# Did You Do This With Tinsel When You Were A Kid (or an adult)?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-do-this-with-tinsel-when-you-were-a-kid-or-an-adult/740303
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
**Created:** [December 13, 2015, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-do-this-with-tinsel-when-you-were-a-kid-or-an-adult/740303 "2015-12-13T03:51:55Z")
**Posts on this page:** 3
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@IvoryTowerDenizen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/IvoryTowerDenizen)
#### Post date: [December 16, 2015, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-do-this-with-tinsel-when-you-were-a-kid-or-an-adult/740303/21 "2015-12-16T03:40:01Z")
> [@Joey\_P](#):
>
> Could be worse, could be a fucking horror of blimps.
> [@Alice\_The\_Goon](#):
>
> But blimps are kind of just great big balloons.
[The Horror of Blimps](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=160851)
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### Author:  [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)
#### Post date: [December 16, 2015, 7:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-do-this-with-tinsel-when-you-were-a-kid-or-an-adult/740303/22 "2015-12-16T07:19:30Z")
The ‘tin’ in the word ‘tinsel’ has nothing to do with the metal (at least not etymologically). ‘Tinsel’ derives from a French word ‘estincelle’, which means ‘sparkle’
Metallic tinsel was originally made from silver leaf, but this was expensive, so substitutes were made from tin, lead and pewter.
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### Author:  [@Vaevictis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vaevictis)
#### Post date: [December 18, 2015, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/did-you-do-this-with-tinsel-when-you-were-a-kid-or-an-adult/740303/23 "2015-12-18T03:19:21Z")
No but I will get back to you if I ever do it. Thanks for alerting me to the concept!
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