With age, there is a desire to remember childhood, to plunge into nostalgia, to touch associations that will awaken bright and pleasant emotions. For some reason 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 certain simplicity, scarcity and unpretentiousness of dishes holiday table.

The trend to celebrate in the manner of yesteryear is only growing. And a party in the American style no longer inspires contemporaries so much, I want to dress up fragrant needles with old Christmas tree decorations, and place cotton wool, nuts and tangerines under it.

Christmas tree variety

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

Icicles, cones, vegetables, houses, clocks, animals, stars, flat and voluminous, beads, together with cotton wool, flags and garlands of small light bulbs created a unique holiday composition. A considerable responsibility fell on the one who decorated the Christmas tree - after all, a fragile product shattered into fragments with the wrong movement, therefore, to dispose of the preparations for new year's eve was a privilege.

From toy story

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

Vintage Christmas decorations from Germany, like the current ones, form a trend in the field of Christmas decorations. In those days were very fashionable fir cones, covered with gilding, silver-plated stars, figures of angels made of brass. The candles were small, in metal candlesticks. On the branches they were placed with a flame outward, and lit exclusively on Christmas night. In the past, they 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 in wax. In the 19th century, glass toys appeared, but they were available only to wealthy families, while middle-class people decorated the Christmas tree with knocked down cotton, fabric and plaster figures. Below you can see what the old Christmas decorations looked like (photo).

In Russia, there were not enough raw materials for the production of glass-blowing jewelry, and imports were expensive. The first were old Christmas tree athletes, skiers in funny jerseys, skaters, pioneers, polar explorers, wizards in oriental outfits, Santa Clauses, traditionally with a big beard, dressed "in Russian", forest animals, fairy tale characters, fruits, mushrooms, berries, easy to make, which were gradually supplemented and transformed before another, more cheerful variety appeared. Dolls with multi-colored skin symbolized the friendship of peoples. Carrots, peppers, tomatoes and cucumbers, pleased with their natural color.

Grandfather Frost became a popular long-liver for many countries - a weighted figure made of cotton wool on a stand, which was later purchased at a flea market, with a face made of polyethylene and other materials. Gradually, his fur coat also changed: it could be made of foam, wood, fabric or plastic.

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

Since the 1940s, toys have appeared that depict household items - teapots, samovars, lamps. During the war years, they were made from production waste - tin and metal shavings, wire in limited quantities: tanks, soldiers, stars, snowflakes, cannons, airplanes, pistols, paratroopers, houses and what you just can not find, taking out a bag of old Christmas tree decorations from the attic.

At the fronts, New Year's needles were decorated with spent shells, shoulder straps, made from rags and bandages, paper, burned out light bulbs. At home, old Christmas toys were built from improvised means - paper, fabric, ribbons, eggshells.

In 1949, after the anniversary of Pushkin, they began to produce figurines-characters from his fairy tales, to which others were subsequently added. fairy-tale heroes: Aibolit, Little Red Riding Hood, Gnome, Little Humpbacked Horse, Crocodile, Cheburashka, fairy-tale houses, cockerels, nesting dolls, mushrooms.

Starting from the 50s, toys for miniature Christmas trees appeared on sale, which were conveniently located in a tiny apartment and quickly sorted out: these are cute bottles, balls, animals, fruits.

At the same time, old Christmas decorations on clothespins were now common: birds, animals, clowns, musicians. Sets of 15 girls were popular national costumes promoting the friendship of peoples. From that time on, everything that could be attached "grew" on the Christmas tree, and even sheaves of wheat.

In 1955, in honor of the release of the Victory car, a miniature appeared - a New Year's decoration in the form of a glass car. And after the flight into space, astronauts and rockets glow on the needles of the Christmas trees.

Until the 60s, vintage glass bead Christmas decorations were in fashion: tubes and lanterns strung on wire, sold in sets, long beads. Designers are experimenting with shape and color: figurines with relief, elongated and snow-covered pyramids, icicles, and cones are popular.

Plastic is actively used: transparent balls with butterflies inside, figures in the form of spotlights, polyhedrons.

From the 70-80s, toys of their foam rubber and plastic began to be produced. Christmas and village themes turned out to be dominant. Updated cartoon characters: Winnie the Pooh, Carlson, Umka. In the future, mass production of Christmas tree decorations became the norm. A fluffy snowball has come into fashion, with the hanging of which it is not always possible to see the rest of the decorations on the Christmas tree.

Closer to the 90s, bright and shiny balls, bells, houses are leading in production, and they are more fashionable, and not 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 the old ones will acquire the value of antiques.

DIY cotton 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 figurine from dirt and wear.

Some made their own. When the whole family gathered, people created Christmas tree decorations using a wire frame and painted them themselves. Today it is not difficult to recreate such old Christmas 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 base - a frame, which is then made of wire. The next step is to brew starch (2 tablespoons per 1.5 cups of boiling water). Disassemble the cotton wool into strands and wind it on the frame elements, wetting it with a paste and fastening it with threads.

Without wire, with the help of 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 covered with a new layer of cotton wool and soaked in egg white, which allows you to work with thin layers of cotton wool, penetrates into inaccessible areas and prevents the base material from sticking to your fingers.

The layers of cotton wool need to dry well, after which they are ready for painting with gouache, you can draw details, accessories on them, and insert faces from the pictures. This is exactly what the old Christmas tree decorations made of cotton wool were like - light enough to hang them on a threaded thread or put on branches.

