As we head into another Christmas season of festive merchandise, I got thinking about all the beautiful things that we like to have around Christmas, only to chuck it all in the New Year.
I'm sure everyone is familiar with Christmas cards, and the idea that "it's the thought that counts". And yet, there's a pleasant feeling of generosity, luxury, and decadence that comes from giving a "premium" card -- thicker stock paper, gorgeous art, maybe even pop-ups or some sort of built-in audio device.
Some people do keep Christmas cards as keepsakes, but for the majority, they will likely end up in the recycling bin, if not in the trash.
That's art in the trash, people.
Then there's art meant to be destroyed. From the time of its very invention, Christmas crackers (those things that look like oversized candies, except you're not supposed to eat them) were meant to be ripped apart and destroyed for the goodies inside. Despite this, like regular Christmas gifts, we like them gorgeously and festively decorated.
And in a world of mass production, some are still carefully hand made for that extra special touch and bragging rights, like the ones from Designer Crackers. Even though one more or less looks just like another, there is a special uniqueness and limited-edition feel to something hand-made.
For any other occasion (say, a wedding) they might be beautiful enough to be a keepsake. But Christmas Crackers are meant to be destroyed. Even if they were stuffed with little gifts of quality (like the selection below, that goes into the best of Designer Crackers) that may well be worth having, the actual fun of a Christmas Cracker is in getting a friend to pull the other end, the bang when it comes apart, the goods spilling out -- The fun is in destroying it.
I'm sure everyone is familiar with Christmas cards, and the idea that "it's the thought that counts". And yet, there's a pleasant feeling of generosity, luxury, and decadence that comes from giving a "premium" card -- thicker stock paper, gorgeous art, maybe even pop-ups or some sort of built-in audio device.
Some people do keep Christmas cards as keepsakes, but for the majority, they will likely end up in the recycling bin, if not in the trash.
That's art in the trash, people.
Then there's art meant to be destroyed. From the time of its very invention, Christmas crackers (those things that look like oversized candies, except you're not supposed to eat them) were meant to be ripped apart and destroyed for the goodies inside. Despite this, like regular Christmas gifts, we like them gorgeously and festively decorated.
And in a world of mass production, some are still carefully hand made for that extra special touch and bragging rights, like the ones from Designer Crackers. Even though one more or less looks just like another, there is a special uniqueness and limited-edition feel to something hand-made.
For any other occasion (say, a wedding) they might be beautiful enough to be a keepsake. But Christmas Crackers are meant to be destroyed. Even if they were stuffed with little gifts of quality (like the selection below, that goes into the best of Designer Crackers) that may well be worth having, the actual fun of a Christmas Cracker is in getting a friend to pull the other end, the bang when it comes apart, the goods spilling out -- The fun is in destroying it.
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