Hurry! Get Your Holiday Ugly On!
It’s the season to celebrate! Ugly sweaters that is! It’s the holidays and what better time to pull that Rudolph sweater with the light up nose out of your closet and head to a friend’s house for her ugly sweater party? Yep, you heard me. Ugly sweater party!
Ugly sweater parties have become a type of cultural phenomena hear in the States. While it is not clear who threw the first ugly sweater party, Canadian authors, Brian Miller, Adam Paulson, and Kevin Wool, in their book Ugly Christmas Sweater Party Book: The Definitive Guide to Getting Your Ugly On, weave 152 pages of instructions on how to throw a great party by telling guests to “wear ugly holiday sweaters.”
The trend is blamed on the 1980’s when people excitedly donned hand knitted holiday sweaters and Christmas lights that twinkled across their chests. Sweater parties have become more and more of a home run for those people who enjoy a little sarcasm and wit during the holidays. Author, Christian Lander, states that the most challenging preparation for an ugly sweater party is finding a “tacky sweater.” Suave people scour used clothing stores in search of the perfect blend of hideousness and humor.
If searching rack upon rack isn’t your style, not to worry. There’s even an online store where you can purchase the perfect ugly sweater complete with huge poinsettias and smiling Santas for only $24. What a deal!
Fashion merchandising degree programs are not left out of the holiday hype. As any style expert knows, the ugly sweater has recently shown up on runways in Fair Isle styles where a reindeer sweater costs a mere $600. Laugh as you will but ugly sweaters are apparently here to stay!
Might as well make the most of them and if you haven’t received an invite to attend an ugly sweater party, think about hosting one yourself. You’re guaranteed some laughs and you’ll give your guests a chance to pull those sparkly, sequined snowflake sweaters out of their closets and wear them just one last time.