Snowman

Everyone is familiar with the old Christmas tree toy Snowman made of cotton wool of the 1950s, later already produced from glass and representing on this moment is a collection value. Retro style clothespin decoration is a great gift for Christmas.

But vintage wadded Christmas decorations in memory of past years, as already mentioned, can be created independently. To this end, first make a wire frame, and then wrap it with cotton wool, periodically dipping your fingers into the glue. The torso is first wrapped in newspaper or toilet paper, also impregnated with paste or PVA. Wadded clothes are attached over the paper base - felt boots, mittens, fringe.

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

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

balls

Balls in the old days were also popular. But even those 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, thanks to which they create a fabulous illumination. Among them there are even phosphoric, glowing in the dark.

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

The old papier-mâché Christmas decorations were also extremely good: these are balls of two halves that you can open and find a treat inside them. Children love such unexpected surprises. Hanging these balloons among others or as a garland, they add an interesting twist and make for a fun mystery or gift discovery event that will be remembered for a long time.

A papier-mâché ball can be made independently using napkins, paper, PVA glue, having first prepared a mass for its layer-by-layer formation. To do this, the paper is soaked for a couple of hours, squeezed out, kneaded with glue, and then applied to the balloon in half. When the layer becomes dense to the touch, it can be decorated with ribbons and beads, painted with paints, and various applications can be pasted. But the most interesting thing is a gift hidden inside a kind of box without a lock. Both a child and an adult will be truly delighted with such an original packaging!

beads

Ancient Christmas decorations 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, airplanes, satellites, birds, dragonflies, handbags, baskets were also made from glass beads.

A series of toys with an oriental theme, released in the late 40s and retaining its popularity, represented such characters as Hottabych, Aladdin, oriental beauties. The beads were distinguished by filigree forms, hand-painted, reminiscent of Indian national patterns. Similar decorations 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 according to ancient 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.

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

Rain

What kind of rain was used to decorate the Soviet Christmas tree? It was a vertical flowing sheen, far from the voluminous and fluffy like contemporary specimens. If there were gaps between the branches, they tried to fill them with cotton wool, garlands and sweets.

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

paper toys

Many old do-it-yourself Christmas toys - plastic, paper, glass - were created by hand, so they looked very cute and charming. To repeat this masterpiece, you need very little time and materials.

A cardboard ring (for example, left after scotch tape) is decorated inside with an accordion made of colored paper, and outside with sparkles and snow. The harmonica may be different colors or with inclusions, tabs, for which you should bend a rectangle of paper of a different color and place it inside the ring.

You can make embossed balls from holiday cards by following scheme: cut out 20 circles, draw full-sized isosceles triangles on them from the wrong side, 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 front side out - they will form the upper part of the ball, five more - similarly to the bottom of the ball, the remaining ten - the middle part of the ball. Finally, connect all the parts with glue, threading a thread through the top.

You can also make three-color balls: cut out of colored paper and stack circles, placing two colors side by side, fasten them around the edges with a stapler. Then glue the edges of each circle as follows: the lower part with the left "neighbor", and its upper part with the right one. In this case, the plates from the stack will straighten out at the connected points, forming a volume. The ball is ready.

Toys made from other materials

The following materials open the field for fantasy:

• figurines made of cardboard and buttons (pyramids, patterns, little men);
• felt, the solid edges of which allow you to cut out any details and bases for toys;
• used disks (in an independent form, with a photo pasted in the center, in the form of an element - a mosaic crumb);
• beads, which are collected on a wire, give it the desired silhouette - a heart, an asterisk, a ring, complement it with a ribbon - and such a pendant is already ready to decorate the branches;
• egg tray (moisten, knead like dough, form and dry figures, color).

To make ball toys from 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 balloon with a 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 blown off 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 a ribbon, paste over with acorns, wrap it with a cord with rhinestones, put it in a wire with beads, attach beads, tinsel stones with a syringe with glue.

Where to buy vintage toys

Today, you can find old Christmas toys made of cotton wool or tinsel in the manner of past years at city flea markets. As an option, you can consider online auctions, online stores offering products from the era of the USSR. For some sellers, such jewelry is generally antiques and is part of the collection.

Today you can find old Christmas decorations in almost any city (Ekaterinburg, Moscow, St. Petersburg, etc.). Of course, many distributors will offer products of the past, recreated according to modern technologies, but among them there are specimens capable of surprising.

On the New Year holidays, you should pay attention to the exhibitions of old Christmas decorations, which are often organized in museums. The spectacle looks like a hall with a huge Christmas tree covered with Soviet-era toys from top to floor. On the walls there are stands with New Year's copies of the past, on which you can track the entire history of their transformation and even take a picture. AT new year holidays Admission to some museums is free.

And when there is a living Christmas tree in the house, decorated with Soviet-era toys, lights are shining and garlands are hung or candles are burning, all that remains is to turn on your favorite film "The Irony of Fate" and sit around the festive table with the whole family, as well as present your loved ones with New Year's souvenirs of your own making.

What is one of the most important signs of the New Year holidays? Of course, this is a Christmas tree. It is near this green beauty that miracles happen, gifts appear and the whole family gathers. But before that, we need to work a little: hang toys on the Christmas tree and decorate the apartment with Christmas decorations. In Europe, as in our country, it is customary to dress up a fluffy beauty with Christmas tree decorations. Let's combine business with pleasure today: decorate the Christmas tree together and learn English vocabulary on the topic "Christmas Decorations".

