Christmas Tree Ornaments

Until the mid 1800’s, Christmas trees were mainly decorated with homemade ornaments or items like fruit and nuts. Then German entrepreneurs began producing decorative blown glass tree ornaments, and in the 1880s F.W. Woolworth imported the first of these into the U.S., triggering the American love affair with ornaments.

The 1920s and 1930s brought a surge in popularity for glass ornaments, many imported from Germany. Vintage ornament collectors often focus on various themes from this period, collecting glass ornaments of certain shapes or colors for 'theme trees.' Examples include patriotic ornaments (red, white and blue) and those depicting animals or musical instruments. Silvered ornaments from this period, which reflect light, are also popular...