The Ultimate Retro Christmas Guide

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cropped-retro-xmas-2017 santa solo“Your Guide To The BEST Retro Christmas EVER!”

Celebrating this year’s Yuletide Season with vintage Christmas decorations can make all the difference between a typical “same old – same old” holiday and one that will be truly unforgettable especially for the young ones.

From colorful, shiny glass balls popular for three decades – 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s – to

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”miniature “Christmas villages, vintage or retro decorations give your home a unique and interesting appeal that no amount of modern or trendy décor can give.

Beautiful baubles that feature sparkling indents of silver and gold, for example, placed on different heights in your Christmas tree give it a kaleidoscopic design instantly. Besides, Retro Christmas reminds you of when you were a child eagerly waiting for Santa and his reindeer to arrive.

Retro Or “Vintage” Christmas Decorations

Prepare to Christmas unique concept lantern baubles and snow

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Let’s take a look at the most classic pieces that we now refer to as retro Christmas decorations. Christmas lanterns are hands down, a delightful tell-tale reminder of the holiday.

Use candles instead of regular pillars for your lanterns and group them – by height or width and by color — at the entryway of your home. Red lanterns with green, gold, and silver candles are best when lit at night.

Customize your retro outdoor Christmas decorations with wreaths. Stretch the round ones to make oval shapes, for instance that would be perfect if you have double front doors.

You can do this by creating a kind of “swag” with Christmas greenery attachment to a pipe with wire that you can suspend above your doors. Ensure that you use wire that has been secured to eye hooks screwed tightly into your ceiling.

Vintage outdoor Christmas decorations

Create an atmosphere of festivity that greets your guests even before they walk through your door.

Choose from porch décor that are unusual and interesting such as icicle lights that can be hung from your rooftop or cranberry “luminarias,” an inexpensive outdoor holiday décor that you can easily make in just five steps:

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1.   Layer short, stocky glass vases with real cranberries and faux snow.

2.   Tuck in pillar candles.

3.   Place some fir bundles and small pine cones to make “nests” for the glass vases.

4.   Put the glass vases in the center of the nests.

5.   Align these on your home walkway.

Baby Staring at Dad during Christmas

Like most classic Christmas decorations, silver icicles can provide the effect of glittering, shimmering winter thaw. You can create this effect by draping a lot of shiny beads on short strings in silver, opaque or gold color across your Christmas tree’s branches. You can also simulate the effect of a silvery white tree by covering its branches with some cotton batting to create “snow drifts.”

You can then suspend glass icicles on the ends of your tree’s branches and hang frosted silver balls and scatter silver tinsel or glitter all over the tree. A white Christmas tree, albeit obviously artificial, provides a good neutral background for all themes and colors, which makes it a good choice if you want a wide berth when it comes to retro Christmas tree decorations.

Before inflatable yuletide holiday decorations became de rigueur, vintage blow mold Christmas decorations were the décor of choice for porches and lawns. Blow mold snowmen, elves, candles, reindeer, Santas, and other Christmas characters – lighted plastic figurines – are awesome representations of retro décor for outdoors that continue to be reproduced; you will not lack choices of adorable and whimsical figures.

While there is still a plethora of vintage Christmas decorations for sale, you should consider collecting them as part of your family’s tradition as early as now. It would be great to have them as collectibles for your children and grandchildren to continue your family’s yuletide season’s customs and preserving your future legacy for the next generations.

Want to see some truly amazing vintage style decorations? Check out these classic retro decorations that are top requested, especially if you’re looking to step back in time this holiday season.Most Desired Vintage Christmas Outdoor Decorations 

Original Classic or “Retro” Christmas Lights

xmas lightsWhat would all that Christmas décor be without their accompanying lights? Retro Christmas lights give off that colorful and bright halo effect, albeit they are total gas guzzlers. While the light-emitting diode, otherwise known as LED, a variety of Christmas lighting gives off a softer glow and uses less energy, incandescent Christmas lights remain in demand during the yuletide season.

Retailers, in fact, stock those classic retro Christmas tree lights alongside the more durable LEDs because consumers look for them every year, regardless of overloaded fuses and broken bulbs. Nostalgia is what keeps these vintage lights popular not only in homes but numerous other locations such as schools, community centers, malls, restaurants, coffee shops, offices, and other commercial establishments.

Some people shy away from using retro outdoor Christmas lights because of safety issues. And while it is a fact that vintage lights are more prone to become a fire hazard, exercising caution with their use is the only requirement to enjoy the beauty that these lights give off. Being mindful of the cord color, for instance, is important, taking note that green is used for garlands, wreaths, and evergreen bushes.

