I keep my tree up all year
Vikki Gauden, 37, is a youth worker and lives in Bargoed, Gwent, with partner Shayne, 43, a groundsman. She has two daughters, Demi, 10, and Kayleigh, 18.
This year, I couldn’t wait to adorn my Christmas tree with baubles, tinsel and twinkly lights, just like every year. But unlike last year, I didn’t have to get the tree out of its box, as I kept it up all year to spread Christmas cheer from January to December.
To date, I’ve redecorated my tree more than 180 times and hope to get to 190 before Christmas Day. My family thinks I’m crazy, but I love seeing the happiness it brings when I post photos online.
It all started in early January last year, when my younger daughter tested positive for Covid and we all had to isolate. Luckily, we didn’t get seriously ill but I felt pretty miserable. Although it was time to take down the Christmas tree, I couldn’t bear to see the last bit of festive cheer packed away into a box until next December, so I decided to keep it out.
A few days later it was my partner’s birthday and, as we couldn’t go out and celebrate, I decorated the Christmas tree with banners and balloons. When he saw the tree, his face lit up.
On January 25 it was St Dwynwen’s Day, the Welsh equivalent of Valentine’s Day, so to mark the occasion I covered the tree in love hearts.
I posted a photo on Facebook and was amazed by the response. People loved the tree and said it had made them smile during the difficult days of lockdown. So I decided to keep the tree up for good.
Sometimes I decorate it for a fun occasion, like supporting the Welsh rugby team. Other times, it’s to raise awareness of mental health, or a charity close to my heart.
In September, I turned it yellow for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, and a parent of a young cancer survivor got in touch to say how much it meant to her.
Another time, on pancake day, I covered the tree in little jars of Nutella, and cutouts of pancakes, which was fun.
Right now, my beloved tree is covered in baubles and tinsel again.
This Christmas will be even more special knowing how much festive cheer I spread through the year. Who knows, maybe I’ll keep it up for 2022 too.
I start my festive foraging in January
Imogen Tinkler, 39, runs foraging business bangersandballs.co with her husband Duncan, 39. They live in Whitstable, Kent, with their four-year-old daughter Xanthe and baby Athene.
When I tell people I start preparing for Christmas as soon as New Year rolls around, they think I’m bonkers. Often they assume I’m buying next year’s Christmas gifts in the Boxing Day sales.
But in fact I’m an avid forager, and spend all year making delicious produce to eat at Christmastime.
I’ve always loved eating seasonally, but during lockdown I started foraging to help me get out of the house and give me something to do.
Even on cold and wet days, the thought of picking delicious fresh ingredients inspires me to go for a walk, and finding the ingredients I need always boosts my mood. The only part of my Christmas dinner I don’t make myself is the meat.
At the start of the year, I make wild gorse syrup for Christmas cocktails, followed by wild garlic pesto for canapes. I pickle magnolia flowers in April to give as gifts – they taste like ginger – and then make elderflower cordial and champagne in May.
In June we make nettle beer and then in autumn I pick berries from the hedgerow to make jams and chutneys, as well as juniper and cranberry sauce.
This year, we’ll celebrate with preserved pear and home-cured pancetta starters, followed by roast turkey and home-grown vegetables with stuffing made from foraged chestnuts and preserved red cabbage, topped with homemade cranberry and juniper sauce. Then we’ll eat a homemade Christmas pudding with brandy butter.
Instead of panicking about a supermarket delivery slot for Christmas, I can relax knowing that all of our produce is sitting in the pantry waiting.
We love teaching our daughter about where food comes from, and she gets excited to see the things she’s picked on the table. We give people hampers of homemade preserves as presents too.
We enjoy Christmas without feeling stressed about the preparation and focus instead on spending time as a family.
And there’s nothing more satisfying than sitting down after Christmas dinner with a cocktail made from our homegrown syrups from the spring.
We're real life Christmas elves
Alison Burton, 49, lives in Croydon, South London, with 10-year-old daughter Kira, and she runs marchmuses.co.uk with her business partner Natalie Duvall
This year when Christmas rolls around, I’ll be looking forward to having a well-deserved rest. After all, my business partner Natalie and I spend all year designing diverse and inclusive decorations to make sure people can have a magical Christmas.
In fact, December 25 is our only day off.
We start planning our new range in January, and talking to suppliers to test out different materials.
We pay special attention to the body types, hair and features to make sure the decorations are representative.
Then we work away getting the products made.
Luckily I love Christmas, so we often work in our festive PJs and listen to carols to help set the mood.
My daughter despairs as I’ll watch Christmas films all year round – I can’t get enough. While people are planning summer holidays, I’m often humming festive tunes, and thinking about next Christmas.
From summer onwards, we take our decorations to trade shows and then we start planning for our biggest sales time of the year.
The idea for our brand started in 2018 when Natalie was decorating her Christmas tree with her daughter Sophia, and Sophia asked whether angels could be black.
Natalie was taken aback. She realised her daughter had never seen a depiction of a black angel before. And so the pair of us set off on a mission to find black decorations for our trees.
She scoured the internet and couldn’t find any, while I pounded the pavements on the high street and only found one in a shop in Croydon.
The shop owner explained it was actually a white decoration dipped in darker paint.
Horrified by the lack of diversity, we decided to go into business designing and making black decorations. The first year, we made six different designs and people absolutely loved them. Since then the business has grown and grown.
I never grow tired of getting into the festive spirit. We love seeing people’s faces when they find decorations which look like them, and we happily work all year to make that happen.