Christmas tree in English

It's all about which tree in question. If you mean a tree that grows in the forest, then you should remember the phrase fire tree(fir, spruce, tree), word spruce(spruce, conifer) or word pine tree(pine). But if you are talking specifically about the Christmas tree on English language then know what it will be christmas tree. You can cut down a real Christmas tree christmas tree farm. Of course, there are also bazaars where you can easily buy a living tree.

If you are a supporter of artificial Christmas trees, then you need to know the phrase artificial christmas tree. And Christmas trees decorated with fake snow will be called flocked christmas tree. Artificial cones can also hang on such trees ( pine cone).

For the Christmas tree itself, you need a stand ( tree stand) and a “skirt” covering the bottom of the tree ( tree skirt).

Christmas decorations

Each family has its own traditions on how to properly decorate the Christmas tree. Someone hangs toys of exactly the same color, while others try to alternate different colors, and still others hang absolutely everything that is in the house on the Christmas tree (just like the New Year's cartoon about Prostokvashino). But in any case, you should remember what all these Christmas decorations are called.

At the very top of the tree, we usually hang a star ( a star). And in English-speaking countries, it is customary to plant an angel on the top of the Christmas tree ( an angel). In general, any decoration on the top of the Christmas tree can be called christmas tree topper.

Christmas decorations in English will be christmas ornaments or tree ornaments, and Christmas tree lights - Christmas lights. If you love tinsel, then write down the word tinsel. Also, for a complete set of vocabulary for Christmas decorations in English, you will need the words ribbon(ribbon), candles(candles) and candy cane(candy in the form of a cane).

candy cane

In English-speaking countries it is customary to do customized jewelry on the tree For example, you can order a toy online with your name written on it. Or the decoration may have your photo on it. It is called personalized Christmas ornaments.

Personalized Christmas ornaments
You can also hang Christmas socks near the Christmas tree ( christmas stocking). Thus, you can receive gifts not only from Santa Claus, but also from Santa Claus.

Flowers for Christmas

In English-speaking countries, it is customary to buy a special red flower that symbolizes Christmas. Sometimes this flower is simply called christmas flower. But a better name would be Poinsettia(poinsettia, Christmas star). Also, do not be surprised if you meet flowers christmas cactus(Christmas cactus), holly ( holly) or mistletoe ( mistletoe). As we remember from the movies, it is customary to kiss under the mistletoe during the Christmas season. So be careful, or vice versa, hang it everywhere (it depends on your plans for the coming year). Just in case, remember this English vocabulary. You never know, suddenly you find yourself on a holiday among the English, missing home.

Poinsettia

Home decoration for Christmas

Many of us try to decorate not only the Christmas tree, but also dress up the whole house. You can hang tinsel throughout the house, buy a special New Year's tablecloth ( holiday tablecloth) or decorate the house with bows ( bow) and bells ( bell). It is customary to hang a special Christmas wreath on the door ( christmas wreat h). In front of a house in Europe, you can often see figurines associated with the holiday. For example, deer pulling a wagon, or funny snowmen. It is called lawn figures(lawn figurines) or Christmas yard/lawn decorations.

You can also hang a Christmas flag in front of the house ( holiday flag), and put a bow or some kind of decoration on the mailbox ( Bow or decoration for the mailbox). Children love to stick special window stickers ( Christmas window stickers) or scatter artificial snow everywhere ( artificial snow).
And of course, you will need a lot of Christmas garlands ( christmas tree light).

christmas wreath

We hope that thanks to this article you have learned not only the names of new Year decoration in English, but also got a couple of ideas on how else you can decorate your house for the New Year. Cut out snowflakes, paint on windows, and hang tinsel. After all, the expectation and decoration for the holiday sometimes even excites a little more than the New Year itself.

Shutikova Anna

Christmas decorations- mainly toys designed specifically for decorating a festive tree.

Decorating a Christmas tree is an ancient custom that in ancient times had the character of a religious rite. In the Soviet Union, a Christmas tree is a cheerful children's holiday, timed to coincide with the meeting of the New Year, a holiday that coincided with winter holidays schoolchildren. The decoration of the New Year tree entered everyday life as a children's holiday, during which, together with a decorated Christmas tree, in every house, school, club, Kindergarten, the nursery includes a reviving fairy tale with its fantastic plots and characters. Items that served to decorate the Christmas tree were made bright, colorful, elegant, so that the Christmas tree had a festive look.

In the design of Christmas tree decorations, an element of fabulousness plays an important role - goldfish, Santa Clauses, Snow Maidens, fantastic birds and animals. Even the most ordinary decorations made of cardboard and paper can have decorative colors that do not exist in reality. The theme of Christmas tree decorations is the most diverse: fruits, vegetables, trees, animals, figurines of people, household utensils and apartment furnishings, houses, means of all types of transport, characters from fairy tales, decorative items (beads, tips, balls, pendants, etc.).

For the manufacture of Christmas tree decorations in the Soviet period, a wide variety of materials were used in various combinations and combinations. The materials had to be light, so that the objects made from them would not burden the branches of the Christmas tree with their weight. All flammable items, especially cotton wool, had to be impregnated with a fire-resistant compound. For the same fire safety reasons, the use of celluloid toys to decorate the Christmas tree was not recommended.

