Spun glass, as the strands or threads are called, was produced from about 1900 until after World War I. Many ornaments were made in full circles or rosettes, while others were fashioned as wings, comets, tails, fans and skirts. The ornaments are a combination of embossed chromolithographs and glass fibers.

Colored spun glass is rarer than white, but the scrap of chromolithograph glued to the ornament usually determines the value of the piece. Angels, Santa figures and heads, children, butterflies and animals were common scraps used. Dresden foil stars were sometimes glued to the piece. Spun glass ornaments range in size from about 3 inches to over a foot in length. Some were made into tree top decorations.

The production of Sebnitz ornaments started around the 1880’s in Germany. They were made from wire, cotton, leftover holes from sequins (after the sequin was punched out of the shiny material, the leftover came in strips with the missing holes), wax babies/wax baby Jesus, Dresdens, aluminum paper, cardboard, beads and celluloid paper.

Some contained all of the above items and others only a only few. They were made by hand in the homes of everyday German families, known as “The Cottage Industry”. Most were made of bits and pieces of leftover materials, making it affordable for Villagers to work with. No two are completely alike for this reason.

They came in many designs including the following: sleighs with a wax baby Jesus, cars with a wax baby or Dresden drivers dressed and trimmed in Dresden, windmills, mangers, cradles and so many more types. They are completely whimsical and some are very ornate and beautiful. They are “Oh so fun to look at” and are easy to spot because of their quaint, unique and handmade quality.

Russian ornaments, at their earliest, were influenced by German designs, and were predominantly glass, paper mache, or cardboard. Originally, Russian ornaments were symbols of good harvest, prosperity, health, a happy life, and the continuation of the family. So rather than being just “funny” or “nice pieces,” the themes of the ornaments were meant to convey the meaning of old traditions. Some of the most popular subjects were fruits and vegetables, farm animals, and people (boys and girls, dancers, babies, hockey players, and occupations). Many Russian ornaments had a military theme: soldiers, warriors, the Soviet star, dirigible and, of course, the hammer and sickle. After the Revolution of 1917, Christmas was officially banned, with the prohibition lasting until about 1935 when the New Year’s tree was revived for the children, and celebrated with Soviet ornaments and decorations. Ornaments of a religious nature were not allowed, but ornaments that could be used as toys or candy containers were available. Clocks were an important and popular decoration, with the hands always pointing to a few minutes before midnight, honoring the New Year’s celebration.

Many Russian ornaments have their origin in Russian legends and fairy tales, and some ornaments have a historical significance. Better known simply as Ivan and the Firebird, this 1930s ornament is taken from the story, “The Tale of Ivan Tsarevich, the Firebird, and the Wolf”, the story of a mighty tsar with a magnificent orchard, and a firebird with golden feathers that would swoop down each night and fly off with a few of his apples. It’s a magical story of searching for the firebird with a very helpful wolf, and is packed with life lessons, and has a happy ending. The round, glass ornament shown was made just after World War II when cars were a luxury item and the War had just been won. Production on the car, named the “Victory,” began in 1946, and this hand painted ornament, using the model of that car, was available the following year. Although occasionally crudely constructed, Russian ornaments almost always tell a story, or give us new insight into the lives of the Russian people. They make a wonderful addition to any antique Christmas ornament collection.

Kugels are the earliest form of glass Christmas decorations. The predecessors of these beloved Victorian Christmas ornaments began in an unsilvered form that were hung in windows to ward off evil spirits or witches, a tradition dating back to the 17th century in England and spreading to the colonies in America in the 18th century. These early “witch balls” were unsilvered and sometimes served a dual purpose as fishing floats in maritime areas. Eventually, in the 1850s when silvered glass came into vogue, these same witch balls were manufactured with a silver lining making them reflective. These glass globes were first used as reflection balls that were hung in windows, from ceilings or placed in gardens on stakes. The French called these silvered balls Boules Panoramic. The silvered ceiling and garden decorations soon found a new purpose as Christmas ornaments, hung both from the ceiling and, in smaller versions, on the tree. The kugel, German for ball or sphere, was born. Fancy brass embossed caps with a multitude of designs were added to keep the silvering from oxidizing and to provide a classy hanging device for each piece. These heavy, durable ornaments have survived well over one hundred years and are today still enjoyed as one of the most beautiful and longest lived Christmas decorations.