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White is used for the house gutters and brown for those grapevine accents that you may want to put lights on. These rules apply to electric cords as well. Additionally, these cords and string lights must be rated accordingly to ensure their safety for outdoor use. Look out for frayed cords and broken bulbs before stringing your vintage Christmas tree lights on bushes and trees.

To ensure that you don’t have lights that have burnt out, spread the strands on your floor, plug the lights in, and note which ones are out of commission. Remember that outdoor lights are exposed not only to water from rain but snow and sleet as well. Wrap connections when using two or several light strands with the appropriate kind of wrapping water proof tape to ensure that no accident occurs.

bubble light aff picBefore lava lamps, bubble lights were all the rage. The original lights made use of methylene chloride that worked well even when it wasn’t too hot but some used oils that were capable of being hotter. Used according to instructions and out of children’s reach, vintage Christmas bubble lights aren’t really dangerous to use and, all things being equal, could even be safer than lead icicles or real candles.

Sadly, though, accidents related to the use of bubble lights eventually increased statistically and incidents that usually involved minor burns from the methylene chloride due to improper handling of the liquid became more frequent and prompted manufacturers to stop producing them. Some versions that have proven more durable against breakage have been on the market but relatively few and far between.

Given that, why not get a vintage ceramic Christmas tree with lights as an alternative to a tree with bubble lights? Ceramic Christmas trees were in vogue during the 1970s, albeit there were already in circulation since the 1940s. Some are attractive in a whimsical sort of way while others are short of hideous and garish. These trees are painted and decorated by hand and are typically glazed and adorned with glass jewels.

These ceramic yuletide season trees are ideal as décor

as a dining table centerpiece or on a console table in the living room. The thing is not to lump a ceramic tree with other pieces of décor. This type of Christmas tree is reusable and comes in a wide variety of sizes, shapes, and colors. Because this tree is comparatively smaller than their traditional fir or pine counterparts, it is incapable of storing presents underneath it.

Still, consumers who prefer vintage ceramic trees but not potential accidents that have been associated with their use can always turn to ceramic trees with LED retro Christmas lights. There are manufacturers who still produce ceramic trees from molds they had back in the 1970s. This enables them to create ceramic trees that have a retro appearance without the hazard of glazing it with lead or using aged wiring.

Ceramic Christmas trees are available from Amazon, and other online retailers. You can also customize your ceramic tree. Take note, however, that some trees may be available only as solid ceramic, meaning they are not lighted. You can, however, buy the tree base, colored bulbs, and retro Christmas lights for sale early on so that you can have everything worked into your vintage ceramic tree.

If you’re planning on having a traditional vintage Christmas this year an absolute must on Santa’s list is having these retro style Christmas lights adorning your tree. You can check out the most popular “Bubble Lights” and other old style lights here Christmas Lights From The Good Ole Days

Classic Vintage Christmas Ornamentsvintage-christmas-decorations-g7fvbzim

You would be surprised at the seemingly infinite selection of Christmas ornaments currently available on the market today.

From vintage Christmas ornaments that you probably remember from your own childhood to contemporary ones that feature children’s favorite super hero, have accompanying music when wound up, change colors after an intermittent period or have some similar unique characteristics.

Buying retro Christmas ornaments should not be limited to colors or shapes because the kind of material used to make each one can determine not only the quality of an ornament but its durability as well. Here are some vintage ornaments that you may want to consider investing in. Why are they considered an investment? Because while some of these may be expensive, they will last a long time for you to enjoy.

From the 1940s to the 1950s, a company named Shiny-Brite owned by Max Eckardt mass-produced ornaments for Christmas trees in partnership with the Corning Glass Company. Although Eckardt had been an importer of glass balls hand-blown in Germany since 1907, World War I disrupted his supply. Corning made ornaments from blown glass that were then shipped to Eckhardt to be hand decorated.

Many popular Shiny-Brite vintage Christmas ornaments

Are available on the market today reissued since 2001 by Christopher Radko. Hand-blown glass is expensive, and you don’t expect any less from Christmas ornaments made from this material. These Shiny-Brite decorations remain sought after not only because they have become classics but also highly collectible items.

One way of telling whether or not they are vintage glass Christmas ornaments is their color palette and shape. The earliest styles were ball shaped, had striped designs in pastel shades, and had glitters of crushed mica material, albeit more vivid colors were introduced during the 1950s and the 1960s. The “reflector,” shaped like a concave starburst, was a more intricate design issued after World War II.

