It's time to make our homes more comfortable, give them a festive look and fill them with joy and anticipation of the New Year. The Christmas tree is one of the most important attributes of this holiday. So we take out New Year's balls, garlands, rain and streamers from the boxes. And here questions arise. Which version of the Christmas tree to choose? In what style should I decorate it?
Live or artificial Christmas tree
When purchasing a tree, we have two options: a natural tree grown in a special nursery, or an artificial one from a store.
If you're leaning towards natural herringbone, here are a few tips on how to choose a live Christmas tree for New Year and in what conditions it must be kept.
Before purchasing, check the leaves (needles) first. They should be green. Try moving them slightly and see if they fall off.
A recently felled tree can be identified by its smell. Breathe a little on the tip of the branch and feel pleasant pine aroma. If this does not happen, the green beauty will not please your eyes for long.
Then carefully inspect the barrel. It should not show any signs of any fungi or diseases. You'll see dark spots When you cut it, know that the tree was cut down a long time ago.
Finally, you have chosen the Christmas tree of your dreams and are returning home joyful. Of course, I immediately want to install it to bring the feeling of the New Year closer. However, first it is better to keep it on the balcony or in the garage, so that it doesn't crumble from sudden temperature changes.
While the Christmas tree adapts to the higher temperature over the course of several hours, decide on its place in the house. Remember, to keep the tree green longer, it is preferable to place it away from heat sources, for example, a radiator or a fireplace.
The next step is to clear the bottom of the trunk from the bark and make a series of shallow cuts to facilitate moisture absorption. Then place the New Year's beauty in a specially designed stand with water or in a bucket of sand. Add a spoonful of sugar and an aspirin tablet to a pot of water for a delicious pine aroma.
So that the tree does not dry out, add water periodically. About a couple times a week. In the case of a bucket, immediately pour a liter of water and add a little glycerin. If you spray the needles and twigs with water from a spray bottle once a day, the tree will be doubly grateful to you.
By the way, in the spring you can plant a live Christmas tree in your garden, if you have one. Just imagine how much joy there will be! Especially in children.
On the other hand, have artificial trees has its advantages. They tend to be cheaper, come in a variety of colors, have branches that hold up better to decorations, and have a lower risk of fire. The choice is yours!
Christmas tree decor
Currently, the variety of decorations is amazing, but there are several traditional ones, without which almost no Christmas tree decoration is complete.
Firstly, these are balls that take root on thorny branches and are entrenched in tradition like the New Year and Christmas itself.
Secondly, tinsel. Another classic decoration that gives our tree splendor and shine.
Thirdly, holidays electric garlands, which radiate magic like little miracle lights. When you turn them on for the first time and the tree lights up, some kind of switch clicks inside you, and your mood improves. Joy circulates through the veins. The smile never leaves my face.
And finally, Her Majesty the star on the top of her head.
Decorate the Christmas tree with electric garlands
If we include garlands in the decoration of the Christmas tree, we will give our tree a brighter, more festive look. Begin?
First, a most exciting activity awaits us all. We need to unravel the tangle of wires and light bulbs that we took out of the box. After this, tangled headphones seem like a no-brainer. Is it true?
Don't rush to hang the garland. First, stretch the garland on the floor and connect it. Check if all the lights are working. Replace them if necessary.
Now let's start decorating the beauty. Remember First of all, we hang the garlands, and then New Year's toys. Take the end of the wire, without the plug, and begin to wrap the tree from top to bottom in a spiral, preferably away from the trunk. This will make the tree look more impressive. Then, in the same way, braid the Christmas tree with a second garland, placing the lights at the tips of the branches. If you think it necessary, add a few more garlands. Plug them in and enjoy the beauty.
And note, when you go to bed or leave the house, unplug the garlands from the outlet.
Now comes the fun part. Hear the drum roll!
Examples of decorating a New Year tree in different styles
Red, white and green– three colors that are primarily associated with the New Year and Christmas, like Santa Claus and tangerines. Hang red and white balloons, bows and stars on the green branches.
Golden tones- one of the most traditional decoration options. Decorate the Christmas tree with golden balls, ribbons and figures.
New Year's Christmas tree in Scandinavian style breathes harmony and tranquility. It is not replete with many bright flowers and garlands. White color dominates the design. Simple elements are perfect for decorations: white balls and snowflakes, small silver jewelry and pine cones, for example.
If you have children, decorating the Christmas tree will inevitably end in confusion. all the colors of the rainbow and a mix of various figures. But there is nothing wrong with that, on the contrary! The house will take on a funny and certainly unique look. Dress up a tree with your children, imagine it as a game, give free rein to their imagination and creativity. Together you will create your own original style, imbued with the spirit of New Year and Christmas.
White Christmas tree looks very elegant in multi-colored toys.
Do you want to pleasantly surprise your relatives and children? Quirky curved Grinch tree will delight everyone around you.
Christmas tree decoration ideas for children's room.
If you just want home warmth and comfort, look at these cute, inviting Christmas trees.
Do you prefer more lush decoration? Use extravagant decorations, ribbons, twigs of other plants.
Replace the red with apple green and cream. Add more natural elements: cones, flowers, twigs, figures of birds or animals. And create your own unique one, natural, elegant style.
Do you love the sea and the beach? Show your love, decorate the Christmas tree in a nautical theme! Shells, dried starfish, ropes, anchors - these are the decor that reflects the marine style.
