This is when Christmas jumper day 2020 falls - and how to take part

The Winter weather has arrived and Christmas season is in full swing.

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But with the lack carol concerts, light displays and Christmas market –  you might be feeling a but Bah Humbug.

Well, with Christmas Jumper Day exactly two weeks before the Santa Claus comes to town, it’s time to decorate your Fair Isle sweater with flashing lights, tinsel and pom poms and get into the Christmas spirit.

Want to get crafty for charity? Here is what you need to know.

When is Christmas Jumper Day 2020? 

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This year’s annual Christmas Jumper Day is on Friday, 11 December.

Organised by Save the Children, it always falls on the second or third friday in December.

Why do we associate our woolly winter sweaters with Christmas?

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The traditional Fair Isle jumper was made popular by skiers in the 1960s, with bright colours and thick knits to keep warm while taking to the slopes. 

The colours were associated with the forest and winter landscapes, not quite the same as the Rudolph printed, ‘GINgle Bells’ branded jumpers we tend to wear today.

However, the pop culture and fashion of the late 80s and 90s and the use of chunky knits in movies such as Home Alone and Bridget Jones’s Diary in the early 2000s really caused the trend to explode onto the high streets. 

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Now, retailers release several funny and stylish designs every year.

Why should you wear the garish garment this year?

The day is led by Save the Children, a British charity which works all year round to support impoverished and vulnerable children and families in the UK and around the world. 

The charity asks that you find your  most outlandish festive jumper for one day, and donate £2 to their cause (or £1 for children taking part in school). 

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Save the Children said that £2 could help “warm some tummies, save some lives, and change the future. That’s big.”

Over 21,000 schools and over 1.2 million people have already signed up, and you can sign up yourself using this form on the charity’s website.

Do I need to buy one? 

While supermarkets such as ASDA, Sainsbury’s, M&S and John Lewis have designs for women, men and children, the best fun could lie in making one yourself. 

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Why not cut back on costs and refashion your old knitted sweater by sewing and glueing tinsel, pom poms, fabric and sequin in festive designs? 

The aim is to be as bright, bold and christmassy as Buddy the Elf decorating Macy’s store in festive origami and buntin to the backdrop of Ella Fitzgerald’s Sleigh Ride. 

Is there anything else I could do? 

If you want to support Save the Children, over and above donating your £2, you could also donate: 

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- Another £2 which could pay for hand sanitiser to help fight coronavirus in one of Save the Children’s medical clinics

- £6 for a face shield for a health workers in Yemen

- £10 to buy antibiotics to help five children beat malnutrition

- £20 for a a back-to-school kit for a child in Indonesia

- £60 for toys and books to support children from struggling families in the UK

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- £100 to buy a first aid kit for a health worker in Somalia

You could also sign up for a free fundraising pack to inspire your workplace, school, nursery or friends and family to get involved - while following government guidance on social distancing and ‘bubbles’

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