By raw materials and processing technology Christmas decorations can be divided into the following main groups:

1) made of glass (balls, tops or spiers, various pendants, figurines of people and animals, beads, etc.);

2) from cardboard (cardboard): a) stamped (animals, birds, fish, human figures, etc.), b) glued (lanterns, bonbonnieres, houses, baskets, crackers, flags, etc.);

3) from tinsel and foil (garlands, Christmas tree "rain", stars, flowers, baskets, etc.);

4) from cotton wool (santa claus, fruits, mushrooms, figurines of people and animals);

5) items for lighting the Christmas tree (electric garlands, candles, candlesticks).

Christmas decorations made of glass- one of the main types of Christmas tree decorations. Without objects (toys) made of glass, the Christmas tree would look poor and boring. The surface of the glass, having an almost mirror-like luster, reflects the Christmas tree lights, endlessly repeating their reflections, and this creates an enchanting picture. Christmas decorations made of glass are blown from glass droit (tubes). Glass blowing can be done by mouth or mechanically- by means of compressed air on special blowing units. In domestic production, automatic blowing of the simplest types of spherical decorations from glass molten mass was mastered on carousel machines that manufacture radio lamps, electric lamps and other glass products. The technique of blowing objects for the Christmas tree from glass tubes is simple: a piece of glass drog (tube), heated on a burner, is melted from one end, and air is blown into it from the side of the free end, which pushes the walls of the dart in a heated place to a predetermined size. In order for the shape of the product to be correct, the dart is slowly rotated during the blowing process. While the product has not yet cooled down or after additional heating, deflections (holes), stripes (grooving) or spotlights (recesses) can be made in it with a sharpened stick. This processing is called hand molding. Stamping molding is carried out in metal split molds, the inner walls of which have the exact relief of the product. Molded products go to further processing - silvering, coloring and trimming of the stem. A cap is put on the processed products, after which the jewelry is packed in boxes, and those that are completed in sets - in cardboard boxes.

Automatic glass blowing for Christmas decorations is carried out on automatic carousel-type units. The molten glass mass from the melting furnace enters in strictly metered quantities into the nests of a slowly rotating machine, where compressed air is supplied with the help of a compressor, blowing the glass mass into a hollow product of a given relief. Finished goods arrive at another machine for trimming the stem. Further processing and finishing of the product is carried out in the usual manner.

According to the method of decoration, glass Christmas decorations were divided into the following groups:

1) silver-plated (amalgamated);

2) painted, including painted on silver;

3) artistically painted on silver, on colored colorless or colored glass.

For silver-plated items, mostly colorless (transparent) glass was used. For the manufacture of such products, lead glass could not be used, since it gives a dark shade of amalgam.

Christmas decorations made of glass in the USSR were made in a diverse assortment, which included: spherical or elliptical objects, smooth and with various reliefs; tops in the form of conical tips or five-pointed stars; faceted corrugated conical lanterns; fruits, vegetables, fruits, cones, acorns, pears, grapes, etc.; birds and fish, sometimes with false tails; figures of animals - dogs, deer, swans, ducks; these products are good in silver, as well as in white and colored glass in combination with one another; dishes and household utensils - samovars, teapots, jugs, vases, etc., they can be silver, painted and with artistic painting; technical items - airships, parachutes, boats, cars, tanks; products assembled from small beads and glass beads - airplanes, bicycles, chandeliers, traffic lights, etc. Their forms are largely arbitrary, which is associated with the characteristics of the source material.

Christmas decorations. Moscow factory of Christmas decorations

Christmas tree decorations made of cardboard Made from good quality thin cardboard.

They were conditionally divided into three groups:

1) stamped cardboard,

2) glued cardboard,

3) crackers, flags and lanterns.

Stamped cardboard made by stamping in metal molds. Each product consisted of halves glued together after stamping and die-cutting. Some complex toys (for example, birds, etc.) had more additional details. To give the toys a more elegant look, cardboard sheets were pasted over with aluminum or bronze potal paper before being put into production. Sometimes pasting was done with white paper, followed by coloring. For hanging on a Christmas tree, a small loop of dense colored threads was glued into the toy. To color stamped cardboard, aniline powder paints dissolved in alcohol varnishes or nitro varnishes were used. Painting was done with a spray gun, only some details were painted on by hand (eyes, fins, mouths, etc.). Cellophane served as an additional finishing material, colored paper, plush. The range of stamped cartonage included the following products: stars, comets, shells; animals and birds, insects, fish, reptiles; figures of people and various characters from fairy tales; transport items (airships, airplanes, etc.); household items (watches, etc.).

Glued cardboard it was cut down along the cutting contour with die-cuts and glued together with light carpentry glue. Finishing material was glued in the form of stripes, pleats and pleats. The finishing material was paper of different grades - potal, crepe, glossy, cigarette, as well as textiles of bright colors - silk, plush, velvet, satin and chintz, ribbons, paper lace, soutache, embossed pictures and tinsel. The assortment of glued cardboard included a variety of products: different houses, furniture, household utensils and toys, decorative baskets and bonbonnieres, various lanterns, animal figurines, transport items. All products made of glued cardboard were to have hangings for fastening, except for baskets and bonbonnieres, in which a handle could be used for hanging.

crackers were made by pasting a cardboard cylinder with different types of paper and cellophane, finished with different types of paper and cellophane, finished with paper lace at the ends of the cylinder at both its edges and tightened tightly. Surprises in the form of caps, half masks, aprons and other paper products were put into crackers of different sizes.

