Basic Christmas Decorations

Go to any DIY store like Praktiker or Obi or better, Bauhaus. 

But you can also go to a large Tesco or Auchan hypermarket. They sell all these things and are possibly cheaper than the DIY stores.  I was looking at them in Auchan a few weeks ago.

Live trees are a bit difficult.  We're also looking for a live tree this time.  It's too early to know where to get it from as they sell them from pop up/temporary locations.

For cut trees, Ikea always has them in the car park of their stores.  And you get a store voucher for about 50% of the cost back when you take it back for recycling.

You might need a car to visit these stores.

Noticed Aldi had a few Xmas trees yesterday up for sale already.
Most of the discount Chinese style stores have cheap decorations.
Closer to Xmas time there have many little vendors setting up shop on st. corners selling all sorts of items and sparklers, people here sometimes use sparklers on Xmas Eve, sort of dangerous if you don't watch them.
A big thing here is to hang candy in foil on the tree. You will see these candies sold everywhere, you just need to buy some hangers and put them up on your tree.
We have decided to not do Xmas any more., It is a pagan holiday which I have decided not to play with.
We will be offered 2 free trees, we were last year since our district gives out free trees to all seniors in the district.
Not going to collect them, was thinking of picking them up and giving them to someone with kids but thinking it over, not going to play that game and influence anyone with Saturellia.
Have a safe time in any case.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

....
We will be offered 2 free trees, we were last year since our district gives out free trees to all seniors in the district.
....

Mrs Fluffy's mother earlier this year was offered free rose bushes which would be more useful in the long run.

For the OP, Mrs Fluffy says that live trees can be had nearly everywhere from the street sellers.  They should be setting up within the first couple of weeks of December. 

I'm trying to ignore Christmas too.  But I've got kids and the rot has already started.  Ba'h humbug.

I would prefer some rose bushes too.
Last week they came around to the door with a box for each of us, nice to be thought of for just getting old.
Every district does something different I think. One year we noticed people in the 5th getting huge bags of potatoes.
Our 7th district mayor is young, often shows up playing in his band at local events.He gave out fairly nice boxes this year and last for everyone in the district over age 60 .
Nice bar of candy, bag of cocoa, box of coffee, box of fruit teas, a bag of good quality paprika, bag of tea cookies, coffee creamer,and a huge bag of Xams candy to hang from a tree.
Thoughtful, I don't want to play Xmas but hard to say no to a free box of goodies at your door.
Hard to say no to Santa with small kids in the home.
We were raised knowing it was a pagan holiday but mom still did it up, confusing as a kid, wanting presents but feeling selfish at the same time.
All good, my fave Xmas was the time my step-dad decided Xmas was not gonna happen, he took the tree full of decorations and just did a  javelin toss across the room with it, done and dusted tree!
Oh, the holidays, such happy times... Some things are best forgotten.
They should be selling tress in open air lots all around the city soon.Don't think they are all that expensive here either, I know in Vegas it is easy to spend over $100.  for a tree.
My son's old GF from Japan loved the Xmas lights so much that they left them hanging indoors for about 2 years, they do make a nice looking night lite.
It's really a shame my step-dad broke all those old, rare , beautiful and expensive now tree ornaments with his "Irish temper tantrum" maybe he had too much Xmas cheer going on.
Mom had some of those really nice old cut glass ornaments from Germany, would be enough now to retire in high style with a few E bay sales.
After that she bought those cheap plastic ball ornaments and the poor tree never looked the same again. One year she went out and brought home a silver plastic tree, now that's high style and pure class.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

I would prefer some rose bushes too.
Last week they came around to the door with a box for each of us, nice to be thought of for just getting old.

Nice idea but I am sure there are people on their own at Xmas and perhaps organising something for older people to socialise a bit over two days.  Just someone to eat lunch with could be a good idea.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Hard to say no to Santa with small kids in the home.
We were raised knowing it was a pagan holiday but mom still did it up, confusing as a kid, wanting presents but feeling selfish at the same time.