I want to decorate a white Christmas tree V modern style
? How do you like the combination of white, black and gold decor with stripes and polka dots? Black feathers with shiny golden tips look very exotic.
You might think, black trees- a little sad and depressing. However, if you decorate them properly, they will look gorgeous. Rich metal jewelry in the colors of gold and silver, as well as white and lilac, look best on them.
Do the last two options above seem too eccentric? Dress up a living tree using black and white decorations, photographs and garlands with printed words. The Christmas tree will look very original!
Bright red ribbons are a beautiful classic, but worth adding checkered texture, and the tree will instantly transform.
Two types of ribbons, medium and small balls, several large elements and twigs - this is the recipe for a luxurious New Year's decorations.
White, silver and pink colors harmonize wonderfully with each other. Long live romance!
Without Pink colour The design is no less touching and light, maybe more wintery. But when evening comes, when the lights come on, image of the snow queen melts before our eyes.
Look how delicate the Christmas tree looks with white flowers and balls, lightly dusted with artificial snow (pictured on the left). The Christmas tree in the photo on the right looks great due to silver-violet color scheme.
New Year is not always snowy, but you can always create winter's tale
in the house. Wrap your Christmas tree in a thick snow blanket that will remind you of the winter of your childhood or winter trips to the mountains.
But what’s interesting is that there is a general trend emerging do not decorate the Christmas tree. Maximum naturalness. Only the bottom of the tree is decorated. As they say, everything ingenious is simple.
Publications in the Traditions section
In the 21st century, it has become fashionable to decorate the Christmas tree with toys. self made. Today, balls are sewn from felt and scraps, knitted from threads, folded from paper or even from Legos. But still, with special trepidation and love, we take out old balls that have been preserved from our grandmothers and great-grandmothers.
“A tree, illuminated by lanterns or candles, hung with candies, fruits, toys, books, is a delight for children, who had previously been told that for good behavior and diligence on the holiday, a sudden reward would appear...”
"Northern Bee", 1841
The first Christmas tree decoration in Rus' was intended to demonstrate abundance, so New Year's trees were decorated with burning candles, apples and dough products. And in order for the tree to become bright and sparkling, they added decorations that shimmered in the light: tinsel, gimp (thin metal threads), sparkles. In combination with burning candles, the effect of the play of light made the green beauty even more radiant and solemn.
Since the middle of the 19th century, special artels began to work, which were engaged in the production of garlands, Christmas tree decorations, as well as chains made of thin foil, tinsel and rain.
“The Christmas tree was bent with a multitude of toys and sweets, glowed with a cheerful happy fire, firecrackers crackled, sparklers suddenly flared up and scattered with stars.”
Sergey Potresov. "A Christmas Story"
Glass toys
New Year's Eve. 1950s Photo: ITAR-TASS
An old Soviet Christmas tree toy-plane in the Museum of Christmas tree toys “Klinskoye Compound”, Klin. Photo: P. Prosvetov / photobank “Lori”
The first glass toys: balls, beads, spherical mirror objects in the form of spotlights and icicles - appeared on Russian Christmas trees in the middle of the 19th century. They were heavier than modern ones because they were made of thick mirror glass. Initially, most of the glass jewelry was foreign-made, but very soon they began to be made in Russia.
“Buying a glass toy for a resident of Russia at the end of the 19th century was the same as buying a car for a modern Russian.”
Sergei Romanov, toy historian and collector of New Year's decorations.
It was in Rus' that they came up with the idea of decorating a spruce tree with women's jewelry - glass beads. The whole family was involved in making them: small balls were blown by master glassblowers, women painted the beads, and children strung them on a thread. This craft became most widespread in Klinsky district, where the Elochka factory was later founded, which now produces New Year's garlands.
Products of the Klin association “Yolochka”, 1982. Photo: A. Semekhina / TASS Photo Chronicle
Old Christmas tree toy - clown. Photo: Yu. Zobkov / photobank “Lori”
Old Christmas tree toy - corn. Photo: Yu. Zobkov / photobank “Lori”
In the late 1930s, heroes of children's literature appeared on Christmas trees - Ivan Tsarevich, Ruslan and Lyudmila, Brother Rabbit and Brother Fox, Little Red Riding Hood, Puss in Boots, Crocodile with Totosha and Kokosha, Doctor Aibolit. After the premiere of the film “Circus,” circus-themed figurines became popular. In honor of the exploration of the North, Christmas trees were decorated with figures of polar explorers. At the same time, filigree and hand-painted decorations on an oriental theme appeared: Aladdin, old man Hottabych, and the sorcerer Chernomor.
During the war years, figures of planes, tanks, and Stalin's armored cars were hung on Christmas trees. They also made figurines from military shoulder straps and improvised materials, such as medical bandages.
New Year's composition. Photo: S. Gavrilichev / photobank “Lori”
An old Christmas tree decoration in the shape of a Soviet airship. Photo: Yu. Zaporozhchenko / photobank “Lori”
Only after 1947 did the production of toys on a “peaceful” theme begin: New Year’s trees were decorated fairy-tale heroes, forest animals, fruits and vegetables.
After the release of the film “Carnival Night” in 1956, the famous “Clock” toys appeared - with hands set at five minutes before midnight. In the 70s and 80s, the most popular were cones, bells and houses.
In addition, in the USSR, the Christmas tree was decorated with toys that reflected the ideals and aspirations of the communist state. So, on one tree coexisted vegetables and fruits, spaceships and submarines, figures of men in national costumes of different nations, factories and factories, domestic and wild animals, and athletes.
