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How Consumerism STOLE Christmas | Overconsumption, Ralph Lauren Aesthetics & Losing Nostalgia

By Susannah Friesen

Summary

## Key takeaways - **Ralph Lauren trend repackages traditional Christmas**: Ralph Lauren Christmas is basically just traditional Christmas repackaged with a new aesthetic label that will keep you spending, spending, spending, blowing up on TikTok where everyone is posting about it or trying to achieve it in their homes. [00:16], [02:26] - **1 in 7 use buy now pay later for Christmas**: Research shows that one in seven of us will be using buy it now pay for it later schemes to pay for Christmas and one in four will be using a credit card meaning that the hangover of Christmas will be going well into next year. [01:24], [01:36] - **Nine fully themed Christmas trees overstimulate**: This example has nine fully themed decorated full-size trees each with its own vibe, their own identity, its own color palette on one floor, leading to overstimulation rather than experiencing Christmas fully. [11:28], [14:46] - **Nostalgia requires repetition, not trends**: You can only feel nostalgic to something when you've held on to it for a long period of time and memories are attached to it; if every single year you redo your entire home to match the trend, your memories don't have anything to anchor themselves to. [21:28], [24:04] - **TikTok turns Christmas into performance**: Christmas has suddenly become like a competition, especially for content creators who always have to have the best of everything, the more aesthetic, turning it into a performance for TikTok, Instagram, or YouTube reels rather than connection with family. [10:15], [10:48] - **Grandma's vintage decor revives real nostalgia**: Instead of buying decor pretending to be vintage, she got real vintage stuff from her grandma who used to decorate with it every Christmas, bringing back childhood memories that was healing after her papa's passing. [03:43], [22:41]

Topics Covered

  • Trends Erase Real Nostalgia
  • Ralph Lauren Masks Classic Christmas
  • Nine Trees Signal Inner Void
  • Repetition Builds True Nostalgia
  • Prioritize Meaning Over Aesthetics

Full Transcript

T is the season for overconumption core.

If you've been doing beige Christmas or silver Christmas or gray Christmas or gold Christmas or pink Christmas, now it's time to throw all of those decorations away and replace them with all new decorations from Amazon in the

new trending aesthetic of the year.

Ralph Lauren Christmas. Ralph Lauren

Christmas red and green traditional everything. Yep, that's right. It's

everything. Yep, that's right. It's

basically just traditional Christmas repackaged with a new aesthetic label that will keep you spending, spending, spending.

>> There's this really specific feeling that Christmas used to give us. You know

the one, the nostalgic glow from childhood, the smell of cinnamon or pine, the blurry memory of a living room that maybe wasn't perfect, but it felt magical. And yet somehow the older we

magical. And yet somehow the older we get, the harder it becomes to feel that magic. And honestly, I don't think it's

magic. And honestly, I don't think it's because we've grown up. I think it's because the meaning of Christmas, the emotional, spiritual, deeply human meaning has slowly gotten swallowed up by the pressure to create an

aesthetically pleasing, on trend Christmas. Christmas used to be presents

Christmas. Christmas used to be presents like P R E S E N C E, not Christmas presents with the T. And also not about presentation. And nothing encapsulates

presentation. And nothing encapsulates this shift more than the Ralph Lauren Christmas trend that's blowing up on Tik Tok right now. It's like dark academia

but make it your tide vibe that everyone is posting about on social media or trying to achieve in their own homes for this Christmas year. then guaranteed

most of them are going into debt to chase this trend as well.

>> Research out today shows that one in seven of us will be using buy it now pay for it later schemes to pay for Christmas and one in four will be using a credit card meaning that the hangover

of Christmas will be going well into next year. Thing is, if you think you

next year. Thing is, if you think you can't really afford it now, you're not going to be able to afford it in January either. Set a good budget. Set what you

either. Set a good budget. Set what you want to spend on Christmas, what you can afford to spend on Christmas, and try to stick to it. Make your wish list,

prioritize what's important, what would be nice, and just keep going down that list, making sure you get your essentials first. In today's video, we

essentials first. In today's video, we are going to be diving into Christmas over consumption, how we got here, why the nostalgia factor that we try so hard to chase just feels weaker every single

year, and how we can actually reclaim the parts of Christmas that truly matter. Not the aesthetics, not the

matter. Not the aesthetics, not the presentation, not needing like nine fully decorated themed trees on your main floor. Yes, nine trees. So, let's

main floor. Yes, nine trees. So, let's

talk about the Ralph Lauren Christmas trend because it's everywhere. It's

blown up on Tik Tok. Every single

Christmas video I've seen lately has been let's go find Ralph Lauren themed Christmas decor. Let's create a Ralph

