9 Vintage Christmas Ads That Will Make You Feel Merry and Bright
Something about the holiday season just dials up our love of all things nostalgic. Along with classic movies, carols, and decorations, we were delighted to stumble upon some super adorable vintage Christmas ads that made us feel merry and bright this year.
Sure, by now most of us have already opened up all the gifts Santa put under the tree. But taking a look back at what we could have unwrapped from yesteryear is fun, too — especially since we know for sure we won’t have to worry about rushing out to grab any of them as last-minute presents.
You might even recognize a few of the technicolor advertisements we gathered from the 1950s, although some are from across the pond in the UK. We also managed to find one from more than a century ago!
Keep scrolling to see the charming vintage Christmas ads below:
This Coca-Cola ad from 1954 seems to reference some confusion over how to refer to the classic beverage. “Call it ‘Coke’ or Coca-Cola — it’s the same delicious drink.” That’s something we can all definitely still agree on.
We have Cadbury over here in the US, but this is a very jolly British Saint Nick enjoying some holiday fun with kids wearing Christmas crowns (a UK tradition) and sharing their “biscuits” (or cookies, as we call them) from 1956. Psst: They’re right about chocolate being good for you, too!
This brand of British raisins knew how to get the most out of their festive name around the holidays with this 1955 ad. We’re pretty sure the illustration on the right is trying to resemble figgy pudding, too, which is ironically made without any figs.
Apparently “no stocking was complete” without this popular hair cream for men back in 1953. We can’t argue with that judging by the snazzy ‘do on this handsome gentleman.
Could you always count on a few sticks of gum stuffed into your stocking on Christmas morning? This festive ad from 1956 also shows how much the brand has stuck close to their classic logo over the years.
“Fruity as fruit” is certainly a creative way to describe these Christmas candies in this musical illustration from 1953. We’ll have to trust them, though, as they apparently stopped making the sweets in the 1980s.
This Christmas pageant would no doubt quench your thirst back in 1956! We bet the clever play on words with “Schwepping days” (instead of “shopping days”) and “Schweppervescence” helped someone in the advertising biz get a nice holiday bonus that year.
Is anyone else getting dizzy looking at this candy ad from 1955? That said, we bet you could print it out today to entertain little ones for a few hours while cleaning up any Christmas messes.
Just what every kid wants to unwrap on Christmas day: a dictionary! Jokes aside, giving this tome from 1902 would be a thoughtful gift to any wordsmiths in your family or friend group.
