Around the second week of December was when my family usually brought out the Christmas tree and decorations and it's a tradition that I've continued in my own home. So today was the day earmarked for getting out the decs and my little artificial tree.
The tree itself was actually left behind by the previous occupant of my flat and is just the right size for the living room, not to mention surprisingly sturdy and realistic. So right from the get-go I had the most important decoration all buttoned up, with no need to worry about getting another every year and spending all of Christmas vacuuming up dropped needles, plus there was some decent tinsel included as well.
The rest of the decorations were almost all purchased a few years ago from the once great and much-missed high street emporium that was Woolworths. They were doing a 3 for 2 offer on all decorations in the run-up to Christmas, as I recall, so I was able to amass 24 red and gold baubles (turns out the tree is only really big enough to take half that number, but it's always good to have spares!) 3 of these lovely gold reindeer bell rings (proper jingly ones too!) and three stars including the main one for the top of the tree, all for about £10. Oh Woolies, whyfor did you have to go bankrupt?! ;-(Around the same
time Past Times were doing a similar offer, so I was able to get a set of three Victorian-style candles, this wonderfully traditional Father Christmas and his sleigh, plus this delightful glass fairy.Perhaps unsurprisingly I'm a sucker for an old-fashioned Christmas tree of red and gold, so I was lucky to find all these items in those colours. I never tire of that combination and I like to think that, with my limited means, I've managed to create a pretty decent looking Christmas tree. Not bad for a chap, eh?
All set for the festivities to begin now, methinks!
