Tartan Gingerbread Christmas Throw Blanket

A dark tartan ground changes what a Christmas print does in a room, because it reads as fabric first and as decoration second. This throw sets gingerbread men, plaid Christmas trees and red hearts on checks of black, charcoal and deep red. That combination makes it an easy layer over a pale sofa or a linen bed, where the dark ground gives the room some weight instead of adding another bright object to it.

Tartan first, figures second

The base of the design is a woven-looking tartan check, and the gingerbread figures sit on top of it rather than replacing it. Between the figures you still see the plaid lines, red squares and small dotted panels that make the ground look like cloth. That layering is what separates this throw from a plain printed novelty blanket, and it is the reason the pattern holds up when the blanket is folded and only a section is on show.

Three rectangular sizes

The blanket is offered in three rectangular sizes, so the same print can cover an armchair, a two-seat sofa or the foot of a double bed. The smallest is a lap throw at roughly 39 by 59 in (100 × 150 cm), and the largest reaches about 59 by 79 in (150 × 200 cm), which spans the foot of a standard double bed. Because all three share the same motif scale, two of them can be used in the same room without the gingerbread men suddenly changing size.

A winter blanket rather than a December one

Dark plaid is a winter pattern before it is a Christmas one, which means this throw can stay out long after the tree has come down. On a pale sofa it adds contrast, and on a bed it works as a heavier-looking layer over a plain duvet cover. The gingerbread figures keep it seasonal, while the tartan keeps it neutral enough to sit beside wool, linen and dark wood all through the cold months.

If your living room is mostly pale and you want a Christmas throw that does not disappear into it, the dark ground here does the work. It can move from the back of a sofa to the foot of a bed as the season goes on, and the smallest size is comfortable as a lap blanket on an armchair. Choose the largest if you want it to read as a bed throw rather than as an accessory.

Specifications

• Design: dark tartan check with gingerbread men, plaid Christmas trees and hearts
• Color: black, charcoal grey, deep red and warm brown
• Fabric: printed fleece with a short pile, plain hemmed edge
• Shape: rectangular
• Sizes (approximate): 39 × 59 in (100 × 150 cm), 51 × 59 in (130 × 150 cm), 59 × 79 in (150 × 200 cm)