10 Old-School Christmas Items Nobody Uses Anymore

If you haven't already heard, nostalgic Christmas is on trend. We're seeing a surge in handmade vintage-inspired ornaments, festive blow molds, and tinsel everywhere. However, not all the trends of Christmas' past are gaining popularity. Some are still an artifact of history, not quite reaching any renewed relevance. Old-school Christmas decor such as bubble lights, straw ornaments, and ornate Christmas dishware aren't exactly racking up the engagement on Pinterest at the moment.

So with vintage holiday decor on the rise, how does one distinguish between what's back on trend and what we're choosing to leave in the past (at least for now, anyway)? Well, this resurgence of nostalgia is largely based around warm and fuzzy Christmas decor with a classy twist. While there are some playfully kitschy elements making their way into the mix, it's not completely verging into tacky territory. This year's trends are leaning more Little Women and Ralph Lauren than stuffy, modest, or overly cohesive. From bubble lights to vintage candy to using clichéd Christmas colors, some of these relics are destined to be lost to the sands of time forever while others could eventually find their way into the spotlight again. But for now, nobody is using these 10 old-school Christmas items.

While grandma chic definitely had its moment in the sun, not everything you'd find in your granny's house would make for stylish, modern Christmas decor. Christmas linens include tea towels, table cloths, and wall hangings. Yes, all of these essentials still have a place in our homes today. But the traditional Christmas patterns of the past aren't seen as favorably now. Skip obvious holiday patterns such as poinsettias and hollies and opt for simple, more refined linens.

Candy was considered a decorative element in its own right back in the day. Around the 1970s, it was popular to leave crystal bowls filled with colorful vintage candies around during Christmas time. Ribbon candies and sugared jellies were two particularly popular candies to display. While they were technically up for grabs to eat, the candies would typically sit out all holiday season and eventually fuse together into one sugary mass. Some households may still keep out a crystal candy bowl but you're more likely to see individually wrapped candy for hygiene sake.

Before our predecessors knew the dangers of certain materials, we lived in a world filled with potential hazards hidden in our household items. Bubble lights were one seemingly innocuous piece of Christmas decor with a secret danger contained within: methylene chloride. Each candle shaped bulb was filled with this hazardous liquid. The bulb would heat up the liquid and make it bubble. While the effect was beautiful, the methylene chloride was extremely harmful if ingested, inhaled, or exposed to skin. There are similar modern equivalents that don't contain this liquid but they haven't caught on as much as other vintage favorites.

Vintage crafts are having a major moment this Christmas season. But not all of the popular handmade decor of the past is as compelling to the modern eye. Orange pomanders are made by piercing cloves into an orange in different patterns. Sometimes there would be carvings on the top layer of the orange rind, too. This ornament originates from Medieval Europe but regained popularity in the mid-1800s. While similar DIYs like dried orange slices, popcorn garlands, and paper stars are everywhere right now, the orange pompander isn't generating as much buzz.

Your Christmas decor should be infused with a healthy dose of personality, but there's a fine line between artistic curation and a clichéd, overly themed jumble. This year, we're moving away from over-the-top themed trees and shifting towards warmth and balance. Instead of plastering your tree with a billion tiny Santas or peppering it with a barrage of candy canes, try a more subtle approach. For instance, if you want to lean into the Little Women Christmas theme, incorporate bells, ribbons, and handmade ornaments. Let the motif speak for itself. 

We've all seen them at some point or another during the holiday season — extremely Christmas-y tin containers typically filled with cookies or various flavored popcorn. While you may still buy them to enjoy the treats within, it's not as in vogue to decorate with them. Today, you'll find plenty of ways to repurpose the containers. For instance, you can turn it into a stylish planter or create a 3-tier cake stand. If all else fails, you can always use it to store your sewing kit.

There was a time where monochromatic, one-color trees were very chic. But in today's design world, it comes across a bit too one-dimensional. We're not leaning into minimalism as much as we were a few years ago. This year's Christmas ambiance is definitively cozy and multi-layered, with deep, complex color schemes. We're moving beyond simple holiday colors and exploring rich jewel tones. If you're still craving continuity, just stick with a simple green tree and one type of ornament rather than a monochromatic tree.

Straw ornaments, called strohsterne, are a piece of traditional German, Polish, and Scandinavian decor brought over to the United States. Typically, strohsterne are made by carefully weaving straw and red ribbon into intricate star or snowflake shapes. These ornaments saw a boost in popularity within the general public in the 2010s when minimalism was king. Today, we're not seeing as many strohsternes in the 2020s but perhaps they will circle back to the main stage again in the future.

It's a common shared experience to grow up seeing decor in bold red and green colors make their way to the Christmas display, only to get stashed away for the majority of the year. The elaborate hues were complete with baubles, wrapping paper, and dishware — all sporting the same festive colors. Perfectly matching colorful items plastered with outdated holiday decor designs aren't as prevalent today. In fact, we're seeing a move towards more relaxed, varied decor tones in modern designs.

Around the 1970s, it was common to see entire neighborhoods with giant, electric candles glowing from the windows around the holidays. Once a Christmas staple, these candles were a holdover from Colonial times. In that era, real wax candles in windows signaled that weary travelers could stop in for shelter or a bite to eat. In other cases, these candles aimed to recognize an absent or deceased family member that the inhabitants missed profoundly. As time wore on, these candles' symbolism transformed into a proclamation of the Christmas season.