Welcome to the Fun Fantasy World of Giant Candy Canes (and Other Oversized Christmas Decorations)

Candy Cane Lane with giant candy canes

Giant candy cane in a shopping mallThey start to make their appearance round about November of every year—if not earlier—and they’re hard to miss (because they’re so big): oversize holiday decorations out of scale from reality, including giant candy canes, super-sized gingerbread men, hulking snowman, toy soldiers and nutcracker figures that dwarf their surroundings, gigantic glowing snowflakes and stars of Bethlehem, and whatever else the vivid celebratory imagination can dream up. Erecting such colossal decorations seems like a lot of work—especially considering they’ll only spread their cheer for about a month.

Why bother doing it?

A Big Holiday Deserves Extra-big Decorations

And there’s your answer. Can you think of any bigger day to celebrate in all the year than Christmas? For some people, celebrating Christmas is the perfect way to round out the year, and they go all in on decorations like these. And who can blame them? They’re eye-catching and lots of fun!

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How Did the Snowman Connect to Christmas?

outdoor snowmen

Both the “Christmas” tree and sometimes life size snowmen originated in pagan cultures.  Snowman documentation dates as far back as the Middle Ages.  Before that, we can only assume that in the dark times of winter, humans were creating art with anything available, including snow.  According to Bob Eckstein, author of The History of the Snowman, the snowman’s earliest known representation is in the 1380 Book of Hours in the Koninkijke Bibliotheek in The Hague, Netherlands.

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An Exciting New Supplier

holiday-nativity-set-led-display-13pcWhat do Universal Studios, Radio City Music Hall, Sak’s Fifth Avenue and the Indianapolis Zoo have in common with Christmas Night? They all feature large outdoor Holiday Displays made by GP Designs of Marion Indiana. Our Christmas Night customers, whether they be homeowners looking for an eye catching outdoor Santa/Sleigh or a church wanting to show the real meaning of the Christmas season with a large outdoor Nativity ,will now have access to the best quality and most attractive holiday light displays available, offering longer life and lower maintenance.

Offering commercial product design and quality for the consumer, GP Designs maintains total control of all it’s products and services in-house, in it’s highly efficient facility centrally located in Marion IN. From initial  design and manufacturing, through powder coating, decorating, lighting and final shipment, GP Designs is always  in control and customer oriented.

Just as important to Christmas Night and our customers is that GP Designs is owned and operated by nice people. The Loer family, Dave the President and CEO, Sandra the VP Administration, their son KC, Sales Rep and Social Media Coordinator and Rick Dillon  the Vice President Operations, all really care about family values and treating their customers the way they would like themselves  to be treated

Christmas Night is now offering, on our website, a range of Nativity and Christmas display figures from GP Designs. Please visit us and see for yourself.

 

5 Reasons We Love Fall

The crisp breeze signifies that summer is gone and fall is in the air. We love fall; it has a beauty all to its own. From warm apple cider to autumn leaves, there are so many reasons to enjoy fall. Here are five things about the season that we love:

 

The Changing Leaves

If you are blessed to live in a place where the leaves change color, you know why fall foliage is one of the reasons we love this season. Walking down a tree-lined street to see a canopy of orange, yellow and red leaves is thrilling. In Upstate New York, the leaves typically peak in late October. A good amount of colorful foliage lasts through Thanksgiving and even into the wintery months.

Fall Clothes

Fall clothing is just wonderful! As the temperature begins to drop, we take our fall essentials out of retirement. We’re talking about boots, sweaters and scarves. Nothing feels as delightful on a crisp fall day as a wool sweater and pair of comfortable boots. Well, maybe a cup of warm apple cider would make the day even better!

Pumpkin Everything

Whether it’s a baked good, drink or savory dish, when September rolls around and our taste buds salivate at the thought of all things pumpkin. Ice cream, coffee, pale ales, and more all come out in pumpkin flavors during the fall. Pumpkins can also make the best fall décor. Decorate your Thanksgiving table with a beautiful pumpkin centerpiece. Another seasonal favorite is pumpkin carving!

Thanksgiving

While Christmas is our favorite holiday, we really enjoy Thanksgiving too. This autumn holiday is special for a couple reasons. Thanksgiving has both religious and cultural traditions. Not only do you gather around a table and spend time with loved ones, but you also have the opportunity to reflect on all the things that you are thankful for. And we have a lot to be thankful for!

Christmas Planning

We simply adore Christmas and fall is the perfect time to think about to the holiday season. For instance, setting a holiday budget now will make it easier to achieve all your Christmas goals later. More important, planning early will allow you to enjoy the holiday season, rather than get caught up in the hustle and bustle. If you start Christmas planning now, you will reap benefits come December!

