Frugal Ways to Celebrate Your First Christmas in a New Home

Many people will be celebrating Christmas in a new home this year, and most of us will be trying to celebrate on a tight budget.

Traditionally Christmas is a time for seeing friends and family, socialising, and celebrating. But many people will not be with those they would like to be with or they may not have the money to celebrate as they would like.

So although Christmas may be different this year, we have every opportunity to make it better, more meaningful, and truly unforgettable.

We have searched the world to bring you a Christmas feast of ideas to start new family Christmas Traditions in your new home, and ways to celebrate Christmas on a tight budget.

None of these ways to celebrate Christmas take much time or money to prepare, so whilst the removal company takes care of your home move, you can be planning things to do on your first Christmas in a new home.

You may also like to read: Ways to Save Money After Moving Into a New Home. It would be crazy not to take the opportunities that moving home gives you to save some money on everyday expenses. In this guide, we share ways to save money after you have moved home.

What are the Most Common Christmas Traditions From Years Gone By?

Every Christmas gets more and more commercial and the materialism of the season overshadows what the festive season is really about.

Many of the Christmas traditions are being forgotten, so this year, with money being very tight in many households, perhaps this is the year when we should try to revive some old English Christmas Traditions.

This could be the year when we put just being together, and enjoying simple and frugal family Christmas traditions together, at the top of our Christmas wish list.

So, what are some fun Christmas traditions that we may have ignored in previous years, or not even known about?

#1. Burn the Ashen Faggot

In the West Country, especially Devon and Cornwall, there was a tradition where a bundle of sticks (the faggot) was tied with 9 lengths of green ash.

This was lit in the fireplace on Christmas Eve whilst those around the fire sang Christmas songs and danced.

#2 Choose a Princeps

In Roman Times a person of low status was chosen to become the Princeps or leader of the festive season.

Why not draw lots to see who will be the Princeps for a day and they can choose the Christmas film or activity for a day?

You could do this each day so that everyone gets a turn being the Princeps.

#3 Traditional Mince Pies

We all think of mince pies as being fruit-filled treats, but back in the Middle Ages, they were filled with a variety of things from fruit to meat.

How about creating your own mixtures and variations and then getting the rest of the family to guess the ingredients?

Or spend time as a family searching online for traditional mince pie filling recipes and choosing some to experiment with.

Traditionally a mince pie was eaten on each of the 12 days of Christmas.

Can you discover or invent 12 different recipes?

And never refuse the offer of a mince pie, folklore says that you will suffer a year of misfortune if you do.

Here are 43 different mince pie recipes from www.deliciousmagazine.co.uk to get you started.

#4 Traditional Christmas Drinks

Different parts of the UK traditionally had local tipples that they would have at Christmas, here are a few you might like to try:

• From Devon there was Egg-Hot. Cider mixed with egg yolks and spices
• From the Shetlands, there was The Whipcoll, made from brandy and eggs
• From Yorkshire came Lamb’s Wool. Ale, apples, sugar, and cream
• From the Isle of Man came Jough-Y-Nollick made from hot ale, ginger, spices, and pepper
• Lastly, is the Smoking Bishop made of port, red wine, oranges, and cloves.

#5 Mistletoe

Most of us are familiar with the modern tradition of kissing under the mistletoe. But historically this was a very sacred plant and in pagan times could only be cut down by a Druid with a golden sickle.

Mistletoe symbolises peace, shelter, and protection from evil spirits.

Why not organise a woodland walk and go in search of sprigs of mistletoe?

If local rules allow you can then bring some home to decorate your home with.

#6 The Holly and the Ivy

So we know the carol, but do you know why they appear together?

Holly was associated with eternal life and the red berries were thought to offer protection from witches.

So powerful was Holly believed to be that it would never be just thrown away, but burnt on the 2^nd February, Candlemas.

Ivy was also a symbol of eternity, but folklore told that ivy could bring on madness and bestow bad luck upon a home if it was not displayed alongside holly.

#6 Yule Logs

Not the chocolate variety we are used to, but traditionally the largest log that could be found would be lit in the hearth of the fire, preferably lit with a piece of log from last year.

The log should be kept lit all through Christmas Day to bring the household good fortune.

If you don’t have an open fireplace in your house you could always burn a yule log in a fire pit in the garden.

#7 The Twelfth Night Cake

Until the end of the 1800’s every home would have a cake for the 12^th Night of Christmas. In one half would be hidden a dried pea and in the other half a dried bean.

The males of the house took a slice from the bean half whilst the ladies took a slice from the pea half.

Whoever has the bean in their slice becomes the King of the House for the night, whilst the lady who found the pea in her slice becomes the Queen.

Finding the bean or pea was also considered a sign of very good luck for the coming year for that person.

