The Evolution of the Ugly Christmas Sweater

For anyone who has been noticing it, the fact that ugly Christmas sweaters have become a trend is probably a cause for no small hilarity. These garments, for ages considered an eyesore, are now making an appearance in wardrobes as a fashion apparel. No longer can one associate them with one’s great aunt or their second grade teacher. With Christmas symbolisms depicted in a manner nothing less than cartoonish, the snowman, reindeer or elf Christmas sweater, with felt appliqus and pompoms for the added amusement of the observer, is taking the country by storm during the holiday season.

Though the ugly Christmas sweater has been in existence from way before the 20^th century, people sat up and took notice of its hideousness only in the last few decades. One of the first few people responsible for making it trendy is probably Bill Cosby. He is, in fact, looked up to as an ugly sweater icon. But in the beginning of the ’90s, these Christmas jumpers lost popularity.

However, in the last decade, these cheap Christmas sweaters is back again. There were books published on this even. The Ugly Christmas Sweater Party Book: The Definitive Guide to Getting Your Ugly On, for one, thanks to which, around the year 2001, these sweaters came into the limelight in a huge way. Now the sweaters are bigger, louder and trendier than ever before with even high-end fashion shops like H&M showcasing them.

With people of all ages wanting to get in on the fashion train with the cheap ugly holiday sweaters, sweater themed parties have become the most popular during the Christmas season, with Christmas suits, and Christmas pajamas as viable alternatives for themed Christmas party wear. The sweaters are embellished with bows and frills and various form of decorations in an attempt to increases its tackiness. It has become so popular that the late night talk show host, Jimmy Fallon formed a segment around the theme called “The 12 Days of Christmas Sweaters.”

They are now trending in pop culture, fashion runways, and MTV documentaries. And this is not just limited to the United States alone. Thanks to Coin Firth and his cringe-worthy Christmas sweater from Bridget Jones’ Diary, the ugly holiday sweater has risen in popularity in the United Kingdom too.

Naturally, more than it looks, what the cheap ugly Christmas sweater has going for – is the warm, fuzzy feeling along with the fun memories of Christmas which makes it all worthy.