By JAYAGANDI JAYARAJ and ESTHER CHANDRAN | Dec 18, 2009
Tis the season to decorate
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Bright colours: Some of the decorative tree hangings available
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AS Christmas approaches and people are busy decking out their Christmas trees and homes, department stores and hypermarkets are providing a wide selection of decorations for them to choose from.
The decorations, which range in quality and price, come in different shapes, themes, colours and material. But the choice is always on the customers as they work around a budget and theme.
We discovered that red seems to be the colour of the season this year, as department stores and hypermarkets have picked this colour theme for most if not all of their decorations.
Aside from the usual shiny tinsel and baubles, there are also some unique decorations like dolls, hand-crafted baubles and dolls, and tree hangings, which can be found at certain stores.
At Robinsons, the decorations on sale are quite unique. For the price you pay, you get pretty tree hangings with intricate details.
One range offers huge and colourfully decorated doughnuts, cupcakes, stars and gingerbread man. Although priced at RM16.90 each, the decorations can be quite eye-catching for children and adults alike.
As for the sale items, the 16-piece bauble sets, which come in different colours, are available at a 50% discount from the original price of RM49.90.
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Festive touch: Jusco also has some nifty ideas like these candle holders.
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There are also some pretty hand-crafted glass ornaments and battery-operated snow globes to decorate the side table at the living or dining rooms.
As for Christmas trees, the store features two distinct coloured trees — gold and silver. They are priced between RM439 and RM1139, according to height.
Metrojaya is an old faithful many look to when it comes to Christmas decorations.
The store celebrates the season with its Opulent Christmas theme featuring dazzling red and white, marvellously displayed against a white Christmas tree.
Other supplementary themes to check out if red and white is not your cup of tea would be the Missonnier (green theme), Plum Angel (purple, blue, turquoise, gold) and Copper Luxe (shades of gold), beautifully adorned by the Visual Merchandising department.
In bringing forth a play of fantasy, ornaments are in the form of bejewelled tree hangings, chunky diamante hangings reminiscent of diamond necklaces, fairies and ornate shiny snowflakes that add a magical glow to the tree.
These are found at the Trim Shop by Living Quarters, adequately stocked with Christmas trees and decorations as well as elegant home decorations.
Discounts of 20% and 50% are also being offered on some baubles, hanging pieces and trimmings with a hue of colours available on the racks.
At Ikea, advent means arrival, or coming. Since the 1890s, the custom in Sweden has been to light a candle every Sunday during Advent.
The candles used to be placed in tiny Christmas trees, but from the 1930s onwards these were superseded by candlesticks of iron or wood.
The Moravian custom of hanging a star made from paper, straw or chipwood in windows also found its way to Sweden in the 1930s, recalling the star that guided the Three Wise Men.
So the decorations at Ikea are mainly to do with lights. There are some great star-shaped hanging lights to light up a corner. There are also more lighting chain bulbs in the same shape.
The Christmas tree mat with lighting is another interesting find to look out for.
With red as their main theme, shoppers may find many of their Christmas promotional items, ranging from bedding, cutlery and, of course, the decorations in the warm shade of the season. Real Christmas trees from Sweden are also on sale.
From now till Dec 24, Ikea will donate RM5 (‚1) for each soft toy sold in Ikea Malaysia to The United Nations Children’s Fund (Unicef) and Save the Children education projects under the Ikea Social Initiative.
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All dolled up: These huge Santa dolls are available at Parkson.
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The projects run by Unicef and Save the Children aim to improve children’s education and give children around the world a chance to go to school where they are safe and protected.
Parkson also has some of the best selections of Christmas decorations.
Here, customers can shop by colour theme as all decorations are sorted according to theme.
Each theme has various baubles and decorations that range from different shapes like butterflies, candy canes, bead or diamante-encrusted hangings and more. There are also fully decorated trees for each theme to give customers some ideas for decorations.
Parkson also has a selection of cutlery with Christmas prints on it, like plates with Santa Claus designs and matching cups.
The store also has a lovely collection of angelic dolls that is priced at RM109.90.
There are also many types of Christmas trees to choose from and one of the best-selling type are the fiber optic trees that come with lights. They are priced between RM140 and RM245.
For more affordable options, there is also a wide selection at Jusco and Giant.
Jusco selections of decorations are familiar and easy to match.
Most of the items are trees hangings, but there is also a good selection of Christmas-themed candle holders, and some are also on a 50% sale from its original RM16.90 price tag.
The decorative dolls, which are priced at RM18.90, also make interesting decorations on trees or even on their own.
The department store also has a fair selection of Christmas trees of various sizes.
At Giant, the response for Christmas decoration items has been overwhelming with the first batch of Christmas trees being sold out in the first week of December.
Kota Damansara Giant hypermarket general manager Benadict George said the response for Christmas decorations was very encouraging.
“We are waiting for a new batch of Christmas trees to arrive as all have been sold out,” he said.
Ornaments can be bought from as low as 99sen, while ribbons to adorn trees go for RM5.99.
Some of the smaller ornaments that come in packets such as reindeer, bears and Santas are priced between RM1 and RM3.
If you are looking for a decent wreath to hang on the door, you can buy it here for only RM24.99. Christmas trees are priced between RM39.99 and RM129.
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