Photography: Babiche Martens
Ensure the festive season runs smoothly with this week-by-week Christmas planning checklist that’s part advent calendar, part to-do list. Staying on track with the logistical side of Christmas preparation, from getting the tree up to having the menu planned and the bonbons sorted, while keeping that festive spirit alive in your heart, requires a special kind of stamina. Before you know it, it suddenly ticks over to December, and we’re all left wondering: But seriously, how is it December already?
Our thorough checklist will show you how to get your menu, decorations and gifts organised to create a holiday gathering that is fabulous, and not frantic. You might even have time to put your feet up at the end!
In a bid to make December count, we’ve allocated each of the tasks on a week-by-week plan to help you stay on track and make the preparation feel less overwhelming.
When should you start prepping for Christmas?
When it comes to Christmas planning, there is no time like the present (pun intended). But with so much to do, overwhelm is a very real possibility. Start your Christmas prep in November if you can bear it, then get to work ticking off the week-by-week tasks to make sure everything is done so you – shock – even have time for a moment to breathe before Christmas Day.
The ultimate Christmas checklist calendar
First week of December
Put up the Christmas tree
We all need a little bit of extra cheer in our lives, and if that means starting the Christmas celebrations a little early, where’s the harm in that? But, Christmas trees rarely look their best straight out of the box or recently untied from the farm, so fluffing the Christmas tree is a thing. Get the kids involved, or turn up the carols and make getting the tree up a festive occasion at your place.
For most of us, the tree is the centre of all things Christmas-y. It’s either traditional or modern, and anything goes. It’s your canvas, so make sure it’s a good one. It has to fit your overall theme and your space. Don’t worry if you don’t have much space; there are plenty of alternative trees available.
It doesn’t even have to be a real tree. Today, there are plenty of stunning artificial Christmas trees on the market for a range of budgets.
Put up the Christmas decorations
For those of us who have boxes of Christmas decorations we pull out each year, there’s a lovely sense of tradition as familiar favourites once again see the light of day. But that doesn’t mean we have to use all of our decorations, all of the time.
Changing the theme on occasion is fun and creative and can involve simply leaving one colour out of your regular combination and adding a new one. You could even try your hand at making your own decorations, which are sure to become sentimental pieces you’ll use each year again.
Second week of December
Ramp up your gift shopping
The truly organised will have been shopping throughout the year, finding perfect presents and storing them away until December. They might even have scored themselves an advent calendar or two for the family – starting the gifting early and making every day in the lead up feel like Christmas morning.
For the rest of us, write your list, check it twice. Many families have differing ideas on how many presents are appropriate at Christmas, so make sure you’re all on the same page and go forth, nabbing deals in early December. Write a note next to each person – considering whether they like practical Christmas gifts, something to use in the kitchen, and don’t forget the people in your life with paws.
Start shopping or making gifts early, but be kind to yourself and spread the load over a few weeks. After all, giving gifts should make you feel warm and fuzzy, not hot and frazzled. Remember, sometimes it takes time to wrap gifts nicely – even if it’s just a voucher!
If you’d rather not run around the shopping centre amongst the crowds, take your Christmas shopping online. Most online retailers offer gift wrapping for a small fee (or for free!) and it can be sent straight to the recipient’s door in time for Christmas. Winning! Just be sure to check out their Christmas Day mailing cut-off.
Order the Christmas ham
You should order your Christmas ham by early December to mid-December. Some local butchers cut off orders in the first week of the month, so to avoid disappointment, get in quick.
Make the Christmas pudding
We all want some figgy pudding, right? Whether you call it Christmas pudding, plum pudding or figgy pudding, this boiled cake has become an essential English treat to see out the Christmas feast. The pudding takes about 4 weeks to properly develop in flavour, so make it now. Or, if pudding is not on the hit list for your family, do your research now on what will replace it – there are many delightful festive Christmas desserts out there.
Third week of December
Order the Christmas crackers
Get ahead of the crowds and order your Christmas crackers now. If you don’t get in early you can end up with some hugely overpriced options only. Order them today, or use the day to make your own. And yes, there needs to be a hat inside. No one likes a Grinch, so just wear the silly hat, get some awkward pictures taken, and have some fun with it.
Donate unwanted toys and items
Something to keep, something to gift, something to recycle. And then there are the items that just need throwing out. The Christmas season is a great opportunity to bribe-slash-inspire the kids to go through their things and get rid of or donate toys or other possessions they haven’t used in the last 6 months. Get them to choose which ones they can give to other children who have less.
Wrap the gifts
Nothing spreads joy quite like a pile of presents. There are many ways to swing this. Go for Christmas wrapping paper in the brightest colours you can find. To keep this look cohesive, stick to two or three key colours and mix and match patterned designs with plain paper. Or keep things simple with presents wrapped in craft paper with bright ribbons, or all pastels. The choice is yours. Hopefully, Santa is not using the same wrapping paper as you do this year.
Plan your Christmas menu
Whether you’re having an intimate family dinner on Christmas Eve or a full-blown traditional Christmas Day lunch, you’ll need to carefully plan a menu so there’s a sense of abundance and celebration without too many leftovers.
You can start a classic Christmas pavlova and work backwards if you like. Menu planning can be long winded at this time of year. Find out what the non-negotiable menu items are for you and your people, then get to work pre-ordering the prawns, figuring out (and keeping a record of) what will fit in the oven, who is bringing what, and whether you have enough plates.
Then, decide what type of food you’d like to have on the day; for instance traditional roasted turkey, glazed ham or something lighter such as freshly shucked oysters and barbecued seafood.
From there, add what you’d like such as appetiser, entree, side dishes and dessert so you can calculate portion size and how much you will need to buy.
Three days before Christmas
Decorate your outdoor dining space
Whether you celebrate Christmas Eve, Christmas brunch, lunch or dinner, a decorated outdoor space can offer a welcome place to be for the various guests who are spending Christmas with you. Take the whole feast outside and set up a celebratory table that looks beautiful and natural, or simply have chairs and a lovely place to go.
Take your time to create a beautiful table setting with bonbons and the colours that speak to you. Consider your flowers, where the drinks and ice bucket will go, whether you’re using name tags this year. Now is the time to pop open some Champagne or enjoy actual time with your people. Bravo, you’re done. And merry Christmas.
The night before
Pick up some fresh blooms
Gather a bouquet of flowers or go all out and pick one up from a florist. If you live near nature, a foraged branch standing in a vase can act as a beautiful piece of flora at Christmas time. A flower arrangement can transform the scene into something more special. Think of it as a gift to yourself for all your hard work, as well.
Go for the seafood run
If you’re a family of seafood lovers, set aside some time on Christmas Eve to pick up the fresh seafood. But beware, there’ll be a long line.
Take a moment
Now is not the time to rush around and try and catch your tail. Take a moment. Spend time with the kids or your friends. If things are none done and dusted, that’s ok. More important than anything is a stress-free Christmas. Even with just a glass of something bubbly in your hand and someone to hug, perhaps a mince pie to eat, it will be a merry Christmas.
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