Nothing wrong with Pagan rites.  More fun than some of the other things going on.  I am keen on that kind  of thing.  Dancing around the Maypole and one of my faves when I was a kid, Pancake Day (Shrove Tuesday). I always liked pancake races (Google it!).  Don't know if they do that in the USA or elsewhere.  Cheese Rollingis interesting and there's one I'd like to see up in Shetland: Up Helly Aa

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

All good, my fave Xmas was the time my step-dad decided Xmas was not gonna happen, he took the tree full of decorations and just did a  javelin toss across the room with it, done and dusted tree!
Oh, the holidays, such happy times... Some things are best forgotten.....
It's really a shame my step-dad broke all those old, rare , beautiful and expensive now tree ornaments with his "Irish temper tantrum" maybe he had too much Xmas cheer going on.
Mom had some of those really nice old cut glass ornaments from Germany, would be enough now to retire in high style with a few E bay sales....

That's awful....sorry, I think that's a rotten thing to do.  Sounds like he was a bit of a  wrong 'un.

Well, that's what he gets for marrying a "divorcie" 12 years his senior who already had 4 kids, 2 of them being teenagers!
Guess my mom was a bit of a "cougar" or one hot mama!!
Fam, what ya gonna do?

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

Well, that's what he gets for marrying a "divorcee" 12 years his senior who already had 4 kids, 2 of them being teenagers!
Guess my mom was a bit of a "cougar" or one hot mama!!
Fam, what ya gonna do?

Teenagers, tell me about it.  2 of them? That's double trouble.  Yes, the old adage is true - you can pick your friends, not your family,

Yes, overall my step-dad did deserve a medal of some sorts.
28 years old taking on a ready made family and fully supporting everyone on his own.
I doubt there are many young men these days up to the challenge, most are too busy still partying and acting out their childhood to take on such a man's job.
Oh well people just don't want to grow up, I am one of them myself
Not to go too far off topic, he would hang Christmas tree lights up around the entire house and still be mostly joval at the holidays.
I don't see too many windows in the city with Xmas lights up, maybe that's not a "thing" here to do?
Most of the lights have been put up by the city but not many private homes are sporting lights.

Obi had lights and Christmas decorations for sale the first week of November. I assume they still have them. Was at Aldi yesterday, and they also had lights and decorations. Also "premium" fake trees (in a box). The sidewalk, live tree vendors usually appear this week or next week. But I guess that depends on where one lives when the vendors start to setup.

Marilyn Tassy wrote:

.....I don't see too many windows in the city with Xmas lights up, maybe that's not a "thing" here to do?
Most of the lights have been put up by the city but not many private homes are sporting lights.

Interesting.  There are lots here.   We've got lights on our trees now and we were late to do it.  Some others had them a week ago.  I suspect they never took them down!

I've just been repairing our lights.  I have about 7 sets of lights, and how is it that they work all Xmas, put them away for next year and they aren't working again?  Like they went wrong over the summer while stored in a box. Now I have to search for bulbs.  Some sets are that old, not with leds in them but even then they are fixable with cannibalising other sets.  I don't think I can buy replacement bulbs anymore.

fluffy2560 wrote:

I don't think I can buy replacement bulbs anymore.

I gave up trying to find new bulbs. If the strand is in series, I just solder the connection closed so the other lights will work, and move on and hang the lights.

klsallee wrote:

fluffy2560 wrote:

I don't think I can buy replacement bulbs anymore.

I gave up trying to find new bulbs. If the strand is in series, I just solder the connection closed so the other lights will work, and move on and hang the lights.

I had some "unfixable" LED lights like that.  Only issue with bulbs is that the voltage will increase if there is not so much load.

I had a defective rope light which only worked in sections, so I carefully cut rope parts/insulation off, removed some LEDs, then soldered them in to replace the defective fitting.  I used heat shrink to seal up the repair. 

Amazingly it worked very well indeed. Mrs Fluffy was well pleased as it was a light display she really liked.