Papier mache
Museum of Christmas tree decorations “Klinskoye Compound”, Klin. Photo: S. Lavrentyev / photobank “Lori”
Museum of Christmas tree decorations “Klinskoye Compound”, Klin. Photo: S. Lavrentyev / photobank “Lori”
Jewelry made from papier-mâché (a dense substance consisting of paper pulp mixed with glue, plaster or chalk) became widespread in the Soviet Union. In the USSR, the production of papier-mâché toys was manual and consisted of a number of lengthy operations: modeling, putty, priming, sanding, painting, painting with intermediate drying at temperatures from 20 to 60°. The assortment consisted mainly of realistic figures of people and animals. The coating of burt salt made the surface of the toys more dense and gave them a dull shine. New Year masks and figures were created using vacuum casting large sizes for the Christmas tree (Santa Claus and Snow Maiden). Such toys were light in weight, but not inferior in strength to pressed ones.
For 20 years now, artist, historian and restorer Sergei Romanov has been collecting children's toys: dolls, soldiers, teddy bears, doll furniture, dishes, pedal cars... And especially Christmas decorations. His collection contains about three thousand things: cotton dolls from the 1930s, airships, papier-mâché vegetables and fruits from the 50s, and a polyethylene Santa Claus from the 1970s. Until January 18, the Bulat Okudzhava Cultural Center on Arbat is hosting the exhibition “Christmas Tree. Candle. Two balls." Using her example, collector Romanov spoke about the century and a half history of the New Year's toy.
I was 14 years old when we got a kitten. By the New Year, the kitten turned into a large, well-fed cat. And this cat saw the decorated Christmas tree for the first time. And I was stunned. At first he knocked over the toys that were hanging below with his paw, and then he contrived to jump straight onto the tree. And the tree, although it was fixed on an iron tripod, lay at its full length across the room. In one minute I lost all the most beautiful and favorite toys. To restore what was lost, I began to look for and buy antique Christmas tree decorations...
(Total 21 photos)
Post sponsor: Wooden houses: design, production, construction of wooden houses, bathhouses, gazebos made of rounded logs, turnkey profiled timber
Source: lenta.ru
Toys from the collection of Sergei Romanov. All photos: Pavel Bednyakov / Lenta.ru
1. Angel, early 20th century
The custom of decorating a spruce tree for the New Year appeared in the Middle Ages among the Germanic peoples. Since ancient times, the Germans revered spruce as a sacred tree - a symbol of immortality. Every year on days winter solstice they cleaned their houses with spruce branches, believing that good spirits of nature lived in the needles. Since the 16th century, spruce has become a symbol of Christian Christmas. In Germany, Holland, and England, a tradition arose of placing a whole coniferous tree in the house and hanging decorations on its branches. For the first three centuries, these decorations were exclusively edible. Apples are like a memory of the fruits of paradise that grew on the tree of knowledge. Unleavened waffles - instead of mallow, symbolizing the body of Christ. And of course, marshmallows, gingerbread and nuts, which were gilded with real gold leaf. Actually, real Christmas tree decorations appeared only at the end of the 18th century. In those years, decorations made of fir cones coated with gold, silver-plated stars made of straw and small figurines of angels made of hammered brass were very fashionable.
My grandmother often recalled how candles were lit on the Christmas tree. These candles were small, like for a cake, in iron candlesticks. They were attached to the branches so as to turn the flame outward. And they lit it only once - on Christmas night. Moreover, on the same night, buckets of water and sand were placed under the tree along with gifts - to avoid fire.
2. Boat. Late 19th - early 20th century
The first Christmas tree balls appeared in Thuringia, in the city of Lausch, in 1848.
Since ancient times, Lausch has been famous for its glassblowers. And then one day one master decided to decorate a Christmas tree for his children for Christmas. But he was very poor. There was not enough money for fruits and sweets. And then he blew apples, lemons, gingerbread and nuts out of glass. The toys turned out to be so beautiful that word spread about them. And soon not only the residents of Lausch, but also all of Germany began to order glass decorations for Christmas.
3. Father Christmas. Cotton toy, chromolithography. Late 19th - early 20th century
At first, glass Christmas tree decorations were made of thick, heavy glass, and the inside was covered with a layer of lead for shine. But in the 1860s a gas plant was built in Lauscha. Using gas burners, glass could now be heated to very high temperatures. high temperatures, and glassblowers began to make delicate, elegant things. Balls with gold and silver patterns, angel heads, strawberries, icicles, cones... For a long time, German glassblowers kept the secrets of their craft secret, so until the 20th century, Christmas tree decorations were produced only in Germany, from where they were exported to other countries: England, Holland, France , Russia.
4. Father Christmas. Glass. Late 19th - early 20th century
In Russia, they began to celebrate the New Year on January 1, 1700, by decree of Peter I. He also ordered, in imitation of the Dutch, to decorate the gates and doors of houses with spruce branches. Toys were not hung on these branches, and Christmas trees were placed mainly on the roofs of drinking establishments. The first Christmas tree, decorated with candles, toys and garlands, was installed in St. Petersburg in 1852 - it is believed that this custom was started by the wife of Emperor Nicholas I, Alexandra Feodorovna, who was born and raised in Prussia.
