Forgotten Crafts Project #59: Festivals and decorations

When I came up with the idea for this project, my intention had of course been to work my way through the list in a numerical and orderly fashion. However, when typing up the contents list, I realised that the last installment is festivals and decorations, and, it being the beginning of December I would be foolish to wait on this one! For one thing, festivals happen throughout the year, and it makes sense to do them as and when, and for another I'm making Christmas decorations, cakes and puddings at the moment, so...

I get the impression that like so many things, Mr. Seymour is none too impressed with the modern developments around the "present-day orgy of rampant consumerism" that we call Christmas. His words, not mine. As a child his decorations did not go up until Christmas eve, after he and his brother had been read 'twas the night before Christmas' and gone to bed - awakening on Christmas Day to a house bedecked with holly and a Christmas tree adorned with real candles.

Whether Christian or not, I do feel the magic of Christmas gets lost in consumerism. The celebration of the turning of the cycle of the year is ancient; as John Seymour mentions, living at a high latitude the shortening days and increasing cold must have felt to our ancestors like the end of the world was nigh. When the days began to get longer it must have been a relief, and a cause for enormous celebration! And what better way to celebrate than by getting ourselves into debt feasting and singing and sharing stories?

For us this year, it'll be a bit lean, so we'll probably have a Good-Life-style branch in a pot adorned with a variety of coloured lights and mismatched decorations, a ton of greenery festooned around the house, and enough tinsel and paper chains to make it look like a fairy vomited in our living room. No shortage of festivities, but we'll forgo the £30 on a tree, thank you very much - there's no rule that says we have to have one!

Coming up...
* How to make a festive wreath
* How to make Christmas pudding in a slow cooker
* A short history of some Christmas traditions (including crackers, cards and trees!)