Flashlights various forms were made from corrugated paper. The corrugation was made in the form of an accordion so that the lanterns could be folded. The bottoms and the rim were made of cardboard. A wire eye was attached to the top rim.

Checkboxes were made from colored paper or from paper on which a drawing was printed in several colors. The flags were strung on a thread or braid into garlands consisting of an equal number of flags. Each garland had to have free ends of thread or braid at least 15 cm long on each side. Folded garlands were tied into bundles and sealed with a paper parcel.

Papier-mâché Christmas decorations and other pressed paper and wood pulp. Small figurines for the Christmas tree, as well as Santa Claus, Snow Maiden, etc. were made from papier-mâché and other pressed paper-wood masses. See the manufacturing process.

Christmas decorations from tinsel. Tinsel is a cord or thread spun from metal wire, silk or paper thread. Tinsel threads are copper, brass, silver-plated. Decorations were not made from tinsel threads alone, the threads were included only as additional material in different types products. Eyelets were made from tinsel, on which decorations were hung from the Christmas tree, bonbonnieres were tied with tinsel threads, they served as a decoration for products made of cardboard and cotton wool. Christmas decorations made of tinsel included the following types of products.

Christmas decorations from plush. Plushenko- this is a thin copper, silver-plated on copper or brass wire, flattened into a flat tape (hence its name), with a cross section of 6.025 to 0.05 mm. They made garlands, stars, comets, rain, sun from the plush; it was also used to decorate objects made of glass, cardboard and cotton wool. Plushenka has a significant reflective surface - it shines very effectively among the Christmas tree branches and gives the Christmas tree a special elegance.

Christmas decorations from the gimp. Gimp is the thinnest copper or brass wire, silver-plated, coiled into a thin spiral. Gimp, in contrast to flattened, has a matte sheen, it is very elastic, easily stretched, taking the most intricate shapes. Various figures, frames, made of wire, are braided with a thread in different directions, resulting in elegant decorations - butterflies, beetles, swans, flowers, fruits.

Foil Christmas Decorations. Foil is a thinly rolled sheet of aluminum or other metal. Beautiful rosettes and stars of various configurations and sizes are made from this material. They are mounted from separately stamped parts, painted with colored varnish in one or more colors.

Christmas tree decorations made of cotton wool. This group includes, first of all, Santa Clauses.

Santas- a traditional figure in the assortment of Christmas tree decorations. This is a character beloved by children from folk tales and literary works. Good-natured and cheerful, he was almost always depicted carrying in one hand (or on his shoulder) a Christmas tree and a bag of gifts, and in the other - a gnarled old man's stick-staff. Santa Clauses were usually made on stands ranging in size from 15 to 75 cm, but there were also smaller figures (pendant) - 10-12 cm. The basis of the figure of large Santa Claus is a frame made of wood or wire. A head (mask) was attached to the upper part of the body. The arms were made of wire. The entire structure (base) was wrapped in shavings, crumpled paper and gray cotton wool, after which a surface layer of cotton wool was wound, glued with potato starch. Sometimes clothes were made from crepe paper. Santa Claus was dressed in winter clothes various styles, but mainly, these clothes were an imitation of a tanned or cloth-covered sheepskin coat or undershirt. The hat was usually made fluffy with a top in the color of the fur coat. On a stand covered with cotton wool, the figure was fixed after the entire structure was wrapped in cotton wool. In addition to figures of grandfather frosts, large figures of snow maidens, as well as skiers, skaters, etc. were made from the same materials. In addition to grandfather frosts made from cotton wool, these figures were also made from sawdust by hot pressing. Such figures are more durable and strong than wadded ones. Santa Clauses were also produced, made by paper casting on vacuum plants. Some enterprises made Santa Clauses in a combined way: the front embossed part of the head, hands, etc. was stamped, and the rest of the body is processed by hand. Cotton figures were painted with aniline paints, and pressed ones - with oil paints. Cotton Christmas tree decorations were covered with "snow", which was made from crushed glass with a fixative, compiled according to a special recipe approved by the State Sanitary Inspectorate. The fixer did not allow the "snow" to crumble. The glue used to make Christmas tree decorations from cotton wool contained flame retardant ingredients to keep the cotton wool from catching fire.

Christmas tree lighting fixtures. Christmas tree especially effective in bright holiday lighting. The Christmas tree was illuminated with special candles inserted into candlesticks, electric bulbs or garlands of electric lamps. Candlesticks for the Christmas tree were stamped from tin or made from wire. Candlesticks had a different device: 1) with a clip that clamps a branch like a clothespin; 2) with a balance - balancing weight.

For making candlesticks white and black tinplate 0.3-0.5 mm thick, alcohol and nitro-lacquers, and enamel paints were used. The cup of the candlestick, where the candle was inserted, should not be narrower than 0.7 mm and should not go into a cone, otherwise the candle would fall out. The candlestick was supposed to have a socket for draining stearin, an elastic spring or a balance that ensures the balance of the candle.

Christmas tree candles were made from paraffin and sold by weight in packs of 25 pieces.