From that moment on, decorating a Christmas tree became very fashionable. However, there was one difficulty. Glass jewelry imported from Germany was very expensive. At the turn of the 20th century, toy dealers asked for 20 rubles for one glass ball, and for a set they could charge 200. And this despite the fact that for 20 rubles in those days you could buy a cow, for 200 - a house near St. Petersburg.
5. Boy on skis, glass balls. Late 19th - early 20th century
Cotton toys have become an alternative to expensive glass decorations. You could buy them in a store, or you could make them yourself. Around Christmas, many women's magazines told their readers how to make a figurine out of cotton wool with their own hands.
Here is an excerpt from a magazine at the beginning of the 20th century: “Cooking the paste. Take 2-3 tablespoons of starch for 1 and 1/2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Then we make a frame from wire. We divide the cotton wool into strips, moisten it with paste and wrap it around the wire. You can also use the papier-mâché technique. That is, stick pieces of paper soaked in paste onto the frame. We secure it all to the frame with threads. We dry the toy for two days. Then we paint.”
6. Children on a sled. Cotton toys with porcelain faces. Late 19th - early 20th century
A wide variety of figures were made from cotton wool: angels with wings, birds of paradise, girls on skates and boys on skis. Often the heads of these dolls were porcelain. The stores also sold die-cut sheets with chromolithographic images. From these sheets one could cut out the faces of the same angels, children or Santa Clauses and glue them onto a cotton or fabric toy.
7. Father Christmas. Cotton toy, chromolithography. Late 19th - early 20th century
Also, before the revolution, Christmas tree decorations using the Dresden cardboard technique were very popular in Russia. These were figures glued together from two halves of embossed cardboard, tinted with gold or silver paint. They were produced by machine in Dresden and Leipzig starting in the 19th century. These figures were sold in the form of sheets with embossed parts, which you had to press out, cut and glue yourself.
In Russia, Dresden cardboard could be ordered by mail. It was quite affordable. 40 kopecks - for a sheet of simple figures in the form of birds, bunnies, elephants, lions. 1 ruble 20 kopecks - for three-dimensional figures: silver cannons, airplanes, horse-drawn carriages...
8. Star. Mounted toy. Glass. Late 19th - early 20th century
Factory production of Christmas tree decorations was first established in Russia during the First World War. At that time, in the city of Klin there was a glass factory, which had belonged to the princes Menshikov since 1848. At this factory, lamps, bottles and vials for pharmacies were made from colored glass. During the war, captured German soldiers ended up in Klin. It was they who taught Russian craftsmen how to blow Christmas tree balls and beads from glass.
9. Father Christmas. Chromolithograph. Late 19th - early 20th century
We also owe the First World War another decoration, without which it is impossible to imagine a modern Christmas tree - a spire-shaped top. Throughout the 19th century, the top of the Christmas tree was decorated with either the Star of Bethlehem or a figurine of Jesus Christ. They were usually made from Dresden cardboard and illuminated with candles for greater effect.
With the beginning of the First World War, the rise of patriotism in both Germany and Russia was so high that they began to put cones on the tops of Christmas trees - the tops of soldiers' helmets and helmets. During the Soviet years, the Star of Bethlehem was replaced by the red Kremlin star, but the shishak remained and was very popular in the 1960-1970s. It could be in the form of a spire, could turn into a rocket taking off, or could be decorated with bells on a twisted wire.
10. New Year tree with cotton toys. Second half of the 1930s
In 1925, the custom of celebrating Christmas was banned in the Soviet Union. For the next ten years, Christmas trees were not decorated in our country. But on December 28, 1935, the Pravda newspaper published an article by the first secretary of the regional party committee, Pavel Postyshev, entitled “Let's organize a good Christmas tree for the children for the New Year!”
From this moment on, the era of the Soviet Christmas tree decoration begins. In terms of technology, Christmas tree decorations of the 30s were not too different from pre-revolutionary ones. As before, toys were made by hand by craftsmen. As before, they were made from Dresden cardboard, cotton wool and glass. But the plots became different - the biblical characters were replaced by Red Army soldiers, sailors, pioneers and collective farmers in red scarves with a sickle in their hands. Also popular among Soviet citizens were the hut on chicken legs, ruddy athletes and a janitor with a broom.
11. Ball in honor of the 20th anniversary of the October Revolution. Glass. 1937
From the Christmas tree decorations of the pre-war years, you can easily understand how the country lived. 1935 The film “Circus” with Lyubov Orlova in the title role was released - cotton clowns, acrobats and trained dogs appeared on Christmas trees. In the same year, the metro opened - and now Christmas trees began to be decorated with miniature red metro caps. 1937 20th anniversary of the October Revolution. For this date, a glass ball was made: on red panels there are four portraits - Marx, Engels, Lenin and Stalin. And in 1938, Moscow artels for the production of Christmas tree decorations produced a series of cotton figurines in honor of Papanin’s expedition to the North Pole. It included: a polar explorer with a bear planting a red flag at the North Pole, the North Pole station and a skier bear delivering mail. In addition to cotton toys, a glass ball was also made with the image of Papanin with a dog in the camp near the tent.