If you would like to know more about the Twelfth Night Cake and even get a free recipe visit www.englishheritage.org.uk

#8 St Thomas’s Day

St Thomas’s Day is celebrated on the 21^st of December when unmarried women place a peeled onion, wrapped in a cloth, under their bed pillow.

It is said that the future husband would then be revealed in a Christmas dream.

#9 Boxing Day

Back in the 1800s when Christmas gifts were presented in Christmas boxes, the wealthier families would refill the boxes on the day after Christmas day and give them to their servants or donate them to the local church to distribute to poorer families.

Perhaps you could refill a Christmas box and donate it to the local food bank or a local charity?

#10 Wassailing

You may have sung the line ‘Here we come a-wassailing, among the leaves so green’ but had no idea what it meant.

Traditionally farm workers on the 12^th night of Christmas would place toast on the branches, and pour cider on the roots, of their best apple tree to ensure a bumper crop the following year whilst singing a toast to the tree.

How about reviving this tradition in your own garden?

If you want the lyrics to The Wassail Song you can get them at www.carols.org.uk

#11 Yule Bread

In Scotland, an unleavened loaf was baked for each member of the family, and within one was hidden a small gift. Whoever found the gift would have good luck all year.

#12 Burn a Rowen Twig

Take a twig from a rowen tree and burn it to banish bad feelings between family, friends, or neighbours.

#13 First Footing

Although more commonly done on New Year’s Eve now, traditionally First Footing was done on Christmas Day.

The first visitor to a home would bring peat, money, and bread which symbolised warmth, wealth, and lack of want.

#14 Christmas Carol Singing

Why not have a karaoke Christmas song evening? You can even stream it online so that family and friends can join in the fun too if they can’t be with you.

#15 Christmas Crackers

Having Christmas crackers on the Christmas tree or dining table has been a tradition since Victorian times.

Why not make your own crackers with a charade instead of a joke inside?

#16 After Dinner Games

Board games and charades have been a traditional part of Christmas that has been overtaken by computer games and the internet.

But this year why not revive those old traditions and spend less time fixed to the computer screen?

#17 Send Christmas Cards

With instant messaging and telephones, the sending of Christmas cards is a dying tradition.

Why not have a day making cards and sending them as a surprise to friends and family, maybe include a recent photo or some other memento that they can keep.

You may also like to read: Mind Popping Things to Do With Bubble Wrap After Your Home Move. This is a great guide to what to do with your bubble wrap once you have finished unpacking. Full of practical, creative, and fun things to do.

How Can I Have a Christmas With No Money?

Moving home is never cheap, there are many hidden expenses when moving into a new home, but there are plenty of ways to celebrate a budget Christmas.

So why not take this opportunity to start inexpensive Christmas family traditions, to get away from the commercialism and materialism of Christmas past, and start planning memory-making Christmas traditions that you can cherish forever, and that will cost you nothing?

#1. Watch Festive Films

Compile a list of your 12 favourite Christmas films.

Then watch one a day on the 12 days before Christmas, finishing with your favourite festive film on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.

Grab a mug of hot chocolate, and a big warm blanket, turn off the lights, and snuggle down on the floor or settee.

Just have the Christmas lights on the tree to give a festive glow to the room.

#2. Christmas Lights Hunt

A stroll around your neighbourhood can open up a number of frugal festive treats to you.

Plan an evening walking around looking at all the street decorations and the shop windows.

Many people choose to decorate the outside of their homes and gardens, you could make a game of spotting an elf, Rudolph, or Santa on the chimney for example.

Create a social media group where residents post pictures of their outside decorations, and then you can search for the homes when out on your walk and tick them off your viewing list.

#3 Christmas Decoration Scavenger Hunt

Walking around, see what you can collect to make Christmas decorations with. Cones, leaves, twigs, and berries can all be used.

Make a new tradition of taking a long walk collecting craft supplies and then a day spent crafting what you found.

There are some great Christmas Decoration ideas made from natural things at www.mindfulofthehome.com

#4 Make a Christmas Memory Advent Calendar

Make an advent calendar that is full of memories, not calories.

Behind each door, you could have a photo of a bygone Christmas.

Or the title of a Christmas song that you have to sing when that advent door is opened.

Or a Christmas task to perform that day such as making gingerbread snowmen or a paper chain.

You could have an item of Christmas elf or Santa clothing behind each door made from cardboard. Then as each door is opened the elf or Santa is dressed, finishing on Christmas Eve when he would be fully dressed and ready to go delivering gifts.

Or behind each door could be a character from the nativity made from cardboard, with the nativity scene being completed on Christmas morning.

Or how about parts of a star or whatever you intend to put on top of the tree? Each day you would assemble another part until Christmas Eve when the ornament can be placed upon the tree.

Or a plain tree bauble behind each door, and every day you decorate the bauble differently and place it on the tree.