Tell us what you think. We want to know your favorite things about fall!

Too Early for Christmas?

Christmas Night recently sent out an email newsletter, featuring two new large (and expensive) Christmas displays. We featured our new Silver Santa Sleigh and Reindeer in a Facebook ad and on our page. We had a lot of favorable comments but we had several comments, such as “Not now” or Too early for Christmas” or one of those text abbreviations  that I can never figure out.

We understand that some lovers of Christmas feel that the whole celebration has become too commercial and promotion of Christmas should wait until just before Thanksgiving. We want to point out some reasons why we communicate our new and featured items as early as we do.

1. Shopping malls, municipalities and large businesses plan their Christmas displays in advance, sometimes 8 to 10 months ahead. They will often request display plans and proposals from design and decoration firms, who in turn approach us for product information and quotations. Often the mall or company will contact us directly and we may have to bring in custom product for them, which may take 4 to 5 months

2. We begin selling Nativities and outdoor Christmas displays in April/May. Many times, customers who missed out last season, because we were sold out, will buy early to avoid the same problem. This means that we must often adjust our new factory orders and let customers know what we have.

3. Many people with large displays at their home or business, have already purchased the traditional Christmas figures, such as Santa, Snowman, Toy Soldier etc. and are looking for new and different designs. We design much of our product and Claire, our inventor/designer is always looking for a new approach or look to the traditional figures. Most of these new designs sell out when customers discover them.

4. Our supply chain is from the Philippines, China and the USA. Turnaround time from  Christmas Night placing the order until the container arrives at our warehouse is 10 to 12 weeks overseas and 1 to 4 weeks locally . The later in the season, the longer the lead time. This means that our last overseas order must be placed by the first week in September.

5. Many of our customers anticipate our deliveries by placing advance orders for product on the water ( in transit) or on order. We assist the ordering by offering a “Pay Later” layaway plan. This helps us plan our purchases and helps our customers avoid disappointment.

So we apologize to  customers and fans who think we are rushing Christmas, but we are primarily doing this so we don’t disappoint customers and to avoid a panic in our office. Besides we love Christmas and the arrival of every new container is like Christmas morning under the tree.santasnowedunder

Celebrate Christmas in July!

Christmas in July is an unofficial holiday celebrated by many people. It is especially popular among people in countries such as Australia, New Zealand and South Africa because in the southern hemisphere, winter falls in July. Therefore, these countries celebrate Christmas as a way to embrace the winter spirit.

Here are five ways you too can celebrate Christmas in July:

Watch Christmas movies

You don’t have to wait until December to watch your favorite holiday classics. This July, rent all of your favorite holiday movies and spend the weekend having a holiday movie marathon. Make your Christmas in July experience more realistic by turning the air conditioner on high and breaking out your fleece blanket.

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Get a head start on holiday shopping

We all know how packed shopping malls can get during the holidays. Take this opportunity to hit up flea markets and outlet malls for gifts. Just think, when the holidays finally roll around, you will already have a lot of your shopping done. Plus, you’ll end up saving money during the holiday season. Trust me, you’ll be glad that you don’t have to spend most of your holiday stuck in a mall.

Bake your favorite treats

Love peppermint and gingerbread cookies? Now you can enjoy your favorite holiday goodies in July. Pop in your favorite holiday cd and spend the day (or weekend) baking. Wrap up a plate of cookies and drop them off at your neighbor’s house. They will appreciate your thoughtfulness.

Volunteer at a local shelter

Get into the holiday spirit by giving back. Whether you prefer four legs or two, volunteering at a local animal or homeless shelter is the perfect way to spread the holiday spirit. You will feel great about it and the shelter can definitely use your help. After all, isn’t that what the holidays are really about?

Host a summer soiree

Summer is the perfect time to get the family together for a backyard barbecue. Cook traditional bbq foods but try to incorporate some summer twists on the traditional holiday drinks like chilled eggnog or red and green margaritas. You can also rename some traditional summer games such as horseshoes to “Reindeer Shoes” for added fun. Don’t forget to break out those holiday decorations for your Christmas in July.

It’s never too early to get into the Christmas spirit, and now you can celebrate the holiday season more than once a year. Enjoy the true meaning of Christmas without the commercialism. Celebrate all day or all month, the choice is up to you. Simply reflect on what Christmas time means to you, then try to recreate that feeling and have a good time!

Five Ways to Care for Your Outdoor Christmas and Garden Statues

Christmas Night (and Saint Francis Garden) specializes in Christmas and Garden statues which are made of fiberglass and generally displayed outside the home. Any manufactured item, such as patio furniture, the siding on your house or children’s toys, when left outside in the sun and the elements, will fade, painted or not.. Direct sunlight will cause faster fading. Painted statues left in standing water or ice covered may chip. As our weather becomes more unstable, outdoor statues may be blown over or damaged by hail and wind. Statues may be knocked over by lawnmowers, pets or children.

