All of us here at Zillion want to wish you Happy Holidays. We know the past few years have been challenging ones. We also know we are very blessed to consider so many wonderful people, customers, and partners like you a part of our extended family.
Of course, this time of the year means a lot of things. Hot chocolate and eggnog. Shopping for special gifts and sending out creative cards. Strings of lights dazzling like diamonds all over trees, houses, and boats.
Here at Zillion, we also love to share stories of gold – especially during the Holidays. So nothing makes us happier than bringing you this post. We hope you enjoy reading it, too. Maybe you’ll even think of it as a sweet present to unwrap. If you don’t want to wait until Hanukkah or Christmas to dig in? That’s perfectly fine with us. Enjoy!
Gold: A Powerful and Time-Honored Christmas Color
While several colors are traditionally associated with Christmas, a few stand out above all others. Red. Green. White. Gold. But just what do these colors really represent? How did they come to occupy this status?
Generally speaking, these preferred colors and their Christmastime associations derive from traditions and customs across Europe—where it’s almost always cold, dark, and dreary during the winter months. Green signifies (and is often represented by) greenery like mistletoe and holly leaves. These hearty plants remind us that spring will eventually return to bring warmth and color to our lives once again. Red is the color of the berries on the holly branches—as well as the Bishops’ robes in Church (and the blood of Christ on the Church’s cross). Then there is white. Obviously, white represents the snow that often blankets the ground during winter and throughout the Holidays. But it also symbolizes purity, peace, love, and unity.
But what about…gold? As it turns out, gold has roots that run much deeper and stretch further east than Europe. While gold at the Holidays represents light, fire, and the sun, it was also one of the special gifts delivered to the baby Jesus by one of the three wise men. It also represents the star those wise men followed to find the Holy Child in his far-flung Nazareth manger.
“After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.
On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh. And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.” — Matthew 2:1-12
Certified Gold Holiday Hits
There’s no official record of the three wise men singing to the baby Jesus while he lay sleeping in his swaddling clothes. But here at Zillion, we’ve detailed some legendary songs about gold. Of course, there’s also no shortage of classic Christmas songs and albums to draw Holiday inspiration from every year (and a certain Mariah Carey song comes immediately to mind). Some of these songs have fared so well over the years that they’ve achieved industry Gold certification from the U.S. recording industry for their respective artists.
When the Gold Certification was introduced by the Recording Industry Association of America (aka the RIAA) in 1958, it meant that a single song had sold at least one million units—or an album had reached $1 million or more in sales. In 1976, the RIAA redefined Gold status as a single or album that sells 500,000 units.
The divine Ms. Carey may lead in mindshare, but in terms of Gold-certified Christmas songs and albums, nobody can hold a Holiday candle to Mr. Bing Crosby. The famous crooner has become synonymous with eponymous Christmas music over the decades, and his version of “White Christmas” still reigns supreme. Big time. No less an authority than the Guinness Book of Records has named it as both the best-selling Christmas song of all time and the best-selling overall single of all time—with more than 50 million copies sold. Maybe even more incredibly, the Irving Berlin-penned song was recorded in a mere 18 minutes back in May of 1942. The song made its public debut in the Crosby-and-Fred Astaire film Holiday Inn that winter. The rest, as they say, is history.
Other Gold-certified Christmas songs include Crosby’s version of “Silent Night” (30+ million copies), Carey’s rendition of “All I Want for Christmas is You” (16+ million), Gene Autry’s version of “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” (12.5+ million) and Elvis Presley’s “Blue Christmas” (the first-ever Christmas song to reach Platinum status based solely on physical sales). You can find a more extensive list here.
A Very Rose Gold Holiday
We also love to sing the praises of rose gold. Created by blending silver, copper, and gold, rose gold possesses a blinding glow and sheen that you not only see…but feel. It’s beautiful and powerful, and it makes for a fantastic engagement ring. In recent years, rose gold has also made its way into the world of Christmas trees and Christmas tree decorations.
Rose gold-colored artificial trees have become more and more common around the Holidays—both in peoples’ homes and outside in public spaces. The good folks over at Home Edit put together a lovely photo collection of some striking rose gold Christmas trees.
Even if you don’t opt for a rose gold tree this Holiday season, you might consider mixing
in some rose gold ornaments to hang from your traditional tree. If you’re looking for some inspiration in this realm, the good folks over at POPSUGAR organized a beautiful slideshow collection of more than two dozen rose gold Christmas ornaments.
Give the Gift of Jewelry Insurance
When it comes time to exchange and unwrap your gifts, why not give or receive the smart, affordable gift of Zillion jewelry insurance? Or purchase a policy to accompany that special diamond engagement ring, necklace, or bracelet you’re gifting to that special someone? Even though the policy is in your name, they’ll be covered, too…but it’s also quick and easy to update the policy to include both of you.
A policy from Zillion delivers superior service and a concierge claims process should anything befall your treasured gold (or other) jewelry items. It also provides peace of mind to jewelry owners. During these uncertain times, what could possibly be more valuable?
A jewelry insurance policy from Zillion is also a “virtual” gift that can be delivered anytime, anywhere, to anyone—wherever you and they happen to be.
No matter what gifts you give and receive this year, we wish you and yours a Happy Holiday season. And a very Happy New Year!
