Christmas is coming! Promotional Christmas gift ideas.

Yes it is that time of year again, the excitement and the warm glow of Christmas followed by the creeping panic of the amount of stuff that needs to be done in an ever shrinking timeline and the annual trauma of choosing and buying of Christmas presents spurred on by the media and advertising frenzy of Black Friday!

But has it always been like this – we have had a trawl back in time to find out more about the history of giving gifts, a nostalgic look at the top children's presents over the last 50 years and a cheeky look at the UK's worst presents (according to some!)

According to Why Christmas.com one of the main reasons we have the custom of giving and receiving presents at Christmas, is to remind us of the presents of Frankincense, Gold and Myrrh given to Jesus by the Wise Men.

All over the world, families and friends give presents to each other with most children believing in a person who brings gifts. Sometimes St. Nicholas, Santa Claus or Father Christmas, but in parts of Germany they believe that it is the Christkind, in Spain the Wise Men and in parts of Italy they believe it is an old lady called Befana.

These presents are also left in different places!  In most of Europe, the presents are left in shoes or boots put out by the children. In Italy, the UK and the USA presents are left in stockings, often left hanging by a fire place. In many countries, presents for friends and family may be left under the Christmas Tree. The custom of hanging stockings comes from the story of St. Nicholas.

Presents are opened on different days over the world. The earliest presents are opened in Holland on St. Nicholas' Eve on December 5^th, on St. Nicholas' Day (6th December) in Belgium, Germany, Czech Republic and some other European countries. Children in the UK, USA and many other countries, such as Japan, open their presents on Christmas Day, December 25th. The latest presents are opened on January 6^th, known as Epiphany and is mainly celebrated in Catholic countries such Spain and Mexico.

So what have been the most popular toys of the last 50 years?

In a fantastically nostalgic to look back at the last 40 years Christmas presents wish lists – how many of these fads can you remember and some have really passed the test of time and are still around today?

And what about this year's predictions, well all the retailers have a different view but some of the hot favourites seem to be:  Fingerlings Untamed Dinos, Boxer Poopsies Surprise Unicorn The Robot, Pikmi Pops unicorn ride-ons, Elast Plasti (sort of slime), the Chow Crown (a game you wear on your head!) and can you believe, Monopoly Fortnite if you can drag the kids off the real Fornite to play!!

Whilst most of our clients have placed their orders for Christmas many are now looking to their promotional product requirement for the new year.  Here are a few of our 'Winter Warmers' for the New Year.  Popular at this time of year are branded jackets, woolen hats, scarves, gloves, hand warmers, ice scapers to name a few.  We share some of our favourites below:

And taking a cheeky look at the presents you consider a no-no, Closer magazine conducted a study of 2,000 British adults to find out which presents they hate receiving.   

1. Address books
2. Perfume
3. Jewellery
4. Books
5. Calendars
6. Pot pourri
7. Bad romance novels
8. Knitwear
9. Sexy lingerie
10. Pretentious food/drink
11. Soap on a string
12. A scarf
13. Hankies
14. Candles
15. Movies you've already seen
16. Slogan t-shirts
17. Socks
18. Bath salts /bubble bath
19. Toiletry kits
20. Ugly clothes

And now to test your knowledge of some fun Christmas Trivia… 

1. Who is the star of the movie titled White Christmas?
2. After leaving Bethlehem, to which country did Joseph, Mary and Jesus travel?
3. Christmas is celebrated on the 25th. Who is the patron saint remembered on the 26^th December?
4. Every elf has this ornament on the tip of their shoes. Which ornament are we talking about?
5. Which type of tree was the partridge sitting in, according to a well-known Christmas song?
6. Everyone is familiar with the mistletoe tradition. What is the color of the berries of the plant?
7. How does Santa Claus go back up the chimney to continue his journey of delivering gifts?
8. How many points does a snowflake traditionally have?
9. Name the eight original Reindeer?
10. Traditionally, kids leave out snacks for Santa Claus and his reindeer. What are these snacks?
11. Traditions of Christmas around the world will tell you that Santa Claus is known by many names. What is the French name for Santa Claus?
12. Two of the reindeer's are named after weather phenomenon. Name the reindeer?
13. The red and white costume of Father Christmas was allegedly introduced by what drinks manufacturer?
14. What are the gifts that the Three Wise Men gave baby Jesus, according to Christmas history?
15. What is the first name of Scrooge, the principal character of the novel, A Christmas Carol?
16. What two phrases will you almost always find on Christmas gift tags?
17. Which country can be credited with the creation of the Christmas beverage, eggnog?
18. When was the first Christmas card sent? Who designed it?
19. Which country does St. Nicholas originally belong to?
20. What was the name of the animated Christmas movie featuring Tom Hanks?
21. Which country gifts the Christmas tree that is placed at the Trafalgar Square in London?
22. Balsam, Douglas, Fraser and Noble are all types of what?
23. Which is the most popular ornament used to place at the top of the Christmas tree?
24. The phrase, ‘Bah, humbug!' was invented in which Christmas story?
25. Of all the popular Christmas songs, which is the best-selling single of all time?

Click below to find out the right answers

Christmas trivia answers

*Source: https://www.whychristmas.com/customs/presents.shtml

+Source: https://closeronline.co.uk/real-life/news/worst-christmas-present-list/

#Source: The Sun https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/5131980/top-christmas-toys-last-40-years-cost-comparison/