Everyone has their own special traditions when it comes to celebrating the Christmas festive season. From singing those treasured carols and making ornaments for the tree with friends, to special family get-togethers and gift giving, we all have at least one tradition we like to keep up every Christmas.

In this special Christmas edition of Women at Work, we speak to several prominent women to find out what they think about Christmas and how they like to celebrate this special time of the year.

For photographer and copywriter, Indu Bandara it was during her time overseas as a child that hold the best Christmas memories.

"When we were posted overseas, all the families at the Embassy would get together and sing Christmas Carols, and have a party where gifts were exchanged. We decorated a tree and played games as well. This happened every year and on some occasions, Santa would also visit."

Christmas has always been Dulani Ramenaden’s favorite time of the year, the songstress happily declares she loves everything the season embodies, “There’s such a wonderful feeling during December, from the chilling weather to the smiles on the faces of everyone, the spirit of sharing and caring to just pure happiness. But most of all my favorite part of Christmas is spending time with my family and loved ones, eating my mom’s wonderful Christmas cake and lunch.”

The family gathering plays a big role in making her Christmas special, with plenty of laughter and smiles all round throughout the day, “being able to see the smiles on my niece’s faces are the most amazing things ever. It’s nice to have my entire family back in Sri Lanka and this year it's going to be even more special as there will be extended family joining in! There’s nothing more to me than family getting together on Christmas. I wouldn't trade it for anything!”

For working mother and singer, Sharon Nesaduray the festive season is all about forgetting your troubles and just spending quality time with the family, “the biggest part of Christmas is the family lunch or dinner. I really enjoy spending time with everyone in my family. I’m an emotional person so it really means a lot to me when we all get together, laughing and joking, all smiles with no worries. Christmas get-togethers are about living in the moment, and putting aside your worries for later.

Sharon also makes it a point to donate to charity during Christmas, saying she tries to give whatever she can to help make a difference. Stressing that as a mother she also wants to set a good example to her young daughter.

While others might be taking it easy at home this Christmas, for dessert chef Leann de Zilwa, the festive season usually means a hectic schedule of keeping up with several orders of her delicious treats. “As a family we don’t celebrate that much. I don’t have any major Christmas traditions; it’s mostly lots of cooking and spending time with family and friends. This year I’m really busy because I’ve just come up with this new recipe for chocolate brownies with orange zest, and I’m hoping to launch it next year as my main attraction so I’ve been testing the flavors out with friends.”

When it comes to Christmas traditions, the home of former Miss Sri Lanka, Stephanie Siriwardene is full of them, from the traditional meal to visits from Santa; the Siriwardene house pulls all the stops, “the entire family gets together on Christmas, uncles and aunts etc. I really love to cook so I like to make the special lunch or dinner. To treat the kids, we pretend that Santa is passing over the house and while they go try to catch him, we hide the gifts under the tree. Come midnight, we open all the presents. For me Christmas is really about spending time and appreciating the family.” 

By Lake Argent