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A Christmas jumper, or Christmas sweater, is a top pulled over the head to cover the torso, themed with a Christmas or winter-style design. These clothing items are often knitted.
History
In the United Kingdom, Christmas jumpers became popular during the 1980s after a variety of television presenters such as Gyles Brandreth and Timmy Mallett began wearing them during the Christmas holidays. In particular, their popularity may be attributed to the influence of singers such as Andy Williams and Val Doonican, who appeared in these type of jumpers in their television Christmas specials. In Ireland, The Late Late Show's host wears an extravagant jumper for the Christmas Late Late Toy Show. They are often seen as a hand-made present knitted by an elderly relative that are given as a Christmas present. During the 1990s and 2000s they were seen as gag gifts and fell out of favour, and featured as something to be embarrassed of in the 2001 film Bridget Jones's Diary. They gained camp appeal during the 2010s, with online retailer Amazon reporting an increase in sales of 600% in 2011, and the trend has been followed by a number of celebrities. Ugly Christmas Sweater Contests are held annually in the United States.
In 2012, the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph described them as "this season's must have", with retailer Topman selling 34 different designs alone and reporting sales have increased 54% compared to 2011. Higher end fashion labels have also produced Christmas jumpers, including Burberry and Jil Sander, and even metal band Slayer released one as part of their merchandise range. A survey conducted in 2012 showed that 41% of the British population owned a Christmas themed jumper, which increased to 50% within London and Wales.
The charity Save the Children runs an annual Christmas Jumper Day each year in December using the slogan "Make the world better with a sweater". It encourages people to raise money for the charity by wearing their Christmas jumpers on a specific day. The New York Times reported in 2012 that a major venue for sweater sales are independent company websites, with ugly-sweater themed names such as UglyChristmasSweater, ButtUglySweaters, Tipsy Elves and MyUglyChristmasSweater.