Christmas decor. Let's create a Ralph Lauren Christmas. And don't get me

Lauren Christmas. And don't get me wrong, I was very influenced to partake in the Ralph Lauren Christmas trend. I

do think it's really nice. Do I agree with calling it a Ralph Lauren Christmas? Not really. I think it's just

Christmas? Not really. I think it's just a classic Christmas. I don't think it needs to be a brand name. It's stunning.

It's elegant. It's polished. It's not

really chasing the nostalgic feel that a lot of people are looking for, but it's leaning in the right direction. I don't

want to say it's an overall standard for Christmas because every single year the trend is totally different, but that's where the problem lies. Suddenly the

decor most of us already own maybe the bright reds and the fun mismatch ornaments from childhood or maybe the decor you bought last year that was more

like gold or silver, the budget friendly stuff we've picked up over the years. It

doesn't feel like it's aesthetic enough.

The difference is though, there's not just one type of aesthetic. There are so many different aesthetics. You could

have the classic Christmas one, or you could have like a really nostalgic Christmas, which is what I tried to do this year in my home. Instead of going out to buy a bunch of decorations this year, I used up what I had from last

year. And then also, my grandma, she's

year. And then also, my grandma, she's not decorating this year. My papa passed a couple years ago. She doesn't have a desire to decorate anymore. So, she

asked me if I wanted some of the stuff that she used to decorate with. And this

stuff is all vintage. All the stuff from my childhood that she used to put up every Christmas, she asked me if I wanted it and I said absolutely. Instead

of scouring Homesense and picking up decor that is pretending to be vintage, I actually got the real thing. Which if

you have that opportunity, I really recommend you do that. Otherwise, a

great option is to go to Value Village or a thrift store and see what is there because I'm telling you, there's a lot of stuff. If my grandma did not give me

of stuff. If my grandma did not give me any of that stuff, I would have probably gone there just because I do want that nostalgic feeling in my home. The point

of me saying this though is that I don't want you guys to feel like you have to conform to what you're seeing online or you have to conform to even what I'm saying and what I've done in my home. I

want you to make a Christmas that reflects who you are, that reflects your taste, that is something you're going to be happy with long term, so you don't have to keep buying things over and over and over because most of the time these

things are going to end up in a landfill. $1,000 pink miss haul. I got

landfill. $1,000 pink miss haul. I got

these pink gingerbread pillows and I found the matching blanket. I absolutely

love this. It's so sparkly brother and sister gingerbread pillows. I've been

loving baking recently, so I had to get this. And it's pink. I got this little

this. And it's pink. I got this little gingerbread jar, which I'm going to put my cookies in. I am obsessed with fuzzy socks, so I had to get these. Look at

the bows on the box. I ripped the box already, so ignore that. a pink

Christmas tree measuring cups. The mug

collection is about to be crazy. This

one is a pink gingerbread. And then we have a gingerbread house. And then a girly little gingerbread. And the

brother, of course. I got this to sit on my counter when I'm baking. You put the spatula on top so it doesn't get messy all over your counter. That's so cute.

Y'all, I have been trying to find these forever. Okay, so basically I bought a

forever. Okay, so basically I bought a broken one. Here's why. So we used up a

broken one. Here's why. So we used up a set and then one of them broke. I saw

these and she was like, I can give it to you for $10. So, I was like, okay. So,

now we have a completed set. I got these for my kitchen. It's just a Christmas tree with bows all over it. And then it has a pink one inside.

[music] Guys, this I love.