12. Letter from Santa Claus. New Year card. Mid-20th century
A special type of Christmas tree decorations are bonbonnieres. They were also called surprise girls. These were small, beautifully decorated boxes in which sweets or small gifts were hidden. Bonbonnieres began to be made back in the 19th century - from walnut shells or from matchboxes. They were given the appearance of houses, books, drums. In the 30s they were also hung on the Christmas tree. But they were designed in accordance with Soviet ideology. For example, there was a surprise - a mailbox. There was a house with a red flag - the district council. And there was a plane - a tool of the proletariat. After the war, the bonbonnieres quietly disappeared. But it has become fashionable to hang chocolate figures in foil on the Christmas tree - hares, bears, Santa Clauses. In the 50s, you could buy a “Help me get dressed” chocolate bar in stores. There was a baby drawn on the wrapper. And inside there is an insert with clothes that could be cut out, and a rhyme:
“It’s not good for me to sit like this,
So I might catch a cold.
Help me get dressed
Help me keep warm."
13. Santa Claus. Cotton toy, 1930-1940s
In Soviet times, the top of the New Year tree was crowned with a red five-pointed star - like on the Kremlin towers. Santa Claus stood under the tree. It was a tribute to tradition.
In pre-Petrine times in Rus', Father Frost was represented as an old man with a gray beard who ran through the fields and caused bitter frosts by knocking. On Christmastide, it was customary to invite him into the house and feed him kutia - in order to appease him. The image of a Christmas grandfather who gives gifts to children appeared only at the end of the 19th century - in imitation of the European Santa Claus. In Russia, Father Frost at that time was associated with Nikolai Ugodnik, the patron saint of travelers and children.
14. Snow Maiden. Cotton toy. 1930-1950s
But Grandfather Frost’s granddaughter appeared only in the Soviet years. In 1937, a children's Christmas tree was organized for the first time in the Hall of Columns of the House of Unions. The host of this holiday was Father Frost. But he needed an assistant. At first, the organizers of the Christmas tree wanted to appoint the Snowman-Postman as such an assistant. But then we remembered the heroine of the play by A.N. Ostrovsky's "Snow Maiden" - a beautiful fair-haired girl sculpted from snow.
At the end of the 30s, Snow Maiden figurines began to be placed under the Christmas tree. They were made from cotton wool or papier-mâché. In one of the versions, the Snow Maiden was a proletarian girl in morocco boots and with a red flag.
15. Steam locomotive. Embossed cardboard. 1930-1940s
Matte ball in the color of an airplane wing. Budennovtsy walk along it. Above the Budennovites there is an inscription: “Happy New Year 1941!” In the Soviet Union, everyone was waiting for this year, wondering what it would bring? He brought the Great Patriotic War. However, even in these difficult years for the country, people continued to decorate Christmas trees - in the rear, in hospitals, in the trenches on the front line. And they continued to make Christmas tree decorations. They were made from whatever was at hand. They took light bulbs, painted them in different colors, and drew cherries and flowers. Butterflies and dragonflies were twisted from waste copper wire.
16. Airships. Glass. 1930-1940s
In January 1943, shoulder straps were introduced in the Red Army. Both soldiers and officers began to make Christmas tree toys from them. Also popular were airplanes assembled from glass beads and tubes, as well as glass airships, emok-type cars, cardboard cannons, tanks and figurines of border guard Karatsupa with the dog Hindu, preserved from pre-war times.
17. Clock. Glass. 1950-1960s
In 1946, January 1 was declared a holiday. The New Year has become a real national holiday. And toys are massive. In the 1950-1960s, several factories of Christmas tree decorations opened at once - in Moscow, Leningrad, Klin, Kirov, Kyiv. New items have appeared: toys with clothespins and miniature toys for small artificial Christmas trees.
Christmas tree decorations these years were very different. In the 1950s, after the release of the film “Carnival Night,” glass watches with hands frozen at “twelve minutes to five” became very fashionable. During the time of Khrushchev - figurines of astronauts and ears of corn. And in the 1970s - shells, houses with snow-covered roofs, spotlights and balls called “radio waves”.
“Radio waves” began to be made even before the war. These were balls with a pattern of circular lines. The pattern was applied with phosphor paint, and the balls glowed in the dark.
18. Hare with a drum. Glass. 1950-1970s
In the 1960s–1980s, toys based on fairy tales were very popular. In principle, this was not news. Back in the 1930s, artels made cotton decorations in the form of heroes of Russian folk tales or poems by Korney Chukovsky. In those years, in many houses, huts on chicken legs, lame bast shoes, or a Cockroach in red boots hung on their Christmas trees. And when “The Tales of Uncle Remus” was translated into Russian in 1935, Brother Rabbit and Brother Fox settled in the pine needles.
19. Clown with a pipe. Glass. 1950-1970s
In the era of developed socialism, entire fairy-tale sets appeared: “The Golden Cockerel”, “Little Muk”, “Little Red Riding Hood”, “Cipollino”. The same fairy tale was produced for years and in different factories. At the same time, the appearance of the heroes could change. This is clearly seen in the old woman from The Tale of the Goldfish. At the beginning of the episode, the old woman is calm, standing, holding on to her shower jacket. But at the end she has her hands on her hips.
20. Glass toys from the 1960s to the 1980s
In the 1970-1980s, many different toys were produced: bells, figurines of animals, genies, girls in fur coats. Among the balls, the main one was a large polystyrene ball with a rotating butterfly inside. These balls were sold all year round, they were blue, red, green, purple. To the children they seemed magical.
There probably wasn’t a single child who didn’t want to take that butterfly out of the ball. One day I myself came out of the store with such a ball and around the corner hit the asphalt like this: bam! The ball broke, I took out the butterfly. But she no longer spun outside the ball. And all the magic disappeared.
