Magic Belles

There are so many lovely things to do at Christmas, like hanging stockings or making gingerbread houses, but where do these traditions come from? The Magic Belles tell you the stories behind some their favourite Christmas activities.

Super Stockings

A stocking stuffed with gifts at Christmas is so exciting, but do you know where this tradition comes from? Back in the 4th century, a kind man called Nicholas believed that childhood should be enjoyed, but it wasn’t always possible, as many young children had to work to support their families. Nicholas, who later became known as Saint Nicholas, started giving homemade clothes, food and furniture to poor families with young children. Back then, stockings were hung over the fireplace to dry out after washing, so Saint Nick started leaving gifts in the stockings as a surprise for the kids. Since then children have left their stockings hanging up in the hope of receiving lovely Christmas gifts!

Gingerbread Houses

Making a gingerbread house at Christmas is a tradition that lots of families enjoy, but when did it start? Hundreds of years ago, explorers returned to Europe with a warm and lovely spice called ginger. It was very popular and people soon started to use it to make gingerbread. Gingerbread cakes and biscuits were baked all over Europe, especially in Germany. At some point, somebody got the clever idea to use gingerbread to make a biscuit house! They may have got the idea from the Brothers Grimm, who wrote a story called Hansel and Gretel about a witch who lived in a life-sized gingerbread house – or perhaps the Brothers Grimm got the idea from clever bakers! Either way, it quickly became a tradition in many countries to make a gingerbread house every Christmas.

Fairy Lights

Decorating your home with fairy lights makes it look so magical – the Magic Belles love it! This tradition began in 18th-century Germany, when people would decorate their Christmas trees with candles. The candles were glued to the tree with melted wax or they were pinned in place. Later on, people used small lanterns or glass baubles to hold the candles, which was much safer. When electricity was invented, electric lights soon replaced the candles. Over time, people started using fairy lights all around the home and not just on their Christmas trees. We love twinkly fairy lights, don’t you?

Do you have any special Christmas traditions? What do you leave for Santa and his reindeer to eat on Christmas Eve? What do you put on the top of your tree? Why not make up a new tradition all of your own this year?

We hope you had fun learning about Christmas traditions - we love Christmas here in Bellevue. With love, magic dust and jingle bells from the Magic Belles xxx