Question about santa and coal fires!

[Flibbertyjibbet]

When I was little (circa 1967 ) me and my 3 sisters all used to troop next door where the couple had a coal fire, with our letters to santa.
Mr Next Door would hold them over the fire with the tongs, and the letters (AS REMEMBERED BY A 5 YEAR OLD!!) would waft up the chimney on the hot air and up to santa.
It was our xmas eve highlight of the year.

So, we just moved to a house with open chimney. I have invited friends and their little children round for this Sunday tea time for santa-letter-sending-up-the-chimney session.

So, last night me and dp thought we'd have a trial run.

None of the bloody letters went up the chimney, they all dropped down on the flames and er, went up in flames. Not the sort of thing a 4 year old would be impressed by!

We tried different papers, some in envelopes, some not. Some folded, some not. None of them went up the chimney!

Are we doing something wrong? Am I remembering it wrong? Did Mr Next Door just completely fool me with some optical illusion (ie just putting the letters on some shelf of something up his chimney?). Do I need the more expensive coal 'nugget' things that the coal man tells me burn hotter, to get a bigger waft of hot air?

Anyone any ideas? There are 6 x 4 year old boys arriving in 6 days and ds1 will never live it down if his mummy burns all his friend's santa letters!!

hmm, tricky one. we have a solid fuel stove with the front opening bit and a top loading bit and ds1 (4) did his first ever christmas letter and we sent it up last night. he was a bit 'but the bits are still there mummy!' but we convinced him that the smoke had the words in it and that it would be okay. we loaded it in the front amd he could watch it and it was drawn up the flue

i was really sad because he wrote such a lovely letter in his lovely scrawl with kisses all the way around it that i wanted to secrete it away and keep it but he wouldn't put it in an envelope. (but it took a photograph!!!)

maybe the fire has to be really hot so the heat wafts it up the chimney and someone has to do a bit of flapping at the side???

I'm doing enough flapping at the moment!!

We have a really big open fireplace with a great pile of coal in an iron basket thingy so maybe the chimney hole is too big and the hot air not concentrated enough?

DP kindly suggests (as I was flapping and worrying last night) that I could tie myself to the chimney and lower some kind of metal basket down for the kids to put the letters in

Oh dont be so silly FJ

Adults cant see them! only dc have the magic within them to be able to see the letters float up the chimney

The whole letter doesn't need to go up the chimney, in fact letting a whole load of paper waft up the chimney is one quick way to develop a chimney fire over the Christmas period.

Ours used to burn on the coal and little bits would flutter up. My mum declared that these were the words going up to FC and he only needed the words after all.

Thanks ladies, will just have to have another practice session tonight with the bits floating up...

My mother says she can't remember it - I suspect cos she and Mrs Next DOor were probably on the sherry and mince pies.

YES i did th is too as a child at grans house

i remember having to hold the letter quite far up the chimney though, or else it would float back down

and the fire had to be blazing iirc

I think you can encourage them up the fire by opening a door or something as the letter goes on - the additional draft sends them up. But sitdown makes a good point re chimney fires...

How is it going with practicing your paper burning technique ?

How did your letters up the chimney night go Flibberty?