21. Lady with a snowball. Porcelain doll. Late 19th - early 20th century
For reference: among collectors, toys produced before 1966 are considered rare. The entire value of toys released after this date is in the memories.
With age, there is a desire to remember childhood, to plunge into nostalgia, to touch associations that will awaken bright and pleasant emotions. For some reason, the New Year in the style of the times of the USSR remains a bright and desirable holiday in the memory of those over thirty, despite its certain simplicity, scarcity and unpretentiousness of dishes festive table.
The trend to celebrate in the manner of yesteryear is only growing. And a party in the American style is no longer so inspiring to contemporaries; you want to decorate fragrant pine needles with old Christmas tree decorations, and place cotton wool, nuts and tangerines under it.
Christmas tree variety
The Christmas tree was decorated with an abundance of assorted decorations. Particularly noteworthy are the antique Christmas tree decorations on clothespins, which allow them to be placed anywhere in the tree, even at the top or in the middle of the branch. This is Santa Claus, Snow Maiden, Snowman, Squirrel, pine cone, moon or lantern. Toys of a later version are all kinds of cartoon characters, funny clowns, nesting dolls, rockets, airships, cars.
Icicles, cones, vegetables, houses, clocks, little animals, stars, flat and voluminous, beads together with cotton wool, flags and garlands of small light bulbs created a unique festive composition. The one who decorated the Christmas tree had a considerable responsibility - after all, the fragile product would shatter into fragments if moved incorrectly, so it was a privilege to manage the preparations for New Year's Eve.
From Toy Story
The tradition of decorating the New Year's tree came to us from Europe: it was believed that edible items - apples, nuts, candies, placed near the tree, were able to attract abundance in the new year.
Vintage Christmas decorations from Germany, like the current ones, are forming a trend in the field of New Year's decorations. They were very fashionable in those years fir cones, plated with gold, silver-plated stars, figurines of angels made of brass. The candles were small, in metal candlesticks. They were placed on the branches with the flame facing outward, and were lit exclusively on Christmas night. In past times, they had a huge cost per set; not everyone could afford them.
The toys of the 17th century were inedible and consisted of gilded pine cones, objects in foil with a base of tin wire, cast in wax. In the 19th century, glass toys appeared, but they were available only to rich families, while middle-income people decorated the Christmas tree with beaten cotton, fabric and plaster figurines. Below you can see what the old Christmas tree decorations looked like (photo).
In Russia there were not enough raw materials for the production of glass-blowing jewelry, and imports were expensive. The first were the ancient Christmas tree athletes, skiers in funny sweatshirts, skaters, pioneers, polar explorers, wizards in oriental outfits, Santa Clauses, traditionally with a big beard, dressed “in Russian,” forest animals, fairy-tale characters, fruits, mushrooms, berries, easy to make, which were gradually supplemented and transformed before another, more cheerful variety appeared. Dolls with multi-colored skin symbolized the friendship of peoples. Carrots, peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers delighted with their natural colors.
Grandfather Frost became a popular long-liver in many countries - a weighted figure made of cotton wool on a stand, which was later purchased at a flea market - with a face made of polyethylene and other materials. His fur coat gradually changed: it could be made of foam, wood, fabric or plastic.
In 1935, a ban on official celebration was filmed and released New Year's toys. The first of them were symbolic: some depicted state attributes - the hammer and sickle, flags, photos of famous political figures, others became displays of fruits and animals, airships, gliders and even the image of Khrushchev's time - corn.
Since the 1940s, toys have appeared depicting household objects - teapots, samovars, lamps. During the war years, they were made from production waste - tin and metal shavings, wire in limited quantities: tanks, soldiers, stars, snowflakes, cannons, airplanes, pistols, paratroopers, houses and what not you will find when you take out a bag of old Christmas tree decorations from the attic.
At the fronts, New Year's needles were decorated with spent cartridges, shoulder straps, made from rags and bandages, paper, and burnt out light bulbs. At home, ancient Christmas tree decorations were made from available materials - paper, fabric, ribbons, eggshells.
In 1949, after Pushkin’s anniversary, they began to produce figurines of characters from his fairy tales, to which other fairy-tale heroes were subsequently added: Aibolit, Little Red Riding Hood, Dwarf, Little Humpbacked Horse, Crocodile, Cheburashka, fairy-tale houses, cockerels, nesting dolls, and fungi.
Since the 50s, toys for miniature Christmas trees have appeared on sale, which could be conveniently placed in a tiny apartment and quickly taken apart: these are cute bottles, balls, animals, fruits.
At the same time, ancient Christmas tree decorations on clothespins were now common: birds, animals, clowns, musicians. Sets of 15 girls in national costumes were popular, promoting the friendship of peoples. From that time on, everything that could be attached to the tree “grew”, and even sheaves of wheat.
In 1955, in honor of the release of the Pobeda car, a miniature appeared - Christmas decoration in the form of a glass machine. And after the flight into space, astronauts and rockets glow on the needles of the Christmas trees.
Until the 60s, antique Christmas tree decorations made of glass beads were in fashion: tubes and lanterns strung on wire, sold in sets, long beads. Designers are experimenting with shape and color: figurines with relief, elongated pyramids, icicles, and cones “sprinkled” with snow are popular.
Plastic is beginning to be actively used: transparent balls with butterflies inside, figures in the form of spotlights, polyhedrons.
