Seasonal Decor: Crazy For Crackers

Every year I find there is one item I tend to use over and over in seasonal designs. This year it looks like Christmas crackers are the winner. I didn’t start out to use them but have been finding them EVERYWHERE and they fit into each project in a different way.

If you are not familiar with this tradition brought over from the United Kingdom here are a few of the “stories” behind them:

“They were first made in about 1850 by a London sweet maker called Tom Smith. He had seen the French ‘bon bon’ sweets (almonds wrapped in pretty paper), and one night, while he was sitting in front of his log fire, he became very interested by the sparks and cracks coming from the fire. Suddenly, he thought what a fun idea it would be, if his sweets and toys could be opened with a crack when their fancy wrappers were pulled in half….” {via Why Christmas }

“Eventually Tom perfected his chemical explosion to create a ‘pop’ caused by friction when the wrapping was broken This eventually became the snap and the cracker was born. The trade jumped at Tom Smith’s latest novelty, and he was snowed under with orders. Very quickly he began to refine his product – he dropped the sweet and the ‘bon bon’ name, calling his new crackers Cosaques, but he kept the motto and added a surprise gift….” { via Tom Smith Crackers }

Hosts and guests love the paper hats inside of most crackers which always makes for great conversation AND those festive pictures!

I have used them as a fun Placecard Holder for a formal dinner table. { also see the Pinecone Placecard Holder idea?}.