Vintage Christmas toys: history and photo

With age, there is a desire to recall childhood, to plunge into nostalgia, to touch associations that will evoke bright and pleasant emotions. For some reason, the New Year in the style of the times of the USSR remains a bright and welcome holiday in the memory of those over thirty, despite its some simplicity, shortage and unpretentious dishes of the festive table.

Vintage christmas toys




The tendency to celebrate the New Year in the manner of past years is only growing. And the party in the American manner is no longer so inspiring for contemporaries, I want to dress up fragrant needles with old Christmas tree decorations, and under it place cotton wool, nuts and tangerines.

Christmas tree variety

In Soviet times, the tree was decorated with an abundance of variegated decorations. Particular attention is paid to old Christmas-tree decorations on clothespins, allowing you to place them anywhere in the tree, even at the top or in the middle of the branch. This and Santa Claus, and the Snow Maiden, Snowman, Squirrel, cone, month or a flashlight. Toys of a later version are all kinds of cartoon characters, funny clowns, nested dolls, rockets, airships, cars.

Antique christmas toy snowman




Icicles, cones, vegetables, houses, watches, little animals, stars, flat and voluminous, beads with cotton wool, flags and garlands of small bulbs created a unique holiday composition. A lot of responsibility lay on the person who decorated the tree - after all, a fragile product would fly apart into fragments when it was moved incorrectly, so it was a privilege to dispose of preparations for the New Year's Eve.





From the history of toys

The traditions of decorating the New Year tree came to us from Europe: it was believed that edible objects - apples, nuts, sweets laid near the Christmas tree, were able to attract abundance in the new year.

Old Christmas tree decorations from Germany, as well as current ones, form a trend in the sphere of New Year decorations. In those years, fir cones covered with gilding, silver plated stars, and figurines of brass angels were very fashionable. The candles were small, in metal candlesticks. On the branches they had a flame outward, and were lit exclusively on Christmas night. In past times, Germanic toys had a huge cost per set, not everyone could afford them.

The toys of the 17th century were inedible and consisted of gilded cones, objects in foil based on tin wire, cast from wax. Glass toys appeared in the 19th century, but they were available only to wealthy families, while middle-income people decorated the Christmas tree with whipped cotton, fabric and plaster figures. Below you can see what the old Christmas tree decorations looked like (photo).

Vintage Christmas balls made of cotton




In Russia there was not enough raw materials for the production of glass-blowing jewelry, and import was expensive. The first were old Christmas tree toys made of cotton: athletes, skiers in funny sweatshirts, skaters, pioneers, polar explorers, wizards in oriental outfits, Santas, traditionally with a big beard, dressed in Russian, forest animals, fairy-tale characters, fruits, mushrooms, berries, simple to manufacture, which were gradually supplemented and transformed before another, more fun variety appeared. Dolls with multi-colored skin symbolized the friendship of peoples. Carrots, peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers, pleased with the natural color.





Grandfather Frost, a weighted figure made of cotton on a stand, which was later purchased at the flea market, with a face made of polyethylene and other materials, became popular for many countries. His coat was gradually changing: it could be made of polystyrene, wood, fabric or plastic.

DIY Christmas tree decorations




In 1935, the ban on the official celebration of the New Year was lifted, and the release of New Year's toys was arranged. The first of them were symbolic for the Soviet Union: some depicted state attributes - a sickle and a hammer, flags, photos of famous political figures, others became images of fruits and animals, airships, gliders and even the image of the Khrushchev era - corn.

From the 1940s, toys appeared depicting household items - kettles, samovars, lamps. In the war years, they were made from production waste - tin and metal shavings, wire in limited quantities: tanks, soldiers, stars, snowflakes, guns, airplanes, pistols, paratroopers, houses and what you can not find by taking a bag of old Christmas tree decorations from the attic.

At the fronts, Christmas needles were decorated with spent cartridges, epaulets, made of rags and bandages, paper, light bulbs that were burned out. Old Christmas tree toys were built at home from improvised means - paper, fabric, ribbons, eggshells.

In 1949, after Pushkin’s jubilee, they began to produce figures-characters from his fairy tales, which were subsequently supplemented by other fairy-tale characters: Aibolit, Little Red Riding Hood, Gnome, Little Humpbacked Horse, Crocodile, Cheburashka, fairy-tale houses, males, nesting dolls, fungi.

Starting from the 50s, toys for miniature Christmas trees appeared on sale, which were convenient to place in a tiny apartment and quickly disassemble them: these are cute bottles, balls, animals, fruits.

