Hallmark Keepsake Ornaments
I have had a penchant for collecting Hallmark Ornaments since I was very ltle. I used to get Hallmark keepsake ornaments made to look like dragons, wizards, and other fantastic crters. They were made out of pewter and usually featured a lead crystal prominently in the design somewhere. I would get them on special occasions or when I had been very good. My mom would take me to the Hallmark and I would be Immediately captivated by the chest filled with figurines.
My ltle sister also liked Hallmark keepsake ornaments, but she had much different taste in them. Her favore were the Hallmark peanuts keepsake ornaments. I don't know if you have seen them, but they are absolutely adorable. Apparently, George Schultz has licensed Hallmark to make peanuts keepsakes. They have Christmas tree ornaments, figurines, and adorable ltle cards featuring the cast of Snoopy, Linus, Charlie Brown, Lucy, and all the rest.
Of course, Hallmark ornaments have changed a lot over the years. That is both a good thing and a bad things about them. Even if you see a Hallmark keepsake ornament that you really like one year, there is no guarantee that you will be able find the next year. No matter how popular Hallmark keepsake ornaments are, they keep changing. The best place to find old ornaments of any sort is in the local thrift store. Thrift and antique shops tend to accumulate a lot of stuff like that. People die or move and all their old Christmas ornaments end up in cardboard boxes in a Goodwill.
Last year, I found some truly remarkable Hallmark keepsake ornaments in the neighborhood Goodwill. They were from the 50s I think, and just sting there inconspicuously. They depicted classic Christmas themes such as Santa Claus, the sled, the reindeer, and of course Christmas trees. They are all done in this great old American Gothic style that was hard to resist. They are a b corny, but que adorable and homey all the same. I think that I will surprise my mom by giving her some of these Hallmark keepsake ornaments next year. They will probably remind her of the ones that she had on the tree as a ltle child. It is always nice to receive something that reminds you of your own childhood as a present. Still, until then I get to keep them all to myself. I probably should put them up on the mantelpiece or something.