Electric garlands were made from small electric lamps. They came in parallel and serial connection. Light bulbs could be simple and figured. Electric garlands were calculated for a network of 120 and 220 volts.

Christmas toy "Snowflake"

Production of Christmas tree decorations in the USSR. Christmas decorations were produced by enterprises of the allied industry, mainly the Ministry of the Radio Engineering Industry, the Ministry of the Electrotechnical Industry, the Ministry of Instrument Engineering, as well as industrial cooperation. Industrial cooperation artels produced all kinds of Christmas decorations. The local industry of the Union republics, mainly the RSFSR and the Ukrainian SSR, produced Christmas tree glass, cardboard and wadded decorations. The main production bushes were located near large glass factories - suppliers of dart glass. Historically established fisheries were located in the Moscow region (Klinsky district), in the Kalinin and Leningrad regions, in Moscow and Leningrad, as well as in Ukraine in Kyiv. New enterprises organized during the Soviet period were also grouped mainly in the same places. In Moscow, there was the best factory of the Ministry of Local Industry of the RSFSR - the factory of glass Christmas tree decorations of the toy trust of the Moscow City Executive Committee. In Moscow, there was a factory of cardboard Christmas tree decorations of the same ministry. Large cooperative enterprises for the production of Christmas tree glass were the Optik artel, the Krasny Oktyabr artel (beads), as well as the Reshetnikovsky glass blower artel, the Yuzhno-Alferovskaya factory of local industry (Christmas tree glass), the Cooperative Labor artel (cotton ornaments, Santa Clauses and other figures from cotton wool). In Leningrad, the Kultigrushka artel played a leading role in the production of Christmas tree glass. Enterprises in Kyiv, Saratov, Lvov, Sverdlovsk, Yerevan, Riga, Minsk and others also produced Christmas decorations in a wide range.

Christmas toy "Apple"

Requirements for the quality of Christmas decorations. From Christmas tree decorations made of glass, it was required that the shape of the products was correct, without noticeable curvature, that the walls were not too thin and could withstand a light blow with a relaxed finger, that the silvering was uniform and not dull. Products painted or painted should not have stains and streaks on the surface, should not get their hands dirty. It was required that glass powder, diamond dusting and embossed paints not crumble, that the trimming of the stem (neck) was even, and the steel wire loop did not fall out of the hole in the stems.

The main requirements for the quality of tinsel products were that these products were well designed: the flattened pile was evenly and neatly trimmed, and its surface did not have dark spots. Cardboard stampings were required to have a dense surface without burrs and fringed edges, without wrinkles, cracks, or torn spots on the surface, so that they were embossed. When gluing, the products had to have tightly and evenly fitted edges, without glue streaks and dirty smears on the surface. The limbs of stamped products, having only one front side, were tinted from the inside. Glued cartonboard had to be well finished, regular in shape, free from stains, and strong enough to be transported and packaged. Flappers were required to have the correct cylindrical shape, to be neatly glued together, without spots, the paper lace of the crackers should not be wrinkled. The lanterns had to have a well-attached wire eye on which they were hung from the Christmas tree.

Packaging and labeling. Most Christmas tree decorations, due to their fragility, need good packaging. Packing of glass Christmas decorations, completed in sets, was carried out in cardboard boxes, lined inside with cotton or lignin. Products with artistic painting or decoration were wrapped in soft paper. The boxes were tied with twine and stacked tightly in a box with soft padding on all sides. Individual items could be packed with the same precautions in boxes without boxes. When packing, it was not allowed to use raw gasket materials and raw containers. Packaging must be careful and tight - without empty spaces; items were sized. On the top cover of the box there were inscriptions: “Top”, “Caution”, “Glass”, “Do not throw”. It was inserted inside the box, and a packing label of the established sample is glued on the outside. Tinsel garlands were tied together in packs of 10-15 pieces and sealed with paper tape in two places, after which 10 packs were tied together. The garlands had to be laid in rows in long boxes (the entire length of the garland) not very tightly so as not to crush the pile of the garland. Paper was laid in the boxes between the rows. In addition, the box had to be lined with paper inside. "Sun", "comets" were tied with thin wire, 10 pieces each, and placed in bags, boxes or plywood boxes. Christmas tree "rain" was packed in envelopes of 10 pieces and in packs of 100 envelopes. Stars, wreaths and other Christmas decorations were tied with soft wire or knitted, 10 pieces per pack. Products made from rigmarole and flattened, twisted on wire, fit into boxes and plywood boxes, and large products, in addition, were pre-wrapped in paper. Wadded Santa Clauses were placed in boxes one by one, small ones - several pieces in boxes, followed by packing in container boxes. On the boxes, bags and boxes in which Christmas tree decorations were packed, a label had to be pasted indicating the name of the product, quantity, name and address of the manufacturer.

Tiny tree. A set of Christmas decorations.

Sets of Christmas-tree decorations and various separate types of products, laid out in symmetrical groups, were exhibited in glassed-in counters. Tinsel garlands, Christmas tree rain, flags looked ornate when hung from nails, brackets, and other hanging devices. Carnival masks and streamers were also hung on wall cabinets.

To make it easier for customers to select Christmas tree decorations, it was desirable to have in the store indicative lists of sets of different prices, made up of available Christmas tree decorations. For the demonstration of Christmas tree decorations, lighted elegant Christmas trees of various sizes were recommended, installed in a store or on a rotating stand.

