Friday 27 December 2013

Today's Review: Christmas Themed Christmas Gifts

Christmas is all done with now, so we should be putting all festive things out of our minds. Trees come down, leftovers are devoured, and anything remotely Christmassy-looking will be looked upon with disdain. Which is a shame for some people, as they've probably received some novelty festive themed items for Christmas.

I get it, Christmas is a huge cash cow for anyone involved. So companies will churn out all manner of items with Santa, snowmen and candy canes on, ranging from socks to mugs to candles, you name it, there'll be a Christmas version. The trouble is, these items probably aren't aimed at the forward thinking jolly soul who will pick them up at the start of December and use them to get in the spirit of things. No, these items are designed and marketed to be Christmas presents. Think about that, Christmas items as Christmas presents. We, as a country, spend the entire month of December leading up to Christmas Day, but after that (or maybe after Boxing Day), Christmas is no longer relevant. So to receive a pair of Christmas socks on Christmas Day, you have at most two days to wear them before people will give you funny looks.

So why is this an issue? Well, it's a bit of a waste of money for one thing. I'd much rather have a pair of regular socks than ones portraying Rudolph with a funny face, because I can wear the former on any occasion. A candy cane mug will sit in my cupboard all year while I choose a more normal design for my coffee. Why would we spend good money on an item that is only relevant for such a short period? Some may say that we can easily save these items for the next year, and use them in the countdown to Christmas too, but I certainly don't have room in my wardrobes and cupboards to store festive items, and they'd be the first thing to go as soon as I have a clear out.

Perhaps I'm a bit too frugal for my own good. Perhaps I'm secretly a big Grinch. But I just don't see the point in Christmas themed Christmas gifts. Even today, two days after Christmas Day, it would be odd to be using such items, much like it's a bit odd for me to still be writing about Christmas. Oh, how meta of me.

My rating: 1/5

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