The rise of the ugly Christmas sweater

Ugly Christmas sweaters used to make people cringe. Nowadays, they are a source of fun and pride. 

 

The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon has a 12 Days of Christmas Sweaters event every year. Retailers are embracing the frumpy trend, too, selling eye-catching sweaters with larger-than-life holiday prints and designs. 

 

“The kitschy fun of 1980s holiday sweaters are back in style,” says Anne Marie Blackman, co-author of Rock Your Ugly Christmas Sweater and president of the company My Ugly Christmas Sweater. 

 

The ugly sweater or uglies phenomenon started in the 1980s as a fun party theme. By the noughties, college kids were mocking the trend by hosting ugly sweater-themed parties. “They were poking fun at the sweaters of another generation and had a contest for the most ugly sweater at the party,” says Blackman. “Over the past ten years, the Christmas sweater theme has exploded in popularity and is now seen in workplace parties, fundraisers and 5k road races. The trend has evolved. Christmas sweaters are not just for parties, but are back in style.”

 

She says these days people want three types: vintage 1980s vests and sweaters, new holiday-themed sweaters and embellished over-the-top styles.

 

Competitive spirit

 

The holidays are a spirited time of year. That spirit can turn competitive with holiday-themed sweaters.

 

The Exchange Tavern, an Irish pub, hosts an ugly sweater night every year in December. It started eight years ago when a friend of pub owner Teddi Davis hosted an ugly sweater contest. 

 

Davis surmises the look started as “an anti-holiday glam move”. She thinks it’s here to stay “as it’s fun, and a nice contrast to the dress-up style of most holiday gatherings”. One thing’s for sure, though. “Anything goes, but the colours can’t be tasteful,” says Davis, explaining ugly sweaters are an excuse to be “silly without apology”.

 

A market research survey, conducted by Ask Your Target Market, queried 400 people about ugly sweaters. Eighty-three per cent never attended an ugly sweater party. Only 15 per cent own an ugly sweater, while nearly 28 per cent owned one in the past. The majority of uglies came from friends or family, 49 per cent, as well as thrift shops, almost 23 per cent, and local shops and large chain stores, 15 per cent each.

 

Ugly is awesome

 

“Ugly is in the eye of the beholder. What’s fashionable to some is ugly to others,” says Blackman. “When someone is competing for a prize at an ugly Christmas sweater party, they like a sweater that is tacky or over-the-top.”

 

Look for Santa, snowmen, snowflakes, trees and lights. Don’t forget candy canes, wrapped presents and reindeer! “Retailers are now encouraged to keep it going with more gaudy looks, making your next ugly holiday sweater easier to find,” says Davis. That means you’ll be seeing more flashing twinkle Christmas lights, pins, textured fabrics like flannel and velvet and colourful buttons, sequins and feathers.

 

Sports fans can show their pride in a bold way, too. In the US, the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL have licensed ugly team sweaters with team colours and mascots. “Fans love to dress up for games,” says Michael Lewis, Founder and CEO of Forever Collectibles. “Having a holiday option to wear and support your team instead of your jersey makes sense.”

 

Toast the holiday with an ugly Christmas sweater of your own. You’ll know it when you see it: unsightly colours, garish designs and outrageous flourishes. Choose the right one, and you could be named the big winner — ugliest sweater.

 

— Creators.com