Shiny Brite by Radko: The Retro Ornaments That Came Back
Shiny Brite ornaments are the ones that make a certain kind of customer stop mid-aisle and say, my grandmother had those. Striped glass balls with a mirrored indent in the side, pastel tulips, tinsel-filled minis, a cardboard box with a cellophane window. They were the American Christmas ornament for two decades, they disappeared, and then […]
Keepsake Ornaments: Gifts That Come Back Every Year
Most gifts have a short career. The sweater gets worn out, the gadget gets replaced, the toy gets outgrown, and by the following December nobody remembers who gave what. Keepsake ornaments are the exception, and it is the whole reason a Christmas store exists: an ornament with a name and a year on it comes […]
Glass vs Shatterproof Ornaments: An Honest Comparison
Every December someone stands in our ornament aisles holding a glass ball in one hand and a plastic one in the other, asking which is better. The honest answer is that shatterproof ornaments and glass ornaments are good at different jobs, and most of the trees we admire use both. Glass gives a tree its […]
Bubble Lights: The Retro Glow That Never Left
Bubble lights are the one Christmas light that makes grown adults stand still. A column of colored liquid, a bulb underneath, and after a few minutes a stream of tiny bubbles rising through the glass, over and over, all evening. They were on every tree in the 1940s and 50s, they faded when the mini […]
The Tree Topper Guide: Angels, Stars and How to Crown a Tree
The Christmas tree topper is the last thing on and the first thing people look at, which is why it causes more arguments per square inch than anything else in the house. Star or angel. Lit or not. The one from the old house or something new. And then the question nobody plans for, which […]
USA 250: Commemorative Ornaments for America’s 250th Year
America turns two hundred and fifty on July 4, 2026, and a Christmas store has an opinion about that: a milestone this size deserves an ornament. Our USA 250 ornaments collection gathers the red, white and blue across everything we carry, from the official America 250 logo in hand-painted glass to Radko eagles, Old World […]
Mark Roberts Fairies: The Collectible With Wings
What Mark Roberts fairies are, the three sizes, why retired designs are hunted, and how to pose, display and store them.
How to Build a Department 56 Halloween Village
One lit house, a street, a sky and a few suspicious townsfolk. How to plan, light and grow a Department 56 Halloween village that looks like you meant it.
The Colorado Christmas Gift Guide
Colorado Christmas gifts from St. Nick’s: ornaments by Colorado artists, real aspen leaves, columbines, 14ers keepsakes and team pieces.
Prepping Outdoor Christmas Lights Before the Freeze
Count, test, fix, measure, sort the power and buy the clips in a mild October afternoon, so hanging outdoor Christmas lights takes an hour instead of a weekend.