Here is another great idea for a DIY advent calendar from www.saralaughed.com

#5 Make a Tree Bauble to Cherish

You could make a tree bauble for next to nothing from papier-mâché. Then decorate it ensuring the date of the year is on it.

Every year you can make another to form a collection of year-by-year memories.

You could simply put glitter patterns on it. But how about a family photo from this year, then next year’s bauble would have a family photo from that year, and so on.

#6 Audio Christmas Book Night

Everybody loves having a book read to them so how about a night under the duvets on the floor, snuggled up with a mug of hot chocolate, just the fairy lights to illuminate the room, and listening to an audiobook of A Christmas Carol or other festive themed audiobook.

#7 Create a Winter Wonderland

Even in the smallest space, you could create a little winter wonderland.

A blanket draped over the back of chairs to create a wigwam that you adorn with homemade decorations, and some fairy lights, then add plenty of cushions to create an ideal area to snuggle down and watch festive films or read Christmas books.

If you have outdoor space, you can turn your balcony, patio, or even the shed into a winter wonderland where you can spend some quality festive time.

Here are some great ideas for creating Christmas decorations on a budget from www.goodhousekeeping.com

#8 Christmas Day Ramble

Rather than a big Christmas dinner, how about a Christmas Day Picnic?

Go for a hike through the countryside or along the beach or to the local park. Take a picnic with plenty of hot drinks.

Make a den in the woods to have your picnic in, find a cove all to yourselves, and picnic on the rocks. Take some balls or a Frisbee so that you have some fun things to do.

Collect flotsam on the beach to make Christmas decorations, or how about a snowman made from sand?

Gather twigs and fallen cones to create an outdoor Christmas tree to picnic around.

If you have a tent, take that, then even if it rains you can still have an amazing adventure.

I once spent Christmas day hiking in the Peak District, and eating Christmas dinner made on a primus stove. It was amazing how many others were doing the same, and it was an unusual and great way to spend a Christmas.

With a little imagination and creativity, there are many cheap or free Christmas traditions you can start this year.

Making or upcycling items means you get to spend quality time together, creating not only physical items but memories, and is that not what we should all be doing? Making Christmas magical, out of the ordinary?

You may also like to read: What to Do With Cardboard Boxes After a Home Move. This guide is packed with fun, practical, and useful ideas that will make use of your old moving boxes.

Ways to Celebrate Christmas When You Can’t Be Together

Over the last few years, many people have moved to the other side of the country, far from their family and friends.

So although we may not be able to physically get together this Christmas, we can still share some special experiences together.

With just a little thought outside the gift box, there are many ways to share our Christmas with our loved ones.

#1. Have an Online Decoration Making Session

Using one of the online video services such as Skype, you can have a Christmas decoration-making session.

Paper chains are inexpensive to make, and there are tons of frugal decoration-making ideas online.

If you have chosen to start the new tradition suggested above of going for a walk, collecting cones, berries, and twigs for example, the materials for your decorations will cost you nothing.

#2 Share Online Games

The internet will give you plenty of festive games you can play, including Scrabble for example, which you could play with only Christmas-associated words, or get extra points for using words associated with Christmas.

#3 Carol Singing

Why not organise a carol-singing concert through a live video feed?

It could be any sort of festive song just to keep it varied, and you would have to organise it so that everybody did not choose the same songs.

#4 Messenger Trivia

If some members of the family don’t have Skype you could use Messenger to play a Christmas trivia game. Whoever sends in the first message with the correct answer wins that point.

#5 Take a Family Portrait

Not a quick selfie but a proper family portrait that you can cherish.

#6 Create a Garden Grotto

Many people will have moved to homes with a garden this year. If you have a shed, why not make a Santa’s grotto in it?

Or decorate the patio with fairy lights, a fire pit, lots of blankets, and a BBQ.

Cold winter evenings spent eating hotdogs and drinking mulled wine under the stars can be magical.

#7 Turn Christmas Tasks into Events

There are things that you will do to celebrate Christmas that you do without making it a significant event. But how about changing that?

The day the tree goes up for example. Make an event of the whole day. Have a special breakfast, go and buy the tree, or get it down from the loft together.

Decorate the tree together whilst playing Christmas songs and having a Christmas tipple.

Then when it gets dark enough have a light turning-on ceremony followed by a favourite Christmas film.

Have the children help bake Christmas cakes or a present wrapping day.

Turn what could be Christmas chores into Christmas memories.

#8 Have Santa or His Elves Ring the Kids

If the grandparents can’t get to see the kids, how about having them read a chapter of a Christmas book every night to the kids over the phone?

You could make it a set time each night of Christmas week and all snuggle up on the kid’s bed waiting for the Elves or Santa to call and read to them.

Turn the lights off, snuggle down, put the phone on loudspeaker, and enjoy being read to.

