Credit: Mary Ellen Bartley, styling by Beverley Hyde
See that 1890s Indian (second in second row)? Rare, precious, soap-bubble-thin. Never sees the light of a tree. Some years I hang him up, but then I'm nervous the whole time, and where's the jolliness in that?
Except for that Indian and the glass-eyed doll's head (sixth in second row), all these ornaments are modern creations. The strawberry man (fourth in second row) is a 1989 Christopher Radko take on an early design. The two-faced cutie (top row, far left), can still be had at Blumchen.com.
Credit: Mary Ellen Bartley, styling by Beverley Hyde
Except for the banana in front (an Italian ornament bought in the sixties) and the pear (a vintage yard-sale find), the fruits were picked fresh in the last few years. Every year, I promise myself I'm not even going to look at any more ornaments. And every year, I slip out at lunch and come back with telltale glitter on my face!
Credit: Mary Ellen Bartley, styling by Beverley Hyde
I once had the time to turn plain oval ornaments into Victorian-style boats. D. Blümchen & Company, mail-order purveyor of twisty gold bullion wire, clouds of spun glass and anything else you might need to create your own antiques, has a lot to answer for.
Credit: Mary Ellen Bartley, styling by Beverley Hyde
There comes a time when you realize that not only have you left no twig untrimmed, you have enough treasures stored up to decorate a small forest. Does this stop you? Of course not. You need the clip-on birds. You need the giant watermelon slice to fill in gaps. You need the Radko strawberry man for…well, you just do.