From a collector’s standpoint, it’s all about color and shape combinations. With kugels the color is in the glass, rarely painted on. A silver kugel which is clear glass with only the silver lining showing through is the most common. From here to rarest, the colors would be: gold, yellow-green, cobalt, blue and pinkish red being fairly plentiful followed by the less common colors which would be the darker greens like moss and olive, copper/bronze, light blue, then getting into the rare spectrum of colors of deep red, burgundy, orange and the coveted amethyst. Amethyst kugels are found in about 1/100 pieces.

Most kugels originated in France and Germany. As mentioned above, with kugels it’s all about knowing the shape/color combinations. Balls are the most common, but an amethyst colored ball would make it one of the rarest pieces. Grapes are the next most common shape. They were blown in many different molded patterns with the rarest being red and amethyst grapes. Free blown shapes like eggs, pears and tear drops are more desirable, especially in rarer colors like red and amethyst. Some eggs and balls were blow in a ribbed design which are highly sought-after. Rare and hard to find shapes would be artichokes, berry clusters, pinecones and other fruit shapes that were mold blown.

The silvered interiors (linings) are starting to break down on many kugels due to their age. When collecting kugels, try to avoid pieces where the lining has disintegrated. On rarer pieces collectors will often look the other way if the lining is in bad shape, but the reality is that if you try to sell the piece, you may not be able to get a good price with a bad lining.

Kugels have a luster, weight and aged patina that many old Christmas ornaments just can’t match. They add sparkle and magic to any collection and will bring joy to you and generations of your family to come!

Caveat emptor: When collecting kugels it is important to realize that many reproductions are now on the market. These were manufactured in India within the last 40 years. While the brass embossed caps are different on the newer pieces, unscrupulous dealers have been known to switch caps between old and new pieces. Learn from other collectors before you invest in an expensive kugel. Many collectors have been stuck with new pieces over the years. Don’t be afraid to collect kugels. You should learn as much as you can about kugels before you begin investing in them.

To many holiday collectors, Northern Italy’s Christmas ornament industry has produced the most imaginative and distinctively attractive glass tree decorations since the end of WWII. Free-blown and expertly hand-painted in small workshops, the most popular designs are whimsical figural representations of the animal kingdom or personages drawn from fairy tales, comics strips, the sports world and the professions. In addition to refined and artistically painted details, their unique characteristics often include annealed limbs or, in the case of DeCarlini examples, the addition of materials that dress the ornament, such as faux hair on clowns, manes on lions, or the feathery attire of the showgirl. Laved, another of the early Italian ornament makers, produced a line of highly attractive and collectible figures similar to DeCarlini’s, but are differentiated from the latter by painting style, frequent use of a matte finish, and absence of trim materials. For both factories, the rounded metal caps on the earlier examples will read “Italy” while contemporary examples may be sold with a small card noting the producer. These identifiers take on greater importance as Chinese factories have begun to copy the signature design features of the Italian ornaments.

First produced in the late 1940s, Italian glass Christmas ornaments entered the American market in the early 1950s. Illustrations identifying some of the now coveted early examples may be found in Christmas ornament collecting books or in manufacturer’s catalogues. The range of subject matter of Italian ornaments includes, but is not limited to, a seemingly inexhaustible selection of whimsical characters, fantasy animals, nativity scenes, urns, vases, chandeliers, indents, finials, painted spheres, balls and indents. Space themes were common as are sets of related figures such as Peter Pan and Captain Hook. Never abundant, the early Italianate ornaments can still be found inexpensively by the lucky collector who frequents garage and estate sales.

Dresden ornaments are some of the most charming and beautiful decorations ever manufactured for the Christmas tree. Taking their name from the Dresden-Leipzig area from which they were made, these little embossed cardboard creations come in a seemingly endless variety of shapes: suns, moons, fish, every imaginable animal, including exotic creatures such as polar bears, storks, eagles, peacocks and alligators. There were miniature sailboats and ocean liners, an entire orchestra of musical instruments, sleighs, coaches pulled by horses with tiny coachmen – practically everything one could imagine.

Most “Dresdens” were only 2-3 inches in size and were gilded or silvered, although some were painted by artists. Dresdens were primarily made between 1880 and 1910. They were manufactured using cardboard, dampened to make it flexible. It was then pressed in a stamping die, with each piece having an equivalent depression on a counter die. One ornament was often made of several pieces which, when dry, were taken home by cottage workers and assembled.

Despite the fact that many thousands were produced, relatively few Dresdens remain today, making them highly prized collectibles.