#9 Organise Neighbourhood Decorations

You could get like-minded neighbours to decorate the outside of your homes and front gardens in lights.

If enough streets do it you could create a social media page advertising your decorations and people could come to look at them and maybe even make a donation to a local charity or the local food bank.

It will raise everyone’s spirits, and give the local residents a night out driving around looking at all the decorations, and if you do a collection, then local charities and those unable to afford a Christmas this year will benefit too.

You may also like to read: How to Overcome Loneliness After a Home Move. As mentioned earlier, many people have chosen to move away from family and friends in the last few years in search of a better quality of life. Some of those people may be experiencing loneliness, especially around the festive season. But rather than loneliness being a problem, this article celebrates loneliness as a catalyst for making great things happen.

Christmas Traditions From Around the World

Many countries ignore the commercialism of Christmas and celebrate it in the traditional way that they have done for centuries.

Maybe there are some ideas here that you might like to incorporate into your Christmas this year, and it will be interesting for others to learn where you got the idea from too.

Food plays a major part in Christmas traditions all around the world, so what do different countries eat at Christmas?

• Germany – Goose, duck, or rabbit served with red cabbage dumplings and potatoes. Expect homemade stolen and gingerbread houses for dessert.
• Austria – On Christmas Eve you will be served with fried carp traditionally, as they follow the Catholic tradition of no meat on Christmas Eve.
• Spain – Turkey stuffed with mushroom truffles is the centerpiece of the Christmas Eve celebrations.
• Australia – BBQ prawn in a cocktail sauce is served with salad, although any barbequed meat or fish can be served.
• Denmark – In Denmark a rice pudding made with milk, chopped almonds, and whipped cream is served cold. If you find the almond hidden within, you get a present.
• Eastern Europe – Christmas Eve is the main event of the festive holiday and starts with a feast of a 12-course meal that should contain no meat, eggs, or dairy products. The dishes must be vegetarian and never an odd number as it is considered unlucky. Christmas Day is when meat dishes are served.
• Portugal – Codfish and boiled potatoes are the main dishes at Christmas, but it is the range of desserts that set this meal apart. Expect to be served Broa, sweets made from egg yolk and sweet potato, and Bolo Rei, a Christmas cake filled with fruit and nuts.
• Sweden – A boiled ham glazed with egg, breadcrumbs, and mustard served cold is the main dish, accompanied by fish and potato, meatballs, and pork sausage.
• Norway – Roast pork is served with boiled potatoes and sauerkraut. Whole boiled sheep’s heads are a traditional festive treat when the ears and eyes are consumed first, then the brain is removed and fried or boiled. 
• Iceland – Smoked lamb is served with a wafer-thin flatbread called laufabraud.
• Puerto Rico – Roast suckling pig accompanied by blood sausage and meat pastries.
• Jamaica – The meal is always meat-based and ranges from stewed oxtail to curried goat.
• Argentina – Sliced veal covered with tuna sauce and capers.
• Madagascar – Chicken and coconut stew served with rice. Fresh lychees are also considered a real festive treat.
• The Philippines – A ham coated in brown sugar or syrup, a whole ball of Edam cheese, and a rice cake adorn the Christmas table here.
• Japan – Everyone heads for KFC, a tradition started in 1974 after a very successful KFC advertising campaign. But get your order in early, it is rumoured you have to put in your order two months in advance of Christmas to ensure you get your finger-lickin-good Christmas dinner.

You may also like to read: International Home Moves: The Ultimate Home Moving Challenge? If you are thinking of moving overseas then this is an invaluable guide to help make your move easier and cheaper.

Christmas Traditions From Around the World Trivia Quiz

Everyone loves a game of trivia at Christmas so here are the top 5 Christmas Trivia Quizzes that we have found:

1. www.bbc.co.uk
2. www.funtrivia.com 
3. www.howstuffworks.com
4. www.peoplequiz.com  
5. www.factmonster.com

How to Save Money on a Christmas Home Move

It is still not too late to book a good removal company to save you time and effort as well as take all the stress and worry out of your Christmas home move.

Here is an invaluable article on How to Pick a Good Removal Company: The Ultimate Step-by-Step Guide if you have not already booked your removal firm.

Also, be sure to visit our home moving blog to find a huge variety of helpful guides to navigate you through every step of your home move, helping you save time and money.

If you are planning a home move next year or deciding where to move next you will find plenty of guides to inspire you and make your home move easier there as well.

And if you have missed the last couple of year’s fun Christmas articles here they are:

• How to Move at Christmas: The Fun and Easy Way
• Is Moving Home Around Christmas Crackers?
• How to Move Home: The 12 Days of Christmas
• Moving Home at Christmas: All Aboard the Polar Express!
• Moving Home at Christmas is a Dickens of a Job

From all of us at Move Advisor we wish you a safe, happy, and special Christmas.