I used to collect snow globes when I was younger, so when I saw this, I just had to get it. A pink Christmas tree soap for my kitchen. And last but not least, a vanilla candle with little bows all

over the Christmas trees. It smells so good, guys. come back for part two to

good, guys. come back for part two to see me decorate my entire room. This is

very much trending decor that people will probably not love long term. She

might keep it for a few years, but when she has a family or kids, like it's not going to be what she wants anymore, or next year when she sees another trend, she's going to buy those things. I do

think spending $1,000 on Christmas decor in one go is a little crazy. I

understand if this is her first home and she's decorating it and needs stuff cuz she didn't have anything. But at the same time, I do really think that picking stuff that you're going to love longterm is the better way to go about

it. Maybe she will love this stuff long

it. Maybe she will love this stuff long term. However, majority people who

term. However, majority people who partake in these trends do not love this stuff long term and will go all out next year buying whatever's trending then.

And all the pressure that people feel that leads to them partaking just fuels this cycle of replacing, upgrading, discarding, and consuming way more than we need. And honestly, all of this

we need. And honestly, all of this pressure that we put on ourselves to keep up, it adds up. The holidays are supposed to feel peaceful, but sometimes it feels like we're juggling so many different expectations. And I don't know

different expectations. And I don't know about you, but that makes me insanely stressed out. There's the decorating,

stressed out. There's the decorating, the hosting, the social events, and then the financial stress on top of it. which

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so much to Ritual for sponsoring today's video. So, back to the video. The part

video. So, back to the video. The part

that makes this even more ironic is that Ralph Lauren style is associated with history tradition. Meanwhile, the Tik

history tradition. Meanwhile, the Tik Tok version of this aesthetic is brand new, mass-produced, and often being bought in giant halls from HomeSense or Target. It's an aesthetic pretending to

Target. It's an aesthetic pretending to be nostalgic while actually being a symptom of the very consumerism erasing real nostalgia. I heard we're doing

real nostalgia. I heard we're doing Ralph Lauren Christmas, so this is everything I got this year to go with the theme. First thing I got are all of

the theme. First thing I got are all of these different ornaments cuz I'm over the white and silver gold ornaments.

Like I need some red and some green.

These ones have like a little bit of gold. Definitely bring like the classic

gold. Definitely bring like the classic Christmas vibes and that's what I'm going for. Ralph Lauren Christmas. You

going for. Ralph Lauren Christmas. You

also have to have plaid. So I got this plaid ribbon to add to my tree. This

plaid little throw blanket from Target.

This is really soft. I got these huge plaid pillows from Hobby Lobby. They

were like 12 bucks. Perfect to throw on the couch to add a little color. I'm

also on a bow kick this Here. I don't

know if this is considered Ralph Lauren Christmas, but I got this to hang the wreath on the front door. It was like two bucks at Walmart. This big bow for the tree, also from Walmart. And all of these little mini bows to add to the tree. How pretty are these? Almost

tree. How pretty are these? Almost

forgot this big bow, too, from Target. I

don't know where she's going, but she's cute. And the last thing I got is this

cute. And the last thing I got is this little milk and cookie set for Santa when my son puts out his cookies this year. Something I want to touch on here

year. Something I want to touch on here is that I feel social media is to blame for a lot of the problems that we have when it comes to consuming things.

Christmas has suddenly become like a competition, especially for content creators. You always have to have the

creators. You always have to have the best of everything, the more aesthetic.

You have to be the most influential. And

at some point, Christmas became a performance rather than what it's supposed to be about. And for some people, that's different. For some

people, it's faith-based, which for me, that is true. While for others, it's meant to be a time where you get together with family and connect with each other. But it's not just for your

each other. But it's not just for your family anymore. It's for Tik Tok, for

family anymore. It's for Tik Tok, for Instagram, for YouTube reels or content.

And there's this unspoken competition on who can have the most elaborate, expensive, luxurious Christmas setup.

And I think social media accelerates this feeling like nothing else. In the

past, maybe you'd walk into one neighbor's seriously decorated house and think, "Wow, that's a lot." Now you open your phone and there are hundreds of people whose homes look like the inside of a department store window display.

