Too soon? 5 reasons why many secretly love rushing the holidays

(BPT) – You roll your eyes when your hometown’s holiday lights go up the day after Halloween, cringe when the mall decks its halls before Thanksgiving and scoff at the neighbors who’ve already begun Christmas shopping. But secretly, you love the early arrival of the holiday season – and you’re not alone. One in three Americans begins shopping for holiday decor before Halloween, according to a new national survey.

The survey of 1,000 people, conducted by Sentient Decision Science and commissioned by national discount retailer Big Lots, confirms what some people might hesitate to admit – many Americans don’t mind rushing the holidays, and they’re willing to start spending early to make the season as bright as possible.

People shopping for holiday decor say they’ll spend an average of $189 on new decorations and materials. The majority will set a budget, and half of the budgeters anticipate they’ll overspend. Unsurprisingly, families with children plan to spend the most on decorations ($248 on average) and are more likely to start shopping early.

Inspired by the survey, Big Lots has dubbed Nov. 16-22 ‘National Decorate Your Home for the Holidays Week,’ and offers these five reasons to begin decking the halls early this year:

* Eighty-eight percent of surveyed Americans said they’ll decorate for the holidays, but with two-thirds of them waiting to shop, early buyers may find the best selection. As the holidays get closer, even stores like Big Lots, which carries a wide selection of holiday decor items, will see their stocks dwindle, leaving late-shoppers with less choice. The decorations that top Americans’ to-buy list are tree ornaments (63 percent), indoor light strands (49 percent), candles and candle holders (47 percent), wreaths (45 percent) and outdoor light strings (45 percent).

* Decorating early allows you to enjoy the festive spirit of the season longer. Plus, you won’t have to stress about getting the decorations up in the last few days before the holiday, so you’ll have more time and energy to take care of last-minute gift shopping!

* An early start means you can afford to take your time to achieve exactly the look you want. Two out of 10 holiday decorators say they ‘put a lot of time and money’ into making their homes look great for the holidays – so great, in fact, that ‘it could be on the cover of a magazine,’ according to the survey.

* If you’re among the eight in 10 people who plan to buy some new Christmas decorations this year, doing so early gives you plenty of time to ensure everything works, is in good shape and fits perfectly with your theme.

* DIYers who start early will have more time in which to hand make unique decorations. More than a third of people 45 and older will make some of their own decorations this year, and 75 percent of Millennials (people 18-34) say they’ll do so.

Although it may seem like the end-of-year holiday season gets closer to Labor Day every year, most people, it seems, don’t mind all those early decorations as much as you might think. Americans who decorate (88 percent do) say they’re committed to it, with a third saying they ‘do a lot’ and 12 percent admitting they ‘go overboard.’ So go ahead and start decorating – chances are your house won’t be the only one in the neighborhood with a wreath on the door at Thanksgiving!

To find a Big Lots near you and to view the retailer’s Christmas catalog, visit www.biglots.com/christmas.