Christmas jumpers are back, and bigger than ever! Once considered the epitome of naff and un-cool (think Mark Darcey’s cringey festive knit in Bridget Jones) it seems we’ve done a u-turn and are once again embracing the garish seasonal sweater. Not only that, the brighter the better it seems with high streets rolling out novelty pullovers with all the trimmings including built-in LED flashing lights.

Sales figures suggest that Christmas jumper sales are up 200% from last year, a growing trend which has been cleverly utilized by Save the Children’s #ChristmasJumperDay campaign. The simple but fun campaign asks people across the country to wear a festive woolly on the same day and donate a pound or two to the charity.

Retailers have reportedly sold over 10 million Christmas jumpers in recent months, some even selling out altogether – a claim backed up by one manic mum in our office who couldn’t find a single festive jumper for her seven year old son in the days before the big day.. (After a mad dash round the shops she managed to find a Penguin jumper one size too small)

One of the reasons this campaign has really taken off is because it taps into a combination of things that the British public love, firstly, a sense of humour. Whether it’s ironic, cheeky, silly or outrageously rude as a nation we typically love a laugh. We also have a great fondness for all things ‘kitsch’ and pretty much anything we can bring back from the 80’s (even the hipsters can resist a chunky ‘retro’ knit this time of year). Finally a sense of community spirit, nothing says ‘Merry Christmas’ more than a stressed businessman on the morning commute with a big Red-nosed Rudolf on his belly.

Another reason the campaign has been so successful is because it is social media ‘gold’, those who dare to wear a cheesy jumper will no-doubt upload it to their online profiles to show how on trend, good humored (and of course charitable) they are. Save the Children has also been incredibly successful in getting a wide range of celebrities to back the campaign including Cheryl Cole, Jon Snow, the Arsenal team, Strictly stars and Union J to name a few, which is essential for mass exposure and media attention of any big campaign.

So well done to Save the Children for turning bad taste into good works, but the big question is what is your Christmas jumper of choice this year? These are a few of our festive favourites;

The fashionable one – a stylish fitted Fair Isle print sweater

The Elf one – increasingly popular after the hit film Elf #elfie

The Jokester one – Jesus in party hat or a ‘rutting reindeer’

The Retro one – a chunky knit with colourful bold patterns and traditional designs

The LED one – bells and whistles have been outshone by ‘light-up’ apparel

The Modern one – a simple design with slogans such as ‘Merry Pissedmas’