Writer: Anna Nilsson Spets
The Christmas tree stands so green and beautiful in the cottage... No... not at my place, not for the last 30 years. I refuse to celebrate Christmas. In my childhood home, there were strict rules about Christmas decorations: where, when and how.
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The Christmas tree was not decorated until late on Christmas Eve, by Mum. When we children came down in the morning, the lights shone softly, the glitter sparkled, and baubles and straw figures hung in their places.
Today, it's a different story; it's time for Noventa, a sort of mixture of November and Advent. In other words, enjoying Christmas for longer and starting as early as November. God help me. I rest my case.
The history of Christmas trees dates back to 15th-century Germany, where they were reserved for the more affluent. They were decorated with cookies, apples and glitter. During the 19th century, Christmas trees became increasingly popular and spread throughout Europe.
The decorations were expanded to include candles, gingerbread cookies and a star or angel at the top. Even among the common people, the indoor Christmas tree found a place, although it was very simply decorated with paper tassels and a few apples.
In Sweden, the first decorated Christmas tree probably dates back to the 1740s, although decorations using live trees and branches had been around long before that. Decorating the doors of farmhouses with spruce branches, known as julruskor, was believed to protect against evil forces and strange creatures.
The Swedish indoor Christmas tree was originally a small table tree decorated with candles and sweets. Apples were used to weigh down the branches so that the candles would sit straighter. If space was limited, the tree was simply hung from the ceiling!
In my grandmother's inheritance box, there was everything: woven baskets and hearts made of shiny paper, homemade yarn dolls and itchy angel hair. Icing decorations with a bookmark, fragile glass balls wrapped in tissue paper...
Nostalgia and childhood memories also include trudging through the snow and chopping down your own Christmas tree.
Pop rockers... yes, we used to make them when I was a child, folding and cutting tissue paper, and putting a sweet inside a toilet roll. On Twelfth Night, you were allowed to smash the pop rocker and eat the sweet, which by then had become quite hard.
In Sweden, we purchase more than 3 million Christmas trees per year, 75 per cent of which are grown in Denmark.
What kind of fir trees are they?
Norway spruce, Picea abies, is the common green spruce, growing wild in Scandinavia and the north-east. The oldest living spruce is 9,950 years old.
Nordmann fir/King fir, Abies nordmanniana, is the same type of fir tree. It originates from the Caucasus but is mainly cultivated in Denmark. It got its name 'King fir' because forestry students at the agricultural university deliver King fir trees to the castles every year.
Silver spruce, Picea alba, may not be very common, but it does occur, and is often used as an ornamental tree in our gardens.
The artificial Christmas tree made its debut in the 1970s. It was here to stay, but over the decades it has been improved to resemble a real Christmas tree.
Here in Belgium The Christmas tree arrives much earlier because we celebrate Sinterklaas here, Christmas tree sales have started, and decorations are sold by the dozen.
The trend for extravagance continues, and I actually think all the colours and lights are lovely. It's a big difference from the sparse and minimalist decorations of the 1970s.
Why on earth are they so angry?
The tree is often cut down quite a while before it is sold, and the cut end of the trunk dries out. When you buy a tree, it is best to let it acclimatise to the temperature increase gradually, i.e. a little warmer bit by bit. Saw off a couple of centimetres from the trunk to give it a new cut surface. Place the tree well away from heat sources and make sure it always has fresh water.
The Christmas tree stands green and beautiful in the cottage!
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Anna Nilsson Spets
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BP says:
We don't celebrate Christmas here either, apart from food and drink. But your pictures from when you were a child were really fun. I also remember the procedure of decorating the Christmas tree, my mother did that too. And I remember the prickly angel hair very well. Even the candles, which were dangerous when you think about it.
Today's plastic Christmas trees are actually more fun than the natural ones of the past. But they are extremely expensive. I have no idea how much they cost here, actually. I don't have a Christmas tree.
The last picture is so cute. I like your black and orange outfit. Imagine getting to hug Santa Claus – hahaha:-)
2 December 2025 - 20:02
Anna Nilsson Spets says:
Hi BP
Yes, that's what I look like at work, where the photo was taken. Orange T-shirt and black apron.
Take care
3 December 2025 - 5:46