live tree at Christmas, there are ways to maximize its use and keep it fresh. First, get a quality tree. Then, with proper cutting of the trunk and regular watering, you can keep your tree longer.
To recognize a quality tree, the needles should be dark green and not yellowish and shouldn’t drop if you brush your hands over them.
Once you get home, cut an inch off the bottom of the truck, place that end in a bucket of water, and keep it in the shade. The cut trunk will help the tree absorb water without losing too much through the leaves and heat.
Once you have the tree inside, keep the tree bucket filled with water and place it away from a heat source like a fireplace or drying heating vent. Though many like the look of a tree next to the fireplace, it’s not good for the tree’s longevity and it poses a fire hazard.
Another tip for prolonging your live tree is to keep pets away from it. Dogs are prone to drink the water, thereby drying up the tree sooner and cats like to climb us the branches, causing the tree to lose needles sooner.
Is It Bad Luck to Put Your Christmas Tree Up Early?
Although it may feel unlucky to put your Christmas tree up early if it dries out too soon, it’s not bad luck to put your tree up early. It’s all about preference and really up to you when to put your tree up. However, different customs have their own ways, so you might want to consider that.
Some tradition dictates that the trees should be put up when Advent starts (the fourth Sunday before Christmas). However, for those who aren’t very eager to put the decorations up early, there’s another tradition that you should do it no more than 12 days before Christmas. Then again, in days past people waited until December 24th, Christmas Eve.
In the past, for instance, it was common for Catholics to wait on Christmas trees and decorations (and Christmas Carols) until Christmas Eve, but we’ve made our celebration more gradual (and so have many other Catholics nowadays).
For us, we put our tree up the day after Thanksgiving with lights only. As well we decorate outside with lights and our blow-up Nativity (with baby Jesus covered). We also put out other Christmas decorations like our two Nativity sets, but we hide or cover baby Jesus and move the Wise Men away from the stable. With each Sunday of Advent we add a few decorations on the tree, but the full ornaments and our beloved gold Angel topper (purchased in 2017) wait til Christmas Eve. On Christmas Day, we uncover Jesus and move the wise men to the stable. Then we keep everything up through Epiphany.
In the past, depending on which tradition you believe in, having the Christmas decorations up earlier or later than these dates was deemed bad luck. But most people don’t believe in good or bad luck today.
Today, many people put their Christmas decorations up early without consequences.
Is It Bad Luck to Keep Christmas Decorations Up After Christmas?
While some are keen to take decorations down immediately following Christmas Day, it is not bad luck to keep them up longer past Christmas. In fact, many choose deliberately to leave up decorations until January 6th, the Feast of Epiphany. This is part of celebrating the 12 days of Christmas.
Wrapping Up Christmas Decorations Before Halloween
So to wrap it all up, it’s not really good to put up Christmas decorations before Halloween. Even if you love Christmas so much that you prefer to decorate early, putting them up months in advance of the actual holiday runs the risk of overdoing it and having the reverse intended effect.
It could also be against your homeowner’s association or county/city/neighborhood regulations to decorate for holidays outside of their month.
I also suggest these related holiday articles:
