- The first Elf on the Shelf was sold in 2005, but the story actually begins in 1974.
- Elf on the Shelf is based in Atlanta.
- Elf on the Shelf products are sold in 17 countries.
Once upon a time there was a young mother who lived the first five years of her son’s life without an elf on the shelf.
I’ll never have that, she thought. “Who has time to move an elf every night during the busiest time of the year?”
Then her little boy came home from kindergarten asking, “Why don’t we have an elf? All my friends have it.”
That’s it. Welcome to the family, Jingles.
Now I have another son and two more elves, Twinkles and Ginger. They arrive on December 1st and each have their own decorated box to relax in after a night of elf shenanigans. My youngest son writes them notes, whispers to them, and leaves them candy on little plates. It’s as magical as it sounds.
But, my fellow elves, have you ever wondered how something so small got so big? How did this toy elf that can get us out of bed at midnight because we forgot to move it become such an important part of our holiday traditions?
The answer is simple: with a lot of love and a little magic.
How this world-famous elf came to be
The first Elf on the Shelf was sold in 2005, but its story begins decades earlier with a mother named Carol Ebersold.
In 1974, she introduced her three children to a toy elf named Fisby, a gift from her mother when she was a child. Fisbee’s job, Ebersold told her daughters and son, was to watch over them and let Santa know when they were being naughty or nice.
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Years later, Ebersold’s daughter, Chanda Bell, noticed the family elf sitting on—you guessed it—a shelf, and she had an idea.
“I told my mom we have to write this story,” Bell said. “We were really driven by that idea, that love of tradition, that love of family.”
Their book, Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition, tells the story of Santa’s scout elves who make themselves at home and fly back to the North Pole every night.
“I’ll be back at your house before you wake up, and then you must find a new place for me to occupy. You’ll jump out of bed and run to see who will be the first to spy on me, little old man?”
Publishers weren’t interested in bringing the story to market, so the family, including Bell’s sister, Krista Pitts, “took a few leaps of faith” and self-published the book. They sold it at trade shows, and after the book was featured on “The Today Show” in 2007, it quickly hit bookstore shelves.
“We now have more than 100 employees who work for Santa all year round,” Bell said from the company’s headquarters outside Atlanta, a place she calls “the southern branch of the North Pole.”
“I never imagined that I would be here, that people would embrace this tradition, that we would be a part of people’s most special memories,” she said.
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The world of Elf on the Shelf is exploding
Today, there’s much more to the world of Elf on the Shelf than the original book and the accompanying elves, who spend their days watching out for misbehavior and their nights swimming in bowls of marshmallows, riding toy fire engines, hiding in Christmas trees, and painting mustaches at family parties. photo.
The Claus Couture Collection, a clothing line for elves, was introduced in 2009. Elf Pets – a reindeer, a St. Bernard and a fox – appeared in 2014.
An animated special, The Story of an Elf, debuted on CBS in 2011. The Elf on the Shelf balloon joined the 2012 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Elf on the Shelf: The Christmas Musical debuted in 2019, and in 2020, Bell’s Lumistella announced a partnership with Netflix.
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The Elf on the Shelf product line is available in 17 countries.
In case you were wondering, Belle has elves in her house.
“Our elves still come and (my kids) are 21 and 16,” she said. “No matter how old they get, it’s a staple of their Christmas season.
“I know what it means to kids who grow up with it, to have their best friend from Santa Claus and the North Pole,” Bell said. – This is magic.
Why parents participate – or not participate
Someone has to create that magic, though, and while some parents enlist their family’s elves as scouts for Santa, others make it fun.
Valerie Seward, a mom of three, said her family’s elf, Rex, arrives on December 1 “and brings a little bit of Christmas cheer every day, like a string of lights, hot cocoa, cookie cutters.”
“He’s not a spy for Santa,” she said. “They don’t have to stress about it, feeling like someone is always watching them. It’s just being kind and spreading the Christmas spirit.”
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Megan McNally, also a mom of two, admits that while remembering to move her family’s elf every night can be difficult, “seeing the joy and magic in my kids’ eyes … makes it all worth it to me. My son , who still believes, can’t wait for the elf to return on December 1st and keeps talking about his favorite memories of the elf.
“I’ve honestly loved being creative over the years,” she said, “and I’d do it all over again in a heartbeat.”
From a parent’s perspective (and from personal experience), sometimes it can feel like your elf isn’t doing enough. Some elves arrive with fanfare: balloons, cookies, letters from Santa. Others simply appear sitting on the kitchen cabinet holding a piece of candy or peering out from behind the curtains.
There are Pinterest pages dedicated to cute and creative scenarios for hosting your elf, as well as businesses that sell idea and accessory kits, personalized stuffed animals, and other treats that an elf can bring. It can be overwhelming and some parents choose to keep things simple.
“We have an elf, but we weren’t ready to keep (remember) moving him, and we’re not creative,” said Debbie Latita, a mom of two. “So we told our kids that the elf only moves when they’re sick and he has to report that to Santa. So now the kids check to make sure he’s in the same place every day!”
Others miss the experience entirely.
“We never started,” said Cami Colella, also a mom of two, who said December is a busy time, especially with her daughter’s birthday just before Christmas. “I feel like the elf is ruining my son’s Christmas spirit because some friends make the elf give their kids little presents. Some elves play pranks around the house (which my son finds creepy) and some walk around and leave nice notes. He asks me why we don’t have one. I tell him I have Santa’s phone number and we don’t need the elf to tell Santa anything.”
Bell, who said she loves it when families send her photos of their elves and their creations, emphasizes that “it’s not about competing with other elves. It’s really about the memories of your family and what an elf means to you family.
“We keep saying that elves are like a family, that’s the magic,” she said. “It’s magic for you and your family, that’s what makes it special.”
I will keep this in mind as I plan my family’s elf return. Their shoe boxes will be waiting with elf-sized pillows and blankets, and they’ll deliver a note signed in glittery elf lettering. They might wrap the Christmas tree in toilet paper, leave jokes on the bathroom mirror, or fall asleep on the fan in the living room.
I look forward to making sure to move them every night until Christmas? Honestly, no. Do I set an alarm on my phone so I don’t forget? Undoubtedly.
But will I go back in time and hold on tight to when my little boy first asked for it? In no way. Our children are little for such a short time, and making the world magical for them is one of the best things about parenthood.
Sarah Griesemer joined USA TODAY NETWORK New Jersey in 2003 and has been covering all things food since 2014. Send restaurant tips to sgriesemer@gannettnj.com.