Christmas decorations. Factory of glass Christmas decorations and optical products

New goods. 1960. No. 5

With a diploma of the All-Union Chamber of Commerce

In a spacious and high room with a complex gas supply and ventilation system, the buzz of burners does not stop from morning to evening. The burners have glassblowers. Their products (although not table crystal or decorative glass) are known all over the world. Soviet Union and in many foreign countries. Glass Christmas tree decorations are made here, without which no one is inconceivable. New Year's celebration. 450,000 - 500,000 products worth about 600,000 rubles are produced per month by this section of the glass and optical toy plant of the Department of the Printing Industry and Recreational Goods of the Moscow City Executive Committee. In 1960, for the systematic mass production of consumer goods of high quality, by the decision of the Expert Council of the Permanent Pavilion of the Best Samples, a diploma of the III degree was awarded with an annual bonus of 20,000 rubles.

Now the plant team is working on mastering the production of souvenirs from optical cut and polished glass. And yet the main product of the plant is a glass Christmas tree toy. At exhibitions in Budapest, Brussels and New York, visitors admired bright, festive pendants, figurines, balls...

It would seem that an uncomplicated product is a Christmas tree toy. But how much invention, ingenuity, patience and labor the workers of the plant invested, so that, reflecting the light of bulbs, decorations with multi-colored lights began to play on the Christmas tree.

Over 200 items of Christmas decorations - this is the assortment of the plant's products. They are sold individually and in beautifully designed boxes with a window covered with cellophane. And almost every month there are more and more new types of jewelry. This is a great merit of the artist of the plant T. I. Sergeeva. Based on her sketches, forms are created and toys are painted. Only recently have interesting sets such as “Doctor Aibolit”, “Figured”, “Bells”, “Gray Neck”, “Silver Hoof”, “Friendship of Peoples”, etc. appeared. : Dr. Aibolit, grandfather Kokovanya, Daryonka, Santa Claus, Snow Maiden, Little Red Riding Hood, animals and birds - hare, duck, fox, penguin ...

It is hard to believe that all these toys are born from simple glass tubes (glass-dart) produced by the Klin and Skhodnensky glass factories. The tubes are calibrated and sent to glassblowers who give them the desired shape. In the hands of glass blowers A. K. Chernykh, M. M. Kondrashina, N. K. Deryabkina, V. V. Chirikina, G. P. Evgrafova, V. I. Romashkina and their comrades at work, “dead” glass pipes come to life.

But what glassblowers make is only a semi-finished product or, as they say, “naked”. Often the "naked" is silvered or aluminized. Aluminizing is a more advanced method that replaces silver plating. The installation of two aluminizing machines allowed the plant to save 100 kg of silver per year and reduce the labor-intensive production process.

Some toys are "naked" covered with a colorless or colored varnish; in some cases, they are painted with an airbrush.

The next processes are drying and coloring. An ornament is applied to toys with a brush or a “pound” (through a piece of paper folded into a bag). Toys are painted with whitewash and nitro enamel of various colors, also with the help of spray guns. The best painters of the Christmas decorations section are R. A. Vaskina and L. N. Poluektov. The ornament applied by them, delicate in pattern and fresh in color, adorns the products.

After coloring, Christmas decorations are processed on a mechanical disk knife (trimming of the so-called “whiskers”), metal clothespins or caps are put on them and wrapped in paper or packed in set boxes.

Among the brigades of the Christmas tree decorations section, competition for the right to be called collectives of communist labor was widely developed. The head of the site, I. V. Khayustin, calls the members of the youth brigade of R. I. Eremeeva the best among the best.

Other sections of the plant are also working successfully. The annual gross output is constantly growing and has already reached 17 million rubles. Not in vain high performance in the work of the plant's staff, the RK CPSU and the District Executive Committee of the Stalinsky district of Moscow were noted.

In the near future, it is planned to install centering and sticker machines at the plant, to start up a refrigeration unit, which greatly facilitates the removal of semi-finished optical products after processing. This will make it possible to significantly increase output and raise its quality even higher.

Christmas decorations "Baby"

Christmas toy "Bird"

Publications in the Traditions section

In the 21st century, it has become fashionable to decorate a Christmas tree with toys. self made. Today, balls are sewn from felt and patches, knitted from threads, folded from paper or even Lego. But still, with special trepidation and love, we take out old balls that have been preserved from grandmothers and great-grandmothers.

“A tree lit by lanterns or candles, hung with sweets, fruits, toys, books, is the joy of children who have already been told that a sudden reward will appear for good behavior and diligence on a holiday ...”

"Northern Bee", 1841

The first Christmas tree decor in Russia was designed to demonstrate abundance, so New Year trees were decorated with burning candles, apples and dough products. And in order for the Christmas tree to become bright and sparkling, decorations shimmering in the light were added: tinsel, gimp (thin metal threads), sparkles. In combination with burning candles, the effect of the play of light made the green beauty even more radiant and solemn.

From the middle of the 19th century, special artels began to operate, which were engaged in the production of garlands, Christmas decorations, as well as chains made of thin foil, tinsel and rain.

“The Christmas tree was bent from a lot of toys and sweets, it was blazing with a cheerful happy fire, crackers were crackling, sparklers suddenly flashed and crumbled into stars.”