Admittedly, vintage Christmas ball ornaments are not exactly cheap but remember that there are several good options out there which will still make awesome-looking décor, without bankrupting you.

Glass ornaments that date from the 1940s to the 1960s, for instance, are not nearly as expensive as “kugels,” those glass balls crafted in Germany during the Biedermeier period of the 1830s.

You would have to be diligent when shopping for vintage Christmas ornaments for sale because the quality ones go fast especially when they are sold online. Additionally, you should ensure that you purchased your items only from reputable and established online sellers or suppliers. Buying the real McCoy will cost you more but it also means that you just bought yourself a long-term investment.

Ceramic and clay ornaments are a good alternative if you’re on a budget

If you think your budget is a little tight for retro glass Christmas ornaments…don’t pass them off just yet. Those made by Lenox in Ireland, for instance, are sought after by collectors because they are less fragile and less expensive. Because they are made in Ireland, Lenox ornaments typically have Celtic themes such as evergreen colors, shamrocks, and even leprechauns.

A word of caution when buying antique Christmas ornaments for sale: the word “antique” is applicable only to merchandise which has been authenticated as being a hundred years old or more. Again, these items will not be cheap, but they have real value for your money if they are confirmed as a genuine antique. Do remember that reproduction cannot be considered an antique, either.

Vintage ornaments are probably the most sacred of the retro look, in fact these gorgeous hand craft ornaments are more than a decoration, it’s classic art at its best. To see some of the worlds finest artisan crafted Christmas ornaments… Check out  Hand Blown Retro Christmas Ornaments

Our Beloved Christmas Trees52da4f8a83fb94a29f176600c36d7ea0

For more than a century, the Christmas tree has always been one of the most memorable aspects of festive yuletide decorations. The tradition of having a Christmas tree goes way back to the 16th century in Germany, as most us are familiar with, but the way it has been decorated and trimmed has changed quite dramatically with each generation. A vintage Christmas tree, however, still commands compliments today.

Between 1900 and 1920, what is now known as a retro Christmas tree was adorned with mismatched ornaments – like pierced tin – that became lanterns which held candles whose lights shone through various holes. The illumination gave off a twinkling, glowing effect that, today, is provided by electric lights. Between 1910 and 1920, the trees just got bigger and taller.2uw-radio-station-vintage-christmas-tree-decorating-500x381

The aluminum Christmas tree, made of foil needles and illuminated from its base by a color wheel that rotates, became popular in the late 1950s until the mid-1960s. When “A Charlie Brown Christmas,” a television special aired in 1965, discredited its suitability as a holiday decoration, the tree’s sales declined, albeit one can still find a vintage aluminum Christmas tree in some museum collections.

People either hate or love it, but no one can deny the popularity of the retro aluminum Christmas tree because of their availability for collectors and people who want a vintage appeal for their holiday décor. An aluminum tree, however, sells for far more than its more contemporary counterparts; in fact, some colored versions of the same aluminum tree have double or triple the price.

Finding a pristine retro silver Christmas tree made of aluminum these days is almost impossible, yet this tree, which some people think of as garish, tacky, and lowbrow has become in demand once more.  Ironically, for its “over the top,” loud, and “statement-making” presence that, undeniably, represents delight and exuberance for the holiday season.

Although the aluminum tree was available in several colors, the standard was really what is now considered a vintage silver Christmas tree with ornate branches of shiny foil that needed no tinsel. Likewise, this tree did not require lights since it already had sparkle. Moreover, very few ornaments could fit or hang on an aluminum tree. If you have an aluminum tree, get some ideas on how to best decorate it from ATOM.

The acronym stands for the Aluminum Tree & Ornament Museum, the only one of its kind that is dedicated to the retro artificial Christmas tree made exclusively of aluminum. A plethora of color wheels, as well as numerous revolving tree stands from various eras, are on display together with rare artifacts from the glory years of the aluminum Christmas tree.

For those who are into ceramic Christmas trees, on the other hand, there is nothing more enjoyable that adding to their collection year in and year out. Many ceramic trees come equipped with lights and in various colors and sizes. Some of these lights are even removable so they can easily be swapped. The unique feature of any vintage ceramic Christmas tree, however, is the fact that it has always been handmade.

The authenticity of a retro ceramic Christmas tree is important if you are a serious collector and want only authentic pieces in your collection. Genuine vintage pieces, incidentally, carry special markings, made by their manufacturers, on them. Another unique feature of the ceramic tree is that you can paint it any way you want (make sure you use only an under glaze or the kiln firing type of glaze to obtain best results).

