The last Sunday before Advent used to be spent toiling in the kitchen over a Christmas pudding but the nation’s changing habits mean that this weekend many will instead be heaving giant props and lights into place to turn their front door into a winter wonderland.
Doorscaping, or porchscaping, will be commonplace on many streets, according to those in the festive know, with the decor term going viral on TikTok and Pinterest. Big retailers such as Habitat, B&Q and Amazon are among those selling “Christmas door sets”, which consist of two pre-lit trees, a garland and a wreath. Outsized garlands, bows and kitsch neon signs are among the other dressings designed to wow neighbours and passersby.
Those without a porch can even get on board with the trend. It is about “making the most of what you’ve got”, according to John Lewis’s style gurus, whether it is a grand entranceway or an internal door. In its Oxford Street department store, the retailer has installed faux front doors for “porchscaping inspiration”.
The front door is an opportunity to extend your Christmas theme, says Charlie Murray, John Lewis’s Christmas buyer. This year the mood is for “even bigger displays that take over the full porch area” with shoppers embracing a “maximalist and bolder approach” to festive decorating, he says.
For new arrivals to porchscaping, the advice from Good Housekeeping is to “keep a clear path to the doorway but populate either side with eye-catching decorations”. Its suggestions include a basket full of wrapped presents, a north pole train set, a giant nutcracker or even a snowman topiary. A motion-detecting video doorbell might give peace of mind over the safety of the ornaments, it adds.
Those who don’t like to think about Christmas until December will find it galling that the 12 days of Christmas are more like 45. A poll last year found that a fifth of people started planning in November. While decorating the tree is still the No 1 tradition for many households, some Britons now have two or more to dress. A third of us put up a second “show tree” for the hallway or, presumably, the porch.
The garden centre chain Dobbies also reported higher demand for doorstep decks. “Traditional reds and retro, colourful lights are making a strong comeback as shoppers look to evoke feelings of nostalgia and step away from the minimalist Christmas decor of years past,” says Anna Service, its Christmas buyer. Its bestsellers include a £20 silver disco ball wreath, which she said worked well for those “looking to create a maximalist Christmas display”.
All this styling leaves little time for baking, which chimes with a poll that suggests that the Christmas pudding’s days are numbered, with close to 60% of people saying it is “not an important part of their Christmas Day”.
Perhaps the nail in the coffin is that more than three-quarters of the UK adults (77%) had not heard of stir-up Sunday, according to the research conducted for the Royal Mint. Just 4% said it was a tradition they followed, with the “elf on the shelf” idea – in which children are encouraged to be well-behaved before Christmas – more relevant at 13%.
Stir-up Sunday dates from the Victorian era and is a on an Anglican church prayer, which starts: “Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord …,” according to Annie Gray, a food historian and author. “The words were a reminder to start stirring up the plum pudding, so it had time to mature before Christmas Day.”
To encourage a revival, the Royal Mint has launched a limited edition silver sixpence to stir into the pudding mix. The lore goes that whoever finds it in their bowl will enjoy wealth and good luck in the coming year. Rebecca Morgan, its director of commemorative coin, said it hoped the new sixpence would encourage families and friends to “rediscover stir-up Sunday and start new traditions”.