Here are some recommendations for protecting and refurbishing your lawn statues and outdoor  Christmas decorations.

1. Tether the taller statues using flexible wire or nylon line or ties attached to fixed points such as fence posts or tent connections or a piece of re-bar hammered into the ground. Statues can be screwed onto a wood base or propped up with sand bags.  Tethering will eliminate or reduce falls caused by strong wind or vandalism. Nativity creche sets are often displayed in wooden stable which can provide some protection, particularly if the church or individual covers the front of the stable with clear unbreakable resin plastic.

Nativity protected by Stable and Clear Plastic
Nativity protected by Stable and Clear Plastic

2. If your statue has a small crack, through a fall, or has small chips coming off for any reason, we recommend repair with  a product called Marine Tex. This can be found in small repair kits purchased at www.jamestowndistributors.com.

3. Extensive cracking, broken parts or holes will require repair by an expert in fiberglass use and repair. Often a technician who repairs boats or other fiberglass structures such as tanks can be found online. In some parts of the country there are artists who work in materials such as fiberglass, who may also be found online.

4. A statue with a few small paint chips may be repainted. We recommend Testors flat enamel which can be found at http://www.megahobby.com/testors-paint-for-plastic-models.aspx. Be sure to purchase all the matching colors to restore the original look. Also be sure to sand the chipped areas with fine sand paper before painting.

5. If your product has faded badly or has extensive chipping, it will need complete repainting. Unless you are an artist who wants to take on the challenge, we suggest repainting in one color or a few simple colors. Go to your local paint or hardware store and ask for outdoor paint suitable for use on fiberglass. Match your colors and don’t forget to sand all the areas to be painted. Let the paint  dry completely before  trying antique finishing. If you decide to antique, pick an antique color and water it down. Saturate a cotton cloth with the antique color, squeeze out the excess paint and wipe the areas you want to add to. Immediately use a dry cloth to clean off the antique color from the adjacent areas you do not want antiqued. Do this quickly, one area at a time, before the wash dries

A carefully refurbished Christmas or Garden statue will add to the pride of ownership and display, because you have done it or supervised it yourself. It may be a way for a dedicated parishioner to do something extra for their church or a member of the community to contribute. Refurbishing will extend the life of your statues and your enjoyment of them.

How to Re-Purpose Christmas Decor Beyond The Holidays

While we all love to go overboard for the Christmas season, what do you do with your Christmas decorations after the holidays are over? Many of us pack them up and put them away in storage and don’t think about them again until next year when it’s time to decorate for Christmas again. But what if we told you there are ways to re-purpose Christmas decorations for times of the year other than Christmas? It’s possible, and here’s what you need to know.

Tree lights

This decoration might be one of the most popular items that many people have learned to re-use throughout the year. After the holidays are over and it’s time to take the tree down, don’t think it’s time to put the white tree lights away too. There are so many ways to keep these lights shining throughout the entire year. Whether you like to throw backyard parties during the warmer weather or you like to keep the entrance way to your home lit up, Christmas lights are definitely no longer used just for Christmas time.

Wrapping paper

Wrapping paper for Christmas can get as simple and solid or as Santa themed as you’d like, but once the holiday is over, what do you do with what’s left? By gathering all of your leftover paper and scraps, there are several options you might be surprised by! Use these leftovers to line shelves and kitchen drawers that could use some pops of color, or if you used metallic paper for wrapping, use this to line drink trays for New Year’s Eve.

Ornaments

The day after Christmas, a lot of people are likely to take down their Christmas tree and in turn, pack up all of the ornaments that go along with it. Rather than packing up all of your ornaments, pick out some of your favorites and place them inside a vase or a jar. This can make for a very pretty centerpiece or table scape!

Cards

When it comes to leftover Christmas cards, the possibilities for how to reuse these are practically endless! Whether you decide you want to hole punch them and turn them into confetti for New Year’s Eve or hold on to them to use as gift tags for birthday presents, you really can’t go wrong with having leftover cards! If you’re concerned that the design of the card is too Christmas-y, hold on to them and use them as tags for presents next year. Either way, you’ll be able to re-purpose them for something!

Wreath

The fresh wreath is the best way to go during Christmas time, but once the holiday is over, you really have no option but to put it at the curb with your tree. Rather than throwing out the entire wreath, take pine needles from it and save in a potpourri bag. This way, even though your tree and wreath might be gone, you can still have the scent of Christmas to last as long as you want!