Entire foyers turn into winter wonderlands. Garland's so thick that

wonderlands. Garland's so thick that they're one tax bracket away from collapsing the entire staircase, which mine might be like that a little bit.

And this example I'm going to show you guys, there's I don't want any hate to this creator, but I did see this a while ago and I was a little blown away by just how much stuff she had. If you

remember me mentioning nine Christmas trees in the beginning of this video, that is exactly what we're going to look at today. I counted I'm pretty sure

at today. I counted I'm pretty sure there's nine. There may be more, but

there's nine. There may be more, but these are not nine small trees. They are

fully themed decorated full-size trees.

Each one with its own vibe, their own identity, its own color palette. And

here's the thing, I love decor, but I think there is a point where decorating for Christmas becomes more performative than anything else. If we're performing it rather than experiencing it, that's when things go sideways. And I

personally believe you don't need nine Christmas trees to experience Christmas fully. I also want to preface this, if

fully. I also want to preface this, if she collected this over a period of time, no hate to you at all, but if you go out and buy this stuff all at once, that is going to take a hit at your bank account. I don't care who you are. I

account. I don't care who you are. I

don't care how rich you are, it will take a hit because these things are not cheap. Let's watch this video and let me

cheap. Let's watch this video and let me know what you guys think. Please be

respectful in the comments. I don't want any hate for these creators. We can talk about overconumption trends without tearing people down. I'm not going to play the music for the first little bit of this video just because the Nutcracker that she's going to show is

singing jingle bells. So, don't want to be copyrighted. So, let's just watch

be copyrighted. So, let's just watch this video and then the sound will be back on once the song's done.

This is her nutcracker tree.

So, tree number one.

That one is a candy cane tree. You'll

see she has like a lot of full-size nutcrackers. This is her candy

nutcrackers. This is her candy nutcracker tree, I believe.

This is her Harry Potter tree.

Okay.

And then my mercury trees. These light

up as well, but again, I didn't turn them on.

And then here is my black and gold champagne tree.

out of all my um Alice in Wonderland nutcrackers,

that nutcracker, and then my Alice in Wonderland tree.

And then I still need to do this area.

And here is the kitchen is coming together.

I still got to work on this side. Not

happy with this side. I I'm pretty much done. I like it. And then this is just a

done. I like it. And then this is just a mess, but And then the dining room. A hi

birdie.

And then the dining room is still a mess but cleaning out some nutcrackers for sure if you've seen videos the last couple days. So this is my memory tree, my

days. So this is my memory tree, my breast cancer tree.

And then the reindeer peppermint tree.

And as you can see, I've still got a bunch of bins in here. A lot of nutcrackers that I need to clean up. So,

yeah. I stopped counting how many trees.

I'm sorry, guys. I'm pretty sure there's nine, but for me personally, and you guys might be different, but for me personally, when I saw this, I only thought of one thing. Over stimulation.

I think there's way too much going on in this house with the nutcracker just coming out and saying jingle bells with all the different colored trees and just I don't know like when I think of this and this might not be true for this

particular person but when I see things like this it feels like they're trying to fill a void with something in their life with material things and it is so sad to see and while this might not be what's actually happening with this

creator that's just my interpretation of when I see stuff like this and I do find it very sad because material things are not going to fill that hole. That's why

people need to keep over consuming and buying and buying and buying. It's

because they're trying to fill this hole that will not be filled by material things. And as you guys could see, like

things. And as you guys could see, like she still had bins and bins of decor to still go through. Meanwhile, there's

nowhere else on that floor that will fit more decor. So, for me, I wouldn't say

more decor. So, for me, I wouldn't say that's really inspiring. While one tree might inspire someone to decorate their Christmas tree like that, their one Christmas tree like that, when I see nine Christmas trees that are fully

decked out, fully themed, all on one floor, it just makes me feel sad. Not

really inspired, but just sad for that person. And there's this growing

person. And there's this growing emptiness around Christmas for so many people. And it's not because we don't

people. And it's not because we don't care about Christmas, but it's quietly being replaced by consumerism.