Customizing a ceramic tree can be an enjoyable hobby and purchasing colored bulbs and tree toppers are only two of the various ways that you can spruce up your collection. Have spare bulbs to ensure that your trees remain lit throughout the holiday season. Additionally, scour online stores for interesting tree toppers like angels and stars that are attractive and eye-catching.

Not everybody will have a Christmas tree skirt but having one speaks so much more of your personal style and overall home décor. Whether you handcraft yours or buy it in-store or online, your choice will roughly depend on the kind of general theme you want. If you are making your own Christmas tree skirt, a cable-knit afghan or “throw” will be easiest to stitch.

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Cut the top in a single piece and make sure all the cable’s textures run parallel across your throw’s entire shape. There’s no need for you to do any piercing or matching of patterns. You can polish off the afghan’s look with bright poinsettias. Or you can do winter’s iconic symbol, the snowflake. Just cut a circle to a size of your from regular white-colored felt fabric and make a slit in it for your tree.

Use hot glue to stick blue and gray “snowflakes” in various sizes and shapes to your white felt. And then there is the ubiquitous evergreen tree skirt but make yours stand out by decorating the edges with various felt shapes in numerous colors. Remember that the skirt should complement your tree, not overwhelm its presence or obstruct its line of vision.

One source for great finds is the online thrift store. Keep your eye open for skirts, dresses or fabrics that can be converted into tree skirts. The simpler the design of the material, the better result it will yield visually since it won’t draw a lot of attention once sewn and placed around your Christmas tree’s base. Rustic skirts, for instance, are simple but very classy.

A rustic tree skirt, in fact, is just as easy to make. Just get two shapes of burlap that can both work well with a selection of colors. Cut burlap, leave raw edges, and attach them using single topstitch. Choose solid color burlap in unusual colors that would not normally be associated with the yuletide season, for example, like purple, apple green or fuschia, for a show-stopping display of creativity.

There are a lot of free patterns available online if you want a personalized, one-of-a-kind or retro tree skirt. These patterns may use brocade, velvet, satin or other types of fabric that are “vintage textile.” You will even find patterns that can be knitted or crocheted. A well-chosen, or well-made, x-mas tree skirt will definitely enhance that overall vintage appeal you have created for your retro Christmas this year.

The traditional vintage style Christmas tree is quite obviously a personal choice. There are so many ways, shapes, sizes and styles , each one catered to everyone’s personal touch and taste. To make things a little easier on finding that perfect compliment to your retro Christmas here are some of the top  vintage style trees that have been chosen as favorites among people.Retro Classic Christmas Trees

Need Some Assistance with Toy Purchases? Review Right Here!

People Gathering Blurred with Focus on Christmas Tree

For many people, having fun with toys is a pleasurable way to spend time. Toys promote and inspire the imagination, they are a welcome addition to life. However, not nearly enough people understand how to find the toys they want for a price they could afford. This article reviews the fundamentals of purchasing toys. Make sure to check out caution labels on a package when you are buying for young children. A number of toys have small parts that can cause strangulation risks, so watch out for these. All toys have a score that tells you the advised age recommendation for the toy, so observe that.

Take into consideration the age of your child when purchasing new toys. Small toys can have removable parts and can be a choking danger for babies and also toddlers who normally put every little thing in their mouths. Guarantee that new toys are challenging without being too challenging. Toys that are recommended for older children can frustrate the more younger children. When buying toys for young children, make sure you pick out toys that are age appropriate. It is very important that you choose presents that are age appropriate for younger children.

Beware of toys that contain small parts and pieces. Read the age recommendations denoted on the the side of the box. It’s best to look for other options for now if your child is under the age noted. Small pieces with younger children could cause serious strangulation dangers. If your child enjoyed the motion picture The Hunger Games, Nerf has actually developed a toy bow inspired by the movie. Additionally, you can buy an accessory bag for the child’s extra bows.

Be sure to store outside toys indoors whenever the weather turns bad. Certain toys could be meant for the outdoors, yet that does not mean they won’t corrode and break easily when they are always left outside. Simply a little forethought could keep a toy in good shape for a much longer time. The best way to allow your child to have an enjoyable time is to give them a safe toy they could explore on their own. A wonderful toy that can stimulate your child’s imagination and creativity. Make a list of the toys you want to get. When you get to the toy store, you might be sidetracked by everything you see, but stick to the items you initially went to the toy store for. A list will also make certain that you don’t leave without the toys your child may have asked for.