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I’ll be in Atlanta during the huge wholesale market this week and next. This is the spot where many ornament manufacturers debut their new collections each year. Today, I made quick stops at most of the permanent European glass showrooms. Tomorrow, I will begin note-taking and photographing styles to feature in the spring issue of Celebrate365. Here are a few quick pics from today’s initial exploration. Can you guess which showrooms I found these in? Use the comment box below to submit your guesses! I’ll enter your name into a drawing for prizes from things that I collect during the show. Tomorrow, I’ll talk about the pieces shown below. Connie |
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| America’s Mart, January 6: Day 1 | ||
| Good Enough to Eat! | ||
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| Photo 1 | Photo 2 | Photo 3 |
| Old World Designs, 1-of-a-Kind | ||
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| Photo 4 | Photo 5 | |
| Elegant Design | ||
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| Photo 6 | Photo 7 | |
| Exclusives from the Thomas Schaller German Workshop | ||
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Photo 8 | |
Category: christmas
Tinsel Time … the Magical Shimmer of German Lametta
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I confess. I have a thing for tinsel. Not just any tinsel, mind you. I want that wonderful, heavy metal stuff from my childhood, those silvery strands that my father patiently hung on the tree one by one. What incredible dedication. And, what a magical sight to behold! Mom certainly did not have time for that! Taking down the tree was just as time consuming. Off they came one by one to be carefully flattened and saved for another year. |
| How did this tradition begin in our little family? I never knew. Since decorating the tree was Dad’s domain, I think that tinsel must have been a Mitchell family tradition remembered from his own childhood Christmases in Dayton, Ohio.
Wow! Have you ever seen so many icicles? |
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Tinsel I know that tinsel or lametta originated in Germany in the early 1600s. German glassblowers from the Lauscha region crafted crystal ornaments, some looked just like icicles. When the candles were lit on the tree, oh how those icicles glistened! As the years passed, craftsmen created icicles from tin and even silver. By the 1920s, the time when my grandfather Edgar Mitchell was celebrating Christmas in Dayton, Ohio with his wife and children, German craftsmen had invented lametta, tinsel icicles made from lead. My grandmother’s family was German-speaking. Perhaps that’s how my father’s love for a Christmas tree dripping in tinsel began. |
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Later generations have not experienced the magic of tinsel on Christmas morning. Lead based lametta has been banned from the American market since the 1960s. The past two Decembers, I’ve walked the aisles of German Christmas markets in search of the real thing. Sadly, this magical tradition seems to be out of vogue in German households nowadays. Although we visited markets, stores and flea markets in city after city, sightings of that old-fashioned lametta were few and far between. |
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| But, I am persistent. During the past two years, little by little, I’ve gathered quite a collection of tinsel lametta, both vintage and newly manufactured. I’ve come to appreciate the graphics on those early packets. They represent an era – a time gone by.
I hope that you will appreciate them as much as I do. Who knows? Perhaps you’ll find something new and affordable to collect! Click here or on the angel to view the tinsel collection. New stock arrive this fall! |
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From Switzerland – Day 9
Saturday, Dec 12
Our last day in Europe and the day that Melvin and I have been eagerly awaiting – the lure of antique Christmas ornaments! Our first stop was at Zurich’s large flea market. We had plenty of time for browsing … but lunch was a quick one since we didn’t want to miss a treasure that might be lurking in some undiscovered booth. In the afternoon we visited Zurich’s annual antique Christmas fair. We had learned that at least one member of the Golden Glow would be exhibiting. What did we discover? You’ll have to be patient until I return home and have more time to write and photograph our treasures!
We’ll be arriving back in Ohio (via Atlanta) Sunday afternoon.
Thanks to everyone for their patience in awaiting your ornament orders while I have been away. I will begin shipping on Monday, December 14!
From Switzerland – Day 8
Friday, Dec 11
This morning we departed France for Switzerland. On the way, we had at stop in Freiburg for a visit to that city’s Christmas market. Freiburg is a capital city located in Germany’s famed Black Forest. We crossed another border in the afternoon with a stop at Basel, Switzerland. We visited the Puppenhaus Museum. Their collection includes Neapolitan Nativities, as well as teddy bears, dolls, dollhouses and miniature stores. Great fun!
We arrived for dinner and overnight at our new hotel in near the Zurich airport.
December 11 – 13, 2009
Mövenpick Hotel Zürich Airport
Walter Mittelholzerstrasse 8
8152 Glattbrugg, Switzerland
Tel +41 (0)44 808 8588
Fax +41 (0)44 808 8590
hotel.zurich.airport@moevenpick.com
http://www.moevenpick-hotels.com
From Germany – Day 5
Tuesday, Dec 8
It’s a good thing that we “rested” yesterday because today was a long one. We made a full day excursion to Nuremberg to visit that city’s famed Christmas market. The city also boasts a national Doll and Toy Museum.
We’ll make a daytrip to Nuremberg to enjoy the historic town center and the world’s most famous Christmas Market. Here we may also visit the town’s fabulous Doll and Toy Museum, as well as the German National Museum’s extensive Doll and Toy Collection. Dinner and overnight at our hotel in Rothenburg o. d. Tauber.
Villa Mittermeier
Vorm Würzburger Tor 7+9
91541 Rothenburg ob der Tauber, Germany
Tel: +49 (0) 98 61 / 94 54 – 0
Fax: +49 (0) 98 61 / 94 54 – 94
www.villamittermeier.de
info@villamittermeier.de