Looking for a stylish sweater for the holidays? Forget cashmere. Instead, go for the light-up, dancing Santa.
This season, holiday shoppers are demanding the ugliest, gaudiest, tackiest sweaters out there. They need them for ugly sweater parties, ugly sweater fun runs — even an ugly sweater party cruise.
All that demand has had an impact on stores large and small. On the national level, Wal-Mart, Kohl's and Target all sell vintage-looking sweaters with all the bells and tinsel you could want.
And at Re-Love It consignment in Purcellville, Va., last year, shop owner Michael Oaks had 120 sweaters that quickly sold. This year, he stockpiled more than a thousand for the Christmas rush.
His customers on a recent day included a Southwest flight attendant shopping for the perfect sweater to wear over her uniform — "it's gotta be really, really gaudy," she says — and holiday party-goers who hope to out-tacky their competition.
So far, Oaks has sold 800 sweaters — and he just received an emergency shipment of 200 more.
Share Your Tacky Sweater: #NPRuglysweaters
Do you have the perfect ugly holiday sweater? Can you out-tacky Re-Love It owner Michael Oaks?
Post your photos with the tag #NPRuglysweaters on Instagram, Twitter or Facebook, and we'll pull together some of the highlights for a post Sunday night.
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