Sergey Potresov. "A Christmas Story"

glass toys

Meeting of the New Year. 1950s Photo: ITAR-TASS

An old Soviet Christmas tree toy-airplane in the Museum of Christmas tree decorations "Klinskoye Compound", Klin. Photo: P. Prosvetov / photo bank "Lori"

The first glass toys: balls, beads, spherical mirror objects in the form of spotlights and icicles - appeared on Russian Christmas trees in the middle of the 19th century. They were heavier than modern ones because they were made of thick mirror glass. Initially, most of the glass jewelry was foreign-made, but very soon they began to be made in Russia.

“Buying a glass toy for a Russian inhabitant of the late 19th century was the same as buying a car for a modern Russian.”

Sergei Romanov, toy historian and collector of Christmas decorations.

It was in Russia that they came up with the idea of ​​decorating a spruce with women's jewelry - glass beads. The whole family was engaged in their production: small balls were blown by master glassblowers, women dyed beads, and children strung them on a thread. This craft was most widespread in the Klin district, where the Yolochka factory was later founded, and now it produces New Year's garlands.

Production of the Klin association "Herringbone", 1982. Photo: A. Semekhina / Newsreel TASS

Old Christmas toy - clown. Photo: Y. Zobkov / photobank "Lori"

Old Christmas toy - corn. Photo: Y. Zobkov / photobank "Lori"

In the late 1930s, heroes of children's literature appeared on the Christmas trees - Ivan Tsarevich, Ruslan and Lyudmila, brother Rabbit and brother Fox, Little Red Riding Hood, Puss in Boots, Crocodile with Totosha and Kokosha, Dr. Aibolit. After the premiere of the movie "Circus", circus-themed figurines became popular. In honor of the development of the North, Christmas tree paws were decorated with figurines of polar explorers. At the same time, filigree and hand-painted ornaments on an oriental theme appeared: Aladdin, the old man Hottabych, the sorcerer Chernomor.

During the war years, figurines of tank planes, Stalinist armored cars were hung on Christmas trees. They also made figurines from military shoulder straps and improvised materials, such as medical bandages.

New Year's composition. Photo: S. Gavrilichev / photo bank "Lori"

An old Christmas toy in the form of a Soviet airship. Photo: Y. Zaporozhchenko / photo bank "Lori"

Only after 1947 did the production of toys on a “peaceful” theme begin: New Year trees were decorated with fairy-tale characters, forest animals, fruits and vegetables.

After the release of the film "Carnival Night" in 1956, the famous Clock toys appeared - with hands set five minutes before midnight. In the 70s and 80s, cones, bells and houses were the most popular.

In addition, in the USSR, the Christmas tree was decorated with toys that reflected the ideals and aspirations of the communist state. So, on the same Christmas tree, vegetables and fruits, spaceships and submarines, figures of men in national costumes coexisted together. different peoples, factories and plants, domestic and wild animals, athletes.

Papier mache

Museum of Christmas decorations "Klinskoye Compound", Klin. Photo: S. Lavrentiev / photo bank "Lori"

Museum of Christmas decorations "Klinskoye Compound", Klin. Photo: S. Lavrentiev / photo bank "Lori"

Papier-mâché (a dense substance consisting of paper pulp mixed with glue, plaster or chalk) was widely used in the Soviet Union. In the USSR, the production of toys from papier-mâché was manual and consisted of a number of lengthy operations: molding, filling, priming, polishing, painting, painting with intermediate drying at a temperature of 20 to 60 °. The range mainly consisted of realistic figurines of people and animals. Bertolet salt coating made the surface of the toys more dense and gave them a soft sheen. New Year's masks and figures were created using vacuum casting large sizes for the Christmas tree (Santa Claus and Snow Maiden). Such toys were light in weight, but not inferior in strength to pressed ones.

All Christmas decorations differ in the material of manufacture.

The most common toys are:

• fabrics;
• cardboard;
• glass;
• plastics.

  They produce various toys that create a holiday atmosphere:

• animals and fairy tale characters;
• cars and planes;
• koloboks and baba yaga;
• Christmas balls.

Glass material is not as fragile as plastic. But it is the glass version that causes the most positive sensations. To decorate the Christmas tree, you can use balls from small size of the same color, and balls of different sizes and colors. If balls of various sizes are used, then the largest ones should be placed on the lower branches of the Christmas tree.

Size of Christmas toys

In stores, everyone can find and pick up Christmas trees up to a meter in size and more. And they sell large and small options for decorations - the buyer will be able to pick up Christmas decorations of any size.
There are artificial options for Christmas trees, the size of which reaches about one meter, and even larger ones for the street. In special jewelry stores you can find any toys for each spruce. This also includes balls. Moreover, manufacturers Christmas balls not stingy with fantasy - there are Christmas decorations of the most various forms- but this choice is for lovers, for those who know what to do with such jewelry.

Varieties of Christmas toys

The simplest and most standard types are Christmas balls. These are modern, voluminous balloons, which are painted independently. Majolica Christmas decorations are very popular. They are decorative items made of clay with a large shard, covered with glaze and then painted.

Decorating a Christmas tree with balls is very stylish and interesting. If the buyer is not sure that he can create it beautiful by decorating it with various decorations and toys, then it would be better to purchase a set of interesting balls that you like. Christmas decorations are common, for example, in the form of various cars or even shoes. You just have to choose the appropriate option.