Glittered Bird Tree Top

The tree themed in golden ornaments is topped with a collection of glittered birds. They surround a nest of eggs. One is is covered in gold glass glitter - the golden egg. Velvety faux oak leaves and acorns encircle the nest.

Dachshund Glass Martha Stewart Ornament

The ornament collection by Martha Stewart available at Macy's is now in its third year. The collection has decreased in scale and size with each subsequent year. Many factors - most notably the crash and burn economy that hit months before last Xmas - have come in to play. Very few Macy's carried them in the North Atlantic region. This was also the first year that none of the collection was available through online purchase. One of the two tree's was themed in Santa and items from his toy bag. For obvious reasons, I was fond of the glass toy dachshund on wheels ornament with a springy tail. The design is a nice mixture of novelty and realism. The other themed tree from here collection I found in New England featured white, wintry woodland creatures and elements.

Halloween Ephemera Vintage and New

A collection of old and new Halloween ephemera

I themed the display around black cats in various shapes and costumes. The cat in the pirate costume is on of my favorites. Better photos may be ahead this year. Sorry for the quality.

Vintage Trick or Treat bags

The OH Lantern Family / 80s Halloween Fun

Six of the eight family members make a creepy, fun display on top of the wardrobe.

Image from the original hang tag that identifies each ghoulish family member.

Released in the fall of 1987, the OH Lantern family, created by special effects wizard Todd Masters, quickly flew off the shelves and racked up $6-million in national sales. They were only sold in gift shops and specialty stores for $9.95 each. The original release consisted of eight family members. In 1988, they also released a baby line of pumpkins that were less detailed and not as successful. The patriarch of the family - of course - is Jack OH Lantern. All members have individual names and biographies printed on their hang tags.

The pumpkins are made of a nerf type of foam that was injected into individual molds. The material allows for numerous details and wrinkles. Mold line clean up varies from pumpkin to pumpkin. They must be stored with care to keep them from being crushed by long term storage. I wrap mine in acid free tissue paper and do not crush them to preserve every toothless grin.

Spanish and other types of moss create a nice base for the spooky pumpkin patch display. Build up the area underneath the moss with blocks of floral foam or boxes to create depth and height. The decade old invasion of faux crows, ravens and buzzards onto the Halloween decorating scene provide additional creepy pumpkin patch props. Fake spiderwebs drape easily acroos the crowns of dead cone flowers inserted into the floral foam. They continue to provide seasonal fun 22 years latter.

Draining the color from the photo produces a sinister effect.

Begonia Collection on Vintage Distressed "Boo-Fey"

Begonia Collection on Boo-fey

This summer I moved my begonia collection to the dining room to a prominent display location on the buffet - also know as the Boo-fey during Halloween. I have put many a begonia out of their misery by over watering. Secret for my plant success is to wait until the soil is dry past the top inch of soil or wait until they start to droop a bit. Occasionally I will mist them in the winter since they are no fan of dry artificial heat. Martha features them in her dining room for her September column in MSL on newsstands now.

Grandpapa Steiff Bear Arrives

After a bit of a delay, Grandpapa Steiff bear, an exclusive release of The Toy Shoppe, finally arrived in a large cardboard box with a caution in German and lots of acid free tissue paper.

He is the fifth edition in the larger bear family series available through The Toy Shoppe in Virginia. Since FAO Schwartz closed all of its stores down except for two flagship stores and its Internet business, The Toy Shoppe is the largest vendor of Steiff in North America. They work closely with Steiff to incorporate elements of vintage bears in their new interpretations. His accessories include a removable sweater and a working gold pocket watch featuring the Steiff and The Toy Shoppe logos.
One of his best and most striking features is his shaved muzzle, which gives him a stately profile. He is number ten in an edition of 1,500 pieces.

March Hare by R. John Wright

I have to admit I have a few collections. One of my favorite designers of fine bears and dolls is R. John Wright of Vermont. He does extremely detailed work with natural fibers such as wool felt, mohair, alpaca and silk. The Toy Shoppe carries a wide selection of his pieces and works well even with the most discerning collector's taste. The March Hare was released in March 2009 after a lengthy wait. Due to the complexity of production and design, Mr. Wright will often take anywhere between a year or two to release an announced edition. They have started a blog showing behind the scenes photos of their production process.