Apparently, I blacked out and ordered everything that Target sells for Christmas. Let's unbox it. I think

Christmas. Let's unbox it. I think

people saying, "I think I blacked out purchasing these items." That's such a troubling mentality to have. That's a

financially dangerous mentality to have as well. Like, I blacked out. No, you

as well. Like, I blacked out. No, you

didn't. You didn't black out. You just

wanted to buy all these things and didn't really care about the repercussions later. Buying everything

repercussions later. Buying everything that Target sells for Christmas on their website is not smart financially. Some

of the comments on this video was, "I always wonder if these content creators are in serious debt or what they do slash their spouse do for a living because offline everyone's broke and struggling. Y'all seem to be living a

struggling. Y'all seem to be living a fantasy in my corner of the world."

Someone else, I don't understand why people buy new decorations for every holiday every year. Like, is reusing decorations not a thing anymore? I love

putting up the same decorations as a kid. It was so fun to choose my

kid. It was so fun to choose my favorites of each type of decoration.

That's the other thing, too. Like, so

many people are struggling financially right now. And then you have these kind

right now. And then you have these kind of people just flaunting their wealth, flaunting their overconumption in people's faces. I think it's really time

people's faces. I think it's really time influencers start reading the room.

Instead of asking like how do I want to feel this Christmas, people are asking what theme should I do this Christmas?

Instead of what traditions matter to us, we get what decor trend is aesthetic right now. Instead of who am I thankful

right now. Instead of who am I thankful to have in my life, we see what's my gifting budget and how can I stretch it without looking cheap. The meaning gets replaced by the mechanics and the heart gets replaced by the hall. There's this

one video I came across and I don't know if you guys have seen it. If you have then you probably know what I'm talking about, but if you haven't, I'm gonna just talk about it for a quick second and show you guys while I'm talking what

the video is. But basically, there's this family who go like so over the top for their kids. Or so it appears that way. Their whole living room is filled

way. Their whole living room is filled with gifts. And honestly, if I was a

with gifts. And honestly, if I was a child, like, yeah, that's exciting to look at, but after so long, you get exhausted and don't want to open anything anymore. And there is this

anything anymore. And there is this family that will literally wrap basic necessities, make one gift look like five. One of the things she said was

five. One of the things she said was when they need underwear earlier in the year, she'll set it aside. Like if they don't actually need it, need it right then. She'll set it aside, wait until

then. She'll set it aside, wait until Christmas, wrap it under the tree, and then they get it then. And that's not fun for a kid. Like really, like for young children, unwrapping like a pack

of underwear, throw five gifts is not fun. It's really not. So, in this video

fun. It's really not. So, in this video it says, "Every year people see our Christmas videos and they ask the same things. Why so many presents? Aren't the

things. Why so many presents? Aren't the

kids overstimulated? Isn't that a little much?" So, here's the truth. We start

much?" So, here's the truth. We start

early. Like, Christmas prep is on my mind 365 days a year. Not to overspend, but to plan ahead and spread things out by midsummer. If our family needs

by midsummer. If our family needs something, say socks, hangers, storage bins, kitchen gadgets, or cozy blankets, or even undergarments, if we can go without it until Christmas, we just tuck it away instead of us using it right

away. Because by Christmas, those little

away. Because by Christmas, those little everyday things become part of the fun.

What people don't realize is how strategic it all is. Our kids don't open every single present. They don't even have to open anything if they don't want to. The practical items like clothes or

to. The practical items like clothes or household stuff get opened by us while their backs are turned. Those gifts

don't have name tags on them, so we know exactly which ones to handle quietly.

What? On Christmas Eve, when we start putting gifts out, we stack them around the tree, not under it. It makes the tree look full from the front. And

honestly, it's an art. If something can come out of its box and be assembled before wrapping it to make it look bigger, well, we'll do it. It's part

presentation, part illusion, and a massive amount of creativity. Inside

those boxes are not only some of the things they specifically ask for, but also snacks, crafts, pajamas, art supplies, and things they will actually need and will use after Christmas Day

cleanup, which may take more than one day. So, it's fun for everybody. Our

day. So, it's fun for everybody. Our

house looks exactly the same, lived in, cozy, calm, not cluttered, and just normal. Okay, I'm not going to read

normal. Okay, I'm not going to read anymore, but basically what I got from this is that she's trying to make Christmas seem bigger than it is for no other reason than appearances. And

that's one thing I really cannot stand is when parents make things about looking a certain way about appearances.

