From writing the cards to putting up the tree: The bizarre Christmas jobs you can pay people to do

The festive season is typically filled with cheer and goodwill – once you’ve got all the faff out of the way.

From buying the turkey to putting up the decorations, it can seem like the organising and scheduling never ends. If only there was someone you could pay to do it all for you…

Well, you can. Probably.

Whether you’re worrying about not picking the perfect gifts or are conscious that your handwriting might be too illegible for the postman, there are now people you can hire to complete almost every element of your Christmas preparation.

Meaning all that’s left for you to do is eat the food and open the (pre-wrapped) presents.

Putting up the tree

If you can’t be bothered to put up the tree yourself, there are people more than willing to help out. (Getty)

Putting up the Christmas tree is a staple of the festive season, but is you simply don’t have the time or energy, there’s someone to do it for you. Pines and Needles will deliver your tree on a selected time slot and will also put it up and/or decorate it for you for an added cost.

You don’t even have to pick the baubles and tinsel – simply decided a colour scheme and they will do the rest.

A plain tree costs from £38.95.

Decorating the house

You can now pay for someone to come and put up your decorations for you. (Getty)

Putting up the tree is only one part of decorating your pad. But don’t worry, because every element of decking the halls can be neatly and easily arranged for you, thanks to Christmas Decorators.

Tackling everything from festive floral arrangements to wreaths, fireplace garlands and banisters, the company promises to complement the individual style of the house. It’ll look almost as if you’ve done it yourself.

Prices on request.

Installing the fairy lights

If you’re unable to put up your external lights, someone else can for a small fee. (Getty)

Admittedly, if you don’t have a ladder or a conveniently placed stool, putting up external lights can be tricky. But if the thought of wobbling around 15 feet above ground trying to attach some dubiously flickering lights doesn’t sound like your idea of festive fun, there’s a solution.

Harrington’s Christmas Decorators will create bespoke decorations from wreaths to external lights for both residential and commercial properties. They arrange a meeting to get an idea of ‘you and your personality’ and will also remove the decorations once the festive season has come to a close.

Prices on request.

Writing the cards:

Not got enough time to write your cards this year? Worry not. (Getty)

Whether you fear your handwriting might not make the cut for the postman or you’re just terrible at sourcing the best cards, rest assured, because the problem can now be taken out of your hands.

Hour Hands can source, write, label and even post all of your cards for you, and there’s the option to handwrite the addresses or to produce sticky labels, depending on your preference. In true Christmas form, there’s an option to sign the cards yourself before they’re posted or even get bespoke photo-cards created.

Prices start at £25 for 20 cards plus postage.

Sourcing the presents

There are people who will go out and buy your presents for you. (Getty)

Personal shopping isn’t a new concept, but it’s one thing to get someone to choose gifts for yourself, and another thing to trust a stranger to pick them for your nearest and dearest. But if you simply don’t have the time (or inclination) to shop yourself, department stores like Selfridges and Harvey Nichols have whole teams dedicated to choosing, wrapping and delivering to your door suitable gifts for your friends, colleagues and relatives.

The ‘choosing’ part is free, so all that’s left to do is pray that your gifts are suitable. Luckily, before deciding to let a stranger to do your Christmas shopping, there’s an option to add the age, price range and a few descriptive features about your relative/friend to ensure best results.

Wrapping the presents:

…And you won’t even have to wrap them, either. (Getty)

Ordering your presents pre-gift wrapped is an added blessing from many online retailers, but not all offer the same service. If you love present shopping, but have the wrapping skills of an ambitious five-year-old, worry not, because there are companies who will take the presents quite literally out of your hands to do the job for you.

Professional gift-packaging designers Wrapology has a concessions stand in Selfridges and John Lewis has a service, costing £2.90 per item.

Finding something to wear:

It’s easy nowadays to get someone to find your perfect outfit for Christmas. (Getty)

More and more high-street shops are offering personal shopping services, and the festive season is one of the busiest periods of the year for the job. But if you’re struggling to find an outfit for Christmas day, Boxing day AND New Year’s Eve, then it’s easy enough now to go online to your favourite shops’ websites and book a session to have the perfect clothes hand-picked for you.

Most of the time the sessions are free (and offer drinks and snacks to accompany you) but with an expectation to spend a minimum set amount in-store.

Cooking the food:

There’s no need to worry if your cooking skills aren’t up to scratch. (Rex)

Arguably one of the most stressful parts of Christmas Day is cooking the food. From writing down all of the correct timings to making sure there’s room in the freezer or, God forbid, forgetting to turn the oven on, cooking the Christmas roast dinner is far from relaxed.

So why not spend the morning opening presents and playing games by the tree while someone else prepares dinner for you?

CookFood offer a Christmas dinner bundle, which pre-prepares the turkey and all the sides and trimming – all you need to do is stick it in the oven. And if that still sounds taxing, all the bundles come with an oven timings post card telling you exactly when everything needs to go in.

A bundle Christmas lunch for eight people costs £111.

Laying the table:

Don’t worry if your decoration skills are lacking this festive season. (Getty)

If you don’t feel like getting out the fancy plates for Christmas but still want the table to look festive, there’s always the option of paying someone to do it up for you.

Julie Perry Events specialises in dining and will supply everything from the tablecloth to cutlery, napkins, glasses and more. The best part? The company will pick everything up again afterwards, meaning no washing up or cleaning dirty remains.

Prices on request.

Cleaning up afterwards:

Once all the fun is over, there’s someone to tidy up afterwards. (Getty)

No one enjoys cleaning, but it’s even less enjoyable during Christmas, when you’re supposed to be spending time socialising rather than emptying the dishwasher.

It’s easily possible to book a cleaner for anytime of year, but it’s wise to book ahead for the festive period, which gets booked up quickly. Get Set Clean, based in London, promise to get the house in a fit state both before and after the big day, while Merry Maids have cleaners all around the UK.

Prices start at £11 per hour.

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