KALAMAZOO, MI — A couple Canadians have long claimed to host the first “ugly Christmas sweater party” in 2002 in Vancouver. The claim, by Chris Boyd and Jordan Birch, has been referenced in recent years on CNN , the Washington Post , at uglychristmassweater.com and in the “ Ugly Christmas Sweater Party Book: The Definitive Guide to Getting Your Ugly On .
” “Not so fast,” says a group of Western Michigan University alumni. They claim they began hosting such parties in Kalamazoo in 2000. And they have receipts.
The Kalamazoo Gazette even previously reported on the history of ugly sweater parties in 2004, giving the trendsetters their own weekender cover story. Two of the extravaganza founders, Michael St. Aubin and Jason Weeby, were interviewed for the story before the fifth annual gala.
A Kalamazoo Gazette article from 2004 details the Turtleneck and Sweater Holiday Extravaganza Holiday party tradition in Kalamazoo. Kalamazoo Gazette The two, along with fellow party founder Bob Wedge, spoke with MLive from their homes in California and Northern Michigan about their role in shaping the holiday tradition. “It’s hard to admit that you started a fashion fad, but I can tell you we were doing it and I never heard of anyone doing it before then,” Wedge said.
The first party was nothing more than a small holiday gathering at a student rental house on Kalamazoo’s Cedar Street in 2000. Only a handful of the roughly 80 partygoers dressed the part, Weeby said. It was .