DIY do-it-yourself cotton Christmas balls




At the same time, old Christmas-tree decorations on clothespins were now common: birds, animals, clowns, musicians. Sets of 15 girls in national costumes that popularized the friendship of peoples were popular. Since that time, everything that could be attached, and even sheaves of wheat, have “grown” on the Christmas tree.

In 1955, in honor of the release of the Victory car, a miniature appeared - a Christmas decoration in the form of a glass car. And after flying into space, astronauts and rockets shine on Christmas tree needles.

Until the 60s, old Christmas-tree decorations made of glass beads were in fashion: tubes and lanterns strung on wire, sold in sets, long beads. Designers experiment with shape and color: relief figures, elongated and “sprinkled” with snow pyramids, icicles, cones are popular.

Vintage Christmas toys on clothespins




Plastic begins to be actively used: transparent balls with butterflies inside, figures in the form of searchlights, polyhedra.

From the 70-80s, they began to produce toys of their foam rubber and plastic. The Christmas and village themes turned out to be dominant. Updated cartoon characters: Winnie the Pooh, Carlson, Umka. In the future, serial production of Christmas toys became the norm. A fluffy snowball came into fashion, with the hanging of which other decorations on the Christmas tree are not always possible to consider.

Closer to the 90s, bright and shiny balls, bells, houses are in the lead in production, and they are more influenced by the fashion, rather than 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 old Christmas tree toys will gain the value of antiques.

DIY cotton wool toys

Pressed factory cotton toys were produced on a cardboard basis and were called "Dresden". After they improved somewhat and began to be covered with a paste, diluted with starch. Such a surface protected the figure from pollution and early wear.

Some made them with their own hands. Gathering as a family, people created Christmas decorations using a wire frame and painted them on their own. Today it’s easy to recreate such ancient Christmas tree toys from cotton wool with your own hands. This will require: wire, cotton wool, starch, egg white, a set of gouache paints with brushes and a little patience.

First, you can depict the desired figures on paper, draw their basis - the frame, which is then made of wire. The next step is to brew starch (2 tablespoons per 1.5 cup boiling water). Disassemble the cotton wool into strands and wrap it on the frame elements, wetting with paste and fixing with threads.

Without wire, using cotton wool and glue, you can make balls and fruits, and also use a paper base instead of metal somewhere. When the toys are dry, they should be overlaid with a new layer of cotton wool and saturated with egg white, which allows you to work with thin layers of cotton wool, penetrates into inaccessible areas and prevents the adhesion of the main material to the fingers.

Layers of cotton need to dry well, after which they are ready for painting with gouache, you can draw on them details, accessories, and faces - paste from pictures. Such were the old Christmas tree toys made of cotton wool - light enough to hang them on a threaded thread or lay them on branches.

Snowman

Everyone knows the old Christmas tree toy Snowman from cotton wool of the 1950s, later already made of glass and representing at the moment a collection value. Retro style clothespin is a great Christmas present.

Vintage Christmas tree toys photo




But old cotton Christmas balls in memory of past years, as already mentioned, can be created independently. To this end, first make a wire frame, and then envelop it with cotton wool, periodically lowering your fingers into the glue. The body is first wrapped in newspaper or toilet paper, also impregnated with paste or PVA. Wadded clothes - felt boots, mittens, fringe are fixed on top of the paper base.

To begin with, it is good to dip the material into water with aniline dyes and dry it. The face is a separate stage: it is made from salt dough, cloth or in another way, after which they are convex, glued to the figure and dried.

Toys created independently will give the Christmas tree an unforgettable flavor, because they are valuable not in beauty, but in originality. Such an item can be presented as a souvenir or complement them with the main present.

Balls

Balls in the old days were also popular. 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 garlands in themselves, thereby creating a fabulous illumination. Among them there are even phosphoric ones that glow in the dark.

Vintage Christmas tree toys




Balls-watches, reminiscent of the New Year’s dial, were placed on a Christmas tree in a prominent or central place. The arrows on them always showed at five to midnight. Such old Christmas tree decorations (see photo in the review) were placed just below the top, after the most important decoration - stars.

Old papier-mâché Christmas tree decorations were extremely good: these are balls of two halves that can be opened and a delicacy found inside them. Children love such unexpected surprises. If you hang these balls among the rest or in the form of a garland, they will bring an interesting variety and will become a pleasant mystery or event for finding gifts that will be remembered for a long time.

