Despite the shreds of plastic that stay around the house for weeks after Christmas, tinsel is a firm favourite when it comes to Christmas decorations.

Therefore, we were hugely surprised to discover, thanks to a poll on our Instagram account, that 70% of our followers do not use tinsel on the Christmas tree!

With this in mind, we decided to do our research on tinsel, to see if it could shed any light (or plastic, and glitter) on this result.

The tinsel we use today is said to have originated in Germany in 1610.

Tinsel mimics the effects of ice, and some believe that it represents the starry sky at the nativity scene. While it was originally used to decorate monuments and statues, tinsel quickly became a popular decoration for Christmas trees, as it enhanced the effect of the candles and lights on the tree!

While we favour a Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) film now for our decorations, tinsel was first made out of shredded silver. However, when placed on the Christmas tree next to the candles, the heat tarnished the silver, and new materials were tested including lead foil, and aluminium.

Do you decorate with tinsel at Christmas? Let us know!

Click here to learn about the History of Christmas Crackers!