You don't have to have a fireplace to create that old-fashioned ambiance. Before electricity, people used candles and oil lamps to light their homes. They even used candles on the Christmas tree.

Gray is a big advocate of tinsel and vintage decor, explaining, 'I love an old-fashioned Christmas tree placed in front of a window that has a street view and next to a fireplace if possible!

In 1848 the Illustrated London News published a drawing of the royal family celebrating around a decorated Christmas tree, a tradition ... more important. The old custom of simply decking walls ...