Sheffield named in UK's top 'Christmas spirit' cities

Two thirds (65%) of households across the UK are planning on decorating their homes for Christmas this year, according to new research.

The research, which was carried out by manufacturer 3M and surveyed 2,000 people, explored our motivations and plans to decorate our homes over the festive period.

Birmingham (79%), Norwich (79%) and Sheffield (78%) were most likely to decorate their homes this Christmas, showing heightened Christmas spirit in these specific locations.

The most popular reasons people give for decorating at Christmas include to bring joy to the household (49%), it’s fun and they enjoy doing it (48%) and that they love Christmas (47%). Almost one in five (19%) say they feel like they have to put up decorations, 14% say they like to bring joy to their neighbours, and one in ten said they do it so they can post on social media.

The research has also revealed that UK adults are spending, on average, 9 hours and 24 minutes on chores and DIY to get their homes ready for hosting and celebrating over the Christmas period.

Edinburgh (46%), Plymouth (34%), Sheffield (33%), and Southampton (33%) were named as the most 'houseproud' cities overall, planning to spend 10+ hours on chores and DIY over the festive period.

The most popular jobs to do to prepare for Christmas include deep cleaning the house (33%), decluttering (28%), fixing broken items (15%), decorating or touching up paint work in at least one room (13%) and hanging up non-festive decorative items, such as mirrors or pictures (10%). Other jobs include buying new storage solutions (9%), putting up shoe racks or coat racks (7%), buying and installing new entertainment systems (6%) and buying new beds or products for sleep (6%).

Although house proud Brits are keen to impress their guests, not everyone is confident with carrying out basic DIY jobs. Nearly a quarter (24%) said they aren’t confident hanging up a mirror or picture and almost half (46.3%) aren’t confident at hanging up entertainment devices, such as TVs or speakers.

In fact, the research shows that almost one in five (19%) would call in a skilled tradesperson to hang up their entertainment devices and 7% would call in the experts to hang up a mirror or picture.

When it comes to concerns around basic DIY, over two-fifths (44%) said they don’t like drilling or making holes in the wall, over a third (35%) said they would like to do more DIY but they’re anxious about ruining their property, and 34% said they worry the products they use to hang items on the wall aren’t strong enough.

Over a third (36%) of people in the study admitted no one has shown them how to basic DIY jobs and 41% said they turn to YouTube or social media to learn DIY techniques.

Richard Davies, Home Improvement Shopper Marketing Lead at 3M, said: “We know the lead up to Christmas is a busy time for people to carry out home improvement jobs as they get ready to welcome guests into their homes. But there’s millions of people who lack the confidence, know-how and skills to do a lot of DIY tasks. That’s why we’re always looking at ways to make things as easy as possible for people. For example, our 3M CLAW™ Heavyweight Hanging Solution makes it easy to hang up items like pictures and mirrors.

"Plasterboard walls can be difficult to drill, especially in new build houses where walls can be thin. With the 3M CLAW™, you don’t need any special tools – just the power of your thumbs. Designed to push straight into the plasterboard or drywall, with no measuring, drills or screwdrivers required, the specially engineered hardened steel 3M CLAW™ locks securely into drywall, with the range of hangers proven to hold up to 30KG. Alternatively, the Command™ range is also easy to use and doesn’t damage walls.

“Carrying out home improvements to prepare your home for the festive period – or any time of year – doesn’t need to cost a lot or take too much time. It’s all about finding easy-to-use solutions which put the joy back into decorating.”

The research also found that over a quarter of people said that in the past they have damaged their walls or other surfaces when putting up decorations, according to the research, but there are ways to avoid this.

Richard Davies, Home Improvement Shopper Marketing Lead at 3M, said: “Christmas decorations are supposed to be fun and bring joy, so the last thing you want to do is damage your home or create anxiety about putting them up. Our research showed that nearly half (48%) of people look for products that make it as easy as possible to put items up without damaging walls. For example, the innovative 3M CLAW™ Heavyweight Hanging Solution makes it easy to hang up items and is proven to hold up to 30KG. You don’t need any special tools or equipment – you simply push the product into the wall using your thumbs. Alternatively, the Command™ range is easy to use and doesn’t cause damage to walls either.”

The market research was carried out by 3M and surveyed 2000 UK adults. For more information, go to: https://www.3m.co.uk/3M/en_GB/company-uk/