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Today, we are bringing you back to by gone days with these delightful ways to have an old-fashioned family Christmas!
You can do them all, do a few, or pick out one to try. Either way, it will add simplicity and enjoyment to your Christmas season.
Letβs get started on this fun post!
Delightful Ways to Have an Old-Fashioned Family Christmas
If you have followed Chemistry Cachet for some time, then you know I am very much an old-fashioned soul. I am totally mesmerized by the Victorian Era, enchanted by the early 20th century, and enthralled by the 1940s and 1950s.
My family always jokes I was born in the wrong era ? I think what draws me into these time periods is the history and simplicity.
To date, one of our most popular post is our old-fashioned skin care tips that actually work! This post was so popular, and continues to remain one of our top viewed posts. I think people are also enchanted by old-fashioned tips!
Another popular post we have is old-fashioned cleaning products that work better than anything new.
Today, we are taking our love of all things old-fashioned to the Christmas season!
Go to a Christmas Tree Farm and Pick Out a Tree
I have not had a real Christmas tree since I was a young girl. I think one of the oldest Christmas traditions is going to cut down your own tree! While that isnβt doable in most of the places we live today, they still have beautiful Christmas tree farms. The smell of evergreens in the cold December air is pure Christmas!
By a Real Christmas Wreath
Before there were artificial wreaths, people used real evergreen for wreaths. Sometimes they would adorn them with dried fruit pieces or things from nature or just keep them plain. Either way, it is a fresh and clean Christmas symbol for the home.
Enjoy Christmas Music from 1940s and 1950s
Did you know that most of our favorite Christmas songs we enjoy today were written in the 30s, 40s, and 50s? While the majority were written in the 1940s. Here is a list of Americaβs favorite Christmas songs by decade. You can see the most popular decade was the 40s.
Here is one of my favorite playlist featuring songs from this era:
Watch Some Magical Black and White Christmas Movies With An Old-Fashioned Family Christmas Theme
One of my favorite Christmas movies is Christmas in Connecticut. I love Barbara Stanwyck, and she is great in this movie! This movie is full of 1940s charm and tradition. The story line is cute too! More of my favorite black and white Christmas movies popular in the 30s, 40s, and 50s are A Holiday Affair, It Happened on 5th Avenue, Itβs a Wonderful Life (of course), Miracle on 34th Street, and Shop Around the Corner.
Christmas Caroling
Is there anything more old-fashioned than Christmas caroling? I havenβt gone Christmas Caroling since I was in girl scouts. All of my friends and I one year in girl scouts took off to some of the local senior centers and nursing homes. We sang Christmas songs all together and had print outs with the lyrics. It was really special We also did this in Sunday School when I was young.
If you canβt find a place that has Christmas caroling, you can do it with your family! Last year, we drove around looking at Christmas lights, singing Christmas songs, and it was so fun! Sometimes, it is nice to not have music on, just the singing.
Go See a Department Store Santa
Remember that scene on A Christmas Story when they see the Christmas parade then head to the department store to see the Santa? This was big in the 40s and 50s. Department stores were the place all the parents did their shopping and children got to sit on Santaβs lap. They still have a Santa at the mall near our house by the Macyβs. I love hearing stories from my grandmother about Christmas time in the 1950s. Her kids were young, so they always went to the department store for a fun Christmas time. A perfect way to have an old-fashioned family Christmas is taking the kids to see Santa π
Send Hand-Written Beautiful Christmas Cards to Family and Friends
Every year, I send out Christmas cards. I don’t get many these days, but I enjoy picking out beautiful Christmas cards. I have been doing this since my husband and I had our first Christmas in California 12 years ago. This year, I have been craving Christmas memories, so I am sending out traditional cards. I love picking out something pretty, glittery, and fun to send to my loved ones. I think it is extra special!
Play Games on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day
Before TV, families got together, had festive food and played games. We have done this a few Christmases, and it is so fun!
Buy Some Old-Fashioned Hard Christmas Candy
Every year, my Grammy would buy some old fashioned Christmas candy. It has been years since she found any to get us, but I remember always having that. She grew up having this candy at Christmas in the 30s and 40s too. It is so nostalgic and pretty. I found some on Amazon and had to get it! This is so pretty to keep out for guests who might stop by.
Bake Old-Fashioned Christmas Treats
There are so many neat Christmas treats you can find and make! One of our favorites is my Grammy’s Old-Fashioned Pecan Date Cake. I love hearing her memories of her mother making this cake for Christmas in the 1930s. My Grammy said it was one of her favorite sweets, and she was always excited about it!
Go See A Christmas Play or Concert
A few weeks ago, my husband and I got to go to the Nutcracker Ballet. It was so neat, and it reminded me of the way people used to celebrate the start of the Christmas season. They would go to a play or concert. This tradition goes back centuries! Just watching the Nutcracker scene where they are having the Christmas party is nostalgic in itself. One of my favorite books, ...And Ladies of the Club, is set back in the civil war (actually it spans 1860s-1930s). Every year, they would attend a Christmas play or their club would put on a play for the town. It was one of their favorite ways to enjoy the Christmas season.
Make Handmade Gifts for Friends and Neighbors
Sometimes, the best old-fashioned thing to do is make gifts for your friends or neighbors. I really enjoy doing something special each year. This year, I made hazelnut extract for everyone. You can head over to our Christmas tab for more ideas! Back in the day, Christmas was usually about making everything when it came to gifts. It is still a special sentiment.
I hope you enjoyed this post today on ways to have an old-fashioned family Christmas! Be sure to join us on instagram for more behind the scenes!
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awe. this all sounds doable and affordable. thanks CC
Thank you! It is, and so fun to do with your family π
What great ideas! I’d love to see Handel’s Messiah live, but hubby doesn’t like that stuff. I only know the Hallelujah Chorus part. I’ll find it on YouTube, but it’s not the same.
Re caroling: Once went w/ church group to a hospital – in the lobby/waiting area, singing, when a nurse flagged us with the finger across the throat signal. We stopped. She had to put out a page/alert for the trauma unit team – incoming medical helicopter. We quietly gathered our stuff, whispered a few greetings and left. Never will forget that.
Enjoy the pre-Christmas festivities!
Wow, what a crazy experience when you went caroling! Thanks Laurie! I am looking forward to this wonderful Christmas season π
When I was a child Christmas was a special time, sadly that special glow is tarnished.
There is nothing like Christmas magic as a child! I try to keep Christmas special with some of these fun ideas, but it definitely isn’t as wonderful as childhood
I love your ideas and your graphics! I was probably born in the wrong era as well. We have similar taste in movies – Christmas in Connecticut and Shop Around the Corner are classic! Thanks for sharing the nostalgia for yesteryear!
Thanks Amy! There is nothing better than old-fashioned Christmas movies π I love the era!!
Ah, the memories of growing up in the 50s! All good ideas. I remember my mom and I would string popcorn to put on the tree among other things! π
Thatβs a wonderful memory! Such special times!
I’m so grateful I grew up in happier times. It saddens me to see what young people are dealing with now. But, then, I suppose it’s been like that for every generation.
I think every generation experiences that, but I agree, times back then were definitely more simple it seems!