From the 70-80s they began to produce toys made from foam rubber and plastic. Christmas and country themes turned out to be dominant. Cartoon characters have been updated: Winnie the Pooh, Carlson, Umka. Subsequently, mass production of Christmas tree decorations became the norm. Fluffy snowball has become fashionable, and when hung, it is not always possible to see the rest of the decorations on the tree.
Closer to the 90s, bright and shiny balls, bells, houses are in the lead in production, and in them the trend of fashion is more felt, and not the movement of the human soul, as before the 60s.
There is a possibility that in the future, faceless glass balls will fade into the background, and the old ones will acquire the value of antiques.
DIY cotton wool toys
Factory pressed cotton toys were produced on a cardboard basis and were called “Dresden”. Afterwards they improved somewhat and began to be covered with a paste diluted with starch. This surface protected the figurine from dirt and rapid wear.
Some made them themselves. When the whole family got together, people created Christmas tree decorations using a wire frame and painted them themselves. Today it is easy to recreate such ancient Christmas tree decorations from cotton wool with your own hands. To do this you will need: wire, cotton wool, starch, egg white, a set of gouache paints with brushes and a little patience.
First, you can draw the desired figures on paper, draw their base - a frame, which is then made from wire. The next step is to brew the starch (2 tablespoons per 1.5 cups of boiling water). Take the cotton wool into strands and wrap it around the frame elements, moistening it with paste and securing it with threads.
Without wire, using cotton wool and glue, you can make balls and fruits, and also use a paper base instead of metal. When the toys are dry, they should be covered with a new layer of cotton wool and soaked in egg white, which allows you to work with thin layers of cotton wool, penetrates into inaccessible areas and prevents the base material from sticking to your fingers.
The layers of cotton wool need to dry well, after which they are ready for painting with gouache; you can draw details, accessories on them, and insert faces from pictures. This is exactly what ancient Christmas tree toys made of cotton wool were like - light enough to hang them on a threaded thread or place them on branches.
Snowman
Everyone is familiar with the old Christmas tree toy Snowman made of cotton wool from the 1950s, which was later made of glass and is currently a collector's item. This retro style clothespin ornament makes a great Christmas gift.
But, as already mentioned, you can create old cotton Christmas tree decorations in memory of past years yourself. For this purpose, they first make a wire frame and then cover it with cotton wool, periodically dipping their fingers into the glue. The body is first wrapped in newspaper or toilet paper, also soaked in paste or PVA. Wadded clothing - felt boots, mittens, fringe - is attached on top of the paper base.
To begin with, it’s a good idea to dip the material in water with aniline dyes and dry it. The face is a separate stage: it is made from salt dough, fabric or other method, after which they are made convex, glued to the figure and dried.
Toys created independently will add an unforgettable flavor to the Christmas tree, because they are valuable not for their beauty, but for their originality. Such an item can be presented as a souvenir or added to the main present.
Balls
Balloons were also popular in the old days. But even those of them that have survived to this day, albeit with dents and hollows, have a unique charm and still attract admiring glances: they concentrate the light of the garlands, thanks to which they create a fabulous illumination. Among them there are even phosphorus ones that glow in the dark.
Clock balls, reminiscent of a New Year's dial, were placed on the tree in a visible or central place. The arrows on them always showed five minutes to midnight. Such ancient Christmas tree decorations (see photos in the review) were placed just below the top, after the most important decoration - the star.
Antique Christmas tree decorations made of papier-mâché were also extremely good: these are balls of two halves that can be opened and you can find a delicacy inside them. Children love such unexpected surprises. When hung among others or as a garland, these balloons add interesting variety and make for a nice mystery or gift discovery event that will be remembered for a long time.
You can make a papier-mâché ball yourself using napkins, paper, PVA glue, first preparing the mass for its layer-by-layer formation. To do this, the paper is soaked for a couple of hours, wrung out, mixed with glue, and then placed in half on the inflatable ball. When the layer becomes dense to the touch, it can be decorated with ribbons and beads, painted with paints, and various applications can be glued on. But the most interesting thing is the gift hidden inside a peculiar box without a lock. Both children and adults will be truly delighted by such original packaging!
Beads
Ancient Christmas tree decorations in the form of beads and large bugles were placed on the middle or lower branches. Particularly fragile specimens still have their original appearance due to the fact that they were carefully stored and passed on to their grandchildren from their grandmothers. Bicycles, airplanes, satellites, birds, dragonflies, handbags, and baskets were also made from glass beads.
A series of oriental-themed toys, released in the late 40s and retaining their popularity, featured characters such as Hottabych, Aladdin, and oriental beauties. The beads were distinguished by their filigree shapes, hand-painted patterns, and were reminiscent of Indian national patterns. Similar jewelry in oriental and other styles remained in demand until the 1960s.
Cardboard toys
Embossed cardboard decorations on mother-of-pearl paper are wonderful Christmas tree decorations using ancient technology, made in the form of figures of animals, fish, chickens, deer, huts in the snow, children and other characters on a peaceful theme. Such toys were bought in the form of sheets in a box, cut out and painted independently.
They glow in the dark and give the tree a unique charm. It seems that this is not simple figures, but real “stories”!
Rain
What kind of rain was used to decorate the Soviet Christmas tree? It was a vertical, flowing sheen, far from the voluminous and fluffy sheen of modern specimens. If there were empty spaces between the branches, they tried to fill them with cotton wool, garlands and sweets.
