Please could someone tell me when the decorations should be taken down?

Happy Birthday downtoearth ?.
I take mine down when I have the energy to get the boxes back out of the cupboard and put them back in again....
It usually means rearranging everything AGAIN. I dislike that cupboard intensely ?

I have always taken them down by the 12th night which I take to be the 5th January if Christmas Day is the First Night. I don't believe in bad luck, I just want to get rid of the Christmas tree needles!

I usually take them down 2nd January as I think the festivities are all over by then.

There were hot cross buns in one of the big four supermarkets this morning!
Back to Xmas decorations - down 6th Jan here.

I grew up in a family that observed that tradition and old habits die hard

Same here MaizieD. My Mum would always wait until 6th January to take down the decorations so I do too. She observed 12th night tradition. We are having relatives to stay after new year, and given the house took so long to decorate (because I go a bit OTT) they can jolly well benefit from my efforts!!! However, I do agree, once Christmas has come and gone, the decorations feel wrong.

I decorate the house on the second week of December so I get full benefit of the prettiness/greenery everywhere. It's a long lasting festive season in our house.

I will be so glad when all the Christmassy food stuffs have gone. I have no intention of eating them and didn't go overboard with my shopping but we have had guests bearing gifts - food gifts - unfortunately. Dilemma! (The family will probably polish them off for me. I hate waste.)

I’m afraid I was so angry with the OH over something, I took mine down the day after Boxing Day this time!

Always take ours down on the Epiphany the 6th January, glad to see the back of them then.

I too usually take my decorations down on the 6th January, but as the local scouts collect Christmas trees for the moderate sum of £2, 50 on the Saturday nearest that date, if I want them to take our tree it will need to come down on the 4th this year.

Here a lot of people take down their decorations before New Year, which was also customary in Scotland when I was a child,

Maw Broon: my wise men have hurried up and are approaching the crib today. The shepherds have gone back to their sheep and the sheep dog is herding the flock so they are ready to move off next week. I too feel sorry for them arriving just in time to be packed away. My former parish church left the crib in place until Candlemass, which gave the kings nice time for their devotions.

Here in Scotland we celebrate Hogmanay so always keep the decorations for that. I'll take ours down on Jan 6th as usual.
I only put the tree up on the Sunday before Christmas. It's a real one so I don't want to drag needles through the house.

Yes Maw, it's really not fair on the wise men.

As a child growing up in Glasgow in the 50s, the tree didn’t go up until Christmas Eve then it stayed up until the 6th of January. I think we went back to school later than that then, maybe having 3 weeks off!
Anyway, these days, living in Hertfordshire now, my tree goes up just before I entertain my first guests, usually at the beginning of December. By now, I’m champing at the bit to feel Springlike (it’s a beautiful, sunny day here today, so windows open, a bit of cleaning and a surreptitious removal of all the Christmas stuff in the bedrooms. My only concession was to put two brand new brushed cotton duvet sets in one of the guest bedrooms. It’s subtle, little robins one side, polka dots the other, so not too overtly Christmas. I got them in the M&S sale and they are too nice not to use.
The downstairs, hall, stairs and landing will stay till New Year’s Day when they will be cleared and the house filled with any Spring-like flowers I can get my hands on!
Enough is enough these days. Great while it lasts but, let’s move on, lol.

Candlemas Blimey!

SarahellenW

Not a clue when 12th night actually is, but decorations etc are down and gone by 1st January in my house.

As far as I'm concerned, Christmas belongs to the end of the year, not the beginning, and I like to have all the clutter gone by the New Year.

as ;i have a day off new years day they will probably come down then i did think sunday tomorrow but got quite a bit to do

trisher It is Christian belief that Jesus was born on 25th December ie Christs Day and a day to celebrate. You state those of Eastern Orthodox Celebrate' Christmas Day '?on the 6th January.The Holy Bible does not specify 'dates' but refer to 'events' taking place as ' days'.
It was the Christian Church who gave Christ's birth as the
25th December .













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My eldest Daughter was born on Jan 5th and she always insisted that the decorations stayed up for her Birthday party, that was over 50 years ago and it's been the same ever since !!

12th night, how could you not be aware of this I wonder on which planet you have been living all these years?

Only rule is.....if a decoration gets forgotten/overlooked it is left “up” it’s got to be left hanging till next Christmas. I’ve had a blue glass icicle hanging from a candle sconce since last 12 night. It’s now, safely on the tree with its friends.
Also I hope you all had a very merry Christmas and I wish you a peaceful and happy new year when it comes?

As soon as you get fed up with them .

Many years ago when my DM was a little girl, her birthday was the 7th of January, she could never understand why the decorations were taken down the day before her birthday each year. My grandmother was not a kind person and rules were rules in her eyes. Mum lived with us for the last 11 years of her life so we never took the decorations down until the 8th. What harm does it do if it gives a little pleasure. Since she died 4 years ago we havent put any decorations up.

We always leave a decoration up ‘for luck’. Usually its a little silver bird which sits on top of a picture.

Christmas actually ends at Candlemas..Feb 2 nd when we turn our attention from the crib to the cross. However I usually take all decs. down long before, usually at or before Epiphany ( Jan 6 th). However I do leave my crib in position until 2 nd of Feb.

I stick to twelfth night for the tree it do clear other Christmassy bits as I go.

I think it is a bit sad that people now often put their decorations up at the beginning of December and then can't wait to take them down. Other than when we have had an early Christmas celebration (as we did the year our daughter went to live in Canada for 15 months) I like to decorate our tree with the grandchildren two or three days before Christmas and to take the decorations down on twelfth night. This year (as we have done once before) we had a cheap last minute holiday island hopping in the Caribbean (you have to keep your nerve and book last minute!), I'd made pudding and cake before we went and bought the presents but we were back 8 days before Christmas nicely relaxed and ready for all the family to come for a few days - perfect for us

5 December is the 12th day of Christmas but I'm not sure if they should come down that day or are allowed to stay that night (12th night) and cone down on the 6th.
Personally I don't like seeing trees etc around town into the New Year, by then Christmas feels as though it was a long time ago.
I took mine down last night planning to pack them away after work today. Instead I've boxed lights, baubles etc but not finished lol. Its just not so interesting as when you unpack them.