Not because they actually want to, but because they want it to be big and extravagant because they want to share it online. It's giving this illusion of

it online. It's giving this illusion of wealth when you're having so many Christmas presents under the tree.

Meanwhile, like some of the gifts her kids aren't even opening. Some of them don't even have their names on there.

So, they're wrapping these gifts and then unwrapping them themselves. I do

think everyone celebrates Christmas differently. But, I don't know.

differently. But, I don't know.

Something about this just didn't really sit right with me. I do want to know what you guys think, though. Let me know in the comments because if I'm wrong, I'm wrong. But, I do think for me

I'm wrong. But, I do think for me personally, that was just a little offputting. So, when we see things

offputting. So, when we see things online, let's talk about why some of this feels so hard to resist. Christmas

overconumption is the perfect form of scarcity marketing, which if you're not sure what scarcity marketing is, you can check out my video from last week where we dive all into scarcity marketing, especially with those examples with the bear cups. Perfect example of what

bear cups. Perfect example of what scarcity marketing is. But it's part that, it's part social comparison, part aesthetic pressure, part sentimental gaps because a lot of people feel disconnected from Christmas and are

really trying to grab onto that nostalgic factor. And the last part is

nostalgic factor. And the last part is escape. They want to escape reality.

escape. They want to escape reality.

shopping becomes a very big distraction almost like a self soothe sort of situation and consumerism knows exactly how to target these emotions and Christmas overconumption is actually

stealing the nostalgia that so many people are chasing. I think a lot of people forget this because nostalgia can only feel that way when things stay the same. You can only feel nostalgic to

same. You can only feel nostalgic to something when you've held on to it for a long period of time and memories are attached to it. If every single year you redo your entire home to match the trend, white and gold one year, tartan

and mahogany the next, bright red the next, your memories don't have anything to anchor themselves to. If you think back to your childhood Christmas, it wasn't perfectly styled. There was cute decorations, tacky decorations, tinsel

on the tree, different colored everything, it was like organized chaos.

You had the same stockings, the same decorations that you guys used every single year. Those things became your

single year. Those things became your nostalgia, which is what I really wanted to achieve my first Christmas in this home that we have now. And so I was so thankful when my nana was like, I have

all these Christmas decorations that I'm not going to use anymore. Do you want to go through them with me and take some home? And I said, yes, these are from my

home? And I said, yes, these are from my nana right here. I also have a big ceramic Christmas tree with multicolored lit bulbs, which you don't see anywhere anymore. I also have this huge snow

anymore. I also have this huge snow globe that turns plays music and then there's like a little train that goes like if I was to buy that in a store it would be way like it would be 200 bucks.

You don't find this kind of stuff anymore. And going through all these

anymore. And going through all these boxes with her seeing things that I recognized when I was little when we used to go over to her house for Christmas every single year was healing

almost. My papa's gone. Christmas has

almost. My papa's gone. Christmas has

not been the same in my family since then. And this just helped bring back

then. And this just helped bring back some of those memories. My problem,

since everybody on this app has a freaking problem, I get to have one, too, about consumerism Christmas is that it's not that you're spending so much money every year. It's that when you were little, think back to when you were

little, if you had a prevalent Christmas in your home, which I did. Christmas was

one of my favorite times of the year, not just because my birthday is Christmas Eve, so that does make me a literal Christmas baby. Regardless, I

loved Christmas and it always brought me so much joy is because over the years you look back at the items that you use the year before. So, my parents use

these same exact decorations from the time I was 2 years old to the time that I when I go home this Christmas. Like,

they'll be using the same decorations.