Vintage Christmas toys from Germany




A ball of papier-mâché can be made independently using napkins, paper, PVA glue, first preparing a mass for its layer-by-layer formation. To do this, the paper is soaked for a couple of hours, squeezed, knead with glue, and then put on the inflatable ball in half. When the layer becomes dense to the touch, it can be decorated with ribbons and beads, painted with paints, glued a variety of applications. But the most interesting is a gift hidden inside a kind of casket without a lock. Both a child and an adult will be truly admired by such an original packaging!

Beads

Antique Christmas tree toys in the form of beads and large glass beads 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 grandchildren from grandmothers. Bicycles, planes, satellites, birds, dragonflies, handbags, baskets were also made from bugles.

Bag of vintage Christmas toys




A series of oriental-themed toys, released in the late 40s and retaining its popularity, represented characters such as Hottabych, Aladdin, and oriental beauties. The beads were distinguished by filigree forms, hand-painted, 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 old 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 on their own.

Christmas toys on ancient technology




They glow in the dark and give the tree a unique charm. It seems that these are not simple figures, but real "stories"!

Rain

What rain decorated the Soviet Christmas tree? It was a vertical flowing shine, far from voluminous and fluffy like modern specimens. If there were voids between the branches, they tried to fill them with cotton wool, garlands and sweets.

Some time later, a horizontal rain appeared. Under the tree, it could partially be replaced with polystyrene.

Paper toys

Many old-fashioned Christmas tree decorations with their own hands - plastic, paper, glass were created by hand, therefore they looked very cute and charming. To repeat this masterpiece, you need very little time and materials.

A cardboard ring (for example, remaining after the adhesive tape) is decorated inside with an accordion of colored paper, and outside - with sparkles and snow. The accordion can be of different colors or interspersed with tabs, for which you should bend a rectangle of paper of a different color and place it inside the ring.

Exhibition of Antique Christmas Toys




You can make embossed balloons from holiday cards according to the following pattern: cut 20 circles, from the wrong side draw on them full-sized isosceles triangles, 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 outwards - they will form the upper part of the ball, another five - similarly to the bottom of the ball, the remaining ten - the middle part of the ball. Finally, combine all the parts with glue, threading the thread at the top.

Papier-mâché christmas tree decorations




Three-color balls can also be made: cut out of colored paper and stack the circles, placing two colors side by side, 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. In this case, the plates from the stack straighten out at connected points, forming a volume. The ball is ready.

Toys from other materials

The following materials open the field for fantasies:

  • figures from cardboard and buttons (pyramids, patterns, little men);
  • felt, the integral edges of which allow you to cut out any parts and bases for toys;
  • used disks (in an independent form, with a photo glued in the center, in the form of an element - mosaic chips);
  • beads to be assembled on a wire, to give it the desired silhouette - a heart, an asterisk, a ring, to complement it with a ribbon - and such a pendant is already ready to decorate the branches;
  • egg tray (moisten, knead, like dough, shape and dry the figures, paint).

For the manufacture of toy balls made of threads: inflate a rubber ball, smearing it with a fat cream, dilute PVA glue in water (3: 1), put the yarn of the desired color in a bowl with glue solution. Then start wrapping the inflated ball with thread (it can be replaced with a thin wire). Upon completion, leave it to dry for a day, after which the rubber ball is gently deflated and pulled through the threads. You can decorate such a toy with sequins to your taste.

Of course, the most uncomplicated, but interesting way to create and transform existing balls is to decorate them with artificial or natural materials: wrap the ball in fabric, add ribbon, glue it with acorns, wrap it with a cord with rhinestones, put it on a wire with beads, attach beads, tinsel stones with syringe with glue.

Where to buy antique toys

Today, you can find old Christmas tree toys made of cotton wool or tinsel in the manner of past years at city flea markets. Alternatively, you can consider online auctions, online stores offering products of the Soviet era. Some sellers of such jewelry are generally antiques and are part of the collection.

Today you can find in almost any city old Christmas-tree decorations (Yekaterinburg, Moscow, St. Petersburg, etc.). Of course, many implementers will offer products of the past recreated using modern technologies, but even among them there will be specimens that can surprise you.

Vintage cotton Christmas balls




In the New Year holidays, you should pay attention to the exhibition of ancient 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 are stands with New Year’s copies of the past, on which you can track the entire history of their transformation and even photograph. Entrance to some museums is free during the New Year holidays.

And when a live Christmas tree is standing in the house, decorated with Soviet-era toys, lights shine and garlands are hanging or candles are lit, all that remains is to turn on your favorite movie “The Irony of Fate” and the whole family to sit around the festive table, as well as present homemade souvenirs to relatives.




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