The ugly Christmas sweater trend, which lost its steam in the early ’90s, has reemerged as a “staple” of the holiday season and it’s claiming more than a few volumes in pop culture history.
There are websites, books like Ugly Christmas Sweater Party Book: The Definitive Guide to Getting Your Ugly On, tons of online stores, DIY kits and more dedicated to the celebration of making your festive yarn downright hideous.
My personal experience with ugly Christmas sweaters occurred many many years ago when I was twelve. One of my aunts who typically showered us with wonderful presents gave me the most horrific holiday sweater I’ve ever seen. I remember excitedly opening the box and then choking back the tears when I saw it. It was a purple sweater with red hearts, puffy sleeves and a ridiculously HUGE applique of a goose smack-dab in the middle. I’m pretty sure the goose was wearing a big yellow ribbon just to taunt me. I begged my mom to return it, but disliking gifts was not allowed in my family. And sure enough, I was forced to wear that sweater occasionally despite the fact I hid it deep in my closet.
Today the shame of wearing an ugly sweater has morphed into pride. And the uglier, the better! You can shop ugly sweaters by theme like cats and dogs or snowmen or Santa or, our favorite category, “just plain ugly.” Celebrities like Matt Damon, Miley Cyrus, Justin Beiber and Jimmy Fallon have all been spotted sporting some heinous, yet delightful sweaters. We’re really digging TheSweaterStore.com’s Cat Sweater Portraits that combine the awesomeness of ugly sweaters and the most optimal portrait fails ever.
So our question for you LTL readers, is how are you rocking your ugly Christmas sweater this year? Did you happen to keep one that you can wear now with pride? Do you make your own? Do you shop at UglySweaterStore.com? Do tell.
photo courtesy of TheUglySweaterShop photostream on Flickr