And I can expect the same Santaas, the same garland, the same ornaments to be up in the house. And that provides a

feeling of sentimentality, a feeling of nostalgia that kids these kids these days growing up with new Christmas decorations every single year will not

get to experience. And that to me is so sad. So you can't create nostalgia with

sad. So you can't create nostalgia with trends. You can only create it with

trends. You can only create it with repetition, love, and time. The

stability of it all is what makes the season meaningful. So, how do we break

season meaningful. So, how do we break out of the cycle without being a Grinch or giving up decorating entirely? And

this isn't to shame decor lovers. It's

just about simplifying and not feeling the need to purchase new things every single year. So, the first one is use

single year. So, the first one is use the same decor every single year on purpose. Not because you're lazy and not

purpose. Not because you're lazy and not because it's cheaper necessarily, but because repetition builds tradition.

Tradition builds nostalgia and nostalgia builds meaning. Second, buy only what

builds meaning. Second, buy only what you love, not what's trending. Trends

fade. I don't know about you, but all the stuff I see at HomeSense right now, all the pink, blue, nutcracker stuff, ugly. Don't want it. It's not Christmas

ugly. Don't want it. It's not Christmas themed to me. And ask yourself, would you still love that in 10 years? If the

answer is no, it's a trend. Leave it.

Number three, add slowly, not seasonally. One of the things I wanted

seasonally. One of the things I wanted to talk to my husband about is picking one new ornament every single Christmas and that's it. And I think that would be a really good and fun way to spend time with your children, too, is you

intentionally go to the store, you all pick an ornament to add to your tree, a new ornament, just one, and that creates meaning. It's something you guys picked

meaning. It's something you guys picked out together that you'll have for years to come, not a full card of theme specific decor. Number four is curate

specific decor. Number four is curate what truly matters. [clears throat] Pick ornaments that tell a story, have meaning behind them that you can look at and recall a memory. things that you've kept for years and things that actually

represent your family. And number five, let your home look like your Christmas, your ideal Christmas, not Tik Toks. If

what I'm saying doesn't resonate with you, that's totally fine. Do Christmas

your way. That's the whole point of this video. But your Christmas does not need

video. But your Christmas does not need to match the Ralph Lauren Christmas trend if you don't want it to. It should

look like you and what matters to your family. And that's where the magic is.

family. And that's where the magic is.

That's what makes you feel like Christmas. At the end of the day,

Christmas. At the end of the day, Christmas is not about trends, money, or necessarily decor. Christmas is about

necessarily decor. Christmas is about meaning and you have to find what that meaning is to you. For example,

Christmas for me is supposed to be about warmth, my faith, connection with family, gratitude, celebrating Jesus.

And while I do decorate, I really want to be more mindful about how I'm decorating and decorate my home with intention, with meaning, with the nostalgia factor embedded in the decor

I'm choosing. The point is, make

I'm choosing. The point is, make Christmas what it's supposed to be for you. Don't feel like you have to replace

you. Don't feel like you have to replace every single thing because it's not in trend. Or don't replace stuff because

trend. Or don't replace stuff because you think someone else will think it's ugly because it's not anywhere close to what's trending right now. Make your

Christmas look less like a trend and more like a memory. And that's all I'm going to say on it. Thank you guys so much for watching this video today. Let

me know what your Christmas tradition is. Do you buy new things every year? No

is. Do you buy new things every year? No

hate if you do. Only if you keep them.

If you waste it the next year and throw it out, I'm going to judge you a little bit. or are you wanting things to stay

bit. or are you wanting things to stay the same in your home so you can build that nostalgia factor? Let me know in the comments. God bless you all and

the comments. God bless you all and until next time. Welcome to Plot Twist, Please, [music] where we sip, flip, and spill the tea on books and booze. I'm

Beth. I'm Susanna.

>> And I'm Cass, your trio of book besties bringing the drama, the hot takes, and a drink in hand every episode. Whether

it's fantasy, romance, [music] or total chaos, if there's a wild plot twist, we're talking about it. We'll

laugh, we'll rant, and we'll probably spiral into a tangent about morally gray [music] characters. Grab your favorite

[music] characters. Grab your favorite drink, enchanted or otherwise, and come hang out with us every week. Because

let's be honest, sometimes the best part of a book is spilling the tea about it.

Plat [music] Twist, please. Streaming

now wherever you can get your podcasts.

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