I am a nut for old Christmas stuff. It is fascinating.When I was an antique dealer I bought and sold {and yes, kept} quite a bit, but the truly great stuff, like antique Dresden ornaments, were too hard to come by at that point. If I had ever been so lucky as to score a cache of these ornaments at an estate sale, you would have found me jumping up on the wobbly folding table cluttered with ceramic figurines and carnival glass and bursting into a spontaneous yet deftly choreographed dance of victory. These pictures are from two great older books I got on Ebay - Holidays - Toys and Decorations and Christmas Ornaments - A Festive Study, both by Margaret Schiffer, now being republished.
Spun cotton ornaments are so charming to me. It is not unusual to find vintage spun cotton fruit or icicles, but figural pieces and animals are harder to find. I especially love the 'Puss in Boots' in the picture directly below, the spun cotton birdhouse is so unusual and the herd of sheep and goats are pretty cute, too.
Even more rare and exquisite are Dresden ornaments. Most authentic Dresden ornaments were handcrafted between 1880 and 1910 in the German town of Dresden - these meticulously detailed pieces, crafted from embossed cardboard, were created in an awe inspiring variety of forms. Many served as candy containers, such as the animal heads with silk sacks { middle picture} or as whole containers. These ornaments just do me in, I especially love the tarnished silver leaf of many of the pieces. {The dog on top of the elephant! How neat is that?}
