“Even strangers start to smile”: meet Tommi, the Christmas-crazy collector of dozens of sweaters
Greetings from the world of dedicated Christmas enthusiasts! Tommi Haapaniemi owns dozens of Christmas sweaters and hosts a holiday sweater advent calendar on social media. For him, the holiday spirit is all about bringing joy to others.
I started getting into fun Christmas sweaters about ten years ago. One day, I spotted someone in the city wearing a striking snowman sweater, and I thought I needed one too. I started looking for a similar sweater, and by the next Christmas, I’d tracked down the brand behind that passerby’s sweater and ordered a reindeer design from them. That was my first-ever Christmas sweater.
I really got into Christmas sweaters and started buying a couple of new ones every year. During a holiday party one year, a friend joked that he always looked forward to seeing me in a different Christmas sweater. That inspired me to create an advent calendar, posting a photo each day in a different sweater. I put together my first calendar on Instagram and Facebook in 2017, using all the sweaters I’d collected in previous years. It’s been going strong for several years now, and each year it features new additions.
That first Christmas the calendar ran until Christmas Eve. Nowadays, it continues until December 26. I often take photos for the next year’s advent calendar as early as the start of the year, when there’s still snow. It also helps me keep the Christmas energy going longer. Overall, people’s reactions to the calendar and my Christmas sweaters have been mostly positive.
I’ve never counted exactly how many Christmas sweaters I have, but it must be dozens. I love them for their delightful kitsch. Many folks recall similar styles from 1980s Christmas movies. When I started collecting them, the market mainly featured so-called ugly Christmas sweaters, but now there’s a much broader range.
“Christmas onesies are comfortable to wear on Christmas Eve, and I even have a Christmas sauna robe.”
My personal favorites are the ones that combine Christmas themes with Mickey Mouse, since I’ve always been a huge Mickey fan. Along with sweaters, I also have other Christmas-themed clothing like holiday suits, pajamas, and T-shirts. Onesies feel especially cozy on Christmas Eve, and I have a Christmas sauna robe just for sauna time.
I’ve become so closely associated with Christmas sweaters that my family and friends now gift them to me. These days, I try to donate or sell a couple each year. But I can’t bear to part with any that were given to me.
I’m Christmas-crazy and proud of it. My birthday is also in December. My Christmas sweaters make even strangers smile, and brightening their day strengthens my own holiday spirit too.
