Handling Glass Christmas Ornaments

Glass decorations must be handled carefully. Whenever they are removed from storage, it should be done on a padded surface. There should also be a padded tree skirt under the tree to soften the impact of any glass ball that falls from the tree. You should also use an old-fashioned Christmas tree fence to keep your young children and pets away from the ornaments. Otherwise, place your delicate glass balls near the top of the tree. Make sure that these ornaments are also positioned away from sunlight so that the paint will not fade.

Cleaning Christmas Ornaments

The colors of antique ornaments are from favorite family recipes, which were not very durable and with age they become even more fragile. Most of them are water-soluble, so they should never be washed or have any type of chemical solution used on them. Instead, gently flick them with an ostrich- feather duster to clean them.

Storing Christmas Ornaments

Strong, acid-free cardboard storage boxes with close-fitting lids are needed to store your Christmas ornaments. You should try to find one that has been specifically designed to store ornaments and thus has appropriately-sized compartments. Plastic boxes are sturdier than cardboard boxes, but the completely airless space they create is not necessarily suitable for valuable or antique ornaments. Of course, you will still want to individually wrap each piece with acid-free tissue paper, or acid-free paper towels before placing it in the storage container. Bubble wrap or crumpled paper towels should be placed at the bottom of the storage container before placing your wrapped Christmas ornaments inside.

Even with all this padding and protection, it is still possible for ornaments to be damaged by extreme temperatures and humidity levels. These elements can cause stress fractures to eventually occur in your ornaments. This is why you do not want to store your Christmas ornaments in unheated attics or cellars. Instead, you should keep them inside of a closet.

Taking time to care and properly store will ensure that your Christmas ornaments go undamaged. This is not something that is difficult to do; consider it as an investment in preserving heirlooms for generations to come.
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Caring for Christmas Ornaments

The Earliest Christmas Ornaments for Trees

The earliest Christmas trees were found in Germany where they were decorated with such Christmas decorations as apples, onions, pears, nuts, candies and fruits. It was not until the 1800s that glass Christmas ornaments were first made. This took place Lauscha, Germany where the entire family was part of the business. This beautiful new glass Christmas ornaments began to replace edible decorations.

Until 1925, almost all of the hand blown glass Christmas ornaments were manufactured in Lauscha, Germany. During this time there were more than 250 million Christmas ornaments being imported into the United States alone. However, all of this changed after World War II, which is when the Lauscha area became a part of East Germany. At this time there were a lot of glassblowers who fled to West Germany and the industry began to decline at this time. It was also around this time that both Japan and Czechoslovakia began to produce glass Christmas ornaments for the North American market

Unfortunately, in the 1960′s glass Christmas ornaments went out of fashion. This is when the aluminum Christmas tree, adorned with ornaments that were shaped and colored from aluminum, became quite popular. During this time a lot of the traditional Christmas ornaments were thrown away.

What to Look for in Antique Christmas Ornaments

If you are lucky enough to still have any vintage Christmas ornaments, then you really should hang on to them. Of course, it is difficult to tell whether or not they are truly vintage- but it can be done. This is because earlier ornaments were smaller than today’s modern ornaments and they were usually created out of soft colors and had many hand-painted details. Of course, this paint may be either faded or distressed in areas of the ornament today.

The best places to find these ornaments today is on Ebay, at flea markets, at church sales and at garage sales too. You will want to check them carefully by removing the stem from the base of the ornament. If the base is uneven, then you can be sure that this was a hand blown ornament because the glass blower is unable to make a clean break whereas modern machinery can do so.
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The History of Christmas Ornaments

Special Events

Do you know a couple who just tied the knot or a family with a new addition to their household? One of the most popular types of personalized Christmas ornament is one that is specifically designed for a couple’s first Christmas together or a child’s first Christmas holiday. You can find a bauble that commemorates this event, and you can even personalize it further by having the persons’ names engraved or printed directly on the ornament itself. This additional effort will turn a pretty ornament into a keepsake that will be treasured for many years to come.

Special Interests

Is there someone on your list who is an avid skier or a devoted amateur chef? There are plenty of personalized Christmas ornaments that will celebrate your recipient and his favorite hobby. Whether that person plays golf four times a week or spends most of his waking hours in front of a blank canvas with a paint palette, you will be able to find an ornament designed just for him. These types of personalized Christmas ornaments are also perfect for kids who happen to play a particular sport like soccer or enjoy a certain activity like dance or cheerleading. Everyone likes to receive a gift that caters directly to her interests.

Special Jobs

Personalized Christmas ornaments are also a good choice for your hairdresser, your son’s teacher or a favorite teller at the bank. These gifts can be fairly inexpensive, but will be worth their weight in gold to the person that you cared enough about to remember during this holiday season. A personalized Christmas ornament will be something that your recipient will enjoy for many years, and it will be like getting a pat on the back for a job well done every time she hangs it on her Christmas tree branch. This can also be a good way to honor your favorite cousin who spends most of his time staring at a computer screen or a sister who spends her days taking care of animals.

Personalized Christmas ornaments can be fun to shop for and are guaranteed to make your recipient feel just as special as you think he is.

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The Perfect Occasions to Give Personalized Christmas Ornaments

Tree Treasures Canada

This is one company that you will definitely want to check out if you are looking for unique Christmas ornaments. Their unique Christmas ornaments are virtually indestructible which is assuring because then you know they will be durable and last you a lifetime.

They offer an array of different categories including angel ornaments, bird ornaments, little drummer boy ornaments, Santa Claus ornaments, snowman ornaments, dolphin carvings, whale carvings, and much more.

Tracy Trends

This is another great option, and they feature new unique ornaments each and every year so you should make sure to check back with them frequently to see what is new and exciting. They even allow you to customize your ornaments so you can design your very own ornaments and have them to treasure forever.

Christmas Gifts with Heart

This is another company that you will definitely want to become more familiar with if you are trying to find quality, unique Christmas ornaments. They are a family owned and operated company that makes every ornament and decoration by hand so you know that they are all completely unique and one of a kind.

Do it Yourself

Although there are certainly many wonderful companies available when it comes to unique Christmas ornaments, the best thing you can really do is make your own. You are really only limited to your own imagination and so you can go all out when you are making your own ornaments and other Christmas decorations.

Spend a day out at your local craft store and see what they have to offer. Pick up a little bit of this and a little bit of that, some ribbon and glitter, construction and crepe paper, and then take a couple of hours and create some fabulous ornaments. You can make them as simple or detailed as you like, just make sure that you do not go too overboard and take on more than you can handle because then you will become overwhelmed and instead of being fun it will become a task.

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Finding Unique Christmas Ornaments