Some time later, horizontal rain appeared. Under the tree it could be partially replaced with foam plastic.
Paper toys
Many antique DIY Christmas tree decorations - plastic, paper, glass - were created by hand, so they looked very cute and charming. To replicate this masterpiece, you need very little time and materials.
A cardboard ring (for example, left over from tape) is decorated on the inside with an accordion made of colored paper, and on the outside with glitter and snowballs. The accordion can be of different colors or with inclusions, tabs, for which you should bend a rectangle of paper of a different color and place it inside the ring.
You can make relief balls from holiday cards according to the following scheme: cut out 20 circles, draw full-size isosceles triangles on them on the wrong side, each side of which will serve as a fold line. Bend the circles outward along the marked lines. Glue together the bent edges of the first five circles with the front side facing outward - they will form the top part of the ball, another five will form the bottom of the ball, and the remaining ten will form the middle part of the ball. Finally, combine all the parts with glue, threading a thread through the top.
You can also make three-color balls: cut them out of colored paper and stack circles, placing two colors next to each other, and fasten them along the edges with a stapler. Then glue the edges of each circle as follows: the lower part with the left “neighbor”, and its part at the top with the right one. In this case, the plates from the stack will straighten out at the connected points, forming a volume. The ball is ready.
Toys made from other materials
The following materials open up the field for imagination:
- figures made of cardboard and buttons (pyramids, patterns, men);
- felt, the solid edges of which allow you to cut out any parts and bases for toys;
- used disks (in their own form, with a photo pasted in the center, in the form of an element - mosaic chips);
- collect beads on a wire, give it the desired silhouette - a heart, an asterisk, a ring, add it with a ribbon - and such a pendant is ready to decorate the branches;
- egg tray (moisten, knead like dough, form and dry figures, paint).
To make ball toys from threads: inflate a rubber ball, coat it with thick cream, dilute PVA glue in water (3:1), put the yarn of the desired color in a bowl with adhesive solution. Then begin to wrap the inflated ball with thread (it can be replaced with thin wire). Upon completion, leave it to dry for a day, after which the rubber ball is carefully deflated and pulled out through the threads. You can decorate such a toy with glitter to suit your taste.
Of course, the most simple, but interesting way to create and transform existing balls is to decorate them with artificial or natural materials: wrap the ball in fabric, add a ribbon, cover it with acorns, wrap it with a cord with rhinestones, put it in wire with beads, attach beads, stones and tinsel using a syringe with glue.
Where to buy vintage toys
Today you can find antique Christmas tree decorations made of cotton wool or tinsel in the style of yesteryear at city flea markets. As an option, you can consider online auctions and online stores offering items from the USSR era. For some sellers, such jewelry is generally considered to be antiques and is part of a collection.
Today you can find ancient Christmas tree decorations in almost any city (Ekaterinburg, Moscow, St. Petersburg, etc.). Of course, many sellers will offer products of the past, recreated using modern technologies, but even among them there will be examples that can surprise.
During the New Year holidays, it is worth paying attention to exhibitions of antique Christmas tree decorations, which are often organized in museums. The spectacle looks like a hall with a huge Christmas tree covered with Soviet-era toys from the top to the floor. On the walls there are stands with New Year's copies of the past, from which you can trace the entire history of their transformation and even take photographs. IN New Year holidays Entrance to some museums is free.
And when there is a live Christmas tree in the house, decorated with toys from Soviet times, lights are shining and garlands are hanging or candles are burning, all that remains is to turn on your favorite film “The Irony of Fate” and the whole family sits around the festive table, and also present your loved ones with New Year’s souvenirs of your own making.
New Year is coming, which means it’s time to buy, put up and decorate a Christmas tree. Moreover, decorating the Christmas tree is the most difficult, but at the same time the most emotional event on New Year's Eve. Over hundreds of years people have come up with different kinds and types of Christmas tree decorations. Today we simply call them “Christmas tree toys.” But this name hides a wide variety of materials, sizes, styles, and colors. Let's see what kind of Christmas tree decorations there are today.
Star. Top Christmas tree in our country it is traditionally decorated with a red five-pointed star. Stores also sell yellow six-pointed stars, but they are not for the New Year, but for the Christmas tree. Also, sometimes an angel figurine is placed on the top of the Christmas tree. And on the New Year tree, instead of a star, they sometimes use a toy in the form of a stylized icicle. The star at the top of the tree is usually not simple, but illuminated.
Balls. Multi-colored balls of different sizes are the main thing. Typically these balls come in red, gold and silver colors. But there are also balls of other colors. Moreover, usually, light balls are used to decorate a traditional Christmas tree (green), and balls of dark colors are hung on silver artificial Christmas trees. In addition to the fact that the balls come in different colors, they are made from different materials. Previously, Christmas tree balls were mostly made of glass, but nowadays they are increasingly made of plastic. Plastic balls are not as fragile as glass ones. But it is the glass balls that evoke more emotions. To decorate Christmas trees, you can use small balls of the same color, or balls of different sizes and colors. If balls of different sizes are used, then larger ones should be placed on the lower branches of the tree. If balloons of different colors are used, then they need to be grouped and each color hung on a separate level. Moreover, it is better not to make the levels strictly horizontal, but to “twist” them in a spiral. Balls can be either plain or multi-colored or with some kind of pattern (ornaments, snowflakes, fairy-tale characters).
Fairy tale characters.
Bells.
